Biblical Cosmology Some people claim that the Bible says that the earth is flat and has a solid dome above it. Others say this view is not supported by the Bible. Below, is a Bible study on Biblical cosmology. It references the Biblical verses that are most commonly are used by those who believe the earth is flat and those that are used as evidence that the earth is a sphere. Some background first. This study is based on the belief that the Bible is the inspired word of God. Does this mean that every word in the English translations is correct? No. For most of the time, there is no difficulty understanding what the Bible says, but some translations contradict each other. Where the meaning is unclear, or differennt versions appear to be contradictory, it is always important to go back to the original Hebrew for the Old Testamnent and the original Greek for the New Testament. The apostle Paul called on us: "Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men". We are to have faith in God, but not to blindly accept what mankind tells us. We need to examine it in light of our reference point, the Bible. But we need to do so wisely. If someone says the Bible says the world is flat but all evidence points to a conclusion that the world is a sphere. Then something is wrong. Is the evidence wrong, or is the person wrong? Is that person mis-nterpreting the Bible? I will not be the person to tell you what to believe. You must draw your own conclusions and the information below is prepared to help the discerning person make up their own mind. At the same time, I would give the advice to be suspicious of any person who tells you that they know the truth and everyone else is wrong. This is how cults form. For starters, the Bible does not directly say that the earth is flat or spherical. There are may verses that are interpreted to say that the earth is flat, but there is no acutual statement saying that the earth is flat. On the other side, there is no actual verse that says the earth is spherical. Why is this so? The first reason is that the Bible is not primarily concerned with the science of where we live. It is primarily conncerned with relationships; the relationship between God and mankind, the relationship between individuals and God and the relationships that we should have with each other, here on earth. Along the way, the Bible says a lot more, of course. It is from this extra information that we glean an understanding of heaven and earth. And knowing that the Bible is primarily about relationships does not give license to ignore anything else it says along the way. Let's look at what the Bible says. The most commonly used verse to substantiate the flat earth view is Genesis 1:6. One of the first things to notice is that translations differ between versions. In this case it is always best to go back to the Hebrew to understand the original meaning. Because languages do not correspond word-for-word, translators always have the difficuly of whether to translate with an emphasis on word for word correspondence (literal translation) or to focus on conveying the underlying meainng (a sense-for-sense translation). This study uses the King James Version in its quotes, because it is a literal translation. This is not an endorsement to say that it is always the best translation or the only version that anyone should use. Genesis 1:6 Version Translation Notes King George Version And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. Amplified Bible And God said, “Let there be an [a] expanse [of the sky] in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters [below the expanse] from the waters [above the expanse].” [a] or firmament English Standard Version And God said, “Let there be an expanse[a] in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” [a] or canopy International Standard Version Then God said, “Let there be a canopy[a] between bodies of water,[b] separating bodies of water[c] from bodies of water!”[d] [a] or expanse, [b] lit. between the waters, [c] lit. separating the waters, [d] from the waters Living Bible And God said, “Let the vapors separate[a] to form the sky above and the oceans below.” [a] lit., “Let there be a dome to divide the waters.” New International Version And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” Revised Standard Version And God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” Young's Literal Translation And God saith, `Let an expanse be in the midst of the waters, and let it be separating between waters and waters.' Those who believe in a flat earth take this to mean that there is a solid dome separating water above from the oceans. The Hebrew word that is translated as "firmament" is transliterated as rqio. It can mean "expanse" or "firmament". When translators make their translation, understandably they have to make the translation make sense. The first translation from the