For Bible studies, it is sometimes helpful to know the definitions of words to better feel what God is trying to tell you. Here are a few:
Bara
Bara can refer to “creating something from nothing,” or it can refer to “reforming existing materials.” Either way, it always signifies God’s divine creation of something strikingly new.
- John 1:3 affirms, “Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made.”
- Psalm 33:9 declares, “For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.”
Elohim
The Hebrew word translated to “God” in Genesis 1:1 is Elohim, which means “supreme one” or “mighty one.”
OTHER NEAT ONES
The Latin phrase ex nihilo, meaning “out of nothing,” is often attributed to God’s act of creation.