What is it?
God made a firmament in between the waters, to divide the water into two, so that some water to remain under the firmament and the other to go above. The word firmament means a strong and firm flat expanse spreading out as a sheet, but rigidly strong. It was not just an empty space, but a firm solid-like structure capable of holding the water above it.
The word firmament in Hebrew is raqia or raqiya (ra-ke-ah), which means spreading out like a metallic sheet. It is a solid-like mass which God made, a spherical wall, to divide the waters. Raqiya many times is used in place of rky (sky). When used to imply the sky, it is expressed as the open firmament; but the right word for sky is rky, and for firmament is is raqiya. A firm solid mass that cut across the waters spherically, dividing it into two sections. It was a great dome-like sphere of some type of mass, different from ordinary matter, but firm and rigid, unmovable, and of different nature and property from the common matter.
This is indeed a firmament! It is so massive that it holds all the heavenly bodies in place, giving them supersonic motions. Physicists have for a long time wondered why the expected total mass of galaxies is far below the actual mass that holds them in motion. They realize that gravitational force from the galaxies’ material mass, called matter, is not enough to cause stars in various galaxies move with such supersonic speeds, and the speed of any galaxy as a whole far exceeds what gravitational force from visible matter would give them. By calculations, the total visible mass is only 5% of the total mass responsible for the motion of stars and galaxies. Because of this, they have concluded that there exists a dark (invisible) form of mass, which does not emit light, neither does it reflect light, and it spreads out encompassing galaxies. They claim that this dark matter surrounds every galaxy attracting them with great gravitational force capable of giving them their terrific motions.
Furthermore, most galaxies are in a spiral-like shape and are flat, so that the stars and other bodies occupy a certain thick plane. The plane can be thousands of light years in thickness, but it spreads out like a sheet. This arrangement suggests that there is some flat material in which they are arranged and held together.
Yes, what physicists are fumbling with is clearly described in Genesis chapter one. What they call “dark matter” is simply that firmament that God created in between the waters. It is such a great wall, firm and rigid, not only holding the water that is above it, but also holding the galaxies in place, and giving them their terrific motion. Yes, the 95% of the unaccountable matter makes up the great firmament in which the galaxies are held. In the middle of every galaxy there is a black hole whose gravity is capable of deflecting or swallowing light. The black hole is normally the centre of rotation of the bodies within the galaxy. God made lights within the firmament by converting some of the dark (invisible) matter into visible matter. Thus, where a galaxy exists, there is an open space called the sky (rky), while beyond the sky there is the dark matter that makes the firmament. Thus, apart from the visible matter and its corresponding energy, there is invisible matter and its corresponding energy. The tremendous gravitational force from this great wall holds the galaxies in place. Yes, that is the firmament which God created!
Echoes From Paradise 