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Chapter 1 - One World Under God
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."
Without hesitation the first verse of the Bible declares the greatness of God. He is the Creator of the world who has brought all things into existence. Apart from Him there is no beginning or history to mankind. The God of Genesis is the God of this world
In the splendor of His creation, God's pleasure (Eph. 1:4-5) was directed towards man who would be made in His image (Gen. 1:270. God's delight and satisfaction after the creation of the earth and man is expressed at the end of chapter 1.
"God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day." (1:31, emphasis added)
The earth was a perfect environment, and man's existence was the purpose for this paradise. In describing the six-day creation account, one author captured the mood of this moment.
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"There was not an imperfect or ugly thing on the earth! God pronounced everything 'good' and man 'very good.' When the omniscient Godhead saw not imperfections, the earth must have been indescribably beautiful! The earth was fertile beyond our widest stretches of imagination; the season perfectly adapted to an ever-beautiful landscape; flowers were sublimely wonderful, luxurious plants and trees flourished in undreamed-of abundance; animals were docile and healthy and happy; while man, with no sickness, no cares, lived in fadeless youth amidst the glories of the garden of God. There were no weeds, no pests, no storms, no floods, no earthquakes, no sunspots!
The sun sang a morning hymn of praise, and the stars a mighty lullaby. Each day began and ended with the sky aglow with God's presence! Such is the picture of God's dream of man's first home; and such will be man's eternal home, when he has gone to be forever with the Lord!" 1
The Days of Creation
Each day of creation was a statement of God's sovereignty over the elements of the world. It is not difficult to follow the order of days and what transpired on each one. In examining the texts of creation, one cans see what developed over the six-day period.
In verse 2 we see the condition of the earth at its inception.
"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." (NIV)
It was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep. The language indicates that is was not suitable for man to inhabit. The LORD would now structure the earth, providing the necessary environment for man to live happily in it.
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On the first day (vv. 3-5) God created light along with the darkness.
"Then God said, 'Let there be light'; and there was light. God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day."
The light was separated from the darkness. The light was day and the darkness was night.
The second day (vv. 6-8) God formed the sky by separating the dense moisture that was enshrouding the earth (cf. Psalm 104:5-8).
"Then God said, 'Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.' God made the expanse, and separated the waters, which were below the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. God called the expanse heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day."
The third day (vv.9-13) God separated the waters covering the earth to form the land and sea.
"Then God said, 'Let the waters below the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear' and it was so. God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering of the waters called he seas: and God saw that it was good. Then God said, 'Let the earth put sprout vegetation; plants yielding seed, and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit after their kind with seed in them'; and it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in them, after their kind; and God saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning, a third day."
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Up to this point in time, the earth was one big body of water. He also created the plant and tree life with seed in them to produce "after their kind."
The fourth day (vv 14-19) God made the sun, moon, and stars.
"Then 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; and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on earth'; and it was so. God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night. He made the stars also. God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from darkness; and God saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day."
The purpose of this was to distinguish day and night and to serve as signs to mark off seasons and measure time. The sun and moon would replace the fixed light source of the first day. The moon would govern the night so that the earth would not be in complete darkness.
The fifth day (1:20-23) God created marine and bird life.
"Then God said, 'Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens.' God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good. God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.' There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day."
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On the sixth day (vv 24-27) God created the animal life and man.
"Then God said, 'Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind; cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind'; and it was so. God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good."
"Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.' God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them."
Man as the crowning achievement of creation would be made in the image of God. Because of this, finite man would be able to identify himself with God's love and wisdom, and also have the capacity to fellowship with an infinite God. Man was to have dominion upon the earth (Gen. 1:28) and enjoy the eternal fellowship with God, which he was purposed for. On the seventh day God rested (2:1-3).
The evidence is strong enough to conclude that it was a literal six days of twenty-four-hour cycles. God Himself gives he greatest testimony to this when He prescribed the Sabbath to the nation of Israel.
"Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is
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in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." (Exod. 20:8-11, emphasis added)
Other evidence is in the creation account itself. The phrase "there was evening and there was morning" (cf Gen. 1:15, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31) is intended by God to show the termination of a daily period of day and night. This is consistent with the usage of the terms morning and evening, throughout the Bible. Some have argued that the word day in Hebrew (yom) can carry the meaning of an indefinite period of time. This is true, but when accompanied by a numerical number like the first day or second day, it limits its meaning to a solar day or 24 hours.
