The Holy Spirit is specifically mentioned as being present and active in the creation of the world.
I. IN THE BEGINNING GOD CREATED...
A. Elohim, The Tri-une God Was Active In Creation
We are told that the Triune God was active in Creation.
Genesis 1:1
1 In the beginning God (Elohim) created the heaven and the earth.
The Triune God is referred to by the Hebrew word, Elohim, which is a plural form of El, a Hebrew word for God. Just as Seraph and Cherub are singular forms for specific angelic orders and Seraphim and Cherubim are their plural forms, so El and Elohim are singular and plural forms for “God.” There is only One God, but He is Three Persons. This is why Elohim is used in reference to the One God.
B. Jesus Was Active In Creation
We are told specifically that Jesus Christ was active in the Creation.
John 1:1-5
1 In the beginning was the Word (Jesus), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5 And the light shines in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
C. The Holy Spirit Was Active In Creation
We are told specifically that the Holy Spirit was active in Creation.
Genesis 1:2
2 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.
1. TRIUNITY OF GOD...
We should realize that the Trinitarian doctrine (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) was not understood in the Old Testament. God was thought of as One, as He actually is One.
1 In the beginning God (Elohim) created the heaven and the earth.
The Triune God is referred to by the Hebrew word, Elohim, which is a plural form of El, a Hebrew word for God. Just as Seraph and Cherub are singular forms for specific angelic orders and Seraphim and Cherubim are their plural forms, so El and Elohim are singular and plural forms for “God.” There is only One God, but He is Three Persons. This is why Elohim is used in reference to the One God.
B. Jesus Was Active In Creation
We are told specifically that Jesus Christ was active in the Creation.
John 1:1-5
1 In the beginning was the Word (Jesus), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5 And the light shines in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
C. The Holy Spirit Was Active In Creation
We are told specifically that the Holy Spirit was active in Creation.
Genesis 1:2
2 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.
1. TRIUNITY OF GOD...
We should realize that the Trinitarian doctrine (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) was not understood in the Old Testament. God was thought of as One, as He actually is One.
However, the New Testament pulls back the curtain so that we understand the Person, Nature and Work of God more fully and clearly.
Remember, the New is in the Old concealed and the Old is in the New revealed.
The Trinity is found throughout the Old Testament, but God did not declare and explain His Triunity.
2. NAMES OF HOLY SPIRIT...
The Holy Spirit was referred to in the Old Testament as
2. NAMES OF HOLY SPIRIT...
The Holy Spirit was referred to in the Old Testament as
the Spirit of God,
the Spirit of the LORD,
Spirit of the Lord God,
the Spirit, My Spirit,
Thy Spirit and His Spirit, among several other names.
See the chapter entitled, The Names and Titles of God the Spirit, in Lockyer's book, All the Divine Names and Titles in the Bible.
In this passage He is called The Spirit of God.
II. FROM ORDER TO DISORDER...
Genesis 1:1 tells us that God created the heavens and the earth. Without any explanation the next verse tells us that the earth was (became) without form and void and that darkness was upon the face of the deep.
Some choose to believe that God created the heavens and the earth in verse one, without establishing them with order. I do not believe this. I believe God created the heavens and the earth and He created them as complete. In one moment He brought order and life from nothing. He did not create chaos, which is what we find in verse two.
1 Corinthians 14:33
33 For God is not the author of confusion...
Though Paul is making a different application of this principle, it is a fundamental truth.
I believe that something happened between verses one and two, which cast the earth into chaos. I have several reasons to believe this and in spite of all the arguments to the contrary, I do not see a Biblical reason to change my mind.
We know God created the angels, and eventually one third of those angels rebelled against God, under Lucifer's leadership, resulting in them being banned from heaven and bound to earth. Lucifer, a Presence Angel, lost his exalted position and became the ruler of the fallen angels, the god of this world and the prince of the power of the air.
I believe that
II. FROM ORDER TO DISORDER...
Genesis 1:1 tells us that God created the heavens and the earth. Without any explanation the next verse tells us that the earth was (became) without form and void and that darkness was upon the face of the deep.
Some choose to believe that God created the heavens and the earth in verse one, without establishing them with order. I do not believe this. I believe God created the heavens and the earth and He created them as complete. In one moment He brought order and life from nothing. He did not create chaos, which is what we find in verse two.
1 Corinthians 14:33
33 For God is not the author of confusion...
Though Paul is making a different application of this principle, it is a fundamental truth.
I believe that something happened between verses one and two, which cast the earth into chaos. I have several reasons to believe this and in spite of all the arguments to the contrary, I do not see a Biblical reason to change my mind.
We know God created the angels, and eventually one third of those angels rebelled against God, under Lucifer's leadership, resulting in them being banned from heaven and bound to earth. Lucifer, a Presence Angel, lost his exalted position and became the ruler of the fallen angels, the god of this world and the prince of the power of the air.
I believe that
the angelic rebellion,
the war with God,
the banning from heaven,
the binding to earth and
Lucifer's loss of everything good, took place between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2.
I believe that this planet was the battleground and became the eventual domain of Satan.
