Bible Strands
Genesis 1:5
God called the light “day,” and the darkness He called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — God speaks within the creation narrative immediately after separating light from darkness. The declaration concludes the first creative period as the text marks its boundaries.
The words — The verb קָרָא (qara') occurs twice to mean "he called," assigning the names יוֹם (yom, "day") and לַיְלָה (laylah, "night") to the light and darkness. The phrase וַיְהִי (vayehi) functions as a temporal marker, stating "and there was evening, and there was morning."
The thread — The day-night distinction appears in Psalms 74:16, which states they belong to God, and in Psalms 104:20, where darkness brings night for forest beasts. Isaiah 45:7 reinforces God's exclusive role in forming light and creating darkness.
Why it lands — The text records God naming created elements to establish order, requiring the reader to acknowledge divine authority over time and creation. It demands recognition that the framework of days originates from a spoken declaration, not natural progression.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
Cross-references
- Psalms 74:16 The day is Yours, and also the night; You established the moon and the sun.
- Isaiah 45:7 I form the light and create the darkness; I bring prosperity and create calamity. I, the LORD, do all these things.
- Psalms 104:20 You bring darkness, and it becomes night, when all the beasts of the forest prowl.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:5 For you are all sons of the light and sons of the day; we do not belong to the night or to the darkness.
- Genesis 8:22 As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall never cease.”
- Genesis 1:8 God called the expanse “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day.
- Psalms 19:2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.
- Jeremiah 33:20 “This is what the LORD says: If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that day and night cease to occupy their appointed time,
- Ephesians 5:13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for everything that is illuminated becomes a light itself.
- 1 Corinthians 3:13 his workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man’s work.