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Ngoc_tuyet77 Posted 17 years ago
Vocabulary

Let there be love

Let there be you,
Let there be me.
Let there be oysters
Under the sea.

Let there be wind,
An occassional rain.
Chile con carne,
Sparkling champagne --

Let there be birds
To sing in the trees,
Someone to bless me
Whenever I sneeze.

Let there be cuckoos,
A lark and a dove,
But first of all, please --
Let there be love.

That's the song Let There Be Love, one of my favorite songs. But I don't really understand the meaning of "Let there be...". I am asking for an explanation. Please help me.

Thank you very much. [F]
  

Top answer

It is the equivalent of a "third-person command". Instead of "(you) be here on time" [2nd person] or "let's go to the movies tonight" [1st person plural], it is asking that someone else be allowed , or commanded, to do something. Marie Antoinette is famous for her misquoted "let them eat cake".

— Philip

  • It is the equivalent of a "third-person command".
  • Instead of "(you) be here on time" [2nd person] or "let's go to the movies tonight" [1st person plural], it is asking that someone else be allowed , or commanded, to do something.
  • Marie Antoinette is famous for her misquoted "let them eat cake".
  • "Long live the king" is a 3rd person command.
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3 Answers
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It is the equivalent of a "third-person command". Instead of "(you) be here on time" [2nd person] or "let's go to the movies tonight" [1st person plural], it is asking that someone else be allowed , or commanded, to do something.

Marie Antoinette is famous for her misquoted "let them eat cake". "Long live the king" is a 3rd person command.
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How about,

And let the music play / As long as there's a song to sing,
And I will stay younger than spring.

- This Is All I Ask, Gordon Jenkins

Or

And *** said, "Let there be light."
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PhilipIt is the equivalent of a "third-person command". Instead of "(you) be here on time" [2nd person] or "let's go to the movies tonight" [1st person plural], it is asking that someone else be allowed , or commanded, to do something.

Marie Antoinette is famous for her misquoted "let them eat cake". "Long live the king" is a 3rd person command.

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