God called the light “day,” and the darkness He called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
God established a regular turning of days and nights by withdrawing the light; the day consists of evening and morning together. Moses reckons by the custom of his nation, beginning with evening, not to bind us to this order but to speak plainly to his people. The world was made in six days, not an instant; to claim otherwise is violent cavil against the plain text.
AI summary
The chaotic earth was waste and void, a formless, lifeless mass, still undistinguished from the firmament. Darkness wrapped this heaving abyss of waters because the elements had not yet been separated and arranged; the coming creation begins when light appears to order the chaos.
AI summary
Commenting on Genesis 1:2-5
God's determining will, expressed in His command, was followed immediately by result. Though the sun may have been created before the earth, thick fogs and vapors covered the globe with gloom. By God's command, light became visible; the murky clouds dispersed and rarefied, and light diffused over the waters. The Hebrew name for day signifies warmth and heat, while night means a rolling up, as night wraps all things in shade.
AI summary
Commenting on Genesis 1:3-5