Creation of the World and Humanity

The foundational account of God bringing the universe into existence from nothing, speaking light, land, sea, vegetation, celestial bodies, animals, and finally humanity into being over six days, culminating in the creation of man and woman in the divine image and the establishment of the Sabbath rest. This primordial narrative shapes how Jews, Christians, and Muslims understand the origin of the cosmos, the nature of humanity, the relationship between Creator and creation, and the purpose of existence itself.

The Biblical Narrative

The First Creation Account (Genesis 1:1-2:3)

In the Beginning (Genesis 1:1-2):

• “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”
• Hebrew: Bereshit bara Elohim
• First words of Scripture
• God pre-exists creation
• Creates ex nihilo (from nothing)
• “The earth was formless and empty”
• Darkness over the deep
• “The Spirit of God was hovering over the waters”
• Divine presence before creation
• Chaos awaiting order

Day One: Light (Genesis 1:3-5):

• “And God said, ‘Let there be light’”
• First divine speech
• Word creates reality
• “And there was light”
• Immediate obedience to divine command
• “God saw that the light was good”
• First divine evaluation
• “God separated the light from the darkness”
• Order from chaos
• “God called the light ‘day,’ and the darkness he called ‘night’”
• Divine naming establishes authority
• “Evening and morning—the first day”
• Pattern established

Day Two: Sky (Genesis 1:6-8):

• “Let there be a vault between the waters”
• Separating water above from water below
• Sky/atmosphere created
• “God called the vault ‘sky’”
• Evening and morning—second day
• No “it was good” on this day

Day Three: Land and Vegetation (Genesis 1:9-13):

• “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place”
• “Let dry ground appear”
• Sea and land separated
• “Let the land produce vegetation”
• Plants bearing seed
• Trees bearing fruit
• Self-propagating life
• “It was good”
• Evening and morning—third day

Day Four: Sun, Moon, Stars (Genesis 1:14-19):

• “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky”
• “To separate the day from the night”
• “To serve as signs to mark sacred times, days and years”
• Created the greater light (sun) to govern the day
• Lesser light (moon) to govern the night
• Made the stars also
• Celestial bodies for time-keeping
• Not deities (polemic against sun/moon worship)
• “It was good”
• Evening and morning—fourth day

Day Five: Sea Creatures and Birds (Genesis 1:20-23):

• “Let the water teem with living creatures”
• “Let birds fly above the earth”
• “God created the great creatures of the sea”
• “Every living thing with which the water teems”
• “Every winged bird according to its kind”
• “God blessed them”
• First blessing
• “Be fruitful and increase in number”
• “Fill the water in the seas”
• “Let the birds increase on the earth”
• Evening and morning—fifth day

Day Six: Land Animals and Humanity (Genesis 1:24-31):

• “Let the land produce living creatures”
• “Livestock, creatures that move along the ground, wild animals”
• Each according to its kind
• Then God said: “Let us make mankind in our image”
• Plural: “us,” “our”
• Trinitarian hint? Divine council? Plural of majesty?
• “In our image, in our likeness”
• Unique among creation
• “So that they may rule over” fish, birds, livestock, earth, creatures
• Dominion given
• Stewardship role
• “So God created mankind in his own image”
• “In the image of God he created them”
• “Male and female he created them”
• Both bear image equally
• Sexuality part of creation design
• “God blessed them”
• “Be fruitful and increase in number”
• “Fill the earth and subdue it”
• “Rule over” living creatures
• Given plants for food
• “God saw all that he had made”
• “It was very good”
• Not just good—very good
• Complete, perfect creation
• Evening and morning—sixth day

Day Seven: Sabbath (Genesis 2:1-3):

• “The heavens and the earth were completed”
• “By the seventh day God had finished the work”
• “So on the seventh day he rested from all his work”
• Not from exhaustion—ceremonial rest
• “God blessed the seventh day and made it holy”
• Sabbath established
• Pattern for Israel’s week
• Rest built into creation order

The Second Creation Account (Genesis 2:4-25)

Different Perspective:

