“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). This verse has been read countless times since Moses wrote these very first words of recorded Scripture. Moses never argues for the existence of an eternal God, but simply assumes people will have faith that He exists and has always existed (Psalm 90:2). Although God is eternal, Moses explains that everything else was created by this eternal God out of nothing; in other words, God spoke into existence all created things without having any other materials. This supernatural creation occurred over a period of six literal 24 hour days. Here is a brief summary of what was created on each day.

Day 1 (Genesis 1:1-5, heavens and earth) – The heavens refers to what we understand to be outer space. God also creates the earth.  The earth is created in conjunction with water but it is created dark, uninhabited, and without shape (1:2).  God the Holy Spirit can also be seen participating in creation (1:2b).  Even though Moses does not mention Him by name, Paul later reveals that Jesus Christ, being God, also participated in creation (Colossians 1:16).  On this first day, God created light and separated it from darkness calling the light “Day” and the darkness “Night” (1:3-4).  The sun and moon were not created until day 4, so it must be understood that God was the source of this light (Revelation 21:23).
Day 2 (Genesis 1:6-8, sky) God created the sky to divide the heavens (outer space) and the earth.
Day 3 (Genesis 1:9-13, dry land and plants)  Water was gathered together into one place and dry land stood above the water (1:9-10).  God then decorated the dry land with self-sustaining plant life (1:11-12)
Day 4 (Genesis 1:14-19, sun, moon, and stars)  God created two great sources of light.  The sun became the primary source of light and the moon reflects the light of the sun at night (1:15-18).  The stars also provided light at night (1:16b).  The sun, moon, and stars also helped mark the seasons and calendar (1:14).
Day 5 (Genesis 1:20-23, sea life and flying creatures)  Both sea life and flying creatures are made with the ability to reproduce their own kind (1:22)
Day 6 (Genesis 1:24-31, land animals and man) Land animals were created (1:24-25) and then the triune God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) decided to create man in His image so that he could rule over all of creation (1:26).  Man is unique in God’s creation because he was fashioned in God’s image, meaning that he possesses His communicable attributes such as intellect, emotion, will, love, and morality; therefore, man could have fellowship with God, which distinguished him from all of God’s other created things.  God created male and female and commanded them to reproduce (1:28).  Their reproduction would fill the earth with people, who would rule over God’s creation.  God then makes it clear that man should take plants and fruit for food, making His initial creation vegetarians (1:29-30).

After these six days of creation were complete, God looked upon everything He had created and declared it “very good” (1:31).

Dear God, thank You for preserving a record of Your miraculous creation.  May it cause me to continually worship You alone as the all-powerful Creator.

Genesis is often referred to as the book of beginnings because it provides an extensive explanation of the origins of the human race,the created universe, and the birth of the nation of Israel.  Written by the hands of Moses somewhere between 1445-1405 BC, these words were given to him by special revelation from God (2 Timothy 3:16) since Moses was born nearly three centuries after the events of Genesis were completed.  These words would give Israel, God’s chosen people, an understanding of the history and theology of their existence.  This book is foundational to all of Scripture and without a proper understanding of it, many other parts of the Bible may be misunderstood (marriage, family, sin, forgiveness, government, judgment, languages/people groups).  In the pages of this first book of the Bible, the reader discovers significant explanations to events such as the creation of the universe, origin of the human race, relationship between God and man, sin and death, and the unveiling of God’s plan to save mankind from the penalty of sin (3:15).  The events of Genesis occur in three distinct locations: Mesopotamia (Genesis 1-11, creation-2090 BC), the promised land of Canaan (Genesis 12-36, 2090-1897 BC), and Egypt (Genesis 37-50, 1897-1805 BC).

Although Moses never argues for the existence of God in this first book of the Bible, he clearly distinguishes Him as the one, true God over all other gods created in the minds of wicked men.  There is an obvious battle occurring throughout Genesis between the evil forces of Satan (a fallen angel) and the all-powerful forces of God.  Satan repeatedly attempts to destroy mankind by tempting them to disobey God’s ways and worship false deities.  God fights for the hearts and minds of mankind seeking to lead them to a life of blessing and reward.  This struggle between good and evil is evident on every page of Genesis as the reader witnesses the beginnings of God’s redemptive plan to save mankind from the penalty of sin by using the nation of Israel to bring forth a Deliverer, Jesus Christ.

Dear God, thank You for providing written details concerning the beginnings of the universe and the creation of mankind.  As I read the words of this book, may I be challenged to live a life of obedience to Your ways and resist the forces of evil around me.