וַיִּתֵּ֥ן (way·yit·tên) in Genesis 1:17: Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
וַיִּתֵּ֥ן (way·yit·tên) in Genesis 1:17
Source Word
The BSB+ row for Genesis 1:17 links the English rendering "set" with וַיִּתֵּ֥ן, Strong's H5414, and the morphology label Conj-w | V-Qal-ConsecImperf-3ms.
How The Form Affects Interpretation
The form clarifies that the verse narrates God's placement action, while the purpose clauses in the context explain what the lights are for.
How To Communicate It
When teaching Genesis 1:17, use this form to show how the grammar reports placement while the surrounding verses explain function.
What Not To Say
- Grammar should serve context, not override it.
- Do not make the Hebrew sequence form carry a full creation chronology by itself.
- Do not use the stem label alone to settle a theological claim.
- Do not treat this occurrence as a complete word study for the whole Hebrew lemma.
What Does The Label Mean?
Hebrew-verb
Verb
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Conjunctive waw
Qal
Consecutive imperfect
Third person
Masculine
Singular
The consecutive imperfect carries the narrative or sequence forward in Genesis 1:17, linking this action to the movement around it.
This form carries the BSB rendering "set" within Genesis 1:17. Genesis 1 presents God ordering, filling, naming, blessing, and giving life to the created world by his word.
What The Form Does In This Verse
God setting the lights in the expanse in Genesis 1:17
The creation sequence describing the lights and their function
The waw-linked Qal consecutive imperfect reports God's placement of the lights as the next narrated action.
The form does not by itself settle cosmology, chronology, or every use of H5414.
How Much The Form Matters Here
Moderate: The form carries a narrated placement action in the creation account.
Waw-linked Hebrew sequence form. advances the narrative by reporting God's placement of the lights. Attached to God setting the lights in the expanse in Genesis 1:17. Governed by the creation sequence describing the lights and their function. The waw-linked consecutive imperfect advances the local discourse, but the verse and passage decide how the action relates to the larger argument.
Who sets the lights in place? God sets the lights in the expanse in the narrated sequence.
Direct: The form directly supports the rendering "set."
The waw-linked consecutive imperfect advances the local discourse, but the verse and passage decide how the action relates to the larger argument. The attached waw should be explained from the clause relation rather than treated as a stand-alone theological signal. The placement action is clear, but cosmological claims require the wider passage.
Consecutive imperfect proves every chronology claim: The form advances the discourse; broader chronology or theology must be argued from the passage, not the sequence form alone. stem label settles the theology: The Hebrew stem identifies the verbal pattern; the passage supplies the theological claim. grammar replaces context: The morphology should clarify the clause while remaining governed by the surrounding passage.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
The BSB+ row for Genesis 1:17 links the English rendering "set" with וַיִּתֵּ֥ן, Strong's H5414, and the morphology label Conj-w | V-Qal-ConsecImperf-3ms.
H5414 is represented here by the lemma נָתַן. In this occurrence, the public guide is limited to the BSB rendering "set" rather than every possible gloss of the entry.
The attached waw links the placement action to the preceding description of the lights, and the third masculine singular points to God as subject in context.
Genesis 1 presents God ordering, filling, naming, blessing, and giving life to the created world by his word.
The form fits Scripture's opening witness that creation is received from God and interpreted under his speech and order.
When teaching Genesis 1:17, use this form to show how the grammar reports placement while the surrounding verses explain function.
Do not derive a full cosmology, chronology, or the entire range of H5414 from Conj-w | V-Qal-ConsecImperf-3ms alone.