The Days of Creation

Genesis 1:3-2:3

In our study of Genesis, we are seeing that two threads weave throughout the book: The powerful Person of God and his personal work in the lives of people. The Creator is writing his story in our lives. That should never cease to amaze us and that should excite us that we are deeply involved in this amazing story!

I want you to keep in mind a big picture of the book of Genesis, so let’s review the three-part outline I presented last time:

God’s Work in Creation (1-2)

God’s Work with Humanity (3-11)

• • Adam (3-5)
  • Noah (6-10)
  • Nations (11)

God’s Work with His Covenant People (12-50)

• • Abraham (12-25)
  • Isaac (25-26)
  • Jacob (27-36)
  • Joseph (37-50)

We have started our study of the creation and learned that the Father, Son, and Spirit were all involved. Genesis 1:2 tells us that the earth was formless, dark, and empty. Today we are going to see that on Days1-3, God remedied the formlessness and darkness. And on Days 4-6, he filled the emptiness.

Before we ponder the days of creation, let’s consider a question that has caused much debate. The question is, did God create the heavens and earth in six twenty-four-hour days or six periods of indefinite time? The Hebrew word translated as “day” is yom, and it is true that this word can be used in different ways. A significant lexicon for the study of the Hebrew language is called Brown, Driver, and Briggs. The authors note that yom can mean “day as opposed to night,” “a working-day,” or “a day’s journey.” These descriptions would support yom in Genesis 1 as a twenty-four-hour day. There are times, however, when yom can describe a period of time in a general or indefinite sense like “in the course of time” (Genesis 4:3; Isaiah 61:2).

I believe that yom represents a twenty-four-hour day based on Genesis 1:5 where the writer says, “there was evening and there was morning, the first day.” But debating the meaning of yom is not the purpose of this study. The point I want to drive home is this: God is the One directly involved in every act of creation. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1).[1]

Let’s look at the days of creation. Following is a summary of each day.

Day 1: Day and Night (Genesis 1:3-5)

God spoke the world into existence and note how this is stated so matter-of-factly—”God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” Stop to ponder that. God called for light to appear, and there it was. He created from nothing (Latin: ex nihilo). Darkness was already present, so he separated the light from the darkness forming two parts of the first yom.  The light was called “day.” The darkness was called “night.” The “evening” and “morning” described the first day.

Day 2: Sky and Waters (Genesis 1:6-8)

Picture an ocean with a dense fog covering it. God separated the waters from the dense covering with an expanse in between (Psalm 104:2, Isaiah 40:22). God called the upper atmosphere the “sky.” God dwells in the highest heaven. Here is the description of the “heavens” as the sky that is visible to the human eye. (See Psalm 104:5-9 for a poetic description of creation.)

Day 3: Land and Vegetation (Genesis 1:9-13)

God gathered the water into one place and allowed land to appear. Demonstrating his authority, he named the dry land “Earth” and the gathered waters “Seas.” From the land, God called for vegetation, plants, and trees to come forth. The plants would yield seed for continued replacement, and the trees would yield fruit. Plants and trees would provide food for God’s crowning creation.

The earth was formless, dark, and empty (Genesis 1:2).

On Days 1-3, God remedied the formlessness and darkness.

On Days 4-6, he filled the emptiness.

Day 4: Lights for the Day and Night (Genesis 1:14-19)

On Day 1, God spoke light into existence and separated it from the darkness. On Day 4, God added to his Day 1 creation. He made two great lights: The sun to rule the day and the moon to oversee the night. These lights and the rotation of the earth would allow for “seasons, and for days and years.”

Day 5: Life for the Sea and Sky (Genesis 1:20-23)

On Day 2, God made the waters and the heavens. On Day 5, he filled the water and heavens. He created all the fish of the sea, the “great sea creatures,” and the birds of the air. To the living creatures, God said, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas and let birds multiply on the earth.” Living things were created with the capacity to reproduce.

Day 6: Life for the Land (Genesis 1:24-31)

On Day 3, God created the land and vegetation. On Day 6, God filled the land with the animals that live on the earth. Next time we will consider the creation of man in more detail.

Day 7: God Rests

Everything God created he declared as “good” and the creation of human life was “very good.” The word “good” describes activities and circumstances that benefit and enhance life. On Day 7, God rested. This does not mean that he was exhausted from his work and needed a break. Rather, it describes the “celebration of completion.”[2] For six days, God spoke into the formlessness, darkness, and emptiness and spoke into existence his magnificent creation. On Day 7, he celebrated the great work of creation.

PERSONAL TIME WITH GOD
Read Genesis 1:3-2:3—Focus on the creative power of God in each day of creation.

Prayer and Application
Read my comments below about the stars and contemplate this question:  When you consider the vastness of the universe, how does this understanding shape your perspective on God’s power and his desire to write his story in your life?

In Genesis 1:16, the passage describing God’s creation for lights to rule over the day and night, there is a brief mention that God created the stars. Let’s contemplate a few facts about the stars. 

Think about this. Our sun, powerful enough to burn our skin and draw oxygen from every plant on earth, is small among the other stars God made. If the giant star, Antares, was positioned at the same location as the sun—93 million miles away—the Earth at its current location would be inside it! The sun and Antares represent just two of the 500 billion stars that swim around in the vast galaxy of the Milky Way. If you held a dime at arm’s length, you would block out 15 million stars from view if our eyes were able to take that in.

Andromeda is another galaxy close enough for us to see with the naked eye. It’s a mere 2 million light-years away and showed up on star charts long before the invention of the telescope. Andromeda is twice the size of the Milky Way and home to a trillion stars. The Milky Way and Andromeda are only two of—ready for this?!—a hundred billion galaxies all swimming with stars.

And God made the stars also…. That gives you just an idea of the power of Elohim.

Have Questions?
We’d love to help! If you have any questions about today’s reading or teaching, please feel free to ask. Our team is here to assist as you explore God’s Word. Simply submit your question below, and we’ll get back to you soon.

[1] If you are interested in more study here, check out Creation and Blessing by Allen Ross, p. 109. Ross considers the use of yom throughout the Old Testament showing support for a 24hour day.

[2] Allen Ross, Creation and Blessing (Baker Publishing: 1998), 114.