Deuteronomy Chapter 20
Other Translations
asv (asv) - eBible.org engASV USFM
1
according to all that thou desiredst of Jehovah thy God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, Let me not hear again the voice of Jehovah my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I die not.
2
And Jehovah said unto me, They have well said that which they have spoken.
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I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee; and I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.
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And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.
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But the prophet, that shall speak a word presumptuously in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die.
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And if thou say in thy heart, How shall we know the word which Jehovah hath not spoken?
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when a prophet speaketh in the name of Jehovah, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which Jehovah hath not spoken: the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously, thou shalt not be afraid of him.
8
When Jehovah thy God shall cut off the nations, whose land Jehovah thy God giveth thee, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their cities, and in their houses;
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thou shalt set apart three cities for thee in the midst of thy land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee to possess it.
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Thou shalt prepare thee the way, and divide the borders of thy land, which Jehovah thy God causeth thee to inherit, into three parts, that every manslayer may flee thither.
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And this is the case of the manslayer, that shall flee thither and live: whoso killeth his neighbor unawares, and hated him not in time past;
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as when a man goeth into the forest with his neighbor to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the head slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbor, so that he dieth; he shall flee unto one of these cities and live:
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lest the avenger of blood pursue the manslayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and smite him mortally; whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past.
14
Wherefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt set apart three cities for thee.
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And if Jehovah thy God enlarge thy border, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers, and give thee all the land which he promised to give unto thy fathers;
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if thou shalt keep all this commandment to do it, which I command thee this day, to love Jehovah thy God, and to walk ever in his ways; then shalt thou add three cities more for thee, besides these three:
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that innocent blood be not shed in the midst of thy land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee.
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But if any man hate his neighbor, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally so that he dieth, and he flee into one of these cities;
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then the elders of his city shall send and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.
20
Thine eye shall not pity him, but thou shalt put away the innocent blood from Israel, that it may go well with thee.
darby (darby) - eBible.org Darby 1890 plaintext
1
When thou goest out to war against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, [and] a people more numerous than thou, thou shalt not fear them; for Jehovah thyGod is with thee, who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
2
And it shall be, when ye approach unto the battle, that the priest shall draw near and speak unto the people,
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and shall say unto them, Hear, Israel, ye are approaching this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be afraid of them;
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for Jehovah yourGod is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.
5
And the officers shall speak unto the people, saying, What man is there that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man dedicate it.
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And what man is there that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not eaten of it? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man eat of it.
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And what man is there that hath betrothed a wife, and hath not taken her? let him go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man take her.
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And the officers shall speak further unto the people, and shall say, What man is there that is timid and faint-hearted? let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren's heart melt as well as his heart.
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And it shall be, when the officers have ended speaking unto the people, that they shall place captains of the hosts at the head of the people.
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When thou approachest unto a city to fight against it, thou shalt proclaim peace unto it.
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And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then all the people that are found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee.
12
And if it will not make peace with thee, but will make war with thee, then thou shalt besiege it;
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and when Jehovah thyGod delivereth it into thy hand, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword:
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only the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that shall be in the city, all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take as booty for thyself; and thou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies, which Jehovah thyGod giveth thee
15
Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities that are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations.
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But of the cities of these peoples which Jehovah thyGod giveth thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth,
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but shalt utterly devote them to destruction, the Hittites and the Amorites, the Canaanites and the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites, as Jehovah thyGod hath commanded thee;
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that they teach you not to do according to all their abominations, which they have done unto theirgods, so that ye sin against Jehovah yourGod.
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When thou shalt besiege a city many days, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by lifting up an axe against them; for thou canst eat of them; and thou shalt not cut them down, for is the tree of the field a man that it should be besieged?
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Only the trees which thou knowest are not trees for meat, thou mayest destroy and cut them down, and build bulwarks against the city that maketh war with thee, until it fall.
lxxbrent (lxxbrent) - Septuagint (Brenton 1851) eBible USFM
1
And if thou shouldest go forth to war against thine enemies, and shouldest see horse, and rider, and a people more numerous than thyself; thou shalt not be afraid of them, for the Lord thy God [is] with thee, who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
2
And it shall come to pass whenever thou shalt draw nigh to battle, that the priest shall draw nigh and speak to the people, and shall say to them,
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Hear, O Israel; ye are going this day to battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint, fear not, neither be confounded, neither turn aside from their face.
