New Living Translation
Genesis 1:14
14Then God said, “Let lights appear in the sky to separate the day from the night. Let them be signs to mark the seasons, days, and years.
Genesis 1:14 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:
- New International Version (NIV)And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years,
- English Standard Version (ESV)And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years,
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years;
Context of Genesis 1:14
12The land produced vegetation—all sorts of seed-bearing plants, and trees with seed-bearing fruit. Their seeds produced plants and trees of the same kind. And God saw that it was good. 13And evening passed and morning came, marking the third day. Then God said, “Let lights appear in the sky to separate the day from the night. Let them be signs to mark the seasons, days, and years. 15Let these lights in the sky shine down on the earth.” And that is what happened. 16God made two great lights—the larger one to govern the day, and the smaller one to govern the night. He also made the stars.
Read all of Genesis 1Genesis 1:14 word by word
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱלֹהִ֗ים יְהִ֤י מְאֹרֹת֙ בִּרְקִ֣יעַ הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם לְהַבְדִּ֕יל בֵּ֥ין הַיּ֖וֹם וּבֵ֣ין הַלָּ֑יְלָה וְהָי֤וּ לְאֹתֹת֙ וּלְמ֣וֹעֲדִ֔ים וּלְיָמִ֖ים וְשָׁנִֽים׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Let there be lightsמָאוֹרmâ'ôr mâ'ôr me'ôrâh me'ôrâh · lightH3974
- in the firmamentרָקִיעַrâqîya‛ · expanseH7549
- of the heavenשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064
- to divideבָּדַלbâdal · to separateH914
- the dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- from the nightלַ֫יְלָהlayil lêyl layelâh · nightH3915
- and let them be for signsאוֹת'ôth · sign: indicatorH226
- and for seasonsמוֹעֵדmô‛êd mô‛êd mô‛âdâh · meeting: time appointedH4150
- and yearsשָׁנָהshâneh shânâh · yearH8141
Cross-references for Genesis 1:14
- Deuteronomy 4:19And when you look up into the sky and see the sun, moon, and stars—all the forces of heaven—don’t be seduced into worshiping them. The Lord your God gave them to all the peoples of the earth.
- Job 25:3Who is able to count his heavenly army? Doesn’t his light shine on all the earth?
- Job 38:12“Have you ever commanded the morning to appear and caused the dawn to rise in the east?
- Psalms 8:3When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers— the moon and the stars you set in place—
- Psalms 19:1The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship.
- Psalms 74:16Both day and night belong to you; you made the starlight and the sun.
- Psalms 104:19You made the moon to mark the seasons, and the sun knows when to set.
- Psalms 119:91Your regulations remain true to this day, for everything serves your plans.
- Psalms 136:7Give thanks to him who made the heavenly lights— His faithful love endures forever.
- Psalms 148:3Praise him, sun and moon! Praise him, all you twinkling stars!
- Isaiah 40:26Look up into the heavens. Who created all the stars? He brings them out like an army, one after another, calling each by its name. Because of his great power and incomparable strength, not a single one is missing.
- Jeremiah 31:35It is the Lord who provides the sun to light the day and the moon and stars to light the night, and who stirs the sea into roaring waves. His name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, and this is what he says:
- Jeremiah 33:20“This is what the Lord says: If you can break my covenant with the day and the night so that one does not follow the other,
- Genesis 1:3Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
- Genesis 8:22As long as the earth remains, there will be planting and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night.”
- Genesis 9:13I have placed my rainbow in the clouds. It is the sign of my covenant with you and with all the earth.
Commentaries on Genesis 1:14
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 14And God said, Let there be lights, etc. - One principal office of these was to divide between day and night. When night is considered a state of comparative darkness, how can lights divide or distinguish it? The answer is easy: The sun is the monarch of the day, which is the state of light; the moon, of the night, the state of darkness. The rays of the sun, falling on the atmosphere, are refracted and diffused over the whole of that hemisphere of the…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14-19Verses 14-19 - VI. The Fourth Day 14. מאור mā'ôr “a light, a luminary, a center of radiant light.” מועה mô‛ēd “set time, season.” Words beginning with a formative מ m usually signify that in which the simple quality resides or is realized. Hence, they often denote place. 17. נתן nāthan “give, hold out, show, stretch, hold out.” Latin: tendo, teneo; ́ teinō darkness has been removed from the face of the deep, its waters have been distributed in due…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-19Verses 14-19 In the fourth day's work, the creation of the sun, moon, and stars is accounted for. All these are the works of God. The stars are spoken of as they appear to our eyes, without telling their number, nature, place, size, or motions; for the Scriptures were written, not to gratify curiosity, or make us astronomers, but to lead us to God, and make us saints. The lights of heaven are made to serve him; they do it faithfully, and shine in their…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14let them … mark the seasons and days and years: The movement of the heavenly objects ordered Israel’s liturgical calendar. This calendar, rooted in creation, provided sacred timing for Israel’s festivals and celebrations (see Exodus 23:15; Leviticus 23:4).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 14-1914. let there be lights in the firmament--The atmosphere being completely purified, the sun, moon, and stars were for the first time unveiled in all their glory in the cloudless sky; and they are described as "in the firmament" which to the eye they appear to be, though we know they are really at vast distances from it.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 1:14
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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