And He commanded and this firmament emerged on Day Two

210 so that the night would be in its shadow, as you have heard,

and it would appear between the waters (below) and the waters above

and a stop be set to human eyes so that they would not wander off.

It is spread as a garment beneath the residences of the Divine

and as a roof above the dwelling of humans.

215 The firmament is in the heaven of heavens, but it is a firmament,

for who could grasp these heavens above?

Except Paul and Moses the great who spoke about them.

Who could discuss them as they are?

Moses said that the Lord had created the heaven and the earth,

220 and a day afterwards, that there should be a firmament, so it was said,

and there emerged a firmament and the heaven above was covered with it.

A human eye was not able to endure it 

because of its splendor, because of its glory, because of its beauties,

because of that great sea of inextinguishable light.

225 There was no sun in the sky above, for it was itself all sun,

and behold, its light was kept away in front of this gate of the firmament,

whence some of that light came out to our place.

He moved, hastened, and made it in an amazing fashion for him who saw it.

At the time of Paul and also earlier at the time of Ezekiel

230 there were visionaries who saw the light which the heaven above had obtained.

With the first signal it emerged in the high region,

and there emerged a firmament on Day Two so that it would be covered with it,

so that the firmament also would be heaven for humans

and heaven of the house, of this house which is full of families,

235 though the heaven above is honoured for its treasure

and it is not seen except by the accomplished and the godly.

The firmament is a (solid) body and therefore there is in it a shadow as well,

for this heaven above has no body,

but it is a great piece of work that exists spiritually,

240 full of lights, and night does not return there.

This heaven above has no shadow,

for from a shadow there will appear a night on this day.

Instead of a shadow there will gush out light as designed

for the sake of the light-emitting bodies which lie there in the place above.

245 And this firmament, which the Lord made on Day Two,

is, for those above, of the same nature as the earth, which is under them.

The heaven is ours and the earth is of those who are above it,

the signal established it so that it would become the earth for those above.

For us corporeal beings the Creator made corporeal instruments,

250 and to the spiritual (beings) what was created there is spiritual.

The firmament which came into being is our heaven, which has a body

and He makes a night form its shadow for us below.

For us corporeal beings this corporeal piece of work is necessary,

but for those incorporeal the entire work is spiritual.

255 Therefore, when the heaven above was in the making,

with the spiritual beings its formation proceeded spiritually.

And the hosts, through the spirit of the mouth of the Divine,

were emerging there spiritually in their domains,

and there is no thick body nor a shadow there,

260 nor this night which exists here in our place.

All this creation is of the corporeal and shadows;

all of it is set like a circle inside nothing.

There is no body either above it or below it

nor round it but a force supporting it.

265 It hangs and exists like a bird inside nothing

and in its midst there is a turbulent universe full of movements,

and above this wheel laden with bodies,

a desert of light inhabited by hosts,

and below them this firmament like a circle,

270 in which these corporeal bodies are held,

pitched like a tent for dwelling for families and tribes

and there live in it diverse species with their respective nature,

and the wisdom of the Most High established it and it emerged on Day Two

like a roof for the entire world of humans.

275 He created the firmament without lights arranged therein

and without the sun and the moon which rotate in it.

As a great garment He wove it and spread it without patterns

as He shaped it and painted it with His skill,

and because it lacked the lights to be arranged in it (yet),

280 it is not written that the Lord saw that it was beautiful, when He had made it.

He who is interested in the teaching would recognize, 

every time he reads the prophecy and its words.

Concerning all the (other) days (of creation) it is written that the Lord saw that it was beautiful,

but concerning that Day Two this was not said.

285 There emerged a firmament, and because it lacked certain forms yet to be arranged in it,

the word fell short and it is not written that the Lord saw that it was beautiful.

He who was ready to beautify it with adornments and luminaries

kept it for the moment when it would be pronounced on the completion of the work.

It was evident that He did not forget in any manner whatsoever, when He created it,

290 that He was going to create it with the sun and the moon and all luminaries.

But because He was skilful and full of wisdom,

He took time so that the formation would come in place in its time

and did not wish to make the sun and the moon on Day Two.

But you are eager and learn intelligently.

295 He created the firmament in the midst of the waters and separated them,

putting the ones above and the ones below in their respective domain.

And He made the firmament in an incomplete form when He made it

just as the earth was not completely formed when it was created.

And because another beauty which He would add to it (later) was still to come,

300 on Day Two it was not said that He saw that it was beautiful.

And the firmament was there in the midst of the waters as He had commanded it,

and there was an evening and there was a morning, Day Two.

Yousef Kouriyhe