On this page you will find Bible Commentaries on Genesis 1: 5.
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Loading ...And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
7 Bible Commentaries on Genesis 1: 5
Go ahead, make my day:
First point: The original text did not have chapter and verse numbers. Also it is my understanding that Biblical Hebrew did not have lower case nor punctuation. So, the King James translation could just as well look like this:
“IN THE BEGINNING GOD CREATED THE HEAVEN AND THE EARTH AND THE EARTH WAS WITHOUT FORM AND VOID AND DARKNESS WAS UPON THE FACE OF THE DEEP AND THE SPIRIT OF GOD MOVED UPON THE FACE OF THE WATERS AND GOD SAID LET THERE BE LIGHT AND THERE WAS LIGHT AND GOD SAW THE LIGHT THAT IT WAS GOOD AND GOD DIVIDED THE LIGHT FROM THE DARKNESS AND GOD CALLED THE LIGHT DAY AND THE DARKNESS HE CALLED NIGHT AND THE EVENING AND THE MORNING WERE THE FIRST DAY…”
So, all the verses to this point could be part of the first day.
Second point: Wherever/whenever there was light there was also day. On the other hand, wherever/whenever there was the darkness (absence of light) there was also night. Assuming that day and night are separated at this point (refer to verse 14). In modern America, light and day no longer need be joined. Just visit New York or Vegas.
Third point regarding time: Does anybody really know what time it is? The sun is not necessary for time, just ask people in Alaska or Russia. Time exists when space-time is warped by a gravity field that is created by a mass (be it solid, liquid, or gas). Time is relative and depends on the power of the gravity. An atomic clock in space orbit will get out of synch with an atomic clock on the earth’s surface. On the surface there could be 23 hours and 59 minutes in a day, while in orbit there would be 23 hours and 58 minutes. (I might have that backwards). Anyhow, the point is that it is still a day for both clocks.
Commentary by Terik Q
Posted on:
2/12/2009 17:02 pm 
1)The Jews had divided the night into three watches (of four hours each).Read Exodus 14:24;Jud 7:19;Lam.2:19.
First watch:Sun-set to mid-night.
Second watch:Mid-night to cock-crow.
Third watch:cock-crow to sun-rise.
2)In the customs of the Romans & the Greeks,there were four watches (of three hours each) in the night.Read Mark 13:35(Even,mid-night,cock-crowing & morning)
First watch:6 p.m to 9 p.m.
Second watch:9 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Third watch:12 a.m. to 3 a.m.
Fourth watch:3 a.m. to 6 a.m.(Read Matt.14:25;mark 6:48)
Read Luke 12:38.
3)The night was divided into 12 hours in New Testament period.
4)The third hour,(9 a.m)the sixth hour(12 noon) & the ninth hour(3 p.m.) were the hours of prayer for the Jews in the day.Read Acts 2:15;10:9;3:1;
10:30.
Commentary by AlexPosted on:
11/10/2008 00:26 am 
1)Bible Commentator,John Calvin has referred to Ecclesiasticus 18:1.”He who lives forever created all things simultaneously.”(Old Latin & Vulgate).”He who lives forever created all things in common.”(LXX)-Original Greek.
Other Translations:
“He that liveth forever created all things together.”
“He that liveth forever created all things in general.”
John Calvin has given explanation for this verse.
2)Ecclesiasticus is an Apocryphal Book written about 200 years before Christ
by Jesus,the Son of Sirach.It is also called “The wisdom of Jesus,the Son
of Sirach.”It contains 51 chapters.
3)The creative acts of God were spread over six days.Gen.1:5,8,13,19,23,31.
Read Ex.20:11.”For in six day the Lord made……..”
4)God called the light day.Gen.1:5
God called the darkness Night.Gen.1:5.
God called the firmament Heaven.Gen.1:8
God called the dry land earth.Gen.1:10.
God called the gathering together of waters seas.Gen.1:10
5)It is the Law of Nature for the Earth to occur day & night alternatively.
