Genesis 1:15

And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
lights	לִמְאוֹרֹת֙ lim.'o.Rot	H3974	properly · preposition + noun, common masculine plural absolute
firmament	בִּרְקִ֣יעַ bir.Ki.a'	H7549	properly · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct
heaven	הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם ha.sha.Ma.yim	H8064	the sky (as aloft · definite article + noun, common masculine plural absolute
light	לְהָאִ֖יר le.ha.'Ir	H215	to be (causative · preposition + verb, hiphil infinitive construct
earth	הָאָ֑רֶץ ha.'A.retz	H776	the earth (at large · definite article + noun, common feminine singular absolute

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Genesis 1:14-19

This is the history of the fourth day's work, the creating of the sun, moon, and stars, which are here accounted for, not as they are in themselves and in their own nature, to satisfy the curious, but as they are in relation to this earth, to which they serve as lights; and this is enough to furnish us with matter for praise and thanksgiving. Holy Job mentions this as an instance of the glorious power of God, that by the Spirit he hath garnished the heavens (Job 26:13); and here we have an account of that garniture which is not only so much the beauty of the upper world, but so much the blessing of this lower; for though heaven is high, yet has it respect to this earth, and therefore should…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Genesis 1:14

FOURTH DAY. (Gen 1:14-19) let there be lights in the firmament--The atmosphere being completely purified, the sun, moon, and stars were for the first time unveiled in all their glory in the cloudless sky; and they are described as "in the firmament" which to the eye they appear to be, though we know they are really at vast distances from it.

Adam Clarke on Genesis 1:14

And God said, Let there be lights, etc. - One principal office of these was to divide between day and night. When night is considered a state of comparative darkness, how can lights divide or distinguish it? The answer is easy: The sun is the monarch of the day, which is the state of light; the moon, of the night, the state of darkness. The rays of the sun, falling on the atmosphere, are refracted and diffused over the whole of that hemisphere of the earth immediately under his orb; while those rays of that vast luminary which, because of the earth's smallness in comparison of the sun, are diffused on all sides beyond the earth, falling on the opaque disc of the moon, are reflected back upon…

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John Gill on Genesis 1:15

And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven,.... To continue there as luminous bodies; as enlighteners, as the word signifies, causing light, or as being the instruments of conveying it, particularly to the earth, as follows: to give light upon the earth; and the inhabitants of it, when formed: and it was so: these lights were formed and placed in the firmament of the heaven for such uses, and served such purposes as God willed and ordered they should.

The Church Fathers

So that they may shine in the firmament of the heaven, and give light upon the earth; and it was so. Indeed, the luminaries always shine in the firmament of the heaven, as we have said, and they flood the nearby regions with bright light, but at appropriate times they give light to the earth. For sometimes the cloudy atmosphere obstructs, so that neither the light of the moon, when it is small, nor the light of the stars appears to the earth; and the rising of the sun, with its greater light, prevents the moon and the stars from illuminating the earth; hence it is named in Latin, because it alone, with the stars and the moon obscured, shines on the earth during the day.
— Bede, Commentary on Genesis (Hexaemeron)

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Astronomy — The Hebrews were devout students of the wonders of the starry firmanent (Amos 5:8; Ps. 19). In the Book of Job, which is the oldest book of the Bible in all probability, the constellations are…
Genesis — The five books of Moses were collectively called the Pentateuch, a word of Greek origin meaning “the five-fold book.” The Jews called them the Torah, i.e., “the law.” It is probable that the division…
Moon — Heb. yareah, from its paleness (Ezra 6:15), and lebanah, the “white” (Cant. 6:10; Isa. 24:23), was appointed by the Creator to be with the sun “for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years”…
Sun — (Heb. shemesh), first mentioned along with the moon as the two great luminaries of heaven (Gen. 1:14-18). By their motions and influence they were intended to mark and divide times and seasons. The…
Creation · Order of: Fourth day, placing the sun, moon, and stars to give light, &c — Order of: Fourth day, placing the sun, moon, and stars to give light, &c
Firmament · The expanse above the earth — The expanse above the earth
Light · Sun, moon, and stars appointed to communicate to the earth — Sun, moon, and stars appointed to communicate to the earth
Moon, The · Appointed: For a light in the firmament — Appointed: For a light in the firmament
Sun · Created — Created

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

Genesis 1:15

Word by word — the Hebrew

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Genesis 1:14-19

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Genesis 1:14

Adam Clarke on Genesis 1:14

John Gill on Genesis 1:15

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Genesis 1:15

Word by word — the Hebrew

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Genesis 1:14-19

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Genesis 1:14

Adam Clarke on Genesis 1:14

John Gill on Genesis 1:15

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on Genesis 1:15

Keil & Delitzsch on Genesis 1:14-19

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Genesis 1:14-31

Rashi on Genesis 1:15