Hebrew Old Testament was the Septuagint (VXX version) in the third century BCE. It was translated into Greek. As the common view then was that the earth was flat and had a dome above it, tanslators used the Greek word στερέωμα, (stereoma), which had the meaning of "firmament" and "solid expanse". However, it is hard to justify that the firmament is solid because in Gen 1:20 the Bible says that birds fly in the firmament. As birds fly in the sky and the sky separates the oceans from the clouds, it is apparent that the word rqio should have been translated as "expanse" and had the meanning of "sky". The Hebrew word, rqio, is used a total of 17 times in the Bible: Gen 1:6, 7 (x3), 8, 14, 15, 17, 20, Ps 19:1, 150:1, Eze 1:22, 23, 25, 26, Dan:12:3. Listed below are those verses as translated in the King James Version: Genesis 1:6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. Genesis 1:7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. Genesis 1:8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day. Genesis 1:14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: 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. Genesis 1:17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, Genesis 1:20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Psalm 150:1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Ezekiel 1:22 And the likeness of the firmament upon the heads of the living creature was as the colour of the terrible crystal, stretched forth over their heads above. Ezekiel 1:23 And under the firmament were their wings straight, the one toward the other: every one had two, which covered on this side, and every one had two, which covered on that side, their bodies. Ezekiel 1:25 And there was a voice from the firmament that was over their heads, when they stood, and had let down their wings. Ezekiel 1:26 And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it. Daniel 12:3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever. The first thing to note is that the word "expanse" can be substituted for "firmament" in all the uses of the Hebrew word rqio. It is clear that all the references to firmament in Genesis relate to the same thing. In Ezekiel, the references relate to the description of the four living creatures and so would not appear relevant to the meaning of the firmamant that separated the waters above from the waters below. So, from the above, we can conclude that God created a firmament (expanse). the firmament (expannse) separated the waters above from the waters below. God called the firmament (expanse) heaven there are lights in the firmament (expanse). These lights enable the appreciation of time, in days, years and seasons are for signs are to provide light birds fly in the open firmament (expanse) of heaven the firmament shows God's handiwork None of these verses suggests a flat earth. Give that birds fly in the firmament, it cannot be a solid dome. These verses distinguish two firmaments (expanses): one that separates the waters above from the waters below and another, the firmament (expanse) of heaven. If one takes the firmamet to mean a dome then one should be talkinfg about a dome that separates the waters above and the waters below ad a second dome which would be the dome of heaven. However the meaning of firmamant is that it is an expanse and so the Bible does not support the idea of any solid dome above the earth. The stars and sun and moon appear in the firmament (expanse) of heaven. The picture here is of an expanse that separates the oceans from the clouds plus a "firmament (expanse) of heaven" that includes the sun, the stars and the moon. It is important to point out that the firmament (expanse) can be present over a flat earth or a over a spherical earth, so it does not prove either case. Other references Isaiah 40:22 "It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:" Now, if you take the word "circle" literally, this sentence does not make sense. A circle is a line, not a disk. Those that believe that the earth is flat, want to see this as meainng that God is sitting on a flat disk, but this is not what it says. Its meanning is found by looking at the original Hebrew: The Hebrew word "yasab" (Strong's reference H3427), means "sitteth", "dwelleth", "remaineth". The Hebrew preposition "al" (Strong's reference H5921), translated as "upon", also means "over" and "above". The Hebrew word, "khoog" (Strong's reference H2329), translated as "circle" also means "vault of the heavens". So this verse could equally have been translated as "It is he that dwelleth above the vault of the heavens." Even using the term "vault" does not mean that the earth is flat with a dome above it. A spherical earth can be enclosed in a vault; taking in both meanings of the word (an enclosed safe place and a curved structure overhead). But the meaning of this verse is clear: God dwells beyond what we