In the Beginning: Genesis 1:1–2:3

Genesis 1:1–2:3

English Standard Version (ESV)

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
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 face of the waters.

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
And God saw that the light was good.
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, the first day.

And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters,
and let it separate the waters from the waters.”

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.

God called the expanse Heaven.

And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

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.

God called the dry land Earth,
and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas.
And God saw that it was good.

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.

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.

And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

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,
and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens
to give light upon the earth.”
And it was so.

God made the two great lights—
the greater light to rule the day,
and the lesser light to rule the night—
and the stars.

And God set them in the expanse of the heavens
to give light on the earth,
to rule over the day and over the night,
and to separate the light from the darkness.
And God saw that it was good.

And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

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.”

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.

And God blessed them, saying,
“Be fruitful and multiply
and fill the waters in the seas,
and let birds multiply on the earth.”

And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

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.

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.

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.”

So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.

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.”

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.

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.

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.

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished,
and all the host of them.

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.

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.

How should we read this text?

Genesis 1 through to 2:3 is really the opening of Scripture. It sets the foundation of the entire biblical story. The text begins with “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” And this shows us that God has ultimate authority. He stands before everything else. He doesn't stumble upon a world that already exists. No, He brings it out of nothing. He creates it out of nothing.

Readers often wonder about the days of creation. Are they literal 24-hour day periods? Or are they more symbolic? Well, different believers have come to different conclusions. But I think it's important for us to realise that this text is much less focused on the mechanics of each day, and more on the fact that it is God who created, that He is the one who is sovereign.

The text describes a pattern to creation, right? So God speaks and things happen. There is light and sky and dry land and vegetation and celestial bodies and creatures and then finally the blessing of the seventh day. And we see a certain order in the goodness of each stage. We see that “God saw that it was good,” and that appears again and again. It's a kind of chorus or a refrain that shows the harmony that exists in creation.

And so the chaos we see in the world today shows us that this perfect or good creation was broken, that sin had distorted what God had made good. But at creation, it was good. And so God pronounced it so.

It’s important also for us to recognise that there is a pattern in the way that God creates. There's this literary pattern. Day 1, 2 and 3 are where God creates spaces. He creates the spaces of heaven and earth. Then he creates the sky and the waters below. Then he creates the land and the vegetation. And then in Days 4, 5 and 6, God then fills these spaces that he has made. He puts the sun and the moon and the stars into the heavens. He fills the ocean with the fish or the sea. And he fills the air with the birds. And then on the land, he fills it with all the animals that teem over the earth. And then finally, as the pinnacle of creation, he creates mankind. Male and female, in God's own image, he makes them.

And so then on the seventh day, God creates a new thing—a rest day, a Sabbath day—and it completes the pattern. So after six days of work, God rests, not because he's weary, but because he has set aside a day, making it hallowed. You know, he's made it holy, distinct. And so he establishes a rhythm of work and rest that's going to find its fulfilment all throughout Scripture and actually ultimately points us to Jesus who is to come.

Now the main point of this whole passage is that God is the one who created everything. And he did so with order and with meaning and with goodness. And so the world is not an accident. It's a result of God's will. He is in control as the creator of the world.

How should this text read us?

Well, if the world begins with a personal and a holy God, then we have to recognise that we are not our own. Even though we act like we're in charge, we actually are created beings—we are not creators in ourselves. We can shape what God has given us, but we cannot create out of nothing.

Genesis reminds us that God has the right to rule because he is the creator of all things. And when we lose sight of that, it can really send us into self-reliance and thinking that we are worth far more than we actually are. We forget that the world in its original design flowed out from God's goodness and that that's how God made the world to be.

And so this passage reminds us that we are creatures. We are not the creator. Genesis calls us to give up our misplaced pride in our own magnificence. It reminds us that God is the one who carries all the power. When he speaks, the darkness flees. When he wants to create, things come into being.

And maybe we sometimes feel a bit small. Genesis 1–2:3 affirms that the God who shaped the galaxy and who is so big is actually also the one who cared enough to shape lives with his own intentionality. Human beings are not cogs in a machine that God has put together. We are known by this maker of heaven and earth. He sees us. He knows us.

And this deep truth can actually help us when we think that we either need to overperform to get our worth, or we think that we have underperformed because we're not worthy. And so this creation account reminds us that we are special, that we are part of God's creation, but we are the pinnacle of God's creation.

And then the final thing that I think this passage should remind us of is that Sabbath rest is part of God's design. Rest like this is there even before sin came into the world. God established a pattern of work and rest. Part of that is him caring for the earth, but also for our well-being. He's put good rest right at the heart of his creation.

And so when we get overly busy in our routines, we're actually ignoring God's design to give us space to renew and to rest. It's actually sin that causes us to resist that restful Sabbath. We like to fill our days with this constant ongoing activity because it gives us a sense of achievement. But really there is a better way. God has set up this boundary of work and rest so that we can remember that our purpose is to live for His glory.

Prayer

Lord God, you are the maker of heaven and earth.
We want to praise you for your power, for your strength and for your creativity with which you created the earth.
But thank you also for your care for us, that you've given us this pattern of work and rest so that we can be both productive and cared for.
We pray this in Jesus' name.
Amen.