V. 14-19. And God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven, dividing day from night, and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and for years, and let them be for lights in the firmament of heaven, that they may shine upon the earth. And it came to pass thus. And God made two great lights, a great light to preside over the day, and a small light to preside over the night, and stars also. And God set them in the firmament of heaven to shine upon the earth, presiding over the day and the night, and dividing the light from the darkness. And God saw it good. Then the evening and the morning became the fourth day.
(34) This is the work done on the fourth day, that the sun and the moon, with all the stars, great and small, were created and fixed in the heavens, and that they should preside over the day and night, and give light to the earth, and that we should have hours, days, and seasons. But this is not to be understood in such a way that God created the sun and the moon beforehand, and then attached them to the heavens as one attaches a clasp, but because our language is so strained that it must make one word after another, and two things that happened at the same time cannot be spoken of and grasped at the same time in one word, he must say of them how they were created, and then how they were attached to the heavens, although they both happened at the same time, so that in making them they were also attached to the heavens. So that one knows that God has made a day of it; how long or short, many or few hours, stands with him. It says that he was slow in doing it, not because he could not do it in a moment, but because he wanted to take a day to do it, as he did on the third day above all the grass, herbs and trees, all the heaths, meadows and fields. And hath verily-
1) In the old editions of first.
He made a lot, even if he didn't spend an hour on it.
(35) So he may have made a whole day of the celestial body from evening to morning, which is so much that no one can count it, as the Scripture [Gen. 15:5] says. Even as now: when he makes the sun rise, he drives it so that it runs from morning to evening, so that it could go in one hour from morning to evening, yes, in one hour in both places. But he does not do it, but gives space and time for it. As he does now here with the sun, as we see before our eyes, so he does with all creatures. Thus he makes grass and herbs spring up in the springtime, so that everything is green and blossoms as long as it is summer; all this can happen in an hour, or, if he wants, in a year or two. He makes it so long according to his will and pleasure, and neither shorter nor longer.
(36) I say all this so that we may remain in simple words and understanding, and not rise up and speculate. Even if we are lacking in this, it is still without a ride. But this is what we are to learn from this, as I also said above [26], how no creature has either its essence or power from itself, and it is not in its power how long it should last and remain, but everything has its order from God, how long he wants it to last, so that we can ever see how God holds the whole world in his hand so powerfully that nothing can move except what and when he wants. This is the first part.
Moses further says that God made and ordained the sun and the moon to preside over the day and the night. The sun is a master of the day, the moon is a master of the night. The moon does not make the night, but its light goes and shines nevertheless in the night. So also the sun does not make the day, but it goes and shines in the day. For we have heard before that God created the light, and called it day; but the darkness he called night. There was neither sun nor moon, and yet there was day and night, and would have remained so. So, even though the sun does not make the day and does nothing to make it, it rules by day as the moon does by night.
38 Therefore we must leave the text in the simplest terms, that the two lights are ordered to rule day and night, not to make day or night. As we say of a man, he shall rule over the land; which is not so much said, that he shall make the land, but that he shall find it, and his rule shall be upon it. If the sun and moon had not been created, there would still have been day and night, light and darkness, but there would have been no government. So one reads also in the Psalter now and then, as [Ps. 136, 7-9.]: "He has made great lights, the sun to preside over the day; the moon and stars to preside over the night."
39 Thus we see that everything proceeds from God's order, and no thing has its essence or rule from Himself, but everything from God's hand, counsel and will, so that one should see God in all creatures, we open our eyes or ears, and thus give thanks to Him. And, as I have said enough above [Preface, §§ 11. 12], we are not to think that God created the creatures then, and has gone away afterwards, and lets them act themselves henceforth; but that he made them, and still makes them, and sustains them through the Word. So, the word drives the sun still today and forever from morning to evening. For the fact that it goes around in the sky once every day is not its own nature or power, but that of the Word by which it was created.
Item 40: God also says that these two lights are to be used as signs, times, years and days, that is, so that one can count and know the time. We do not yet have thoughts to do this from our art, but everything is thus ordered by God. So now with these lights one measures both day and night, that one divides the sun's light into twelve hours, and also teaches to count the year with the sun's course, because it comes around once every year, and with its course brings the seasons, summer and winter, with it.
41. they shall also serve that one knows to count the newspapers thereby. The word newspapers is called XXXX in Hebrew. So the scripture names the special feasts in the year,
and is the same as one divides a day over the twelve hours into four parts, morning or forenoon, noon, afternoon and evening; which is at our discretion, how we want to divide it. Now as one divides the day, so one can also divide the year into as many parts as one wishes. As, first, into four parts; then into twelve months, at which time a certain time may be appointed; as, when I say, in the fourth or fifth month. Item, further one can divide each month into half, or fourth part; that is Hebrew: festa vel tempora, that is, such times, which are determined in the year. As according to our calculation are Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, or Michaelmas 2c. How to divide and divide the year, that is called times, for which the sun and the moon are created.