experience as our existence. Note that those people who believe that the earth is spherical: part of an enormously grand universe that God has created, see the verse Is 40:22 as confirming their view. There is strong evidence that the universe is expanding. This verse, and others, say that God has stretched out the heavens (Job 9:8, Ps 104:2, Isa 40:22, 42:5, 44:24, 45:12, 51:13, Jer 10:12, 51:15, Zec 12:1), that is, he made the universe expand. Proverbs 8:27 "When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth:" The key words here are "set", "compass", "face", and "deep". The Hebrew word for "set" is haqaq (Strong's H2710) and means to cut out, decree, set, inscribe, engrave, portray, govern. The Hebrew word for "compass" is khoog (Strong's H2329) and means circle, compass, vault (of the heavens). The Hebrew word for "face" is panim (Strong's H6440) and is plural. It means means face, surface, presence. The Hebrew word for "deep" is t'hom (Strong's H8415) and means deep, depths, deep places, abyss, the deep, sea. So the meaning is "when He encircled (delimited) the surface of the depths" Gen 1:2 "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." The Hebrew word for "without form" is tou (Strong's H8414) and means formlessness, confusion, unreality, emptiness, empty, place of chaos, nothingness The Hebrew word for "void" is bou (Strong's H922) and means emptiness, void, waste The Hebrew word for "darkness" is hosek (Strong's H2822) and means darkness, obscurity, secret place The Hebrew word for "face" is panim (Strong's H6440) and is plural. It means means face, surface, presence. The Hebrew word for "of the waters" is h'mayim (Strong's H4325) and means of the water, urine, danger, refreshment. The meaning is fairly clear: "The earth was formless/disordered and darkness was upon the surface of the deep seas. And the Spirit of God moved over the surface of the deep seas." Job 26:10 "He hath compassed the waters with bounds, until the day and night come to an end". The Hebrew word for "compass" is khoog (Strong's H2329) and means circle, compass, vault (of the heavens). The KJV has chosen not to translate the Hebrew word panim (Strong's H6440) which is plural. It means means face, surface, presence. The Hebrew word for "the waters" is mayim (Strong's H4325) and means the water, urine, danger, refreshment. However, there is no definite article before it in the Hebrew, perhaps to give a poetic coupling of panim mayim. The Hebrew word for "bounds" is hoq (Strong's H2706) and means statute, ordinance, limit, something prescribed, due. The meaning here is that "God has determined the boundaries of the surface of the waters." The Ends of the Earth The Bible has a number of references to the "ends of the earth". This is argued to say that the eath must be flat, because a sphere has no ends. But neither does a circle, so those who believe in a flat earth must either take this to be a metaphorical statement or believe that the earth has an elongateed structure. Job 38:12 -13 "Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days; and caused the dayspring to know his place; That it might take hold of the ends of the earth, that the wicked might be shaken out of it?" The Hebrew word for "the dayspring" is h'sahar (Strong's H) and means dawn The Hebrew word for "That it might take hold" is l'ahaz (Strong's H270). The prefix lamed means to, for, towards, belonging. "ahaz" means grasp, take hold, seize, take possession The Hebrew word for "of the ends" is kanap (Strong's H3671) and means wing, extremity, edge, winged, border, corner, shirt. The Hebrew word for "earth" is arets (Strong's H776) and means land, ground, surface of the earth, country, district, people of the land, Caaan, Israel So the image here is that of the the wicked people being shaken out of the land like a piece of material when it taken by the borders and shaken. Other references to the ends of the earth: Job 37:3 - "He directeth it under the whole heaven, and his lightning unto the ends of the earth." Psalm 135:7 - "He causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth; he maketh lightnings for the rain; he bringeth the wind out of his treasuries." Ps 93:1 "The LORD reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; the LORD is clothed with strength, wherewith he hath girded himself: the world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved." The Hebrew word for "world" is tebel (Strong's H8398) and means world in the sense of the inhabited world The Hebrew word for "stabilized" is kun (Strong's H3559) and means to be firm, be stable, be established, to be set up, be established, be fixed, to be set aright, to be firmly established. The Hebrew word for "be moved" is mot (Strong's H4131) and means to totter, shake, slip, dislodge, let fall, drop. The meaning here is that the Lord has established the inhabited world and what He has done cannot be