רָאִ֨יתִי֙ אֶת־הָאָ֔רֶץ וְהִנֵּה־תֹ֖הוּ וָבֹ֑הוּ וְאֶל־הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם וְאֵ֥ין אֹורָֽם׃
I saw the land, and behold, it was formless and void; and to the heavens, and there was no light.
Morphology
- רָאִ֨יתִי (raʾiti) – Root: ראה; Form: Qal perfect 1st person singular; Translation: “I saw”; Notes: Simple past tense verb, speaker is observing a vision.
- אֶת־ (ʾet) – Form: Direct object marker; Translation: [no English equivalent]; Notes: Marks the definite direct object of the verb.
- הָאָ֔רֶץ (ha-ʾarets) – Root: ארץ; Form: Noun, feminine singular, definite (“the land”); Translation: “the land”; Notes: Refers to the whole earth or land.
- וְהִנֵּה־ (ve-hinnēh) – Root: נה (interjectional form); Form: Interjection with conjunction; Translation: “and behold”; Notes: Dramatic marker of sudden or startling perception.
- תֹ֖הוּ (tohu) – Root: תהו; Form: Noun, masculine singular; Translation: “formless”; Notes: Conveys chaos, emptiness, or disorder.
- וָבֹ֑הוּ (va-vohu) – Root: בהו; Form: Noun, masculine singular; Translation: “void”; Notes: Often used together with “tohu” to express utter desolation or formlessness.
- וְאֶל־ (ve-ʾel) – Root: אל; Form: Preposition with conjunction; Translation: “and to”; Notes: Indicates direction or reference.
- הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם (ha-shamayim) – Root: שׁמים; Form: Noun, masculine plural, definite; Translation: “the heavens”; Notes: Standard plural form for “heaven/sky.”
- וְאֵ֥ין (ve-ʾēyn) – Root: אין; Form: Particle of non-existence with conjunction; Translation: “and there was no”; Notes: Used to indicate total absence of the following noun.
- אֹורָֽם (ʾoram) – Root: אור; Form: Noun, masculine singular with 3rd person masculine plural suffix; Translation: “their light”; Notes: Refers to the light of the heavens; absence of luminaries or order.