English Standard Version
Genesis 1:5
5God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.
Genesis 1:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
- New International Version (NIV)God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
- New King James Version (NKJV)God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day.
- New Living Translation (NLT)God called the light “day” and the darkness “night.” And evening passed and morning came, marking the first day.
Context of Genesis 1:5
3And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. 4And 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, the first day. 6And God said, "Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters." 7And 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.
Read all of Genesis 1Genesis 1:5 word by word
וַיִּקְרָ֨א אֱלֹהִ֤ים׀ לָאוֹר֙ י֔וֹם וְלַחֹ֖שֶׁךְ קָ֣רָא לָ֑יְלָה וַֽיְהִי־עֶ֥רֶב וַֽיְהִי־בֹ֖קֶר י֥וֹם אֶחָֽד׃ פRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- calledקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call byH7121
- the lightאוֹר'ôr · lightH216
- Dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- and the darknessחֹ֫שֶׁךְchôshek · darknessH2822
- Nightלַ֫יְלָהlayil lêyl layelâh · nightH3915
- And the eveningעֶ֫רֶב‛ereb · eveningH6153
- and the morningבֹּ֫קֶרbôqer · morningH1242
- were the firstאֶחָד'echâd · oneH259
Cross-references for Genesis 1:5
- Genesis 8:22While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease."
- Psalms 19:2Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.
- Psalms 74:16Yours is the day, yours also the night; you have established the heavenly lights and the sun.
- Psalms 104:20You make darkness, and it is night, when all the beasts of the forest creep about.
- Isaiah 45:7I form light and create darkness; I make well-being and create calamity; I am the Lord, who does all these things.
- Jeremiah 33:20"Thus says the Lord: If you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, so that day and night will not come at their appointed time,
- 1 Corinthians 3:13each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.
- Ephesians 5:13But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible,
- 1 Thessalonians 5:5For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness.
- Genesis 1:8And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.
Commentaries on Genesis 1:5
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3-5Verses 3-5 - III. The First Day 3. אמר 'āmar “say, bid.” After this verb comes the thing said in the words of the speaker, or an equivalent expression. In this respect it corresponds with our English “say.” אור 'ôr “light.” Light is simply what makes a sensible impression on the organs of vision. It belongs to a class of things which occasionally produce the same effect. ויאמר vayo'mer “then said.” Here we have come to the narrative or the record of a…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 3-5Verses 3-5 God said, Let there be light; he willed it, and at once there was light. Oh, the power of the word of God! And in the new creation, the first thing that is wrought in the soul is light: the blessed Spirit works upon the will and affections by enlightening the understanding. Those who by sin were darkness, by grace become light in the Lord. Darkness would have been always upon fallen man, if the Son of God had not come and given us…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5God called (or named): Naming something shows authority over it (see also 2:19–20). day: The Hebrew word yom can mean: daylight (1:5a), a 24-hour period (1:5b), or an unspecified time (2:4b, “when,” literally in the day; compare Exodus 20:8–11). evening … morning: The Hebrew day started at sundown. This was like the first day that began with darkness and led to morning light.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. first day--a natural day, as the mention of its two parts clearly determines; and Moses reckons, according to Oriental usage, from sunset to sunset, saying not day and night as we do, but evening and morning.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 1:5
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
English Standard Version — © 2001 Crossway Bibles
Commentaries