How Does Genesis 1 Describe God's Creation?

Genesis 1 tells us that God created the heavens and the earth by his word and placed life and people within them. God created people in his own image, gave them a blessing, and entrusted them with work. We can confirm this by following the order of creation recorded throughout Genesis 1.

Why We Need to View the Scenes of Creation Together

Light, the sky, and the land appear in sequence in Genesis 1. Plants, the lights in the sky, and various living creatures follow. At the end, the man and the woman are created in God's image.

When each scene is viewed by itself, it is easy to focus only on what was made. But Genesis 1 repeatedly records that God spoke and it happened. Before looking at created things, we should look first at God who made them.

The passage begins with the declaration that God created the heavens and the earth. When the earth was formless and empty and darkness covered the deep, the Spirit of God was moving over the waters. Everything that follows was accomplished through God's word and action.

God Spoke, Separated, and Gave Names

When God said, “Let there be light,” there was light. God saw that the light was good. He separated the light from the darkness and called them day and night.

God made the expanse amid the waters. The waters below the expanse were separated from the waters above it, and God called the expanse sky. When he gathered the waters into one place, dry ground appeared. God called the dry ground land and the gathered waters seas.

God caused the land to produce vegetation: plants and trees bearing seed and fruit. On the fourth day, he placed lights in the expanse of the sky. These lights shone on the earth, separated day from night, and marked seasons, days, and years.

The passage records several times that what God said came to pass. God saw what he had made and called it good. From the beginning of creation through the examination of its results, God acted directly.

God Created Living Things According to Their Kinds and Blessed Them

God created the creatures that fill the waters and the birds that fly in the sky according to their kinds. God saw that they were good. He blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply.”

The land animals also came forth according to God's word and according to their kinds. God made the wild animals, the livestock, and everything that crawls on the ground according to their kinds. God saw that these too were good.

God gave people seed-bearing plants and trees bearing fruit as food. To the wild animals, the birds, and everything that crawls on the ground, he gave every green plant for food. The passage records not only that God made life but also that he provided food.

People Were Created in God's Image

God created people in his own image. Both man and woman were created in God's image. This is the first thing Genesis 1 reveals about people.

God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth.” He also entrusted them with ruling over the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every living thing that moves on the earth.

On the sixth day, God saw everything he had made. The earlier days say that he saw it was good, but after all creation was complete, it says that he saw it was very good. People, too, are included among everything God made and looked upon.

Mark the Creator as You Read Today

One thing to do today is to read Genesis 1 in Bible reading and mark the actions that follow the words “God...” You can find scenes where he creates, speaks, separates, names, makes, and blesses.

This makes it possible to see whose actions Genesis 1 centers on. God is the one who created the heavens, the earth, life, and people. God is also the one who saw everything he made and called it very good.

Scriptural Basis

• Genesis 1:1–5
• Genesis 1:6–19
• Genesis 1:20–25
• Genesis 1:26–30
• Genesis 1:31