창세기 Chapter 1

Translation: ESV

1

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

Key Message

God exists before time began and is the sole Creator of the entire universe.

▸The opening sentence of the entire Bible simultaneously declares time (the beginning), space (the heavens and the earth), the agent (God), and the act (created).

The opening sentence of the entire Bible simultaneously declares time (the beginning), space (the heavens and the earth), the agent (God), and the act (created). 'In the beginning (bereshit)' points to a simple temporal starting point while implying that God's creative act is itself the origin of time. The verb 'create (bara)' in the Hebrew Bible is used exclusively with God as its subject, and is frequently cited as support for the concept of creation ex nihilo (creation out of nothing). This single verse is a theological proclamation that simultaneously affirms the origin of the world, the sovereignty of God, and the goodness of the material world.

Related Verses

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.
2

The 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.

Key Message

Even in the midst of chaos and darkness, God's Spirit is already present, brooding over the potential for life and creation.

▸'Without form and void (tohu wabohu)' is a phonetically paired Hebrew expression describing a state of primordial disorder without shape or function.

3

And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.

Key Message

God's word is itself the power of creation; at the moment he commands, reality comes into being.

▸This is the purest expression of the concept of 'speech-act creation (fiat lux),' in which God's word creates reality.

4

And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness.

Key Message

God declares what he has created to be good, and through separation and order he fashions a beautiful world.

▸'God saw that it was good (ki tov)' is a recurring theological declaration throughout Genesis 1.

5

God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

Key Message

God names time and becomes its sovereign, and creation unfolds through regular rhythm and order.

▸The act of naming is an expression of authority and sovereignty in Hebrew culture.

6

And God said, "Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters."

Key Message

God opens the space for life by dividing the waters with his word; separation and order are the good pattern of creation.

▸God's second-day creation command begins with a vertical separation — opening a space between the sky and the earth.

7

And 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.

Key Message

God's word is always fulfilled, and the structure of the universe was formed precisely according to God's intentional design.

▸The fact that the command in verse 6 is immediately fulfilled in this verse is the consistent structure of Genesis 1, and the expression 'and it was so' confirms the efficacy of God's word.

8

And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

Key Message

God creates space where life can dwell by dividing what is mixed and giving it structure.

▸By giving the name 'Heaven' to the expanse, God incorporates the atmosphere into the order of creation.

9

And God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear." And it was so.

Key Message

By God's word the sea is given its boundaries and the dry land appears, creating the space for life to dwell.

▸The third day is the only day that includes two acts of creation, and the first of these is the gathering of the waters and the emergence of dry land.

10

God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.

Key Message

God names the earth and seas and becomes their sovereign; even the sea, once a symbol of chaos, stands within the good order of creation.

▸God's act of giving the names 'Earth' and 'Seas' establishes his sovereignty over these two domains.

11

And God said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth." And it was so.

Key Message

God establishes creatures as participants in creation by giving them the capacity to reproduce according to their own kind.

▸The repeated emphasis of 'each according to its kind (leminehu)' shows that God created living things with their own unique identity and capacity for reproduction.

12

The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

Key Message

Creation takes place as the creature — the earth — responds to God's command, and all the diversity of the plant world is the product of God's good design.

▸Where God commanded 'let it sprout' in verse 11, this verse has 'the earth brought forth,' with the creature itself appearing as the subject of the creative act.

13

And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

Key Message

Creation proceeds within a steady rhythm and order, and the declaration of the completion of each day is divine confirmation of God's creative work.

▸This formulaic conclusion to the creative day shows that God's creative activity proceeds within the regular rhythm of time.

14

And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years,"

Key Message

The sun and moon are not gods but tools made by God, created to structure human time.

▸The sun and the moon are not even named but are referred to simply as 'the greater light' and 'the lesser light.

15

"and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth." And it was so.

Key Message

The luminaries were created not for their own glory but to illuminate the earth and the life on it, showing that all created things exist for the purpose of service.

▸The command in verse 14 is confirmed as immediately fulfilled here with 'and it was so.

