Bible HebrewIn the Beginning Genesis 1:1–3
The opening lines of the Torah. Watch how Hebrew storytelling works: the verb usually comes first, then the one who acts.
Genesis 1:1
בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא אֱלֹהִים אֵת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֵת הָאָרֶץ
Bərēshīth bārā ʾĕlōhīm ʾēth hashshāmayim wəʾēth hāʾāreṣ
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
Word by word
| Hebrew | Sounds | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| בְּרֵאשִׁית | bərēshīth | in (the) beginning |
| בָּרָא | bārā | created |
| אֱלֹהִים | ʾĕlōhīm | God |
| אֵת | ʾēth | (object marker) |
| הַשָּׁמַיִם | hashshāmayim | the heavens |
| וְאֵת | wəʾēth | and (object marker) |
| הָאָרֶץ | hāʾāreṣ | the earth |
- בָּרָא: Verb first, subject second: בָּרָא אֱלֹהִים is literally “created God”. Hebrew stories usually put the verb before the one who acts. בָּרָא is a past-tense verb, “he created” (its form, the Qal perfect, comes in level 4).
- אֱלֹהִים: The ending ־ִים normally marks a plural (compare מְלָכִים, “kings”). But the verb בָּרָא is singular, so the sentence treats אֱלֹהִים as one subject: “God”. When the same word means “gods”, it takes plural verbs and adjectives (see Exodus 20:3).
- בְּרֵאשִׁית: No article is written: בְּרֵאשִׁית, not בָּרֵאשִׁית (“in the beginning”). That is why some translations read “In the beginning God created…” and others “When God began to create…”. Both are defended on grammatical grounds.
- אֵת: אֵת has no English equivalent. It marks the next word as the definite object of the verb: what was created.
Genesis 1:2
וְהָאָרֶץ הָיְתָה תֹהוּ וָבֹהוּ וְחֹשֶׁךְ עַל־פְּנֵי תְהוֹם וְרוּחַ אֱלֹהִים מְרַחֶפֶת עַל־פְּנֵי הַמָּיִם
Wəhāʾāreṣ hāythā thōhū wāvōhū wəḥōshekh ʿal-pənē thəhōm wərūaḥ ʾĕlōhīm məraḥefeth ʿal-pənē hammāyim
“And the earth was formless and empty, and darkness was upon the face of the deep, and the Spirit (or wind) of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”
Word by word
| Hebrew | Sounds | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| וְהָאָרֶץ | wəhāʾāreṣ | and the earth |
| הָיְתָה | hāythā | was |
| תֹהוּ | thōhū | formless |
| וָבֹהוּ | wāvōhū | and empty |
| וְחֹשֶׁךְ | wəḥōshekh | and darkness |
| עַל | ʿal | upon |
| פְּנֵי | pənē | the face of |
| תְהוֹם | thəhōm | the deep |
| וְרוּחַ | wərūaḥ | and (the) spirit / wind of |
| אֱלֹהִים | ʾĕlōhīm | God |
| מְרַחֶפֶת | məraḥefeth | hovering |
| עַל | ʿal | over |
| פְּנֵי | pənē | the face of |
| הַמָּיִם | hammāyim | the waters |
- וְהָאָרֶץ: This verse opens with וְ + a noun instead of a verb. In Hebrew narrative that pattern pauses the story to describe the scene: “Now the earth was…”.
- הָיְתָה: הָיְתָה ends in ־ָה, the feminine form (“she was”). It agrees with אֶרֶץ, which is a feminine noun.
- וָבֹהוּ: תֹהוּ וָבֹהוּ is a rhyming pair. בֹהוּ occurs only three times in the Bible, and every time it is paired with תֹהוּ.
- וְרוּחַ: רוּחַ can mean “wind”, “breath” or “spirit”. “The spirit of God” and “a wind from God” are both grammatically possible, and translations differ.
- מְרַחֶפֶת: A verb used as an “-ing” word, “hovering”: an action still going on (this form, the participle, comes in level 4). It is feminine, agreeing with רוּחַ. In this form the verb appears elsewhere only in Deuteronomy 32:11, of an eagle fluttering over its young.
Genesis 1:3
וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים יְהִי אוֹר וַיְהִי־אוֹר
Wayyōmer ʾĕlōhīm yəhī ʾōr wayhī-ʾōr
“And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.”
Word by word
| Hebrew | Sounds | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּאמֶר | wayyōmer | and (he) said |
| אֱלֹהִים | ʾĕlōhīm | God |
| יְהִי | yəhī | let there be |
| אוֹר | ʾōr | light |
| וַיְהִי | wayhī | and there was |
| אוֹר | ʾōr | light |
- וַיֹּאמֶר: וַ + a prefix verb form is the wayyiqtol, the main verb form of Hebrew storytelling: “and (then) he said”. Most sentences in Genesis narrative start this way.
- יְהִי: Same verb, two forms: יְהִי is a wish, “let there be” (the Commands & Wishes lesson, level 4); וַיְהִי is a story verb, “and there was”. The words spoken and what happened use the same verb, one after the other.
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