Page "Genesis 1:1" Paragraph 27

Nachmanadies, an important Spanish-Jewish medieval commentator says, like Rashi, that the prefix of the letter ב in word breishis cannot be understood to mean " in " as in the beginning, which would mean the order of creation.

He says that the next verse ; Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters, would clearly indicate that the water already existed.

Nachmanadies says that the prefix ב can also mean with or through and the core word rieshis means a starting source.

He says that breishis means through a core beginning source God created the world.