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For [it is] the Lord your God who advances with you, to fight with you against your enemies, [and] to save you.
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And the scribes shall speak to the people, saying, What man [is] he that has built a new house, and has not dedicated it? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the war, and another man dedicate it.
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And what man [is] he that has planted a vineyard, and not been made merry with it? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man be made merry with it.
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And what man [is] he that has betrothed a wife, and has not taken her? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man take her.
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And the scribes shall speak further to the people, and say, What man [is] he that fears and is cowardly in his heart? Let him go and return to his house, lest he make the heart of his brother fail, as his own.
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And it shall come to pass when the scribes shall have ceased speaking to the people, that they shall appoint generals of the army to be leaders of the people.
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And if thou shalt draw nigh to a city to overcome them by war, then call them out peaceably.
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If then they should answer peaceably to thee, and open to thee, it shall be that all the people found in it shall be tributary and subject to thee.
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But if they will not hearken to thee, but wage war against thee, thou shalt invest it;
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until the Lord thy God shall deliver it into thy hands, and thou shalt smite every male of it with the edge of the sword:
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except the women and the stuff: and all the cattle, and whatsoever shall be in the city, and all the plunder thou shalt take as spoil for thyself, and shalt eat all the plunder of thine enemies whom the Lord thy God gives thee.
15
Thus shalt thou do to all the cities that are very far off from thee, not [being] of the cities of these nations which the Lord thy God gives thee to inherit their land.
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[Of these] ye shall not take any thing alive;
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but ye shall surely curse them, the Chettite, and the Amorite, and the Chananite, and the Pherezite, and the Evite, and the Jebusite, and the Gergesite; as the Lord thy God commanded thee:
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that they may not teach you to do all their abominations, which they did to their gods, and [so] ye should sin before the Lord your God.
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And if thou shouldest besiege a city many days to prevail against it by war to take it, thou shalt not destroy its trees, by applying an iron tool to them, but thou shalt eat of it, and shalt not cut it down: Is the tree that is in the field a man, to enter before thee into the work of the siege?
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But the tree which thou knowest to be not fruit-bearing, this thou shalt destroy and cut down; and thou shalt construct a mound against the city, which makes war against thee, until it be delivered up.
vul1914 (vul1914) - Vulgate 1914 UTF-8 (sacredbible.org)
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Si exieris ad bellum contra hostes tuos, et videris equitatus et currus, et maiorem quam tu habeas adversarii exercitus multitudinem, non timebis eos: quia Dominus Deus tuus tecum est, qui eduxit te de Terra Ægypti.
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Appropinquante autem iam prælio, stabit sacerdos ante aciem, et sic loquetur ad populum:
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Audi Israel, vos hodie contra inimicos vestros pugnam committitis, non pertimescat cor vestrum, nolite metuere, nolite cedere, nec formidetis eos:
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quia Dominus Deus vester in medio vestri est, et pro vobis contra adversarios dimicabit, ut eruat vos de periculo.
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Duces quoque per singulas turmas audiente exercitu proclamabunt: Quis est homo, qui ædificavit domum novam, et non dedicavit eam? vadat, et revertatur in domum suam, ne forte moriatur in bello, et alius dedicet eam.
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Quis est homo qui plantavit vineam, et necdum fecit eam esse communem, de qua vesci omnibus liceat? vadat, et revertatur in domum suam: ne forte moriatur in bello, et alius homo eius fungatur officio.
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Quis est homo, qui despondit uxorem, et non accepit eam? vadat, et revertatur in domum suam, ne forte moriatur in bello, et alius homo accipiat eam.
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His dictis addent reliqua, et loquentur ad populum: Quis est homo formidolosus, et corde pavido? vadat, et revertatur in domum suam, ne pavere faciat corda fratrum suorum, sicut ipse timore perterritus est.
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Cumque siluerint duces exercitus, et finem loquendi fecerint, unusquisque suos ad bellandum cuneos præparabit.
