In ancient near eastern cosmology, the firmament means a celestial barrier that separated the heavenly waters above from the Earth below.[1] In biblical cosmology, the firmament (Hebrew: רָקִ֫יעַ rāqīaʿ) is the vast solid dome created by God during the Genesis creation narrative to separate the primal sea into upper and lower portions so that the dry land could appear.[2][3]
The concept was adopted into the subsequent Classical and Medieval models of heavenly spheres, but was dropped with advances in astronomy in the 16th and 17th centuries. Today it is known as a synonym for sky or heaven.
- ^ Rochberg 2010, p. 344.
- ^ Pennington 2007, p. 42.
- ^ Ringgren 1990, p. 92.