• Genesis 1: Cosmic, orderly, “God” (Elohim)
• Genesis 2: Earthy, intimate, “LORD God” (Yahweh Elohim)
• Not contradiction—complementary accounts
• Genesis 1: What was created
• Genesis 2: How and why

Formation of Adam (Genesis 2:7):

• “LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground”
• Hebrew: adamah (ground) → adam (man)
• Wordplay on earthiness of humanity
• Formed like potter with clay
• “Breathed into his nostrils the breath of life”
• Intimate act
• Divine breath
• “The man became a living being”
• Body + divine breath = living soul
• Material and spiritual united

The Garden (Genesis 2:8-14):

• “LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden”
• Eden means “delight” or “pleasure”
• Paradise
• Perfect environment
• “He put the man he had formed there”
• Adam’s home
• “LORD God made all kinds of trees grow”
• “Pleasing to the eye and good for food”
• Beauty and utility
• “Tree of life in the middle of the garden”
• “And the tree of the knowledge of good and evil”
• Two special trees
• Rivers flowing from Eden
• Pishon, Gihon, Tigris, Euphrates
• Geographical markers (location uncertain)

Adam’s Task (Genesis 2:15-17):

• “LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden”
• “To work it and take care of it”
• Not idleness—purposeful labor
• Gardening, cultivation
• Stewardship responsibility
• “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden”
• Abundance and freedom
• “But you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil”
• One prohibition
• Test of obedience
• “For when you eat from it you will certainly die”
• Warning of consequence
• Death enters only through disobedience

Naming the Animals (Genesis 2:19-20):

• “LORD God formed out of the ground all the wild animals and birds”
• “Brought them to the man to see what he would name them”
• Adam names each one
• Exercise of dominion
• Demonstrates authority and intelligence
• “Whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name”
• Language and categorization
• “But for Adam no suitable helper was found”
• None of the animals adequate companion
• Reveals need

Creation of Eve (Genesis 2:21-22):

• “LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep”
• Divine surgery
• “He took one of the man’s ribs”
• “Closed up the place with flesh”
• “LORD God made a woman from the rib”
• Not from head (not to rule over him)
• Not from feet (not to be trampled)
• From side (equal partner)
• “Brought her to the man”
• Divine matchmaker

First Marriage (Genesis 2:23-25):

• Adam said: “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh”
• Recognition of kinship
• “She shall be called ‘woman’”
• Hebrew: ish (man) → ishah (woman)
• Wordplay showing relationship
• “For she was taken out of man”
• “That is why a man leaves his father and mother”
• “And is united to his wife”
• “And they become one flesh”
• Marriage instituted
• Foundation for family
• “Adam and his wife were both naked”
• “And they felt no shame”
• Innocence
• Perfect relationship
• No sin, no guilt, no embarrassment

Theological Significance in Judaism

Creation Ex Nihilo

Something from Nothing:

• God creates without pre-existing material
• Not shaping existing matter—calling into being
• Divine power absolute
• No struggle with chaos (unlike pagan myths)
• Effortless creation by word

Imago Dei (Image of God)

Human Uniqueness:

• Only humans created in God’s image
• Not physical resemblance—God is spirit
• Rational capacity
• Moral awareness
• Creativity
• Relationality
• Dominion/stewardship
• Every human has infinite worth
• Basis for human dignity and rights

Sabbath Rest

Shabbat:

• Seventh day sanctified
• Built into creation order
• Not just Jewish law—creation ordinance
• Rest from work
• Reflection and worship
• Imitating God’s pattern
• Fourth commandment grounds Sabbath in creation

Tikkun Olam (Repairing the World)

Human Calling:

• Created to work the garden and care for it
• Stewardship of creation
• Partners with God in maintaining order
• Jewish ethics: Responsibility for earth
• Environmental care
• Social justice

Christian Perspective

Christ the Creator

John 1:1-3:

• “In the beginning was the Word”
• Echo of Genesis 1:1
• “The Word was with God, and the Word was God”
• “Through him all things were made”
• “Without him nothing was made that has been made”
• Jesus identified as agent of creation
• All things created through the Son

