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Genesis 1:2 — Did the
earth "become"
formless and void?
I study
Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic, and I have a few suggestions.
As you have indicated
you are cognizant of the biblical languages, we will reply on that level
and not on a English-only level.
Genesis 1:2 - "And the earth was without form, and void"...
This is not the
wording of the ISV for Genesis 1:2. The ISV reads "When the earth was
unformed and desolate..."
...should be "But the Earth became formless and void."
There is no
Hebrew grammatical usage to suggest that the Hebrew verb
הָיְתָה
in Genesis
1:2 can be translated "became" rather than "was".
More
and more people on the Internet are beginning to wonder why no Bibles ever
get this right, The ISV basically says God created a wasted planet, but
Isaiah 45:18 says God did not create the Earth formless and void!
To render
the Hebrew verb
הָיְתָה
as "became" rather than "was" is to travel away from
"getting this right," and to move into error. And that's why
"no Bibles" are ever going to "get this right". Simply put, the verb
היְתָה
doesn't mean "became". It means "was".
The ISV doesn't say God created a wasted planet. It says that the earth
was created in a state that could not initially sustain life, and that God
added the energy described in Genesis 1:2b and following to make it become
habitable to living creatures, including man. Now as to Isaiah 45:18,
you're missing the nuance of the Hebrew grammar. The text is saying that
God did not create the earth to
remain formless and void. There
was a purpose beyond that stage of creation, and it was described in
Genesis 1:2b and following in the series of creative events.
To
sum up, your understanding of the Hebrew verb
הָיְתָה
needs some
adjustment.
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