Hello, welcome to the podcast, Bible Wisdom Today. My name is Stan Watkins.

The Bible has always been an important foundation for my personal faith, leading me to complete a Bible degree and enter Christian ministry, ultimately going with my wife and family to Europe for 6 years. There I served in the areas of Bible teaching and music. Since returning to the states, I have supported my local church as I have had opportunity, but now I would like a more regular outlet for teaching God’s word.

Understanding the Bible is not simply a matter of belief that it is God’s word. The Bible was written long ago, in a foreign language, within an alien culture, using unfamiliar literary styles. Today’s Bible student must overcome each of these obstacles. This podcast is for those willing to think deeply to discover God's wisdom for life today.

In our last episode on the book of Genesis, we spent time discussing the authorship and genre of Genesis as well as discussing the relationship of Genesis to ancient literature and modern science. We also analyzed the first two verses of Genesis. There we saw that Genesis uses ancient imagery to describe God’s act of creation as bringing order out of chaos. The author describes this chaos like an empty, uninhabitable desert, or like a deep, tempestuous ocean, but the spirit-wind of God hovered above, ready to bring order and purpose.

Today, we will continue the story of how God transformed that chaotic state into a functional universe where God can be worshiped. Genesis describes God’s transforming work over a period of seven days, creating for six days, then resting on the seventh. Along with the introductory description of the beginning chaotic state, this initial work of God provides an overture for the whole Bible, a majestic hymn to the creator. This hymn is laid out in a beautiful literary structure, which reflects the beauty of the universe God created, opening our eyes to the amazing wonder of God’s creative work. The author’s choice to represent our beautiful world with beautiful literature also speaks to his intent. When we embrace his purpose, we can release any struggle we feel between God’s written word and modern science.

The structure of this opening hymn to the creator reminds me of the doors in my house. Most doors in my home have a 6-panel design, where flat panels appear to float within a frame, three panels on the left and three panels on the right, with a thicker frame around the edges and between the panels. The author of Genesis organizes the six days of creation in a similar manner, with days 1-3 on the left and days 4-6 on the right.

During the first three days, God establishes the basic structure of the world. This is done primarily by separating. In the first day God separates light from darkness. In the second day he separates the waters above the sky, such as the clouds, from the waters below in the seas, and on the third day he separates the land from the sea. These first three days focus on God’s work of forming the world.

The second three days show God filling the world. On the fourth day God fills the heavens with lights, the sun, moon, and stars. On the fifth day he fills the sky and the sea with flying creatures and swimming creatures, and during the sixth day he fills the land with animals and people. 

These two great acts of creation, forming and filling, provide headings for the structure of this hymn, with forming in the first three days and filling in the second three. This gives us vertical structure, but this 6-panel design also has horizontal relationships. In the first day God creates light, and in the fourth day he creates light-bearing bodies. On day two he creates the sky to separate the water above from the water below, while on day 5 he creates the creatures which will fly in the sky and swim in the water. On day 3 God causes the land to appear out of the sea and on day 6 he calls forth land creatures of all kinds as well as humanity.

On the panel doors in my house, not all panels are of equal size, and the same is true in the panel construction in Genesis. The bottom row of panels, that is days 3 and 6, are larger than the others. On day 3, God announces two creative acts, the creation of land, and the production of plants. This gives a sense of climax to the final day of forming. On day 6, God completes 3 acts of creation; he makes land animals, he creates humankind, and he gives them food. This brings the days of filling to an even stronger climax and brings God’s creative work to a powerful close.

I remember when I first encountered this amazing structure in a sermon about 40 years ago, I was overwhelmed. What an amazing feat of literary craftmanship! Once I saw it, it was so obvious that I wondered why I had never seen it. Before, I had approached this passage with the assumption that I was reading chronological narrative. This assumption would not allow me to see any other message, but when viewed in this new way, I could see that the main point was not chronology but theology. God was great; God was powerful; and God really cared most deeply about mankind. The whole design shouts to you and me that we are the climax of God’s creation and the object of his greatest care. But if the point of this hymn is not chronology, I also saw in an instant that I did not have to carry the heavy burden of fitting scripture together with modern science. The Biblical story of creation and the scientific explanation of origins were not in conflict at all, because they were discussing totally different subjects. This is a powerful conclusion, and it comes through the beauty of the biblical literature.

