Donald: Could you provide the relevant passages in Enoch? Of course, this may be an entirely different question as Enoch is much later than either D or P. I tend to think the authors of the Biblical text were more poetic than even ancient interpreters understood. Once a text is considered sacred and inspired there is a tendency to favor more literal readings. On the nature of the heavenly waters above the raqia consider the following. Note that the throne of God is said to rest upon the heavenly waters, "thick clouds". So it doesn't seem that raqia as the boundary between the open air and the clouds, need be a physical object or that the author envisioned a celestial ocean above the raqia. Peace, Ted Brownstein Job 26:7 He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing. 26:8 He bindeth up the waters in his thick clouds; and the cloud is not rent under them. 26:9 He holdeth back the face of his throne, and spreadeth his cloud upon it. ============================================================== Job 38:4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. 38:5 Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? 38:6 Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; 38:7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? 38:8 Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb? 38:9 When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddling band for it, ========== Psalms 29:3 The voice of the LORD is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the LORD is upon many waters... 29:10 The LORD sitteth upon the flood; yea, the LORD sitteth King for ever. ===== Proverbs 8:27 When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth: 8:28 When he established the clouds above: ============= In a message dated 8/31/2012 9:44:56 A.M. Central Daylight Time, [email protected] writes:
In all this discussion, the salient fact that the raqia separated the waters by lifting them implies a solid entity. The metaphorical language is evident in the Dt passage, but that doesn't preclude the conceptualization of the raqia as a solid entity, and a metaphorical explanation ignores the capability of lifting the water. Read Enoch. The sleuce gates/windows are taken quite literally. Donald R. Vance, Ph.D. Professor of Biblical Languages and Literature Oral Roberts University [email protected] [email protected] _______________________________________________ b-hebrew mailing list [email protected] http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/b-hebrew
