1 In the Beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
If you were to ask people the first thing God Created, they may respond by saying “light.” This is understandable, as God did indeed create light on the first day. However, before the first day even begins, the Bible states that “God created the heavens and the earth, and the earth was formless… and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” This could mean quite a few things, but in every case it seems to suggest that God first created a formless mass, described here as “waters” from which He would create everything else, and it is only after these formless waters are brought into existence that God says, “Let there be light.”
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
When God does command light into existence, it just appears, as if the mere act of God speaking can bring about whatever He wishes to create.
4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.
The act of creating light, and separating it from darkness, also allowed for the possibility of marking time. There are debates as to the nature of time, whether it is something that has always existed, or whether it is merely a figment of perception, a human construct necessary to make sense of the universe. In either case, the most basic way to measure time has always been by days and nights. By separating day and night, God effectually began time, or at least the means to measure it. Which is why it is only after light is created that there is “the first day.”
6 And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” 7 And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. 8 And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.
The second day of creation is one which is hard to understand cosmologically. The connotation is that God takes the formless waters and sets a structure between them, rendered “an expanse” or “a firmament” in English. The Hebrew word suggests that this expanse/firmament/structure is spread out, using the same word that would describe a blacksmith striking metal in order toto force it into a domed shape. Therefore, the ancient Jews would have assumed that the sky was a dome like solid structure, like a metal dome, that separated water from the clouds. While this assumption has been replaced by modern understanding of the universe, the description in the text itself is not contrary to modern understanding. In fact, a common understanding in the realm of astrophysics is expansion, an understanding that the universe is getting bigger, and is usually described alongside the theory of the big bang.
It should also be noted that the waters, although separated above and below (from the point of view of what would become the earth) are not necessarily separated into only two groups, with the creation of the expanse, titled “heaven,” as in sky or cosmos. The formless waters could be separated into everything that God is going to be creating in the days to come, including what would become stars, planets, and other astronomical bodies.
9 And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.
Here God begins to give from to the formless waters that currently make up everything. He separates water from land, forming the various elements, and minerals that make up the earth. The entire focus of this day is on planet Earth, “under the heavens.”
11 And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.
The third day continues with God bringing about plant life on the earth. While there is yet no sun there is daylight (created on the first day, just not yet given from) to give the plants energy. The plant life is diverse, capable of growing, multiplying, and spreading. These bits of life help mark the earth as special, as no other planet or star is ever mentioned as having life.
14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.
As opposed to day three, the focus of day four is entirely on the heavens, or cosmos. Here God is giving form to the light that He created on the first day, in the form of the Sun, moon, and stars. These will help mark day and night, as well as other passages of time such as months and years.
Interestingly enough, God mentions that the cosmos can be “for signs,” which some have taken to lend credence to astrology. While this is doubtful, as God later condemns astrologers as magicians, it is true that God has spoken via signs in the heavens, such as during the nativity of Christ.
20 And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” 21 So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
On day five, God begins to fill the waters and the skies, His creations from day two. He starts with sea life, telling the waters to swarm with life, a multitude of animals as diverse as can be. The birds of the air are no different, with various “kinds.”
22 And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.
The command given to the fish and the birds to be fruitful and multiply, becomes a theme for all living creatures later on. It gives purpose to these animals, to reproduce, to make more of themselves. This gift of procreation is ordained by God.
24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
The sixth day of creation culminates everything God has done up to this point. God now fills the land, His creation from the third day, with animals, again with great diversity.
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
God’s crowning achievement is to create something like Himself, mankind. The terms “image” and “likeness” are masculine and feminine respectively, suggesting that all members of the human race share in God’s image, not just men. What makes humans like God? this is not entirely clear. It could be their relational aspect, as suggested by the next verse, their ability to communicate complex thoughts, or their creativity. In any case, it is a great reasonability to be an image bearer of God. The actions of mankind are supposed to represent God, and thus doing actions that misrepresent God are to be avoided.
27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
The poetic structuring of this verse is interesting, and perhaps is used as a memory aid (most ancient people would learn scripture via oral tradition rather than writing). Again this verse explicitly states that both male and female are included as image bearers of God.
28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
The command to be fruitful and multiply reappears this time relating to mankind. Human sexuality, is something God designed, and even commands. Notice how this command is called a blessing. It is to be enjoyed, when following the parameters that God sets.
Another part of the blessing is the giving of authority befitting God’s representatives on earth. God gives mankind authority over everything else He just created. As if the earth and everything in it was God’s gift to mankind.
29 And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so.
At this point in time, the only food available for consumption in plant life. Meat is not an option. Even carnivorous animals at this point in time ate only vegetation. This does lend credit to vegetarian and vegan diets, however God later allows for meat to be consumed as well.
31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
After all this work, God looks back and calls it “very good.” For five days God had said “it is good” when he created something, now that it is complete, it is better than good.
2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.
I include these early verses of chapter 2 here to finish this narrative of creation, as this is where the narrative ends before taking a closer look later in chapter 2. After proclaiming that the universe He created is “very good,” God rests on the seventh day, simply to enjoy His creation. The blessing on the seventh day would later become the foundation for the Sabbath, and is why our calendars use seven day weeks. Throughout Scripture seven will become a common number, marking completion. God’s rest on the seventh day should be considered an example for mankind: Work six days, rest the seventh.