(42) Further, first of all, God says that they shall be "signs. Then the stargazers and natural masters have gone up to heaven, and have drawn on their lies that which he says here of signs, that they say: Whoever is born in this or that sign of the stars, he shall be sent thus or thus. He that is born under the sun must become a wooer or a wise man. Whoever is born in the Mercurio, he will become a good handler, and so henceforth he will be otherwise or so. But we let go of these crude lies, and stick to the simple understanding that they are signs, as the mariners need them, and judge themselves by them on the sea. Item, as a sign is, when the sun or the moon loses its light, so that God may indicate something, namely a future misfortune and punishment over the world.
Therefore we say that they are only signs and have no special power or effect. That they say that the lights and stars have three effects on earth: first, that they shine; second, that they move; third, that they have an influence, is all folly. That the light works down, that one grasps well when the sun shines. So it is also true with the movement; for we see, the farther it comes away, the colder it becomes. But the third, that they say that every sign and star has its influence, especially on men, that whoever is under a
If a man is born with such a sign, he must be born like this, live such a life, die such a death, so that they can advise everything, how it should be for everyone, this is false and fictitious. For they were not created to rule me, but for my use and service. Over day and night they shall rule, but over my soul they shall have neither rule nor power. The heavens were made to give light and time; the earth to sustain and feed us. That is all they can give or do.
(44) About this also the fools want to argue, why each country bears something special, as that this bears gold and silver, another grain 2c., and lie with force about such things, as they want, like the old people and countrymen 1), that they have no reason nor cause. But if they ask us why grain grows in one place, and ore, saffron, ginger and other things in another, which are not found in other places, we will answer, "Thus it is written in this first chapter, v. 12, about the third day, that on that day God caused to spring up from the earth by his word 2) grass, herbs, trees and all kinds of plants, each according to its kind.
Therefore, none of the things that grow out of the earth are created by the influence of heaven, but by the word of God. And even if they do not want to admit this, they must nevertheless confess that all grass, herbs and trees were created before the sun and moon with the stars. And, of course, this is why it was done and written, so that the fools are not believed as if it came from the influence of heaven, but was a special divine order. Stay with it, and keep your faith pure. The sun and the moon shall not create nor have more power than is written here. If God had given them more, he would have written more, because in this chapter all creatures are included, almost with all their works and abilities. This is the fourth day. Moses now continues:
1) Old lenges lie from what lies according to the time, landers from what lies far away according to the space. Landfahrer (Landferer) - travelers, who come far over land (Cf. Walch, St. Louiser Ausg., vol. XI, 301, 8 18); also by water (Walch, old Ausg., vol. Ill, 96k, Z 34).
2) Wittenberger and Erlanger: go out.
The fifth day.
V. 20-23. And God said, Let the waters be filled with living creatures that weave, and with fowl that fly upon the earth under the firmament of heaven. And God created great whales, and every living creature that weaves and stirs the waters, every one after its kind, and every feathered bird after its kind. And God saw it good, and blessed them, saying, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters of the sea, 3) and let the fowl multiply upon the earth. Then the evening and the morning became the fifth day.
(46) Then he took the heaven again, and gave it another ornament. Until now he has given him light, feasts, sun, moon and stars, so that he has everything he should have. Here he gives him to the birds, which kingdom is in the air. And here you see that the Scripture calls everything that is above heaven, also the air in which the birds hover; item the clouds; so that water and heaven, or air, are almost one thing in the Scripture, for heaven came from water. And we see that also some birds live in the water. That is why he includes here both the birds in the sky and the fish in the water, and starts again at the water.
(47) Now notice here that no creature can be alive by itself; that no bird, though it is small, can have its own feathers or plumes, but God gives them to each one, so that it is impossible to count the number of feathers and to see how they are made. Besides, you hear that both the birds and the fishes are made of watery nature, just as the sun and the moon, that is, are made of the sky, which is made of water, just as the grass and trees are made of the earth. For the two creatures have given all the others.
48 Now the first time God the Lord gives a blessing, which he has not done before. For the blessing is only upon that which lives, that it may multiply or be fruitful. For he hath given to all the nature and ability in their bodies, that they may bring forth fruit, and bear much; which still indicateeth that which I have said [§26],
3) Erlanger: of the seas.
that none of them came from Himself. For the text first says that God called them to come out of the water and to be stirred up, and thus created them and gave them life; but they could not yet be fruitful until he spoke the word over them and blessed them, and called them to multiply. Now this is an implanted nature, as he planted above [v. 11. 12.] in the earth the power to bear the grass and trees. Where he had only brought them forth, they would not have had the power to multiply. Therefore it is not their nature to beget young, but a special work of divine majesty and his word or blessing, planted in nature.
49 I know nothing special to say about the whales, without knowing that he is also a lord of the sea, and makes many powerful, strange and monstrous animals in it. I also think that it is much more abundant, and that there is a greater quantity of fish in the water than of other animals on land, and of course the water is the richest element. So we have everything that water has given. Now follows: