Genesis 1:3,4,5, Part 2
The Good Light
And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. (Genesis 1:3)
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.(Genesis 1:4)
And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. (Genesis 1:5)
And God saw the light, that it was good
God Is Good
By God’s decree, He spoke and it was so. This light in Genesis 1:3 was the very first decree that the powerful and mighty God gave unto the earth. Bringing us to light first is important in the purposes of God. The Creator, the WHO of Genesis 1:1, reveals more about Himself before He draws our attention to His creation. He calls the light good. In the words God said tells us that God communicates, He is active and not passive. In the words And God saw the light, that it was good tells us that He not only draws distinctions between what is ‘good,’ and what is ‘not good,’ but that the light has an intrinsic quality of ‘goodness.’ The emphasis is now on the word ‘good,’ that the light is good. We most often think of the word ‘good’ on a personal level, and as an act of someone who is kind, gracious, and compassionate. And truly our God is a Personal God, He is kind, He is good and He is compassionate; but God is the very essence of good, as He is the very essence of love. The word ‘good’ has such an earthly and human connotation that we associate ‘good’ with deeds, actions, and moral virtue; but in Genesis 1:4 we need to see with eyes enlightened by God’s love, and by God’s goodness. He is ‘good,’ in that there is a quality to and in His goodness — good is His very Being. He is supreme, above all; He is perfection, better than all; He is eminent, before all — these are some of the qualities of ‘good.’ He is Creator— He is Power — He is wisdom — He is Light — He is Good; in His goodness He is Supreme — He is Perfection — He is Eminent; and in His actions with His creation He is kind, He is gracious, and He is merciful. He is marked with and by Goodness. The Holy Spirit of God deliberately chose to use this word ‘good,’ not only to reveal God, but also because God only is good, and that leaves men totally out of the picture.
These are some of the things that God desires for us to know about Him at the very beginning of His revelation to man through the Book of Genesis. God always come first — see who He is — attempt to understand with our finite minds the Perfections of our God, then and only then will we be prepared to enter into His book of ‘goodness’ — the Word of God — the Bible.
To draw on the perfection of God and how He reveals Himself to man we should understand that His voice is not only heard through the words of His Holy Spirit, but through pattern, numbers, design, and the smallest details of His words. For instance; the word ‘good’ is mentioned 7 times in 7 verses in Genesis 1, coincidence or plan? There is no such thing as coincidence in God’s Word. God has placed every word where it needs to be.
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. (Genesis 1:4)
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:10)
And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:12)
And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:18)
And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:21)
And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:25)
And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. (Genesis 1:31)
The word ‘good’ is mentioned 7 times in 7 verses, another number that points directly to the perfection of God, 7 the number of God’s perfection — His GOODNESS.
Note the places where the word ‘good’ is mentioned.
1. The first place deals with the light — the Light being God Himself.
2. The 2nd place Earth and Seas
3. The 3rd place is seeds, and fruits, tree-bearing
4. The 4th place is the rule of sun and moon
5. The 5th place is creatures in the seas and the fowls in the atmosphere.
6. The 6th place is the beasts and cattle of the earth
7. The 7th place ‘good’ becomes ‘very good’ in His relationship to the entire creation.
God summarizes it all in Genesis 1:31 with . . .
And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Everything, the total creation, all that He made, all that He formed was not merely good, but very good. God places His work, His creation in a category of being supreme and uncomparable, nothing could have been done more to add to the perfection of His total creation — it was very good.
GOD MANIFESTS HIS GOOD WILL
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. (Luke 2:8)
And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. (Luke 2:9)
And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. (Luke 2:10)
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. (Luke 2:11)
And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. (Luke 2:12)
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, (Luke 2:13)
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. (Luke 2:14)
God reached out to man with His perfect gift, a son is given, a child is born, and a peace offering is made ready for the people of the earth. This is God’s acting in His good will towards man. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. (James 1:17) God in the announcement of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, offered to man His peace offering; man’s rebellious heart and actions — the sin of man — sin itself has driven a wedge between God and man. And now through the Lord Jesus Christ, God reached out in good will towards men. What an announcement by the holy angels — God is offering men peace, God is issuing His good will toward men — here is God’s final call to men through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; (Ephesians 2:14) Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: (Romans 5:1) And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. (Colossians 1:20)
GOD MANIFESTS HIS GOODNESS AND HIS GLORY
The very Being of God is goodness; therefore, He acts by reaching out to man in His goodness. Good will to man was shown in the burning bush that was not consumed when the great I AM THAT I AM spoke to Moses. And for the precious things of the earth and fulness thereof, and for the good will of him that dwelt in the bush: . . . (Deuteronomy 33:16) Then we see the action of God in His good will to Moses again, And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy. (Exodus 33:19) And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, (Exodus 34:6) God granted Moses’ request to see God’s glory, now read carefully how God describes Himself to Moses.
