Tyndale Open Study NotesGenesis 1

• These verses introduce the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible). They teach Israel that one true God created, ordered, and populated the world, not the gods of nearby nations.

• God blessed three specific things:

  • animal life (1:22–25),

  • human life (1:27), and

  • the Sabbath day (2:3).

  These three blessings emphasize the Creator's plan. God made humans in his image to rule in his place over earth's creatures and to join in God's Sabbath rest.

• In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth: This statement summarizes the entire creation story (1:3–2:3). It answers the key question: Who created the world? (see also Proverbs 8:22–31; John 1:1–3). Genesis affirms God's role and purpose in creation.

• The common Hebrew name for God is ʾelohim. This name shows that God has supreme power over all things.

  The word ʾelohim is plural in form. However, it usually takes singular verbs. This shows that the Bible teaches there is one all-powerful God.

• created (Hebrew bara’): In the Old Testament, when this verb is used, God is always the one creating. It describes the act of making something new, such as:

  • the heavens and the earth (1:1, 21; 2:3),

  • humans (1:27),

  • the nation of Israel (Isaiah 43:1), and

  • the future new creation (Isaiah 65:17).

• the heavens and the earth: This phrase means the whole ordered universe (cosmos).

• This verse provides context for the summary in 1:1 and the detailed description in 1:3–2:3. God's words of creation bring order to the universe's chaos.

• formless and void (Hebrew tohu and bohu): This phrase means something like "wild and waste." It strongly contrasts with the final ordered state of the heavens and earth (1:1).

• surface of the deep (Hebrew pene tehom): Some scholars suggest this refers to the Mesopotamian goddess Tiamat (representing chaos). But Genesis sees tehom as empty chaos, not as a deity or goddess that God fought in a cosmic battle.

• the Spirit of God: God directly guided and oversaw the process of creation.

In the first three days, God shaped the formless world into a place where people and animals could live.

• And God said: God created everything in chapter 1 by his powerful word (compare Psalm 33:6, 9).

• “Let there be … and there was": God's command put his will into action to create the world. God is not part of creation or limited by it. He supremely rules over everything (see Nehemiah 9:6).

Light is the opposite of chaotic darkness (1:2). God considers light to be good, but not darkness (John 1:5). God is the source of this light (Genesis 1:14–19). God separated light, just like he separated water (1:6–8), using his word that creates. Light is associated with life and blessings (Job 38:19–20; Psalms 19:1–6; 97:11; 104:19–20; Isaiah 60:19–20). It limits the darkness that could destroy cosmic order.

Darkness often represents fear, death, and evil (Genesis 15:12; Job 18:6, 18; Psalm 88:12; Ephesians 5:11–12; 1 John 1:5).

• God 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.

The creation story describes how things appear from a human perspective. The sky looks like a shiny dome separating two groups of water (see Job 37:18; Ezekiel 1:22). In the ancient Near East, people understood the universe to have three levels, with rain coming from the highest level (see Genesis 7:11–12 and study note).

Let the waters … be gathered into one place: Other ancient cultures considered the sea to be a hostile force. Genesis shows God further controlling chaos by setting specific boundaries for the sea (see study note on 1:2). The flood was an act of God’s judgment (6:7). It removed these boundaries and returned the earth to chaos (7:1–24).

On days four through six, God filled the domains that had been formed during days one through three (1:3–13).

let them … mark the seasons and days and years: The movement of the heavenly objects ordered Israel’s liturgical calendar. This calendar, rooted in creation, provided sacred timing for Israel’s festivals and celebrations (see Exodus 23:15; Leviticus 23:4).

• In the surrounding pagan cultures, people worshiped the sun and moon as gods. But in Genesis, they serve God and humanity (see Psalm 136:7–9; Jeremiah 31:35).

  Here, this verse does not name the sun and moon. They are simply called the greater light and the lesser light. Not naming them may have reminded Israel that they were not gods.

• rule: Compare 1:26, 28; Psalm 136:9.

• the stars: The stars bear witness to God's power to create, and they declare his glory (Psalms 19:1; 148:3). They do not predict the future, as Israel’s neighbors believed (see Jeremiah 10:2).

Unlike pagan beliefs that the great sea creatures existed from the beginning along with God, the Bible teaches that God created them. God has complete power and authority over them. The Hebrew word tanninim (“sea creatures”) can also refer to:

• crocodiles (Ezekiel 29:3),

• powerful monsters (Jeremiah 51:34), or

• the sea creature Leviathan (Isaiah 27:1; compare Job 41:1–34).

• God blessed them: This blessing orders and enables them to do what God has said (see “Blessing” Theme Note).

• fill the waters of the seas … let the birds multiply on the earth: These instructions explain the blessing. The fish and birds can reproduce because of God's command. It is not through pagan ceremonies, as some of Israel’s neighbors believed.

• Let Us make: This statement is more personal than the earlier command, "Let there be" (for example, 1:3, 6).

• Us: The use of the plural pronoun here has several possible explanations:

  1. It may refer to the Trinity (one God who exists forever in three persons).

  2. It may be a plural form used to show God’s greatness.

  3. It may describe God speaking to himself (a kind of inner council).

  4. It may describe God speaking with his heavenly court (angels).

  The idea of the Trinity was revealed later in the Bible. Because of this, it is unlikely that the human author meant that here.

  Many Hebrew scholars do not accept the idea that this is a plural used to show God’s greatness. The grammar does not clearly support that view.

  The idea that God is speaking to himself also lacks clear evidence. The only similar examples refer to Israel as a group (for example, 2 Samuel 24:14).

  However, the Old Testament often shows God speaking to his heavenly court (angels). This idea has strong support (see Genesis 3:22; 11:7; 1 Kings 22:19–22; Job 1:6–12; 2:1–6; 38:7; Psalm 89:5–6; Isaiah 6:1–8; Daniel 10:12–13).

• in Our image, after Our likeness: These phrases mean almost the same thing in Hebrew. Humans have a special relationship with God.

• to rule: Humans represent the Creator as his ambassadors and his delegated rulers on earth.

• The first poetry of Genesis celebrates God's ultimate achievement in creating humans.

• man: This term (Hebrew ha-’adam) often refers to all of humanity (see 6:1, 5–7; 9:5–6). Although traditionally translated as "man," it includes both male and female.

• God blessed them: See study note on 1:22; also see 17:16; 48:16; Deuteronomy 7:13.

• said: God speaks directly and intimately to humans. We are caretakers of his shared authority.

• subdue it; rule: As representatives of God's rule, humans are responsible for taking care of the world God created and managing it (see also Genesis 9:2; Psalm 8:5–8).

These verses emphasize how God provides for humans, animals, and birds all over the earth. He gives every seed-bearing plant and every tree whose fruit contains seed.

The creator calls his work good seven times in chapter 1. After creating humans, God says it is all very good.