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| Display: [references|view all] | | | Problem | What did God create? According to Gen. 1:1 God created the heaven, but in Gen. 2:1 it is the heavens. Explain how it is written that way or is there another explanation for the obvious wording in God's holy book. | Date: Aug 8, 2006 By: blood bought 1 Problem0 Solutions | References | | Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. | | Genesis 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. | | Thy Word is True...Solution! | | Date: Aug 8, 2006 | Posted By: Adam Engesath | This is a great question. No amount of Hebrew is going to be of service in this passage since the word "shamayim" is dual in form with either a singular or plural meaning.
So the question becomes. Should it be singular or plural? The KJV Translators chose to make it singular in Gen. 1:1 and plural in Gen. 2:1. Why?
The simple solution is this...Genesis chapter 1 chronologically outlines the events of the creation while Genesis chapter 2 summarizes these events. In 1:1 God began by creating a single heaven and a single earth. As you read down through the account you will learn how God divided this heaven into three sections:
- Where the birds fly (Gen 1:20)
- Where the Sun, Moon, Stars, and Planets exist (Gen 1:14-17)
- The Third Heaven where Paul gets caught up to (2 Cor 12:2)
Collectively, all three of these sections are "heaven," but they consist of three unique sections each called "heaven." Therefore, it is perfectly acceptable and accurate to refer to the undivided heavens as "heaven" in Gen. 1:1, and to refer to the divided heavens as "heavens" in Gen. 2:1.
Please see my picture below.
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