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Si quando accesseris ad expugnandam civitatem, offeres ei primum pacem.
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Si receperit, et aperuerit tibi portas, cunctus populus, qui in ea est, salvabitur, et serviet tibi sub tributo.
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Sin autem fœdus inire noluerit, et cœperit contra te bellum, oppugnabis eam.
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Cumque tradiderit Dominus Deus tuus illam in manu tua, percuties omne, quod in ea generis masculini est, in ore gladii,
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absque mulieribus et infantibus, iumentis et ceteris, quæ in civitate sunt. Omnem prædam exercitui divides, et comedes de spoliis hostium tuorum, quæ Dominus Deus tuus dederit tibi.
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Sic facies cunctis civitatibus, quæ a te procul valde sunt, et non sunt de his urbibus, quas in possessionem accepturus es.
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De his autem civitatibus, quæ dabuntur tibi, nullum omnino permittes vivere:
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sed interficies in ore gladii, Hethæum videlicet, et Amorrhæum, et Chananæum, Pherezæum, et Hevæum, et Iebusæum, sicut præcepit tibi Dominus Deus tuus:
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ne forte doceant vos facere cunctas abominationes, quas ipsi operati sunt diis suis: et peccetis in Dominum Deum vestrum.
19
Quando obsederis civitatem multo tempore, et munitionibus circumdederis ut expugnes eam, non succides arbores, de quibus vesci potest, nec securibus per circuitum debes vastare regionem: quoniam lignum est, et non homo, nec potest bellantium contra te augere numerum.
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Si qua autem ligna non sunt pomifera, sed agrestia, et in ceteros apta usus, succide, et instrue machinas, donec capias civitatem, quæ contra te dimicat.
web (web) - WorldEnglish.Bible — CC0 modern update of ASV
1
When you go out to battle against your enemies, and see horses, chariots, and a people more numerous than you, you shall not be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt, is with you.
2
It shall be, when you draw near to the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak to the people,
3
and shall tell them, “Hear, Israel, you draw near today to battle against your enemies. Don’t let your heart faint! Don’t be afraid, nor tremble, neither be scared of them;
4
for the LORD your God is he who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.”
5
The officers shall speak to the people, saying, “What man is there who has built a new house, and has not dedicated it? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man dedicate it.
6
What man is there who has planted a vineyard, and has not used its fruit? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man use its fruit.
7
What man is there who has pledged to be married to a wife, and has not taken her? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man take her.”
8
The officers shall speak further to the people, and they shall say, “What man is there who is fearful and faint-hearted? Let him go and return to his house, lest his brother’s heart melt as his heart.”
9
It shall be, when the officers have finished speaking to the people, that they shall appoint captains of armies at the head of the people.
10
When you draw near to a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace to it.
11
It shall be, if it gives you answer of peace and opens to you, then it shall be that all the people who are found therein shall become forced laborers to you, and shall serve you.
12
If it will make no peace with you, but will make war against you, then you shall besiege it.
13
When the LORD your God delivers it into your hand, you shall strike every male of it with the edge of the sword;
14
but the women, the little ones, the livestock, and all that is in the city, even all its plunder, you shall take for plunder for yourself. You may use the plunder of your enemies, which the LORD your God has given you.
15
Thus you shall do to all the cities which are very far off from you, which are not of the cities of these nations.
16
But of the cities of these peoples that the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance, you shall save alive nothing that breathes;
17
but you shall utterly destroy them: the Hittite, the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, as the LORD your God has commanded you;
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that they not teach you to follow all their abominations, which they have done for their gods; so would you sin against the LORD your God.
19
When you shall besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, you shall not destroy its trees by wielding an ax against them; for you may eat of them. You shall not cut them down, for is the tree of the field man, that it should be besieged by you?