Colossians 1:15-17:

• “The Son is the image of the invisible God”
• “The firstborn over all creation”
• “For in him all things were created”
• “Things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible”
• “All things have been created through him and for him”
• “He is before all things”
• “In him all things hold together”
• Christ sustains creation
• Not deism—active maintenance

New Creation

2 Corinthians 5:17:

• “If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come”
• “The old has gone, the new is here!”
• Salvation as new creation
• Redemption mirrors original creation
• Christ brings renewal

Revelation 21:1, 5:

• “I saw a new heaven and a new earth”
• “The first heaven and the first earth had passed away”
• God says: “I am making everything new!”
• Eschatological new creation
• Paradise restored and surpassed
• Full redemption of creation

Marriage and Sexuality

Matthew 19:4-6:

• Jesus quoted Genesis creation account
• “At the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female’”
• “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother”
• “And be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh”
• “So they are no longer two, but one flesh”
• “Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate”
• Marriage grounded in creation
• Male and female design
• One flesh union

Humanity’s Fall and Redemption

Romans 5:12-21:

• Sin entered through Adam
• Death through sin
• Creation subjected to frustration (Romans 8:20-22)
• Groaning for redemption
• Christ as Second Adam
• Undoing Adam’s curse
• Restoring what was lost in Eden

Islamic Perspective

Allah the Creator

Quranic Creation:

• Allah created heavens and earth in six days
• Not literal 24-hour days (Quran uses “yawm”—can mean period)
• Quran 41:9-12: Detailed creation account
• Earth in two days
• Mountains and sustenance in four days total
• Seven heavens in two days
• Different emphasis than Genesis but similar structure

Creation of Adam

From Clay (Quran 15:26-29):

• “We created man from sounding clay, from mud molded into shape”
• Allah fashioned Adam from earth
• Breathed His spirit into him
• Angels commanded to prostrate to Adam
• All did except Iblis (Satan)
• Who refused out of pride

Khalifah (Vicegerent) (Quran 2:30):

• “I will create a vicegerent on earth”
• Angels questioned: “Will You place therein one who will make mischief?”
• Allah: “I know what you do not know”
• Adam taught names of all things
• Knowledge given to humanity
• Stewardship role
• Responsible for earth

Adam and Eve in Paradise

Quranic Account (Quran 2:35-39):

• Allah placed Adam and wife in Garden
• “Eat freely wherever you will”
• “But do not approach this tree”
• Satan caused them to slip
• They ate from tree
• Expelled from Garden
• Both equally responsible (no blame solely on Eve)
• Repented and were forgiven
• Sent to earth as Allah’s plan

Fitrah (Natural Disposition)

Quran 95:4:

• “We have certainly created man in the best of stature”
• Humans created good
• Not born in sin
• Natural inclination toward Allah
• Fitrah intact at birth
• Society and choices corrupt, not nature

Historical and Critical Questions

Literalism vs. Symbolism

Young Earth Creationism:

• Six literal 24-hour days
• Earth approximately 6,000-10,000 years old
• Bishop Ussher: 4004 BCE
• Geological features explained by flood
• Rejects evolution entirely

Old Earth Creationism:

• “Days” as ages or epochs
• Accommodates geological time
• God created over long periods
• Each “day” = millions/billions of years
• Progressive creation

Theistic Evolution:

• God used evolution as method
• Guided natural processes
• Genesis theological, not scientific
• Truth about Who and Why, not How
• Compatible with modern science

Literary Framework:

• Days 1-3: Forming (light, sky, land)
• Days 4-6: Filling (sun/moon/stars, birds/fish, animals/humans)
• Parallel structure
• Poetic, liturgical
• Theological truth in artistic form
• Not scientific textbook

Two Creation Accounts

Documentary Hypothesis:

• Genesis 1 from Priestly source (P)
• Genesis 2 from Yahwist source (J)
• Compiled by later editor
• Different authorship, different concerns

Traditional View:

• Moses authored both
• Complementary, not contradictory
• Different perspectives on same event
• Genesis 1: Cosmic overview
• Genesis 2: Human focus

