This commentary by Basil of Caesarea follows on from the article Genesis 1, 2 Ruah – The Spirit of God is feminine, in which several commentaries and interpretations of the second verse of Genesis are introduced.
Basil of Caesarea, Homilies on the Hexaemeron 2, 6 (18 B-D, Migne 41C-44C)
Καὶ Πνεῦμα Θεοῦ, φησίν, ἐπεφέρετο ἐπάνω τοῦ ὕδατος. Εἴτε τοῦτο λέγει τὸ πνεῦμα, τοῦ ἀέρος τὴν χύσιν, δέξαι τὰ μέρη τοῦ κόσμου καταριθμοῦντά σοι τὸν συγγραφέα, ὅτι ἐποίησεν ὁ Θεὸς οὐρανόν, γῆν, ὕδωρ, ἀέρα, καὶ τοῦτον χεόμενον ἤδη καὶ ῥέοντα.
And the breath of God, said [Moses], moved [ἐπεφέρετο advanced above] over the water. Either he says that the spirit is this: the flow of air, understand [then] that the writer enumerates for you the parts of the world, which God made, heaven, earth, water, air, and that this one [the breath] is already spread and flows.
The verb ἐπιφέρω (epiphérô) indicates movement above something, and here it’s in the medio-passive form, indicating that the breath moves, transports itself. Given the verbal prefix epi which means “above” we could almost, thinking of breath and wind and placing the action in the air, translate by flew over. The word πνεῦμα (pneûma) can indicate breath, wind or spirit. Basil here gives both possible meanings of the word, while showing his preference for the second, spirit.
Εἴτε, ὃ καὶ μᾶλλον ἀληθέστερόν ἐστι καὶ τοῖς πρὸ ἡμῶν ἐγκριθὲν, Πνεῦμα Θεοῦ, τὸ ἅγιον εἴρηται- διὰ τὸ τετηρῆσθαι τοῦτο ἰδιαζόντως καὶ ἐξαιρέτως τῆς τοιαύτης μνήμης ὑπὸ τῆς Γραφῆς ἀξιοῦσθαι, καὶ μηδὲν ἄλλο Πνεῦμα Θεοῦ, ἢ τὸ ἅγιον τὸ τῆς θείας καὶ μακαρίας Τριάδος συμπληρωτικὸν ὀνομάζεσθαι.
Either, [he says], which is also preferable, truer, and also adopted by those before us, that what is mentioned [here] is the Spirit of God, the Holy: because it has been observed that, reserving it in a particular and eminent way, this word is deemed worthy by Scripture of such an appellation that nothing else is called the Spirit of God, except the Holy One who perfects the blessed and divine Trinity.
Καὶ ταύτην προσδεξάμενος τὴν διάνοιαν, μείζονα τὴν ἀπ ̓ αὐτῆς ὠφέλειαν εὑρήσεις. Πῶς οὖν ἐπεφέρετο τοῦτο ἐπάνω τοῦ ὕδατος; Ἐρῶ σοι οὐκ ἐμαυτοῦ λόγον, ἀλλὰ Σύρου ἀνδρὸς σοφίας κοσμικῆς τοσοῦτον ἀφεστηκότος, ὅσον ἐγγὺς ἦν τῆς τῶν ἀληθινῶν ἐπιστήμης.
Accepting this thought, you will find great benefit. How then does this one [the Spirit] stand above the water? I will not give thee my discourse, but that of a Syrian man who was as far from the wisdom of the world, as he was near to the science of things that are true.
Ἔλεγε τοίνυν τὴν τῶν Σύρων φωνὴν ἐμφατικωτέραν τε εἶναι, καὶ διὰ τὴν πρὸς τὴν Ἑβραΐδα γειτνίασιν, μᾶλλόν πως τῇ ἐννοίᾳ τῶν Γραφῶν προσεγγίζειν. Εἶναι οὖν τὴν διάνοιαν τοῦ ῥητοῦ τοιαύτην.
He was saying, then, that the language of the Syrians has a greater expressive capacity and also that thanks to the kinship with the Hebrew language, it is in some ways closer to the way of thinking of the Scriptures.
Τό, Ἐπεφέρετο, φησίν, ἐξηγοῦνται, ἀντὶ τοῦ, συνέθαλπε, καὶ ἐζωογόνει τὴν τῶν ὑδάτων φύσιν, κατὰ τὴν εἰκόνα τῆς ἐπωαζούσης ὄρνιθος, καὶ ζωτικήν τινα δύναμιν ἐνιείσης τοῖς ὑποθαλπομένοις.
This, then, is the way to understand what is said: this, he says, is interpreted as “stood above”, instead of “warmed”, and made the nature of the waters “producing living beings” (ἐζωογόνει), according to the resemblance to the bird that is above the eggs and infuses some vital power into those that are warmed.
The Syrian holy father referred to here, therefore, reacts to the Greek translation which translates the feminine present participle meraḥefet present in the Hebrew original by the Greek word ἐπεφέρετο which means to move above. He therefore points out that, according to the Syrians, this word would rather mean the action of a bird warming its eggs by incubating them, thereby infusing them with vital energy.
Τοιοῦτόν τινά φασιν ὑπὸ τῆς φωνῆς ταύτης παραδηλοῦσθαι τὸν νοῦν, ὡς ἐπιφερομένου τοῦ Πνεύματος- τουτέστι, πρὸς ζωογονίαν τὴν τοῦ ὕδατος φύσιν παρασκευάζοντος- ὥστε ἱκανῶς ἐκ τούτου τὸ παρά τινων ἐπιζητούμενον δείκνυσθαι, ὅτι οὐδὲ τῆς δημιουργικῆς ἐνεργείας τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ἀπολείπεται.
Such as this is the thought alluded to by this expression: “the Spirit stood above”, that is, preparing the nature of water to produce living beings. In this way, it is sufficiently demonstrated that the Holy Spirit is not left out of the creative action.
According to traditional teaching, in fact, creation is the work of the Trinity, and Basil is keen to reaffirm here that the Spirit’s action is that of infusing God’s life into his creatures; God’s breath gives and transmits divine life to his creatures.
On the different Jewish and Christian translations and interpretations of this second verse of Genesis, which introduces the Spirit, the breath of God, see the article Genesis 1, 2 Ruah – The Spirit of God is feminine.