The First Day

God began bringing order out of primeval chaos by establishing structure in the universe. God’s work of forming occupied his first three days of creation, as described by the author of Genesis. This is his story of the first day.

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he 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.
 Genesis 1:3-5

Throughout the story of creation, our author uses seven standard formulas. This first day is the only day with all seven formulas in a simple sequence. First, we see the announcement formula, “And God said,” which is closely followed by the command formula, “Let there be light.” This, in turn, is followed by the third formula, the fulfillment statement. Normally this is stated as “and it was so,” but this first day it comes in a different form, “and there was light.” On this first day, the author emphasizes that whatever God commands is totally fulfilled. “Let there be light, and there was light.” To say it is to do it. This meaning is carried throughout the following days with the simpler expression, “and it was so.” 

The fourth formula saying shows God’s approval, “God saw that the light was good.” This draws attention to the quality of what God has made and points to its fitness for the purpose God intended. God is the one who is preeminently good, and his goodness is reflected in his works. The greatest artist admires his handiwork. This account is a hymn to the creator, with creation itself bearing witness to the creator’s goodness.

The fifth formula is a statement of execution. In the first three days of forming, the execution is described as separating one thing from another, whereas in the final three days of filling, the execution is described as making or creating. In day one we read “he separated the light from the darkness.” Usually, separation comes before the statement of God’s approval, but on this Day One it comes after. Separation was an important act in ancient creation narratives as well as this account. This idea would have resonated with Israel, the first audience for this hymn, since they also were expected to be as discriminating as God, keeping themselves holy by separating clean from unclean.

Seven times throughout this text a second divine word follows God’s creative act. During the days of forming this is a word of naming, and throughout the final three days of filling it is a promise of blessing. On day 1 God names “day” and “night.” In the Old Testament, to name something was to exercise authority over it, to define its role. Creation was also coupled with naming in other ancient creation stories. On this first day, God names the darkness “night,” demonstrating his authority over it, but he did not create darkness. By creating light first, God allows the rest of his creation to be seen.

The final formula is the most obvious and consistent, the statement of daily sequence. In this case, “and there was evening and there was morning—the first day.” This formula concludes each creation day. Placing evening first, the author reflects the Jewish custom of reckoning the beginning of each day at sundown. This first day began with darkness, then sprang to life with the creation of light. 

The formula phrases from day one are repeated on subsequent days, but not mechanically. Some days omit certain formulas and at other times the formulas are expanded, which sustains interest and allows the author to communicate various emphases. Days 1 and 2 are narrated briefly, but days 3-5, which have more direct impact on humanity are given fuller treatment, and day 6, which recalls the creation of mankind, is the longest of all.

The Second Day

We continue our reading of Genesis’ creation account with the second day.

And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. God called the vault “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning —the second day.
 Genesis 1:6-8

All the standard formulas from day 1 are repeated here except the approval statement, “God saw that it was good.” Perhaps this is because the separation of the waters was not completed until the following day.

The primary work of Day Two was again a work of separation. The New International Version reads “let there be a vault.” This is more commonly translated “firmament” and in verse 8 it is also called “sky.” God made the firmament to separate the waters above from the waters below. What is the picture described here?

In the ancient near eastern mind, there was a great blue dome over the earth, which is traditionally called “firmament” in English. This dome was supported by the mountains, which were poetically called “the pillars of the earth.” Above the dome was water, the sea above. This seemed obvious to the ancient mind. Since the sea below was blue, the sky-dome looked blue because the sea above showed through the translucent dome. Occasionally, some of the water would leak through in the form of rain or snow. At other times, the holes in the firmament that were usually closed were flung open to allow torrential rain. This is the understanding at play in the later description of the great flood. “The floodgates of the heavens were opened. And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.” 

We have another reference to the firmament in Psalm 19:1, quoted here in the New King James Version,

The heavens declare the glory of God;
 And the firmament shows His handiwork.