I believe the original planet became formless and void because of this rebellion, since God did not create it as an empty wasteland.
Isaiah 45:18
18 For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.
Notice the words of Genesis 1:2;
Was... In the Hebrew vocabulary, and grammatical construction, sometimes indicating the concept of BECAME (see Barnes' Notes, Strong's Hebrew and Greek Concordance, Brown-Driver-Briggs' Hebrew Dictionary), Zodhiates Hebrew Word Study on this passage).
Formless (without form) and Void (empty)...
Isaiah 45:18
18 For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.
Notice the words of Genesis 1:2;
Was... In the Hebrew vocabulary, and grammatical construction, sometimes indicating the concept of BECAME (see Barnes' Notes, Strong's Hebrew and Greek Concordance, Brown-Driver-Briggs' Hebrew Dictionary), Zodhiates Hebrew Word Study on this passage).
Formless (without form) and Void (empty)...
These Hebrew words (Tohu Bohu) indicate the confusion (chaos) and the emptiness (uselessness) of the earth.
Remember, God had not created the world tohu bohu (Is. 45:18).
Also, according to Isaiah, God then formed the formless earth.
The Scripture also tells us that tohu bohu is the result of rebellion (Je. 4:23).
The word Formed, in Isaiah, is the same word found in Genesis 2:7, where we are told that God “formed man from the dust of the earth.” God created spiritual part of man, as well as the material building blocks of the universe, from nothing but He then formed man from pre-existent matter. Likewise, God created the heavens and the earth, but He then formed what had become the formless earth. If Genesis 1:2 applies to all of creation, then the passage should say that the heavens were also formless and void. It does not.
Darkness... Darkness, in the Scriptures, usually represents the presence of sin or the displeasure of God or the absence of God or the judgment of God. Occasionally it attends the Glory or Brightness or Light of of God.
In this case, the darkness, being associated with chaos and emptiness, does not represent the Glory of God. In fact, this darkness was the absence of light, as we see God give light to a darkened world in verse 3.
Genesis 1:3
3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
According to verse 2, the darkness was localized on the face of the deep, that is, on the earth. Keep in mind, the whole earth was covered and surrounded with water at that time and it would take a divine act to create an atmosphere (firmament) around the earth and to separate the water from dry land, causing the land to stand up and separate from the waters.
Genesis 1:6-10
6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.
The darkness in this passage is associated with a world in chaos.
I am not suggesting a pre-Adamic human society. I am simply saying that something happened between verses 1 and 2 which brought about the ruin and chaos of God's original earthly creation. The subsequent six days of creation were the beginnings of the human family and everything that relates to our present world. The human race, in fact, the earth as we know it, can trace our beginnings to a point in the past that is no more than 10,000 years, and probably less. Adam and Eve were the first humans, and were the crowning work of God's six literal days of creation. Remember, the Bible is concerned with God's relationship to human history, and human history is concerned with the history of humanity, not with the history of the Universe or Angels.
III. FROM DISORDER TO ORDER...
Regardless of your point of view concerning the origin of the chaos, you will agree that the Holy Spirit was vitally and intimately involved in establishing order to a chaotic planet.
Genesis 1:22 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.
While verse one states the creation of the heavens and the earth, verse two only addresses the EARTH in chaos, not a UNIVERSE in chaos. Something happened that cast the earth into chaos.
The next thing to notice is the intervention of the Holy Spirit.
“...And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.”
The Spirit of God MOVED UPON (brooded or hovered over)..
This is remarkable for several reasons.
The word Formed, in Isaiah, is the same word found in Genesis 2:7, where we are told that God “formed man from the dust of the earth.” God created spiritual part of man, as well as the material building blocks of the universe, from nothing but He then formed man from pre-existent matter. Likewise, God created the heavens and the earth, but He then formed what had become the formless earth. If Genesis 1:2 applies to all of creation, then the passage should say that the heavens were also formless and void. It does not.
Darkness... Darkness, in the Scriptures, usually represents the presence of sin or the displeasure of God or the absence of God or the judgment of God. Occasionally it attends the Glory or Brightness or Light of of God.
In this case, the darkness, being associated with chaos and emptiness, does not represent the Glory of God. In fact, this darkness was the absence of light, as we see God give light to a darkened world in verse 3.
Genesis 1:3
3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
According to verse 2, the darkness was localized on the face of the deep, that is, on the earth. Keep in mind, the whole earth was covered and surrounded with water at that time and it would take a divine act to create an atmosphere (firmament) around the earth and to separate the water from dry land, causing the land to stand up and separate from the waters.
Genesis 1:6-10
6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.
The darkness in this passage is associated with a world in chaos.
I am not suggesting a pre-Adamic human society. I am simply saying that something happened between verses 1 and 2 which brought about the ruin and chaos of God's original earthly creation. The subsequent six days of creation were the beginnings of the human family and everything that relates to our present world. The human race, in fact, the earth as we know it, can trace our beginnings to a point in the past that is no more than 10,000 years, and probably less. Adam and Eve were the first humans, and were the crowning work of God's six literal days of creation. Remember, the Bible is concerned with God's relationship to human history, and human history is concerned with the history of humanity, not with the history of the Universe or Angels.