shaken. Joshua 10:12-13 "Then spake Joshua to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon. And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day." The account of the sun and the moon standing still is one of a miraculous event. Those who believe in a flat earth argue that if the sun could be stopped, it means that it normally moves. This is no great revelation. Everyone refers to the sun moving through the sky. It is the common way that anyone describes it movement. And if I make my fixed reference point to be where I am standing, the the sun revolves around me every day. If one takes a point of reference from outside the earth, then the flat earth believers say that the sun revolves around the north pole and around a flat earth. Those who say that the earth is a globe, say it rotates around the sun. This Biblical verse does not give evidence to either belief. Isaiah 13:10 "For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine." Those that believe in a flat earth, say that this verse says that the sun moves and the moon gives off light, rather than reflects light. The fact that the sun moves is discussed above. The fact that the moon gives off light does not mean thaat the light is generated by the moon. If we see light reflected off a car windscreen, we might say "The light from that car is blinding". This reflected light is not generated by the car's windscreen. Matthew 24:29 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:" As above, this does not mean that the moon generates its own light. Psalms 104:9 "Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass over; that they turn not again to cover the earth." Looking at the context, this verse says that God has prevented the waters from flooding the earth again. Job 38:8-11 "Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb? When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddlingband for it, And brake up for it my decreed place, and set bars and doors, And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed?" These verses are basically sayig that God set the limits as to how far the seas would extend. If aythig, the image of being wrapped in a garment or swaddling clothes is more suggestve of a globular earth. Job 38:25-30 "Who hath divided a watercourse for the overflowing of waters, or a way for the lightning of thunder; To cause it to rain on the earth, where no man is; on the wilderness, wherein there is no man; To satisfy the desolate and waste ground; and to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth? Out of whose womb came the ice? and the hoary frost of heaven, who hath gendered it? The waters are hid as with a stone, and the face of the deep is frozen." This is meant to be evidence of an ice wall arounnd the perimeter of the earth. I cannot see this. The Foundations of the Earth Proverbs 8:29 "When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth:" The argumet is that the earth has foundations, therefore cannot be spherical. The Hebrew word for "foundationns" is mosad (Strong's H4144) and means foundation The Hebrew word for "" is eretz (Strong's H776) and means land, earth, country, territory, people of the land. The word foundation means the act of building somethinng, the support of something, the basis for something, a woman's undergarmet, a skin coloured cosmetic cream. It is easy to see how people who believed in a flat earht would take the interpretation that God is referring to a physical structure that supported the earth. When the Hebrew was first translated (to Greek) in the third century BCE, people believed that the earth was flat. Consequently having a structure to support it, made sense. But then the problem becomes, on what do these supports rest and the famous answwer, "It's turtles all the way down.", reminds us of the difficulty presented by having a physical, structural foundation below a flat earth presents. The expression "the foundations of the earth" can equally mean the underlying structure of a spherical earth, as in the creation of the core and matle of the earth. Similar versed are Job 38:4 - "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding". Job 38:6 - "Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;" Against this is the reference in Job 26:7 "and hangeth the earth upon nothing" The Hebrew word for "hangeth" is tala (Strong's H8518) and means hangs or hangs up The Hebrew word for "earth" is erets (Strong's H776) and means earth, land, ground, country The Hebrew word for "nothing" is b'lima (Strong's H1099) and means nothingnness This verse would appear to say that the earth is suspended in space, with nothing physical holding it in place. This does not argue for a sphere vs a flat earth: both of which could be suspended in space, but it does suggest that the earth is not sitting on a structural foundation. The Pillars of the Earth Whereas some translations such as the NKJV, ESV, and NASB use the phrase the pillars of the earth, other translations simply have “the foundations of the earth” (NIV, CSB, BSB). 