In Psalm 42:7 we have still another poetic use of this cosmology.

Deep calls to deep 
 in the roar of your waterfalls;
 all your waves and breakers
 have swept over me.
 Psalms 42:7 (NIV)

This is primarily a metaphor of deep distress, but it refers to this same ancient conception of the universe. The psalmist is in danger metaphorically of being swept away by a great flood rushing down like a waterfall from above, breaking over him in waves of distress. This anguish reverberates in his soul like the pounding waves of the deep sea below calling to the deep sea above.

In our Genesis passage, the author does not seek to challenge the ancient reader’s conception of the universe. That was not his point. He simply states affirmatively, “God made it.”

The Third Day

The author of Genesis continues his description with the story of the third day.

And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good. 
 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning —the third day.
 Genesis 1:9-13

Two divine works take place on this day: the separation of land and sea, and the creation of plants. This means that most of the standard formulas are repeated twice.

When we read, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered to one place,” that implies that the water previously was everywhere. The picture is not that the water was gathered all into one ocean, as the mention of “seas” in the next verse makes clear, but rather that the water was limited to certain areas by God’s power. Creation stories of the surrounding early peoples also typically spoke of land rising up out of the sea. Later, in the great flood, water overflowed the bounds established at creation and death and chaos returned. We tend to view continents as large islands surrounded by oceans, but the description here suggests that the ancients viewed the world as dry land with seas in it.

In God’s second act on the third day, he instructed the land to produce two kinds of vegetation: plants and trees. Both were self-propagating. Three times, we are pointed to the fact that vegetation produced “according to their various kinds.” Order is the hallmark of God’s creative work. 

The Fourth Day

On day four, God begins to fill the universe he has established by creating heavenly bodies. This task is obviously related to the establishment of light on day 1.

And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning —the fourth day.
 Genesis 1:14-19

God’s creation of the heavenly bodies on day 4 is given in more detail than any other aspect of creation except the creation of humanity. In the neighboring cultures, the sun and moon were among the most important deities in their pantheon, and the stars were seen as controlling human destiny. The author of Genesis provides a strong critique of this prevailing viewpoint in four important ways. First, the sun, moon and stars are created by God; they are not gods themselves. They are not from eternity, as the Hittites saw their sun-god, but have a beginning point in time. Secondly, the sun and moon are not given their typical names. The Hebrew language does have words for “sun” and “moon,” but the author of Genesis goes out of his way to not use them, calling them “the greater light” and “the lesser light” instead. In the languages of Mesopotamia, the words for sun and moon were the same as the names of the Sun god and the Moon god, so Genesis’ author works to avoid any possible interpretation that they are gods. In the same vein, Day 4 is also the only day without a second divine word. On days 1-3 this second word named the created thing and on days 5-6 God blesses his creation. Concerning these two created lights we have neither. Thirdly, the roles of the sun and moon are dividing, ruling, and providing light. These are rather lowly roles by ancient near eastern standards. Lastly, the stars are not given power over our destiny but are simply creations of God. In fact, they are mentioned only as an afterthought, “He also made the stars.”

In addition to being more detailed, the description in Day 4 is also repetitive. This is primarily because the author uses a chiastic structure. We have encountered this sort of structure before, in which the first point relates to the last point, the second point relates to the next to the last point, and so on until you come to the middle of the structure, which contains the most important point. In this case, God first commands the functions of the sun and moon, which are to separate the day from the night, to provide signs to mark sacred seasons and regular time, and to give light. At the center of the description God actually makes the sun, moon, and stars. Then the fulfillment of God’s commands are given in reverse order to his commands: to give light, to rule the day and night, and to separate light from darkness. Using chiastic structure in this way marks Day 4 as the halfway point through the seven days of creation.

For those who wish to see the days of creation as a chronological narrative, it is possible to conceive of light coming into existence on Day 1 before the heavenly bodies are created on Day 4 to generate or channel that light, but it is really difficult to imagine day and night before the existence of the sun and moon as celestial timekeepers. This is a simple argument against a simple chronological assumption.