Science and Genesis

Age of Universe:

• Science: ~13.8 billion years
• Young Earth: ~6,000 years
• Reconciliation attempts vary

Evolution:

• Darwin’s theory challenges literal reading
• Theistic evolution embraced by many
• Intelligent design movement
• Debate ongoing in religious communities

Big Bang:

• Some see confirmation of “Let there be light”
• Beginning of universe aligns with “In the beginning”
• Others reject scientific cosmology

Symbolism and Themes

Order from Chaos

Creation as Ordering:

• Formless void → structured cosmos
• Darkness → light
• Water chaos → separated seas and sky
• Barren → filled with life
• Pattern: God brings order, beauty, purpose

Divine Speech

Word Creates:

• “God said” repeated
• Word and reality connected
• Speech = power
• John 1: Jesus as the Word
• God’s word effective, creative
• Prophetic word also creates reality

Goodness of Creation

“It Was Good”:

• Repeated seven times (including “very good”)
• Seven = completeness, perfection
• Creation not evil (vs. Gnosticism)
• Matter is good
• Affirms physical world

Image of God

Imago Dei:

• Humans unique
• Rational, moral, creative, relational
• Stewards of creation
• Every person has dignity
• Basis for ethics, human rights
• Murder is assault on God’s image

Male and Female

Complementarity:

• Both created in God’s image
• Equal in dignity and worth
• Different roles
• “Not good for man to be alone”
• Relationship built into design
• Marriage as one flesh

Modern Significance

Creation Care

Environmental Stewardship:

• Humanity charged with caring for creation
• “Work it and take care of it”
• Not exploitation—stewardship
• Climate change, species extinction
• Christian/Jewish environmental movements
• Creation reflects Creator
• Caring for earth = honoring God

Human Dignity

Imago Dei Foundation:

• Every human made in God’s image
• Intrinsic worth, not based on achievement
• Basis for human rights
• Opposition to racism, sexism, ableism
• All bear image equally
• Sanctity of life

Work and Rest

Sabbath Principle:

• Rest built into creation
• Not just productivity
• Worship and reflection necessary
• Work-life balance
• Sabbath as resistance to constant work culture
• Rest is holy

Science and Faith

Integration Attempts:

• Can Genesis and science coexist?
• Different truth claims
• Science: How
• Scripture: Who and Why
• Many Christians embrace evolution
• Others insist on literal six days
• Dialogue ongoing

Purpose and Meaning

Against Nihilism:

• Creation not accident
• Intentional, purposeful design
• Humans created for relationship with God
• Life has meaning
• We’re not cosmic accidents
• Created, known, loved

Artistic and Cultural Legacy

Art:

• Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling
• God touching Adam’s finger
• Iconic image of creation
• Medieval illuminated manuscripts
• Countless depictions of Eden

Literature:

• Milton’s Paradise Lost
• Dante’s Divine Comedy
• Haydn’s The Creation oratorio
• Endless retellings and adaptations

Music:

• Haydn’s The Creation
• Spirituals: “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands”
• Contemporary Christian music
• Celebration of Creator

Language:

• “In the beginning”: Cultural reference point
• “Let there be light”: Command for illumination
• “Bone of my bones”: Deep kinship
• “Image of God”: Human dignity
• “Very good”: Celebration of creation

Significance

In the beginning, there was nothing. No light, no matter, no time. Only God. And God spoke. “Let there be light.” And light was. From nothing, something. By word alone, reality. The universe called into existence by divine speech.

Day by day, order emerged from chaos. Light separated from darkness. Waters divided. Land appeared. Vegetation sprouted. Sun, moon, stars set in place. Fish filled seas. Birds filled sky. Animals covered earth. And it was good. Each day, good. Creation obeying the Creator’s voice, fitting into its place, functioning as designed.

Then God said: “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness.” And from dust, God formed a man. Breathed into him the breath of life. And he became a living being. Not an accident. Not a cosmic fluke. Intentionally created. Uniquely bearing God’s image. Rational, moral, creative, relational. Charged with stewardship. “Work the garden and care for it.” Not exploit—care. Partner with God in maintaining creation.

