Shamayim
Encyclopedia
Shamayim is the Hebrew word for "heaven"
"Shamayim" is a crucial concept in the Bible. There are at least three different shamayim or "heavens" in the bible: 1) The atmosphere where birds fly and clouds wander above the earth; 2) The heaven where the celestial bodies wander (wandering stars = planets) and stars reside; 3) The heaven where God and "the hosts of heaven" reside (Psalm 90:4; 2Peter 3:8; Isaiah 57:15), also called "paradise," the "heaven of heavens," or in Hebrew shamayi h'shamayim (םשמיה שמי) in scripture (cf. Deut 10:14; 1Ki 8:27; 2Ch 2:6, 6:18; Neh 9:6).
When "chuwg" is left as "circle" in Isaiah 40:22 it reads:
"It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in" (ESV)
The context in this verse describes in poetic language the view of earth and its inhabitants from high above the planet where God dwells in his "tent" looking down which reflects how God sits on his earthly throne in his earthly "tent" or tabernacle in the first heaven which further reflects how he sits on his throne in the temple of the third heaven (Psalm 11:4 "The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD’s throne is in heaven; his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man." (ESV) See also: Psalm 103:19; Isaiah 66:1). In Isaiah 40:22, the tent dwelling of the stretched out heavens where inhabitants are seen from far above earth puts the perspective in the second heaven—the habitation of celestial bodies (stars and planets). In the second heaven, symbolically speaking, God's throne of glory is likened to the sun in its comparison with its earthly counterpart, said to be inherited by David's seed herein: "His offspring shall endure forever, his throne as long as the sun before me."
With the context in Isaiah 40:22 understood as being from the perspective of God's seat of glory symbolized as the sun in the second heaven (our solar system) the "circle" ("chuwg") of earth above which he sits is the "circle" that the earth makes in its circuit or orbit around the sun. This is in contrast to when passages written from the perspective on earth describe the apparent movement of the sun likewise as a circle or "circuit," as in David's famous psalm:
"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above (this sets the context of looking up from earth, not down on earth as in Isa.40:22) proclaims his handiwork...he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit [Heb. "tequphah" a coming round, circuit, from "naqaph" meaning revolution, course (of the sun), etc.; hence, like a strong man running a circuit] to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat." (ESV)
Modern astronomers and meteorologists speak of a "sunrise" and "sunset" speaking from the earth's perspective as David was doing in his psalm.
In the book of Job, one of Job's companions, Eliphas, speaks in chapter 22 verse 14 saying that God “walks on the "chuwg" of heaven.” However, Job's friends who take turns speaking to Job assume to give advice and counsel him using the conventional wisdom of the day (see above) but are later rebuked by God for speaking "words without knowledge" (Job 38:2). These verses where Job's companions are speaking about heavenly and earthly phenomena should not be taken out of context or mistaken as a biblically-promoted view of cosmology, a popular habit among critics.
Heaven in the Old Testament
Shamayim comes from shameh, a root meaning to be lofty. It literally means the sky."Shamayim" is a crucial concept in the Bible. There are at least three different shamayim or "heavens" in the bible: 1) The atmosphere where birds fly and clouds wander above the earth; 2) The heaven where the celestial bodies wander (wandering stars = planets) and stars reside; 3) The heaven where God and "the hosts of heaven" reside (Psalm 90:4; 2Peter 3:8; Isaiah 57:15), also called "paradise," the "heaven of heavens," or in Hebrew shamayi h'shamayim (םשמיה שמי) in scripture (cf. Deut 10:14; 1Ki 8:27; 2Ch 2:6, 6:18; Neh 9:6).
"Raqiya"
The word "raqiya", “firmament”, comes from riqqua, meaning “expansion,” “broad,” and “beaten out.” In ancient times, brass objects were either cast in the form required or beaten into shape on an anvil. A good craftsman could beat a lump of cast brass into a thin bowl. Thus, Elihu asks Job, “Can you beat out [raqa] the vault of the skies, as he does, hard as a mirror of cast metal (Job 37:18)?” As this verse indicates, the vault of heaven was a solid, physical object. In Ezekiel 1:22-26 and once in Ezekiel 10:1 the prophet is given visions of the third heaven, in which the vault appears above the “living creatures” (i.e., the cherubim which support the throne of God) and glitters “like a sheet of ice.” Above the vault is a throne of sapphire (or lapis lazuli). Seated on the throne is “a form in human likeness,” radiant and “like the appearance of the glory of the Lord.”"Chuwq"
Another descriptive term used in association with shamayim is "chuwg," which literally means “circle” or “encompassed.”When "chuwg" is left as "circle" in Isaiah 40:22 it reads:
"It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in" (ESV)
The context in this verse describes in poetic language the view of earth and its inhabitants from high above the planet where God dwells in his "tent" looking down which reflects how God sits on his earthly throne in his earthly "tent" or tabernacle in the first heaven which further reflects how he sits on his throne in the temple of the third heaven (Psalm 11:4 "The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD’s throne is in heaven; his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man." (ESV) See also: Psalm 103:19; Isaiah 66:1). In Isaiah 40:22, the tent dwelling of the stretched out heavens where inhabitants are seen from far above earth puts the perspective in the second heaven—the habitation of celestial bodies (stars and planets). In the second heaven, symbolically speaking, God's throne of glory is likened to the sun in its comparison with its earthly counterpart, said to be inherited by David's seed herein: "His offspring shall endure forever, his throne as long as the sun before me."
With the context in Isaiah 40:22 understood as being from the perspective of God's seat of glory symbolized as the sun in the second heaven (our solar system) the "circle" ("chuwg") of earth above which he sits is the "circle" that the earth makes in its circuit or orbit around the sun. This is in contrast to when passages written from the perspective on earth describe the apparent movement of the sun likewise as a circle or "circuit," as in David's famous psalm:
"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above (this sets the context of looking up from earth, not down on earth as in Isa.40:22) proclaims his handiwork...he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy. Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit [Heb. "tequphah" a coming round, circuit, from "naqaph" meaning revolution, course (of the sun), etc.; hence, like a strong man running a circuit] to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat." (ESV)
Modern astronomers and meteorologists speak of a "sunrise" and "sunset" speaking from the earth's perspective as David was doing in his psalm.
In the book of Job, one of Job's companions, Eliphas, speaks in chapter 22 verse 14 saying that God “walks on the "chuwg" of heaven.” However, Job's friends who take turns speaking to Job assume to give advice and counsel him using the conventional wisdom of the day (see above) but are later rebuked by God for speaking "words without knowledge" (Job 38:2). These verses where Job's companions are speaking about heavenly and earthly phenomena should not be taken out of context or mistaken as a biblically-promoted view of cosmology, a popular habit among critics.