What does רָקִיעַ (rāqiyʿa) mean in the Bible?
רָקִיעַ (rāqiyʿa): Hammered-out vault of sky: God's cosmic architecture separating waters, establishing creation's visible order.
Hebrew · H7549
רָקִיעַ
Properly, an expanse , i.e. the firmament or (apparently) visible arch of the sky
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רָקִיעַH7549
Pronunciationrāqiyʿa
What does רָקִיעַ (rāqiyʿa) mean in the Bible?
רָקִיעַ (rāqiyʿa): Hammered-out vault of sky: God's cosmic architecture separating waters, establishing creation's visible order.
Full entry for רָקִיעַ (H7549) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render H7549?
The BSB source-word alignment has 17 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include the expanse (6), in the expanse (3), expanse (2), - (1), [it] (1).
Where does רָקִיעַ (rāqiyʿa) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Genesis 1:6. Its strongest book concentrations include Genesis (9), Ezekiel (5), Psalms (2), Daniel (1).
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders Itthe expanse6×Genesis 1:7, Genesis 1:8, Ezekiel 1:23, Ezekiel 1:25
in the expanse3×Genesis 1:14, Genesis 1:15, Genesis 1:17
expanse2×Genesis 1:20, Ezekiel 1:22
-1×Genesis 1:7
[it]1×Genesis 1:7
an expanse1×Genesis 1:6
heavens1×Psalms 150:1
of the heavens1×Daniel 12:3
the skies1×Psalms 19:1
Show sample aligned rows
Genesis 1:6רָקִ֖יעַtoan expanseNoun - masculine singularGenesis 1:7הָרָקִיעַ֒tothe expanseArticle | Noun - masculine singularGenesis 1:7לָרָקִ֔יעַto[it]Preposition-l, Article | Noun - masculine singularGenesis 1:7לָרָקִ֑יעַto-Preposition-l, Article | Noun - masculine singularGenesis 1:8לָֽרָקִ֖יעַtothe expansePreposition-l, Article | Noun - masculine singularGenesis 1:14בִּרְקִ֣יעַtoin the expansePreposition-b | Noun - masculine singular constructGenesis 1:15בִּרְקִ֣יעַtoin the expansePreposition-b | Noun - masculine singular constructGenesis 1:17בִּרְקִ֣יעַtoin the expansePreposition-b | Noun - masculine singular constructGenesis 1:20רְקִ֥יעַtoexpanseNoun - masculine singular constructPsalms 19:1הָרָקִֽיעַ׃tothe skiesArticle | Noun - masculine singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowGenesis 1:6
Aligned rows17
Books represented4
Genesis9Psalms2Ezekiel5Daniel1
Source forms
בִּרְקִ֣יעַ3xbir·qî·a‘Genesis 1:14, Genesis 1:15, Genesis 1:17
בִּרְקִ֥יעַ1xbir·qî·a‘Psalms 150:1
הָרָקִיעַ֒1xhā·rā·qî·a‘Genesis 1:7
הָרָקִ֔יעַ1xhā·rā·qî·a‘Ezekiel 1:23
הָרָקִ֙יעַ֙1xhā·rā·qî·a‘Ezekiel 10:1
הָרָקִ֑יעַ1xhā·rā·qî·a‘Daniel 12:3
הָרָקִֽיעַ׃1xhā·rā·qî·a‘Psalms 19:1
לָרָקִ֔יעַ1xlā·rā·qî·a‘Genesis 1:7
Parsing patterns
Article | Noun - masculine singular5xGenesis 1:7, Psalms 19:1, Ezekiel 1:23, Ezekiel 10:1
Preposition-l, Article | Noun - masculine singular5xGenesis 1:7, Genesis 1:8, Ezekiel 1:25, Ezekiel 1:26
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct4xGenesis 1:14, Genesis 1:15, Genesis 1:17, Psalms 150:1
Noun - masculine singular2xGenesis 1:6, Ezekiel 1:22
Noun - masculine singular construct1xGenesis 1:20
Evidence Summary
Hebrew word. Hammered-out vault of sky: God's cosmic architecture separating waters, establishing creation's visible order.
Source Gloss
properly, an expanse , i.e. the firmament or (apparently) visible arch of the sky
Extended definitionSource: Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon + Brown-Driver-Briggs
Hammered-out vault of sky: God's cosmic architecture separating waters, establishing creation's visible order.
properly, an expanse, i.e. the firmament or (apparently) visible arch of the sky BDB: extended surface Usage: firmament.
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
Selected Scripture Witnesses
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Biblical Witnesses
The expanse created to divide waters, establishing the visible sky structure
The extended surface where celestial bodies are placed to govern day and night
Showing 2 selected witnesses from 17 lexical occurrence verses.