Thus we understand that "bara," create, is used to describe God's
act of originating being where there was none before or a
particular act of God's will with pre-existing materials. (It does
not always mean a creation out of nothing.) [Ed note: It may be
that the idea of creation ex nihilo might pertain to the creation
of the animal soul and to the creation of the human spirit.]
Is it a defect that one word - bara - is used with such subtle
shades of difference? No, to insist that it not be would put a
burden on Hebrew that is not met by any other language. All words
express varieties of meaning, some modification in use of its
terms. One cannot use a new term for every new thought!
