Biblical data

Old Testament

The word bárá’

The word used in the Old Testament to convey the unique, creative action of God is bárá’. Its origins are obscure but it seems to be related to words meaning ‘to build’, ‘to shape’, ‘to separate, divide’. At any rate, what is crystal clear is that it was a word reserved (or coined?) exclusively for describing God's unique creative power. This implies more than merely giving shape and order to some pre-existent material but rather an act of divine power that requires nothing for its efficacy, not even any pre-existent material to work on.

Images used for expressing the idea of creation

Victory over chaos

Though it is difficult to detect a clear development in Israel's thought about creation, it is quite likely that the oldest ideas found in the Old Testament are those in which there are still some remnants of the idea of a combat, of God having to fight and emerge victorious over chaos and the representatives of chaos – such as Leviathan (see Isaiah 27:1 and Psalms 74:13–15) and Rahab (see Psalms 89:10–11). Such ideas were part of Mesopotamian and Canaanite creation stories. Of course, biblical references to such combats are, in fact, later references, belonging to a period when Israel would certainly not have thought of God as literally having to fight any independent foe. Such combat ideas must therefore be seen as remnants of earlier views. Moreover, it is clear that the ‘battle’ is not really a battle at all but simply a display by God of divine power, slaying the monster of chaos. Indeed, the monsters themselves, such as Leviathan, are cut down to size by being placed among those things that God has made: Leviathan, we are told, was made by God for God's ‘amusement’ (Psalms 104:26).

But the concept of ‘chaos’ played an important role in Israel's thought and hence the image of victory over chaos was retained. It testified to a belief that the order we see around us is not built into nature as its own possession but is God's gift to it. The forces of chaos are pictured as being ‘imprisoned’ (Job 38:8–11), ready to leap out should God cease to be vigilant.