One Powerful Verse
Genesis 1:1 (NASB95)
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
This first commentary will be a little long. Genesis 1:1 is a short verse, but it is packed with meaning.
The opening words of the Bible stand as a majestic overture to the entire scriptural narrative, setting the stage for all scriptures that follow. Genesis 1:1 is not only the first sentence of the Bible but also a literary and theological keystone, introducing the grand themes of creation, order, purpose, and divine sovereignty. The verse’s elegant, almost poetic prose reflects the grandeur and intentionality of God’s creative act, distinguishing itself from the mythological cosmogonies (how did everything come to be) of the ancient Near East, which often depicted creation as the result of conflict among rival deities. Instead, the biblical account presents creation as a peaceful, sovereign act by God, who alone brings the universe into existence without opposition or struggle.
The term “created” (bārāʾ) is used exclusively for God’s activity in the Hebrew Bible, underscoring that only He possesses the power to bring about true newness and renewal. The use of the name “Elohim” in this context emphasizes God’s transcendence and majesty, setting Him apart from the polytheistic gods of Israel’s neighbors and affirming His unique sovereignty over all creation.
The phrase “in the beginning” implies that there will also be an end. To understand what the end looks like and how we reach it, we must first understand the beginning accurately.
There are a few key points to note as the Bible starts with this verse. First, observe that God is portrayed as the Sovereign God of everyone and everything. The Bible does not begin by introducing God as the God of the Jews. Instead, the beginning of the Bible focuses on all of creation and all of humanity, not just the Jewish people. The Jewish people, a select people, are not mentioned until several chapters later. Accordingly, the end and what happens between the beginning and the end affect all people (that means YOU) and not just the Jews.
The beginning of the Bible also does not focus on explaining how you came to be—whether you were created or through other explanations like evolution or the Big Bang. These philosophies are considered "new” ideas that have been proposed “recently” in human history. Think about this: all the oldest cultures, those closest to the beginning, believed in creation. For thousands of years, every culture that followed believed in some form of creation. None of them held different beliefs about the origin of the universe. How do we know this? Because we have their writings, such as Enuma Elish, Gilgamesh, and others. So why would the author(s) of Genesis need to write a book explaining to an ancient culture how they came into existence? They already knew this answer.
The ancient Israelites were not troubled by modern philosophies like evolution. Instead, they struggled with idolatry—worshiping false gods. The first verse of the Bible reminds the Israelites WHO truly did all of this. It wasn’t Ba’al, El, Dagon, or any other pagan deity. It was YAHWEH, the only Sovereign God, who created everything. The author(s) of Genesis, therefore, remind the Israelites of WHO their God is, while also discrediting all other gods and origin stories.
This is important. Understanding WHO will shape how we view our purpose and our path as human beings. As Genesis progresses, it will emphasize WHO did all these things but also clarify WHAT Yahweh did and WHY He did it. These are the main points at the beginning of Genesis.
Who created all things?
What did He create?
Why did He do it?
In verse one, we have answered the first question – Who did it?