16

And God made the two great lights — the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night — and the stars.

Key Message

The sun, moon, and stars are all creatures of God — instruments of creation's order, not objects of astrological worship.

▸The expression that the sun and moon each 'rule' the day and night respectively means they have been delegated ruling authority, but that authority is given by God.

17

And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth,

Key Message

God is the designer of the universe who precisely positions the luminaries, and the order of the heavenly bodies is the product of God's intentional creative act.

▸The verb 'set (natan)' applied to God placing the luminaries is an act of placement and imposition of order.

18

to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.

Key Message

The rule of the luminaries is delegated from God, and the regular order of day and night is the way in which God's good design of creation continues.

▸The expression that the luminaries 'rule (memshelah)' the day and night means they have been delegated ruling authority derived from God.

19

And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

Key Message

The conclusion of the fourth day announces that the creation that structures time is complete, and God's creation is perfected step by step according to a precise design.

▸The closing formula of the fourth day confirms that the creative rhythm of God continues.

20

And God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens."

Key Message

God commands the sea and sky to be filled with life, and the abundant proliferation of life is God's own creative intention.

▸The fifth day's command is for life to fill the two spaces created on the second day — water (the sea) and the expanse (the sky).

21

So God created 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.

Key Message

Even the sea monsters, objects of mythological terror, are God's creatures, and all the diversity of life is within God's good creation.

▸'The great sea creatures (tanninim)' refers to the sea monsters that appear as divine chaos forces in ancient Near Eastern mythology.

22

And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth."

Key Message

The proliferation of life is God's blessing, and the Creator delights in the abundant spread of his creatures.

▸This verse, in which 'blessing' is first given to animals, shows that the command to be fruitful and multiply is not a mere biological instruction but the gift of God's blessing.

23

And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

Key Message

With the conclusion of the fifth day, the life of the sky and sea is completed, and creation proceeds in a teleological direction from the formation of space to the filling of life.

▸The conclusion of the fifth day declares the completion of the day on which the sky and sea were filled with life.

24

And 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.

Key Message

At God's command the land is filled with diverse living creatures; all land animals are the product of God's direct creative act.

▸The first creative command of the sixth day is to fill the land with life — the process of the dry land that appeared on the third day now becoming full of living creatures.

25

And God made 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.

Key Message

The biological diversity of the animal world is God's intentional design, and even before humans are created God declares the animal world to be good.

▸The command of verse 24 is fulfilled in this verse, and the expression 'each according to its kind' repeated three times emphasizes that the biological diversity of the animal world is the product of God's intentional design.

26

Then God said, "Let us make 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."

Key Message

All humans bear the image of God and share equal dignity, and they are called to responsibly care for creation.

▸The plural expression 'us' has been interpreted in various ways throughout theological history — as a Trinitarian plural, as divine deliberation in the heavenly council, or as a Hebrew plural of majesty.

27

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

Key Message

The image of God is equally bestowed on both male and female, and sex is a diversity that expresses the richness of that image.

▸This verse is structured in the form of Hebrew poetry (three-line parallelism), emphasizing the importance of the creation of humanity.

28

And 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."

Key Message

The authority over creation given to humans is a responsible stewardship before God, not exploitation.

▸The expressions 'subdue (kavash)' and 'have dominion (radah)' have been misused to justify human exploitation of nature, but the context of the original text does not support this.

29

And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food."

Key Message

God is a God of care who directly provides human food, and the original created order is oriented toward peaceful coexistence without bloodshed.

▸After the climax of creation in the creation of humans, God immediately provides plant-based food for humans.

30

And 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.

Key Message

God's care and provision are not limited to humans; all living creatures are creatures sustained by food within God's providence.

▸God is not only the one who provides food for humans but also for all animals.

31

And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Key Message

The whole of creation is something God has declared very good, and the material world is an object of affirmation and care as God's good creature.

▸After six instances of 'it was good,' the evaluation is intensified at the end to 'it was very good (tov me'od).