GENESIS 1:14-19, THE SONG OF THE CREATION ON THE FOURTH DAY

This song sung acapella was finished by me on 19 June 2023. The song is an ethnographically inspired literal translation of the verses fourteen through nineteen of the first chapter of Genesis, the fourth paragraph according to the Masoretic text of the Hebrew Bible which, in Biblical Hebrew, is as follows:

וַיֹּאמֶר אֱלֹהִים יְהִי מְאֹרֹת בִּרְקִיעַ הַשָּׁמַיִם לְהַבְדִּיל בֵּין הַיּוֹם וּבֵין הַלָּיְלָה וְהָיוּ לְאֹתֹת וּלְמוֹעֲדִים וּלְיָמִים וְשָׁנִים
וְהָיוּ לִמְאוֹרֹת בִּרְקִיעַ הַשָּׁמַיִם לְהָאִיר עַל־הָאָרֶץ וַיְהִי־כֵן
וַיַּעַשׂ אֱלֹהִים אֶת־שְׁנֵי הַמְּאֹרֹת הַגְּדֹלִים אֶת־הַמָּאוֹר הַגָּדֹל לְמֶמְשֶׁלֶת הַיּוֹם וְאֶת־הַמָּאוֹר הַקָּטֹן לְמֶמְשֶׁלֶת הַלַּיְלָה וְאֵת הַכּוֹכָבִים
וַיִּתֵּן אֹתָם אֱלֹהִים בִּרְקִיעַ הַשָּׁמָיִם לְהָאִיר עַל־הָאָרֶץ
וְלִמְשֹׁל בַּיּוֹם וּבַלַּיְלָה וּלֲהַבְדִּיל בֵּין הָאוֹר וּבֵין הַחֹשֶׁךְ וַיַּרְא אֱלֹהִים כִּי־טוֹב
וַיְהִי־עֶרֶב וַיְהִי־בֹקֶר יוֹם רְבִיעִי פ
http://www.qbible.com/hebrew-old-testament/genesis/1.html

As ethnography aims at understanding a people through their own eyes and ears at a particular point in their history, this translation strove to provide a translation that, to the extent this might be possible, would exactly convey the meaning the words of this text had for the first people who encountered it, either in writing or listening. The translation, thus, ignores over 2000 years of Biblical interpretation, both Jewish and Christian and makes a best effort to let the words speak for themselves. The translation is sung because the translation, due to the repetitive nature of its phraseology, lends itself more to song than to normal recitation. However, as the language of the translation is English, it is sung according to the traditions imposed on song by English rhythmic structures. Accordingly, it could not be rendered in English in the manner of Hebrew and so, in this regard, no effort was made to do so. Nevertheless, I cannot help but think that the joyous nature of the content was, to a certain extent, respected in the choice of the melody used when sung. Rumble is the only video sharing platform to which there are any plans for an upload.