One of the timekeeping roles of the sun and moon is to mark sacred times. Later in Leviticus 23, God will be very specific about the liturgical year which he establishes for the children of Israel to celebrate his provision and redemption. The foundation for these festival seasons was established with the sun and moon given as signs for these sacred times.

The Fifth Day

When we come to the fifth day, God fills the sky and the seas he had established on day 2 with flying creatures and swimming creatures.

And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” And there was evening, and there was morning —the fifth day.
 Genesis 1:20-23

When we read “Let the water teem with living creatures,” it could literally be translated as “let the water swarm with swarming things.” Usually, “swarm” refers to the scurrying movement which you see in small animals, like mice, and fish, and insects but also carries the suggestion of fertility. We also read “let birds fly,” which again might be translated “let birds fly about.” This similarly suggests a swarming motion. The birds fly “across the vault of the sky.” This is written from the perspective of a human observer. From the ground, they see birds appear to fly against the background of a blue sky-dome.

The New International Version of verse 21 says that “God created the great creatures of the sea,” but the Hebrew original actually means, “God created the great sea monsters.” In rival ancient creation tales, the creator god must first subdue the forces of chaos, which often are symbolized as sea monsters in the raging waters. Here, the sea monsters are not enemies which God must subdue, but simply his creatures which do his bidding. This is the first use of the word “created” since the opening verse of this chapter, but the author brings back this significant word in order to emphasize the sea monsters creatureliness.

Day 5 is the first mention of God blessing his creatures. The words “create” and “bless” are similar words in Hebrew, and the author exploits this similarity to point out their theological relationship. Both creation and blessing are part of God’s benevolent work. God’s blessing becomes a unifying theme throughout Genesis, particularly in the later patriarchal history. His blessing is often coupled with the command to “be fruitful and multiply.” Children are the obvious result of God’s blessing. In our modern world we might speak of success; in similar circumstances, Old Testament believers spoke of blessing.

The Sixth Day

On day 6, God completes the work of filling the world with creatures, including mankind.

And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 
 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
 So God created mankind in his own image, 
 in the image of God he created them;
 male and female he created them. 
 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground. ”
 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.
 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning —the sixth day.
 Genesis 1:24-31

This is the fullest description of any day. Creation reaches its climax with the creation of you and I in God’s image. God speaks four times on this day, twice as many as any other day. The ancient Israelite nation may have found this especially significant in comparison to their regular weekly experience. On the sixth day of the week, God supplied his wilderness wanderers with twice as much manna as other days in preparation for their rest on the sabbath. 

On day 3, the land produced vegetation. Now, on day 6, the land produced living creatures, underlining the parallelism between these two days. Animals are classified into three groups: domesticated animals, small animals that keep close to the ground, and wild animals.

As his second creative work on this day God says, “Let us make mankind.” This is the only time God’s word of command is not stated as “let there be.” In this way, God draws attention to his most important work by announcing his intention ahead of time to his heavenly court, the angels. The book of Job also describes the angel’s involvement with God’s creation in chapter 38. “When I laid the earth’s foundation…all the angels shouted for joy (Job 38:4, 7). In addition to the angels, the New Testament makes clear that Christ also was active with the Father in creation, but God had not yet revealed that insight to the author of Genesis.

Genesis describes the creation of mankind as “in our image.” It is unclear exactly what the image of God is in this context and this question has generated many opinions. A simple reading, such as I supposed as a child, might suggest is that I am in God’s image because God has two legs and two eyes just like me. This is surely not the meaning. Throughout the Bible, God is referred to as spirit, even though at times he may show himself to us in a physical form to help with communication. Even ancient man would have been unlikely to believe this. They knew that humans were physiologically much like animals. Since the image of God makes us unique from animals, his image is unlikely to refer to our bodily form or upright posture.

Another suggestion is that the image of God is seen in mankind’s spiritual and mental faculties (our reason, personality, free-will, self-consciousness, or intelligence). This has been a common view in much of Biblical interpretation. A third possibility is that mankind is in God’s image because we are given the task of representing God on the earth. This is the most likely explanation. Representing God is a task we share with angels. Ancient cultures commonly viewed their king as a representative of their god on earth. Genesis democratizes this idea to include all people as God’s representatives, not just the king. Ancient religions imagined that the divine spirit of their god would come to indwell an image, an idol. The fact that God made us in his image emphasizes the connection that God intends to have with his creation. God further emphasizes the importance of being made in his image by adding the explanation “in our likeness.” The creation of humanity in the image of God is the climax of creation.

