04 · Study tools

Traditions

A biblical verse can come down to us in several ancient textual traditions. Comparing them reveals shades of meaning that a single reading may leave unnoticed. The creation account offers a place to begin.

What you’ll learn

On this page · 2 topics

1. 01Turn on traditions and compare Genesis 1:4 and 1:31
2. 02Continue the comparison in Genesis 2:1–3

Light is good — and beautiful

Genesis 1:4 → Genesis 1:31 · Latin and Greek traditions

The examples below use the French edition. The quoted French words help you identify the readings shown there.

1. Open the first chapter of Genesis

In the library, choose Genesis (Genèse in French), then chapter 1. Find verse 4 using the number on the left and read it. In tradition V, the light is described as good: “la lumière était bonne”.

2. Find the Traditions bar

The Traditions bar sits above the chapter text. Its letters identify ancient textual traditions: V is the Latin Vulgate and G the Greek Septuagint. Choosing an app language does not select a tradition.

Find your way / Traditions bar

The letters select traditions; the control to their right changes how variants appear. This illustration shows the controls, not an active comparison of two texts.

3. Add the Greek tradition

Keep V selected and choose G. You now have two traditions to compare. If the letter is unavailable or has a lock beside it, check the access conditions and sign in to your profile. The G selector is in the Traditions bar, rather than the edition menu.

4. Keep the variants visible

Find the display control beside the letters. If variants appear only when you hover over a verse, switch to Show all (Afficher tout in French). Check that the additional readings stay visible when you move the pointer away. Return to Genesis 1:4 and compare V with G.

What to look for

In this example, V describes the light as “good”, while G describes it as “beautiful”. Compare the corresponding words within the same verse.

5. Compare the last verse of the chapter

Scroll to verse 31, keeping V and G selected. The assessment now concerns everything that has been made: “very good” in V and “very beautiful” in G. Compare this with the words about light in verse 4.

Reading example / Genesis 1:31 · V

The French reading in V includes “elles étaient très bonnes !”. With G enabled, compare the corresponding words in the Greek tradition.

From each creature to the whole

Why is creation as a whole called “very good”? Thomas Aquinas connected the perfection of the world with the variety of creatures and their place in the whole. This offers a way to reflect on the account; it does not explain the origin of the difference between V and G.

Source: Summa Theologiae, I, question 47, article 2, reply to the first objection.

Everything is created. Why a seventh day?

Genesis 1:31 → Genesis 2:1–3 · The account continues

Keep V and G selected and leave Show all on. At the end of chapter 1, the world is described as very good. Read on to see how the account continues across the chapter boundary.

1. Go to chapter 2

Scroll past the end of chapter 1. When you reach the next chapter, the chapter number in the reading bar changes from 1 to 2, and verse numbering starts again. You can also open chapter 2 with the chapter selector. Read Genesis 2:1: the heavens and the earth are complete. Verse 1 now belongs to the second chapter, but the account continues.

2. Compare the day of completion

Find verse 2. Read its opening in V, then the corresponding words in G. In the Latin tradition, the work is completed on the seventh day; in the Greek tradition, on the sixth. If only one reading appears, check that both letters and Show all are selected.

Reading example / Genesis 2:2 · V

The opening of V contains “le septième jour” — “the seventh day”. Compare it with G in the same verse.

3. Read the rest of the same verse

Stay in verse 2 and compare the words about rest. In both traditions, God rests on the seventh day. Distinguish the difference in the day of completion from the agreement about the day of rest: they are two parts of the same verse.

4. Find the two actions in verse 3

Read Genesis 2:3 and find the words for blessing and making holy: “bénit” and “sanctifia” in the French text. Notice what they refer to: God blesses the seventh day and makes it holy.

Reading example / Genesis 2:3

“Dieu bénit le septième jour et le sanctifia” helps you see the place of the seventh day at the close of the account.

5. Return to the meaning of the account

Bring together three observations: the world is complete, God rests, and the seventh day is blessed and made holy. How does this ending add to “very good” in Genesis 1:31? You can scroll back to that verse and read it again.

From the created world to its purpose

Benedict XVI drew attention to the way the creation account moves toward the seventh day. In his reading, this day reveals creation’s purpose: communion between humanity and God, with the world becoming a place for freely given love and a free response.

This is an interpretation of the seventh day’s meaning. It does not attribute an explanation of the difference between V and G to Benedict XVI.

Source: Benedict XVI, Easter Vigil homily, 23 April 2011. Paraphrased.

Good to know

Traditions and access

Textual traditions are distinct from app languages. If G is unavailable, check access to comparison in your profile. To keep both readings visible, check the selected traditions and the display mode together.

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