20
Only the trees that you know are not trees for food, you shall destroy and cut them down. You shall build bulwarks against the city that makes war with you, until it falls.
ylt (ylt) - Bible.com YLT98 plain UTF-8
1
`When thou goest out to battle against thine enemy, and hast seen horse and chariot--a people more numerous than thou--thou art not afraid of them, for Jehovah thy God <FI>is<Fi> with thee, who is bringing thee up out of the land of Egypt;
2
and it hath been, in your drawing near unto the battle, that the priest hath come nigh, and spoken unto the people,
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and said unto them, Hear, Israel, ye are drawing near to-day to battle against your enemies, let not your hearts be tender, fear not, nor make haste, nor be terrified at their presence,
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for Jehovah your God <FI>is<Fi> He who is going with you, to fight for you with your enemies--to save you.
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`And the authorities have spoken unto the people, saying, Who <FI>is<Fi> the man that hath built a new house, and hath not dedicated it? --let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man dedicate it.
6
`And who <FI>is<Fi> the man that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not made it common? --let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man make it common.
7
`And who <FI>is<Fi> the man that hath betrothed a woman, and hath not taken her? --let him go and turn back to his house, lest he die in battle, and another man take her.
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`And the authorities have added to speak unto the people, and said, Who <FI>is<Fi> the man that is afraid and tender of heart? --let him go and turn back to his house, and the heart of his brethren doth not melt like his heart;
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and it hath come to pass as the authorities finish to speak unto the people, that they have appointed princes of the hosts at the head of the people.
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`When thou drawest near unto a city to fight against it, then thou hast called unto it for Peace,
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and it hath been, if Peace it answer thee, and hath opened to thee, then it hath come to pass--all the people who are found in it are to thee for tributaries, and have served thee.
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`And if it doth not make peace with thee, and hath made with thee war, then thou hast laid siege against it,
13
and Jehovah thy God hath given it into thy hand, and thou hast smitten every male of it by the mouth of the sword.
14
Only, the women, and the infants, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, all its spoil, thou dost seize for thyself, and thou hast eaten the spoil of thine enemies which Jehovah thy God hath given to thee.
15
So thou dost do to all the cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations.
16
`Only, of the cities of these peoples which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee <FI>for<Fi> an inheritance, thou dost not keep alive any breathing;
17
for thou dost certainly devote the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, as Jehovah thy God hath commanded thee,
18
so that they teach you not to do according to all their abominations which they have done to their gods, and ye have sinned against Jehovah your God.
19
`When thou layest siege unto a city many days, to fight against it, to capture it, thou dost not destroy its trees to force an axe against them, for of them thou dost eat, and them thou dost not cut down--for man's <FI>is<Fi> the tree of the field--to go in at thy presence in the siege.
20
Only, the tree, which thou knowest that it <FI>is<Fi> not a fruit-tree, it thou dost destroy, and hast cut down, and hast built a bulwark against the city which is making with thee war till thou hast subdued it.
Explanations by Age Level
Explain Like I'm 5
A long, long time ago, there was nothing at all - no earth, no sky, no animals, no people. It was all dark and empty. But God was there! God is so powerful that He can make anything just by speaking. So God said "Let there be light!" and BOOM! There was light everywhere! God saw that the light was beautiful and good. He called the light "day" and the darkness "night." This was the very first day when God started making our wonderful world!
Explain Like I'm 10
Before anything existed - no planets, stars, or life - God decided to create the universe. The earth started out as a dark, empty place covered with water. But God's Spirit was there, ready to bring order and beauty to everything. When God spoke and said "Let there be light," light immediately appeared because God's words have incredible power. God looked at the light and was pleased with what He had made. He organized time by separating light (day) from darkness (night), creating the first 24-hour period. This shows us that God is organized and purposeful in everything He does.
Explain Like I'm 15
Genesis 1:1-5 establishes fundamental theological truths about God and creation. The Hebrew word "bara" (created) indicates creation from nothing (ex nihilo), demonstrating God's absolute sovereignty and power. The phrase "without form and void" (tohu wa-bohu) describes a state of chaos that God transforms into order. The Spirit of God "hovering" or "brooding" over the waters suggests active, caring involvement in creation. The creation of light before the sun (created on day 4) indicates that God Himself is the ultimate source of light and energy. The establishment of day and night creates the framework of time, showing that God operates within orderly patterns while transcending them. This passage refutes both atheistic materialism and pantheism, establishing that God is both transcendent (separate from creation) and immanent (actively involved in it).