The fulfillment of God’s command is explained in three clauses in verse 27. 

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

The first two clauses are given in inverted parallelism, which we also have called “chiastic structure.” We first hear “God created mankind in his own image,” then the second clause includes the same information in reverse order, “in the image of God he created them.” The third clause gives new information, specifying that woman also bears the divine image. This foreshadows the blessing of fertility which we see in the next statement.

God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. 
 Genesis 1:28

God’s blessing on mankind is similar to the blessing on the sky and sea creatures. Both are told to “be fruitful and multiply” but this blessing is also different. The author here uses the phrase “God said to them,” implying relationship. The focus throughout Genesis is on the fulfillment of God’s blessing through fruitfulness. Mankind imitates God’s creative power by procreating. God’s command to be fruitful and multiply also implies his promise to help carry it out. God repeats this blessing to Noah and the Patriarchs. Jacob publicly recalls the fulfillment of God’s word when he blesses Joseph near the end of the book. Throughout Genesis, the genealogical thread bears silent witness to how God has enabled men and women to fulfill this blessing of fruitfulness.

The command to subdue and rule gives us a further clue to the meaning of the image of God. This is not a license for mankind to exploit nature, but we are to rule our natural surroundings like a benevolent king, treating the world in the same manner the creator would treat it. In doing so, we are his representatives, his image. The psalmist alludes to these royal functions in Psalm 8.

What is mankind that you are mindful of them,
 human beings that you care for them? 
 You have made them a little lower than the angels 
 and crowned them with glory and honor. 
 You made them rulers over the works of your hands; 
 you put everything under their feet: 
 all flocks and herds, 
 and the animals of the wild, 
 the birds in the sky,
 and the fish in the sea, 
 all that swim the paths of the seas.
 Psalms 8:4-8

God completes one more creative act on day 6 by giving food for mankind and the animals. In ancient near eastern origin stories, humans were created by the gods to provide food for the gods, to make their life easier. Genesis makes a powerful statement against that concept by turning the idea around. God provides food for human needs. Humanity may have initially been vegetarian, since God here gives them plants to eat, but he explicitly also gave mankind the right to eat meat in Genesis 9.

As the author of Genesis brings this creative episode to a close he modifies his typical approval formula to apply to all of creation, not just what was created on day 6, and he also adds two extra words of enthusiasm. George Wenham, in his translation for his commentary on Genesis, renders God’s approval this way.

"And God saw all that he had made that it was really very good."[1]

Let me read that one more time, since there is no better conclusion to this story of God’s creative work:

"And God saw all that he had made that it was really very good."

Closing comments

I have really enjoyed my time with you today. As you can tell, I have a particular interest in the literary artistry of the Bible. When God speaks his word, he does so, not just with the meaning of the actual words, but with the artistry of the way those words are used. Each human author has their own style, fashioned by their own experiences and their culture. Understanding what they have written as literature helps us to interpret what they have communicated as theology. The author of this majestic hymn to the creator has raised his literary style to the position of high art.

In our next episode, we will consider a much shorter section of scripture, only three verses. This will be the conclusion of this opening praise to the creator, describing God’s rest on the seventh day. We will first consider what that would have meant to the original readers, which may be quite different from what you have previously thought. We then will consider what that means for us and make some final applications from our first three episodes on Genesis.

If you have found this podcast helpful, I would appreciate your help in expanding its reach. One of the best ways to assist is by recommending it to your friends. The easiest way to do this is to go to the podcast website, biblewisdomtoday.com, copy that link and then share it with your friend, along with your comment. Your personal recommendation is powerful. I look forward to spending time again with you, soon, along with your friends. Thank you for your help in growing this Bible Wisdom Today family.

[1] Wenham, G. J. (1987). Genesis 1-15. Zondervan.