How long is a day? 24 hours, sun up to sun down, and a few other variations, well according to the bible. Yeh, a day isnt just a day, it is a day and a whole lot more. Have a read of this.
. GE 1:3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning–the first day. GE 1:6 And God said, “Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water.” 7 So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning–the second day. GE 1:9 And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good. GE 1:11 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. 12 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. 13 And there was evening, and there was morning–the third day. GE 1:14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. 16 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. 17 God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, 18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening, and there was morning–the fourth day. Looking at v2 here we see something interesting.
2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
There was something there!! In the beginning God created. Yep and now there is something there. A formless and empty earth. This doesn’t mean that the earth was chaotic as some people would suggest, but more in the line of unproductive and uninhabitable (Collins 44) It was in its “not-yet” state, i.e., not yet inhabitable for humankind (cf. Isa 45:18). The land lies empty, dark, and barren, awaiting God’s call to light and life.
So the creation days haven’t started yet. Here we see God gives Himself something to start with. Yep, He made it. V1 tells us so. But there was nothing to it. Empty, useless.
After this, God goes on to make the earth and the universe useful.
And it appears that God is having a look. Maybe having a think about how and what to put where.
Notice the end of v 2. The spirit was hovering over the waters. Gives you the impression that God is lurking, or hanging around over the waters. Hang on has water been created yet?
Day one hasn’t started yet!!!!
So how long is it between v1 and v3? Don’t know. But it is insignificant in God’s eyes. Remember a verse from last week. PS 90:4 For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night. Time is not an issue to God – remember He created it. If God hasn’t specified it, it probably isn’t all that important for us to worry about. Now that is easy for me to say. I am not a person who has to have everything nailed down. People who are more scientific or mathematical may have issues with this. You may need more information. Well, theologically it is hard to give. Scientifically, well you can find some answers, but as God hasn’t been specific here, at this stage, it is not important that we know. When we get to other passages, maybe, but not now. Now we get to the creation process. Day one.But just a word on the word day. Day = yom. Yom = daylight consecutive hours. Sun up to sun down. A 24 hour period In the day of David – In His life time The day of the Lord – When God reigns. The Day of Israel – a period of time. Which day do we take notice of? How long? Don’t know. Interesting, I was talking to someone about this during the week, and at each point they tried to make the day longer. I wonder why we don’t try to make the concept of a day shorter. Could God have just clicked His fingers and made the earth. Yes, if he is omnipotent. Did He? No, He took a day, however long He decided that would be. If a day is like a thousand years, can it reverse and a thousand years be like a day? Yep, If God wants, if God is omnipotent, all powerful. But there is one more idea of the word day. If we look at Genesis, we realize that it is written in a poetic or prose style. We can even see that in English, it is a literary piece of writing. One view is that the word day is like a marker. We mark things Point 1, 2, or 3. Or maybe point A, B, or C. Maybe, this is a marker, a literary device. There is good evidence for that. But whether, that is what is intended and that supercedes a literal view, is up to you. Now, why don’t I just tell you what I think. Is that what you want to here? How many people have an opinion about creation? Come on hands up. Well I think it is literary, but also that the word day has significance. The length of time of that day I don’t know. From my perspective, God did it. How is His business. I find a six light hours only days possible, I see six 24 hour periods possible, I see an extended period of time possible, I see other possibilities form the big bang through extended years as possible. But I know God did it. It is not just a possibility, but He did it. We need to have an inkling of faith. God could do it how He wanted, but He did it His way. Here is what I really, really think: If we say God couldn’t have done it another way, we diminish the possibilities of God’s creative process. He knows He could have done it a dozen or a hundred ways but He did it His way. The way He chose. How ever it was done, it is by His choice. Now we come to the actual recorded events. V3 – 19.This I have found interesting. God seems here to be separating things. Separating Light From dark v 3Separating the waters v6Separating sky and dry ground v9Separating day and night v14 (Sounds like a repeat of v3) MMM Interesting. God is putting things in order, in their right place. Look at John 1:1-9When we refer to John1:1-9 we see that God wanted to put this back in place after sin had rearranged them. Jesus was at the beginning process, creation process, so He is included in the rearrangement process. God uses Jesus to put us back in our right place. We have a chance to be as God designed us. We’ll talk more about Genesis in a couple of weeks.
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