Read Gen.8;22;Psalm 74:16;104:19;Jeremiah 31:35,36;33:20,25.
Commentary by AlexPosted on:
11/10/2008 00:10 am
And God called the light . That is, God willed that there should be a regular vicissitude of days and nights; which also followed immediately when the first day was ended. For God removed the light from view, that night might be the commencement of another day. What Moses says however, admits a double interpretation; either that this was the evening and morning belonging to the first day, or that the first day consisted of the evening and the morning. Whichever interpretation be chosen, it makes no difference in the sense, for he simply understands the day to have been made up of two parts. Further, he begins the day, according to the custom of his nation, with the evening. It is to no purpose to dispute whether this be the best and the legitimate order or not. We know that darkness preceded time itself; when God withdrew the light, he closed the day. I do not doubt that the most ancient fathers, to whom the coming night was the end of one day and the beginning of another, followed this mode of reckoning. Although Moses did not intend here to prescribe a rule which it would be criminal to violate; yet (as we have now said) he accommodated his discourse to the received custom. Wherefore, as the Jews foolishly condemn all the reckonings of other people, as if God had sanctioned this alone; so again are they equally foolish who contend that this modest reckoning, which Moses approves, is preposterous.
The first day . Here the error of those is manifestly refuted, who maintain that the world was made in a moment. For it is too violent a cavil to contend that Moses distributes the work which God perfected at once into six days, for the mere purpose of conveying instruction. Let us rather conclude that God himself took the space of six days, for the purpose of accommodating his works to the capacity of men. We slightingly pass over the infinite glory of God, which here shines forth; whence arises this but from our excessive dullness in considering his greatness? In the meantime, the vanity of our minds carries us away elsewhere. For the correction of this fault, God applied the most suitable remedy when he distributed the creation of the world into successive portions, that he might fix our attention, and compel us, as if he had laid his hand upon us, to pause and to reflect. For the confirmation of the gloss above alluded to, a passage from Ecclesiasticus is unskilfully cited. ‘He who liveth for ever created all things at once,’ (Ecclesiasticus 18:1.) For the Greek adverb koinh~| which the writer uses, means no such thing, nor does it refer to time, but to all things universally.
Commentary by John CalvinPosted on:
10/22/2008 11:35 am 
Note the order, the evening (or dark hours) first then the morning (or light hours). This is the Jewish order of a day, the day starting at sunset and ending at sunset. This is useful in determining on what days certain events in the New Testament take place.
Commentary by jkPosted on:
4/19/2008 21:36 pm 
Through this verse we see God’s perfection, organization, intentional purpose, a step by step emphasis on each stage of his creation as he moved first through a spoken word. Sharing with us an emphasis on his every move of creation, taking us through eternity discussing the aspects of his descriptive nature as he allows his light to bring volumes of meaning to us spiritually - as the first day is completed. His patience and love seems to flow through his creation and purpose from the start.
Commentary by Sharon CoreaPosted on:
6/6/2007 07:44 am 
“And God called”
God gave names to the light and the darkness.
“the light Day”
The combination of light properties of ‘Day’ and darkness were not great enough to give light upon the earth (Gen. 1:16-17). The initial formation
of light was sufficient, however, to support God’s command found in Genesis 1:11-12. God will later form two great lights: a greater light and a lesser light — the greater light will give abundant, plentiful, and sufficient light upon the earth and, thus, dominate or rule the light emitted by ‘Day’ (Gen. 1:16-18).
“and darkness He called ‘Night.’”
God differentiated the darkness from the light.
“And there was evening”
As Night approached God began to record the Earth’s first daily cycle of day and night for mankind.
“and there was morning,”
Earth rotation continued as ‘Day’ approached.
“one Day.”
God counted one complete daily cycle of ‘evening’ and ‘morning’ as one Day. At the end of this first recorded daily cycle, the Earth remained completely flooded by one massive, super-ocean (Gen. 1:2).