And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory. (Exodus 33:18)
And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy. (Exodus 33:19)
And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. (Exodus 33:20)
And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: (Exodus 33:21)
And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: (Exodus 33:22)
And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen. (Exodus 33:23)
In the next chapter we also find more about this revelation to Moses.
And the LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. (Exodus 34:5)
And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, (Exodus 34:6)
Moses was granted his request to witness God’s glory. The great I AM THAT I AM passed before Moses and manifested Himself in His glory — a powerful moment in time on mount Sinai. The things that Moses was privileged and blessed to see, and to hear was also frightening. And so terrible was the sight, [that] Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake: (Hebrews 12:21)
— shew me thy glory — I will make all my goodness pass before thee —
— while my glory passeth by — And the LORD passed by before him —
And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
Three times in Exodus 34:6 God proclaimed His greatness; the LORD, THE LORD, The LORD God. The complete revealing of God to man; the mystery of God that He is both invisible and visible, unseen and seen. To protect Moses from the brilliance of His glory, He placed Moses in the cleft of a rock, and covered Him with His holy hand so that Moses could safely see the back of God. (1 Corinthians 10:4; Mark 14:62; 16:19; Acts 2:33; Exodus 15:6; Psalm 48:10; 78:54; 80:17; 17:7; 118:15-16) When God revealed Himself to man through His Son Jesus Christ, the glory of Christ was covered and veiled by His humanity, seen yet hidden. (As all the items in the Tabernacle in the wilderness were a reflection of Christ; whenever these items were moved and transported, most of these items were first covered by a cloth of blue (the heavenlies, His Deity) and then the cloth of blue was covered with badgers’ skins (that which was of the earth, His humanity). The people of Israel never saw the actual items, they were always transported covered with badgers’ skins, the glorious things of God covered from the eyes of men. (Read Numbers 4:1-12)(Numbers 4:11) And upon the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue, and cover it with a covering of badgers’ skins, and shall put to the staves thereof:) As the God-man, (Son of God and son of man) the glory of Christ was covered and veiled by His humanity, hidden yet seen.
On the mount of transfiguration we see Christ revealed as a radiant light, as bright as the sun; yet not fully exposed for man would not be able to bear the sight. (Matthew 17:2) And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.
When Paul was on the road to Damascus the Lord Jesus Christ appeared to him clothed as with the brightness of the sun, shining round about him.
. . . .O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me. (Acts 26:13)
And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. (Acts 26:14)
And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. (Acts 26:15)
God continues to build on His revelation to man. He revealed Himself to Moses in His glorious goodness, the glory of God. Christ revealed Himself in His glory to Peter, James, and John on the mount of transfiguration clothed as the brightness of the sun. The ascended and glorified Christ revealed Himself to Paul on the Damascus road. In the Book of Hebrews God reveals that Christ is the express image of his person, and it is the Son who is the brightness of his glory.
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, (Hebrews 1:1)
Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; (Hebrews 1:2)
Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; (Hebrews 1:3)
The Holy Spirit of God confirms in the Gospel of John that God was manifest in the flesh and dwelt among men, and revealed His glory to man through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. (John 1:14) (In the Gospel of John the word ‘light’ is recorded 24 times, more than the other three gospels. It is the book of the heavenlies, the book of the Spirit, the book of Light, and the book of the revealing of Jesus Christ as Deity. The number 24 is a multiple or double of the number 12, and is connected with worship and the rule of the heavenly government. Revelation 4:4, And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold. Note that 7 times in the Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ we have ‘four and twenty’ in relationship with worship and heavenly government, coincidence? I think not!)
God continues to reveal Himself to us through words; three (3) very simple, yet profound words — God is light!
¶ This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. (1 John 1:5) Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. (John 8:12)
And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
And God saw the light, that it was good:
The glory that was made visible in Genesis 1:1-5, and the WHO of Genesis 1:1-5 was the supreme Godhead of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit — the GLORY OF GOD in all His goodness.
Compare Genesis 1:1-5 with the Gospel of John 1:1-5.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1)
The same was in the beginning with God. (John 1:2)
All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. (John 1:3)
In him was life; and the life was the light of men. (John 1:4)
And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. (John 1:5)
Compare Genesis 1:1-5 with Psalm 104:1-5
Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty. (Psalm 104:1)
Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain: (Psalm 104:2)
Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind: (Psalm 104:3)
Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire: (Psalm 104:4)
Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever. (Psalm 104:5)
In Psalm 104, the word ‘who’ is used 7 times in reference to the Creator, and this Creator clothed Himself, wrapped Himself, covered Himself, and manifested Himself with light as with a garment.
The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. (Psalm 19:1)
Amen
© Copyright 2015, Mary Haigh
Article may be used, but not for gain. Freely ye have received, freely give.
All Scripture references are from the Authorized King James Bible. (KJV)