But Adam was alone. And God said: “It is not good for man to be alone.” So from Adam’s side, God formed woman. Bone of his bones, flesh of his flesh. Equal partner. Companion. And they became one flesh. Marriage established. Family begun. And they were naked and unashamed. Perfect relationship—with God, with each other, with creation. Paradise.

For Jews, creation establishes everything. God is sovereign. Humans are stewards. Sabbath is holy. The world is good. “In the beginning God created”—not chance, not chaos, but intentional design. Every Sabbath remembers creation week. Every human bears God’s image. Every tree, every animal, every star testifies to the Creator’s power and goodness.

For Christians, creation points to Christ. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Through him all things were made.” Jesus is the agent of creation. The One who spoke light into being took on flesh. The Creator entered creation. And through Him, new creation comes. “If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come. The old has gone, the new is here.” Salvation mirrors creation—God speaking life where there was death, order where there was chaos, light where there was darkness.

For Muslims, Allah is the Creator. Six days of creation. Adam formed from clay. Breathed into by Allah’s spirit. Made khalifah—vicegerent on earth. Responsible for stewardship. Every prayer begins: “In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.” The names of mercy come first. The Creator is compassionate. And humans are created in the best of stature—fitrah intact. Not born sinful but born good, naturally inclined toward Allah.

The Genesis creation account has shaped civilizations. Inspired art and music. Grounded ethics and law. Affirmed human dignity. Challenged scientific materialism. Offered meaning in a universe that sometimes seems meaningless.

Does it conflict with science? That depends. If read as scientific textbook—yes. If read as theological truth—no. Science tells us the universe is 13.8 billion years old. Genesis tells us God created it. Science describes the Big Bang. Genesis says “Let there be light.” Science traces evolution of life. Genesis proclaims God as source of life. Different truth claims. Different questions. Science: How? Genesis: Who and Why?

Many faithful people embrace evolution as God’s method. Many reject it entirely. The debate continues. But this remains: In the beginning, God. Not chance. Not accident. Not blind forces. God. Intentional, purposeful, creative God. Who made a universe and called it good. Who formed humanity in His image. Who breathed life into dust. Who walked with us in the garden.

We’re not cosmic accidents. We’re created beings. Designed. Known. Loved. Made in the image of the Creator. Every human—every race, every age, every ability—bears that image. Which is why murder is cosmic crime. Why racism is blasphemy. Why every life has infinite worth. Because God said: “Let us make mankind in our image.” And it was so. And it was very good.

The garden is gone. Paradise lost through disobedience. But the memory remains. And the promise: Paradise will be restored. The new creation will come. God will make all things new. The tree of life, barred since Eden, will be accessible again. The river of life will flow. And God will dwell with His people. And there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain. The old order will pass away.

In the beginning, God created. In the end, God will re-create. The One who spoke the universe into existence will speak it into renewal. The Word who made all things will make all things new. And what was lost in Eden will be regained in the New Jerusalem. Paradise lost. Paradise regained. Creation. Fall. Redemption. Re-creation.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” First words of Scripture. Foundation of everything. The universe is not self-existent. It was made. By Someone. For something. With purpose. With love. With intentionality. And that changes everything.

We are dust. But dust breathed into by God. Formed from earth. But bearing heaven’s image. Finite. But reflecting the Infinite. Mortal. But made for eternity. Created. Known. Loved. And called to be stewards of this good creation, caring for it, filling it, subduing it—not as exploiters but as gardeners. Working and caring. Until the Gardener returns. And makes all things new.

“In the beginning, God.” That’s where it starts. That’s where it will end. And that’s where we find our meaning. Our purpose. Our hope. Because we were created. By God. For God. In the image of God. And that identity—created, image-bearing, beloved—can never be taken away.

The heavens declare the glory of God. The skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech. Night after night they reveal knowledge. And we, dust and divinity combined, join creation’s chorus: “Worthy is the Creator of all things to receive glory and honor and power, for He created all things, and by His will they were created and have their being.” Amen.