1 Samuel 2:8 "He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S, and he hath set the world upon them." The Hebrew word for "pillars" is matsuk (Strong's H4690) and means molten support, pillar, column. This word comes from the root word which means "to set up". As a moltern support The Hebrew word for "earth" is erets (Strong's H776) and means earth, country, surface of the ground. The Hebrew word for "set" is sit (Strong's H7896) and means to put, to set, to constitue, to lay waste, The Hebrew word for "world" is tebel (Strong's H8398) and means the inhabited world. Firstly, this is a record of what Hannah prayed and is not God saying what He did. Each versee is a couplet, emphasizing God's work.The imagery here is that God lifts up the destitute and places them with the rich princes. This is easy for Him to do because He took the inhabited world and set it on the cast pillars of the earth. Other references Job 9:6 - Which shaketh the earth out of her place, and the pillars thereof tremble. Psalm 75:3 - The earth and all the inhabitants thereof are dissolved: I bear up the pillars of it. Selah. Job 38:4-6 - Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; Psalm 104:5 But then heaven is described as having pillars and people are described as being pillars Psalm 144:12 Galatians 2:9 Revelation 3:12 Job 37:18 "Hast thou with him spread out the sky, which is strong, and as a molten looking glass? " The Hebrew word for "hast thou spread out" is t'raqa (Strong's H7554) and means to beat out, stamp, stretch out. It comes from the primitive root which means to pound the earth and by analogy means hammering. The Hebrew word for "sky" is sahaq (Strong's H7834) and means dust or cloud. Something beaten to a powder The word "and" is not in this Hebrew sentence The Hebrew word for "strong" is hazaq (Strong's H2389) and means strong, mighty, firm, hard. Here it is a masculine pural adjective so refers to sahaq, which is amasculine pleural noun. The Hebrew word for "molten" is yasaq (Strong's H3332) and means to flow, to cast, to pour, molten The Hebrew word for "looking glass" is r'i (Strong's H7209) and means mirror Here Elihu is speaking, so this is not God declaring a truth. We should remember that Elihu does not always give good advice, ie he can be wrong. Mirrors back thenn were cast from bronnze and polished. But here Elihu is using imagery. "Did you (with God) hammer and stretch out the strong clouds to make them like a cast mirror?" This is not a refernce to rqia, the firmamnet. The four corners of the earth Isaiah 11:12 "And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth." The Hebrew word for "from the four" is m'arba (Strong's H702) and means from/of four. The Hebrew word for "corners" is kanapit (Strong's H3671) and means wings, extremities, edges, winged, borders, corners, shirts, skirts. The Hebrew word for "of the earth" is erets (Strong's H776) and means land, earth, country. If we take this literally then those who believe in a flat earth have to accept that the earth is square or rectangular in shape. Or do we take it as an idiom, meaning "from everywhere", in the same way that people use this phrase to this day? Other references include: Ez 7:2 - "Also, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD unto the land of Israel; An end, the end is come upon the four corners of the land." Rev 7:1 - "And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree". Here the word for "corners" is the Greek word "gonia". Rev 20:8 - "And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea." Here the word for "quarters" is the Greek word "gonia". If we were to view that words "corners" and "quarters" are interchangeable as above, then the phrase "from the four quarters of the earth" makes a lot more sense. When the phrase "from the four corners of the earth" is used today, no-one takes it literally. There is no reason to think that it was ever meant to be taken literally back in Biblical times. 1 Samuel 2:8 proverbs 8:28-29 Psalms 24:2 104:3-6 Psalms 93:1, 96:10, 104:5 Psalms 19:1-6 "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof." The Hebrew word for tabernacle is ohel (Strong's H168),which means a tent, a dwelling, a home. So the sun's dwelling place is in the heavens. The Hebrew word for "going forth" is mosa (Strong's H4161) and means act or place of going out or forth, issue, export, source, spring. The Hebrew word for "end" is qase (Strong's H7092) and means end, extremity, border, outskirts. The Hebrew word for "heaven" is samayim (Strong's H8064) and means heaven, sky, abode of the stars. The Hebrew word for "" is t'qupa (Strong's H8622) and means coming round, circuit of time or space, a turning, circuit. 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