Those who subscribe to the theory of evolution will find their beliefs in opposition to chapter 1. The repeated term, "after their kind" (Gen.1:11, 21, 24) is intended by God to make a point that species will not evolve from an evolutionary process. All forms of life were created in this six-day period.
The magnitude of this creation account needs to be recognized by mankind. It is a reflection of the awesomeness and majesty of God, who provides man with the necessary grace and strength in this life. If man fails to acknowledge the power of God in creation, he will fail to take seriously God's demands to live holy and righteous in His sight. Unfortunately, this will be the case. The book of Romans gives a bleak picture of man's attitude as a whole towards creation, and his failure to uphold the righteousness that is required of him in life.
"The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made so that men are without excuse."
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"For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles." (Rom. 1:18-23, NIV)
In these verses one sees the foolish thinking and behavior of man in refusing to acknowledge the God of the Bible. His thinking is futile, void of any truth, and he enters into religious stupidity. In so doing he fails to worship and glorify God for His greatness in creation. There is no gratitude in his heart towards the kindness that God has shown in his life. All of this adds up to a hardened heart that is desensitized to sin. This downward spiral becomes the basis for man's many attacks on the character of God and His Word.
In his attempts to dismiss the truth of God, man has dismissed the biblical concepts that contribute to the meaning and understanding to our existence. The truth of God has stood the test of time throughout the history of man. Man can no longer afford to ignore the flawlessness of God's Word. One of the main objectives in writing this book (see prologue) is the expectation of capturing the public attention to this biblical reality.
"For, 'All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.' And this is the words that was preached to you." (1 Pet. 1:24-25, NIV emphasis added)
Since mankind as a whole has rejected God's truth, it is not surprising to see the many attempts to destroy the integrity of the creation account. Man has complicated the plain and simple language of Genesis 1. Many theories have been adopted to
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explain away the literal six days of creation. This comes as no surprise, since Genesis is the foundational book that the Scriptures are built upon. By destroying this groundwork, man can remove the absolute truths God has given His Word to govern and direct the affairs of mankind. When this happens there is no basis of truth for godly living.
The all-powerful God of creation who spoke the universe into existence in six days, can be trusted when He speaks. The exercise of faith in the Scriptures will verify this truth in man's heart.
"By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible." (Heb. 11:3)
God's faithfulness to His Word has been further validated by the testimony of history. The fulfillment of scriptures in relation to Israel and the Church up to our present time has provided more than enough evidence to uphold the claims of God's Word. God means exactly what He has proclaimed. His Word can be trusted from the first verse of Genesis to the last verse of Revelation.
The Edenic Covenant
The creation account reveals the place of privilege that man was given upon this world. God made a covenant with man (Gen. 1:28-30) showing the original plan intended for him.
"God blessed them; and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.' Then God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky
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and to every thing that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food': and it was so."
This covenant is called the Edenic Covenant, since it was made with man in the Garden of Eden. He was to be fruitful and multiply, filling the earth. He was to rule over all life forms and bring everything under his control. He would accomplish this through the harmonious relationship that existed between all living creatures. We also learn that the diet for both man and animals would be vegetables, since killing for food was not necessary in an environment that was perfect and provided everything. As an early condition for man, he was to labor in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:15), cultivating certain shrubs that needed attention. Man was to enjoy the fruit of his labor as a blessing in the intimate presence of God. As God rested on the seventh day, so man would rest in God in all his labor.
In chapter 2 we see the commandment by God that made this covenant or agreement conditional upon man's obedience.
"Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the Garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. The Lord God commanded the man, saying, 'From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.'" (Gen. 2:15-17)
Man was forbidden to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil (2:17). This provision was the test of obedience for man. The failure to uphold this provision would result in a change in God's original plan.
Chapters 1 and 2 reveal the setting of God's perfect plan for man. As long as man remains obedient, he will enjoy the intimate fellowship with God, the wonderful paradise provided by Him and a life free from hardships, worries, and fears. Man will fail the first test of obedience. ENTER SIN.
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