III. FROM DISORDER TO ORDER...
Regardless of your point of view concerning the origin of the chaos, you will agree that the Holy Spirit was vitally and intimately involved in establishing order to a chaotic planet.
Genesis 1:22 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.
While verse one states the creation of the heavens and the earth, verse two only addresses the EARTH in chaos, not a UNIVERSE in chaos. Something happened that cast the earth into chaos.
The next thing to notice is the intervention of the Holy Spirit.
“...And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.”
The Spirit of God MOVED UPON (brooded or hovered over)..
This is remarkable for several reasons.
We are introduced to the Person of the Holy Spirit;
We are given His name;
We are shown His redemptive work;
We are given a glimpse into His will, His wisdom and His power.
The name or title by which He is called in this place comes from the Hebrew word, RUACH, which is translated as wind or breath or air. We see this Divine breath again in the creation of Adam,
Genesis 2:7
7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
It is this “breath” or “air” communicated to men from the Holy Spirit that imparts life. In the New Testament, the Greek word, PNEUMA, which also means wind or air or breath, is used in reference God's Holy Spirit.
Job 33:4
4 The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.
The Spirit Brooded, Moved, Hovered Over The Face Of The Waters
It is interesting to note that a different model is employed for the Holy Spirit in this place. Instead of limiting the imagery to that of the wind, Moses uses a word that is used in reference to birds moving, brooding over a nest. This is not an argument for a female deity, since male birds often build and/or tend the nest.
Now picture this with me. The earth was in total chaos, nothing but a wasteland; destruction, death and darkness. This planet had become the battleground between Satan and God and then it became the base for fallen angels, banished from the presence of God.
There was nothing in this clump of chaotic clay that commended it to God's mercy. Nothing in this heap of hellish raised it from the ashes of futility. Yet the Spirit of God chose to intervene and reclaim it from eternal ruin. He willed for it to have another chance.
As the Spirit of God brooded over the earth's disorder and disintegration, He mapped out the DNA that would cause the earth to revive and thrive in symbiotic dependence. He would program everything from the secrets of the ocean depths to the minutest gravitational influence of stars thousands of light years away to work together for the life and well being of earth. He planned the genetics of plants and animals, the benefits of minerals and elements, the specifics of temperatures and timing into the restoration of a broken world.
Not only did the Spirit of God choose to restore the earth,
The name or title by which He is called in this place comes from the Hebrew word, RUACH, which is translated as wind or breath or air. We see this Divine breath again in the creation of Adam,
Genesis 2:7
7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
It is this “breath” or “air” communicated to men from the Holy Spirit that imparts life. In the New Testament, the Greek word, PNEUMA, which also means wind or air or breath, is used in reference God's Holy Spirit.
Job 33:4
4 The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.
The Spirit Brooded, Moved, Hovered Over The Face Of The Waters
It is interesting to note that a different model is employed for the Holy Spirit in this place. Instead of limiting the imagery to that of the wind, Moses uses a word that is used in reference to birds moving, brooding over a nest. This is not an argument for a female deity, since male birds often build and/or tend the nest.
Now picture this with me. The earth was in total chaos, nothing but a wasteland; destruction, death and darkness. This planet had become the battleground between Satan and God and then it became the base for fallen angels, banished from the presence of God.
There was nothing in this clump of chaotic clay that commended it to God's mercy. Nothing in this heap of hellish raised it from the ashes of futility. Yet the Spirit of God chose to intervene and reclaim it from eternal ruin. He willed for it to have another chance.
As the Spirit of God brooded over the earth's disorder and disintegration, He mapped out the DNA that would cause the earth to revive and thrive in symbiotic dependence. He would program everything from the secrets of the ocean depths to the minutest gravitational influence of stars thousands of light years away to work together for the life and well being of earth. He planned the genetics of plants and animals, the benefits of minerals and elements, the specifics of temperatures and timing into the restoration of a broken world.
Not only did the Spirit of God choose to restore the earth,
He planned its restoration,
He imparted life and light and everything essential for that restoration.
The Spirit of God Moved on the face of the turbulent and toxic waste of a dead and decaying world.
The six days of creation were not just God speaking the world into existence, they were the culmination of the Spirit of God MOVING, BROODING, HOVERING over it. The result of the intervention of a loving, intelligent and all powerful Spirit of God replacing Disorder with Divine Order.
The very thing that we see the Spirit of God did for a wasted world is what He will do for hopeless humans, ruined by their own sins.
THE SPIRIT OF GOD RESTORES ORDER TO PEOPLE RUINED BY THE DISORDER OF SIN AND DEATH.
The six days of creation were not just God speaking the world into existence, they were the culmination of the Spirit of God MOVING, BROODING, HOVERING over it. The result of the intervention of a loving, intelligent and all powerful Spirit of God replacing Disorder with Divine Order.
The very thing that we see the Spirit of God did for a wasted world is what He will do for hopeless humans, ruined by their own sins.
THE SPIRIT OF GOD RESTORES ORDER TO PEOPLE RUINED BY THE DISORDER OF SIN AND DEATH.
