The hardest thing to do was trying to forget the meanings and interpretations imposed on me by other translations or tradition so that I could, hopefully, make decisions based more on the grammar and narrative of the text itself than on my own presuppositions or theological leanings. However, as I learn more about the Ancient Near East, I do hope to use that as a direct influence. Here, for example, I have translated verse one with heaven and earth
since this was a common phrase in the ancient world (for example, the Sumerian ziggurat, Etemenanki, house of the foundation of heaven and earth
). The phrase signified the entirety of the physical/material world. I now present the Hebrew of Genesis 1:1-6 as taken from the 1983 BHS Michigan-Claremont electronic text along with my humble translation.
בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא אֱלֹהִים אֵת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֵת הָאָֽרֶץ׃
וְהָאָרֶץ הָיְתָה תֹהוּ וָבֹהוּ וְחֹשֶׁךְ עַל־פְּנֵי תְהֹום וְרוּחַ אֱלֹהִים מְרַחֶפֶת עַל־פְּנֵי הַמָּֽיִם׃
וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים יְהִי אֹור וַֽיְהִי־אֹֽור׃
וַיַּרְא אֱלֹהִים אֶת־הָאֹור כִּי־טֹוב וַיַּבְדֵּל אֱלֹהִים בֵּין הָאֹור וּבֵין הַחֹֽשֶׁךְ׃
וַיִּקְרָא אֱלֹהִים ׀ לָאֹור יֹום וְלַחֹשֶׁךְ קָרָא לָיְלָה וַֽיְהִי־עֶרֶב וַֽיְהִי־בֹקֶר יֹום אֶחָֽד׃ פ
וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים יְהִי רָקִיעַ בְּתֹוךְ הַמָּיִם וִיהִי מַבְדִּיל בֵּין מַיִם לָמָֽיִם׃
Genesis 1:1-6
1. In a beginning, Elohim created heaven and earth. 2. But the earth was vacuous and uninhabited, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and a wind of Elohim was swooping over the surface of the water. 3. Then Elohim said, “Let there be light” and light was there. 4. Then Elohim saw that the light was good and made a separation between the light and the darkness. 5. And Elohim called, “Day!” in reference to the light. And in reference to the darkness, Elohim called, “Night!” And evening was there. And morning was there. Day one. 6. Then Elohim said, “Let there be a broadened space in the midst of the water and let a separation be there between waters for the water.”
Genesis 1:1-6