Genesis 1 and the Words of Creation
A Vision Set Apart
In my book, Set Apart: What Makes Genesis Different, I explore how the Hebrew story of creation is distinct from the competing myths of the ancient Near East. To better understand how this story of creation shaped the Hebrew worldview, it is helpful to study the language of Genesis used to describe the days of creation.
What does Genesis 1 say about the nature of God and the nature of the material world? Is every act of God a miracle, or does Genesis also describe God’s use of natural processes to create?
This post won’t answer every question about the creation week, but using some emojis I’ll illustrate some of the big ideas that will help you study and unlock these mysteries. As you explore Genesis 1, here are the key words and phrases to watch for.
4 Key Words
1️⃣ God created (בָּרָ֣א)
This word is used 48 times in the Old Testament and is used uniquely to describe a work of God’s hand. Whereas Ge 1:1 implies a creation out of nothing (ex Nihilo) other passages like Ge 6:7 make clear that God’s creation can involve shaping something new out of that which already exists (exMateria). Creation can refer to any act or declaration of God that comes to pass now or in the future (Is 48:7). This word בָּרָ֣א is never used to refer to an act of human hands or a natural process of nature.
2️⃣ God made (עָשָׂה)
This word is used 2,596 times in the Old Testament and there is a large spectrum of usage. It is often used to describe how one thing is shaped out of something that already exists. Often it means to bring to completion in accordance with something’s intended or natural purpose. Note here in Genesis how the plants are said to make fruit. It is even used as an analogy for how the house of Judah will once again bear (make) fruit (2 Ki 19:30).
3️⃣ God separates (בָּדַל)
This word is used 42 times in the Old Testament and describes how two things are made distinct one from the other. It is used here in Genesis to describe God’s work of separating light and dark and also in Ex 26:33 to describe how the temple veil was used to separated the Holy Place from the rest of the temple.
4️⃣ The earth yields (זָרַע)
This word is used 56 times in the Old Testament and refers to a natural process within nature’s own reproductive power. It is the act of a farmer who sows and reaps (Ge 26:12) and the moral consequence of sowing and reaping the natural consequences of ones actions (Ho 10:12).
5 Key Phrases
God said 📣 God called 🏷️ And it was so 📣
This set of phrases sets the creation story of Genesis apart from all other ancient Near East cosmologies. In Genesis, God’s spoken word brings the material world into existence. God sovereignty is illustrated by his power to name the objects of nature. And all that God speaks is fulfilled.
It was good 👍
This phrase speaks not only to the purpose of creation, but also to the glory and virtue of the God who made it. Only days 2 and 7 are not explicitly declared good.
Day 1: And God saw that the light was good (1:4).
Day 3: And God saw that it was good (1:10).
Day 3: And God saw that it was good (1:12).
Day 4: And God saw that it was good (1:17).
Day 5: And God saw that it was good (1:21).
Day 6: And God saw that it was good (1:25).
Day 6: And God saw everything that he had made (ʿāśâ) and behold, it was very good (1:31).
In the image of God (בְּצֶלֶם אֱלֹהִים) 🪞
Humanity alone is created in the image of God and given a unique purpose to be fruitful and multiply.
God Blessed ❤️
Only two times do we see God giving a special blessing on his creation. To Adam and Eve (1:28) and to the seventh day itself (2:3). Both of these blessings speak to creative purpose.
Evening and Morning 🌓
The phrase “and God said” marks the beginning of the first six days and the phrase “evening and morning” marks the end of each day. Both key phrases, “God said” and “evening and morning,” are absent from the seventh day.
Genesis 1:1–2:4
With these words and phrases in mind, read Genesis 1:1 through 2:4 with fresh eyes and see what patterns emerge. As you read, consider again the questions, What does Genesis 1 really say about God’s creation? Was every act of God in Genesis a miracle, or does it also describe God’s use of natural processes to create?1
A Beginning
1In the beginning, God 1️⃣ created (בָּרָא) the heavens and the earth.
2The 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.
A First Day
3And God said 📣, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
4And God saw that the light was good 👍.
And God 3️⃣ separated (בָּדַל) the light from the darkness. 5God called 🏷️ the light Day, and the darkness he called 🏷️ Night.
And there was evening and there was morning 🌓, a first day.
A Second Day
6And God said 📣, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it 3️⃣ separate (בָּדַל) the waters from the waters.”
7And God 2️⃣ made (עָשָׂה) the expanse and 3️⃣ separated (בָּדַל) the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so📣.
8And God called 🏷️ the expanse Heaven.
And there was evening and there was morning 🌓, a second day.
A third Day
9And God said 📣, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so 📣.
10God called 🏷️ the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together He called 🏷️ Seas. And God saw that it was good 👍.
11And God said 📣, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants 4️⃣ yielding (זָרַע) seed, and fruit trees making (עָשָׂה) fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.”And it was so 📣.
12The earth brought forth vegetation, plants 4️⃣ yielding (זָרַע) seed according to their own kinds, and trees making (עָשָׂה) fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good 👍.
13And there was evening and there was morning 🌓, a third day.
A fourth Day
14And God said 📣, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to 3️⃣ separate (בָּדַל) the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.”And it was so 📣.
16And God 2️⃣ made (עָשָׂה) the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars.
17And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18to rule over the day and over the night, and to 3️⃣ separate (בָּדַל) the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good 👍.
19And there was evening and there was morning 🌓, a fourth day.
A Fifth Day
20And God said 📣, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.”
21So God 1️⃣ created (בָּרָא) 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 👍.
22And God blessed ❤️ them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”
23And there was evening and there was morning 🌓, a fifth day.
The Sixth Day
24And 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 📣.
25And God 2️⃣ made (עָשָׂה) 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 👍.
26And God said 📣, “Let us 2️⃣ make (עָשָׂה) 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.”
27So God 1️⃣ created (בָּרָא) man in his own image🪞, in the image of God (בְּצֶלֶם אֱלֹהִים)🪞 he 1️⃣ created (בָּרָא) him; male and female he 1️⃣ created (בָּרָא) them.
28And 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.”
29And God said 📣, “Behold, I have given you every plant 4️⃣ yielding (זָרַע) seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.
30And 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 📣.
31And God saw everything that he had 2️⃣ made (עָשָׂה) and behold, it was very good 👍👍.
And there was evening and there was morning 🌓, the sixth day.
The Seventh Day
1Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had 2️⃣ made (עָשָׂה), and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had 2️⃣ made (עָשָׂה).
3And God blessed ❤️ the seventh day and 2️⃣ made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in 1️⃣ creation (בָּרָא).
Discussion
For paid subscribers, here are just a few questions worth exploring.
How do each of the four words of creation add to your understanding of the overall narrative of Genesis 1?
Is it significant that God does not call day 2 or day 7 good?
In v. 26 we are told God made (עָשָׂה) man which implies an ex materia creation. Yet in v. 27 we are told that God created (בָּרָ֣א) man which implies an ex nihilo creation. How can we reconcile this language?
What do each of these key phrases in Genesis tell us about God and his story of creation?
“And God said… and it was so”
“And God saw that it was good (very good)
“And God blessed…”
The post uses the English Standard Version of the text.
I have seen a lot of short takes on the Genesis creation narrative. This one is the best!