StrongerBible

raqi'a

רָקִיעַ

HebrewH7549“firmament, expanse, ...”

Appears 17 times · tap a cell to see the verses

Gen 1:6Gen 1:7 (3×)Gen 1:8Gen 1:14Gen 1:15Gen 1:17Gen 1:20Psa 19:1(2)Psa 150:1Ezk 1:22Ezk 1:23Ezk 1:25Ezk 1:26Ezk 10:1Dan 12:3
Root family
Word studyResearch-graderah-KEE-ahnoun

What raqi'a means

the firm vault of the sky: a solid expanse God beat out overhead, holding back the waters above and carrying the lights

TranslatabilityPartialCertaintyStrong

This word names the sky thought of as a hard, beaten-out dome stretched over the world. It comes from a verb used for a metalworker pounding gold or bronze into a thin sheet, and the Bible pictures the sky the same way: in Job a poet calls it hard as a mirror cast from molten metal. In the creation account God makes this vault to split the waters, keeping a great ocean above it from the waters below, and he sets the sun, moon, and stars in it. That is the one thing the word always points to, but writers press different parts of the picture depending on what they are saying.

In the creation account the stress falls on the vault as built structure: God commands it, makes it, and assigns the lights to it, so it is the architecture that turns watery chaos into an ordered world. In Ezekiel's vision the same dome becomes the shining floor under God's throne, and its solidity is felt all the more, since it is firm enough to hold up a throne and gleams like terrifying ice. In the Psalms and Daniel the picture turns toward its brightness: the dome announces God's glory without words, stands for his heavenly sanctuary, and shines so that the wise are said to shine like it.

So the senses below are not different objects. They are one vault seen from different angles:

  • as the made structure of the world
  • as the platform beneath God's throne
  • as the radiant sky that displays and houses his presence

Nuances

1athe solid sky-vault God made to hold back the waters above and to carry the sun, moon, and stars
Gen 1:6Gen 1:7 (3×)Gen 1:8Gen 1:14Gen 1:15Gen 1:17Gen 1:20
1bthe same vault seen as a gleaming, crystal-like platform that holds up God's throne
Ezk 1:22Ezk 1:23Ezk 1:25Ezk 1:26Ezk 10:1
1cthe bright sky-vault as a witness to God's glory, his heavenly sanctuary, and an image of radiance
Psa 19:1(2)Psa 150:1Dan 12:3

What scholars say about raqi'a

The dominant view in modern scholarship is that this word names a solid, beaten-out cosmic vault, the kind of object its parent verb describes when a worker hammers metal into a thin sheet. This reading is shared by the major lexicons (BDB, HALOT, the Gesenius 18th edition, and TDOT) and by leading commentators on Genesis (von Rad, Westermann, Sarna, Mark Smith) and Ezekiel (Greenberg, Zimmerli, Block). It rests on the word's formation as the result of that verb, on the only other cosmic use of the verb in Job 37:18 (the sky "hard as a cast mirror"), on the crystal-like throne platform of Ezekiel 1:22, and on the wider ancient Near Eastern picture of a solid sky holding back heavenly waters. The early Greek and Latin translations (rendering it as something made firm) reflect this same understanding. A minority of conservative interpreters prefer the translation "expanse" and resist the picture of a literal solid dome; even they generally concede the hammering-out etymology.

Where scholars disagree about raqi'a

How to translate the word, and whether it names a literal solid dome or simply an open expanse of sky. The choice between "firmament" (a solid vault) and "expanse" (open space) is genuinely debated.

  • majorityIt names a solid, beaten-out vault, a hard structure overhead that holds back the waters above and bears the lights, best rendered "firmament" or "vault." This rests on the word's formation, the metal-mirror simile of Job 37:18, Ezekiel's crystal throne platform, and the wider ancient Near Eastern picture of a solid sky.; HALOT, vol. 3, s.v. רקיע; M. Goerg, "raqaʿ / raqiaʿ," Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament, vol. 13 (Eerdmans, 2004), 646-59; G. von Rad, Genesis: A Commentary, OTL, rev. ed. (Westminster, 1972), 53; P. H. Seely, "The Firmament and the Water Above, Part I," Westminster Theological Journal 53.2 (1991): 227-40
  • minorityIt is better rendered "expanse," read from the viewpoint of an observer on the ground, and need not be pressed into a literal solid dome. Held mainly within conservative scholarship, though even its defenders generally grant the hammering-out etymology.; J. B. Payne, "raqaʿ / raqiaʿ," entry 2217 in Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (Moody, 1980), 862; R. W. Younker and R. M. Davidson, "The Myth of the Solid Heavenly Dome," Andrews University Seminary Studies 49.1 (2011): 125-47
In-depth research

This is a research paper, so it may be hard to read without scholarly background. It is useful if you want to dig even deeper into this word.

Sources

  • BDB, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, s.v. רקיעlexicon
  • HALOT, vol. 3, s.v. רקיעlexicon
  • Gesenius, Hebraisches und Aramaisches Handwoerterbuch ueber das Alte Testament, 18th ed., s.v. רקיעlexicon
  • D. J. A. Clines, ed., The Dictionary of Classical Hebrew, vol. 7, s.v. רקיעlexicon
  • M. Goerg, "raqaʿ / raqiaʿ," Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament, vol. 13 (Eerdmans, 2004), 646-59theological-dictionary
  • J. B. Payne, "raqaʿ / raqiaʿ," entry 2217 in Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (Moody, 1980), 862theological-dictionary
  • G. von Rad, Genesis: A Commentary, OTL, rev. ed. (Westminster, 1972), 53commentary
  • C. Westermann, Genesis 1-11: A Continental Commentary (Augsburg/Fortress, 1984), 115-17commentary
  • N. M. Sarna, Genesis, JPS Torah Commentary (JPS, 1989), 8-9commentary
  • M. S. Smith, The Priestly Vision of Genesis 1 (Fortress, 2010)monograph
  • M. Greenberg, Ezekiel 1-20, AB 22 (Doubleday, 1983), 47-51commentary
  • W. Zimmerli, Ezekiel 1, Hermeneia (Fortress, 1979), 122-28commentary
  • D. I. Block, The Book of Ezekiel, Chapters 1-24, NICOT (Eerdmans, 1997), 101-5commentary
  • J. J. Collins, Daniel: A Commentary, Hermeneia (Fortress, 1993), 393-94commentary
  • L. I. J. Stadelmann, The Hebrew Conception of the World, AnBib 39 (Pontifical Biblical Institute, 1970), 37-60monograph
  • W. Horowitz, Mesopotamian Cosmic Geography, Mesopotamian Civilizations 8 (Eisenbrauns, 1998)monograph
  • P. H. Seely, "The Firmament and the Water Above, Part I," Westminster Theological Journal 53.2 (1991): 227-40article
  • J. H. Walton, Genesis 1 as Ancient Cosmology (Eisenbrauns, 2011)monograph
  • R. W. Younker and R. M. Davidson, "The Myth of the Solid Heavenly Dome," Andrews University Seminary Studies 49.1 (2011): 125-47article

AI-generated word study · claude-opus-4-8

All attested forms of רָקִיעַ

m s absolute

רָקִיעַ

Gen 1:6, Gen 1:7, Gen 1:7, Gen 1:7, Gen 1:8, Psa 19:1, Ezk 1:22, Ezk 1:23

m s construct

רְקִיעַ

Gen 1:14, Gen 1:15, Gen 1:17, Gen 1:20, Psa 150:1