And God said, Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens, to divide between the day and the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years;
On the fourth day God sets lights in the sky and gives them work to do. Two old questions follow: is this the moment the sun was made, and what are the "signs"?
The verse does not record the making of the sun and moon. Commentators point back to verse 1.
It is certainly not the creation of the sun and so on. Moses does not say that. He says only that God now set the heavenly lights in place, after the plants and before the animals, for the earth that man would live in. Light had shone in another way since the first day of the great week. Now He set the light-bearers of the heavens to do their assigned work, but it is for the earth, and indeed for man. Verse 1 already implied their creation, for God did not create either heaven or earth empty. And what would heaven be without its host? … On the fourth day He gave the lights of heaven their unhindered place, to divide the day from the night.
The chapter measures the heavens by what they do for the earth below. Size is not the standard here.
It is only their relation to man on earth that shows the exact fitness of the phrase "the two great lights." He who created all things and inspired Moses knew the size of every body in heaven better than Newton or Laplace. But think of what helps man on earth, and Israel especially, and every creature under them. For giving light by day and night, what were all the rest compared to the sun and moon?
One misuse of the word is to read fortunes in the stars.
Scripture says the lights in the expanse of the heavens are for "signs" as well as for "seasons." People have wrongly used this passage, treating the varied positions of the sun, moon and planets as a way to foretell events. Of what, then, are they signs? Psalm 19:1-6 perhaps answers that. The huge distances between the heavenly bodies, and the wonderful regularity of their movements, are a sign of the glory of the One who created them.
The word carries a second sense. God has made the sky speak at key moments in Israel's history.
We see what a sign it was to Israel when Joshua said in their hearing, "Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and moon, in the Valley of Aijalon." In far different days the Lord spoke to sick Hezekiah, and gave him a sign in the shadow that went back ten steps on the dial of Ahaz. And what a sign again at the cross of the Messiah, when all was lost as far as man is concerned! Darkness covered all the land for three hours. A mere eclipse was impossible then.
The word behind "seasons" carries more than one shade of meaning, and commentators weigh which one fits.
No comment is needed on "seasons": man alone on earth understands and values these fitting, recurring times. The same Hebrew word means "the congregation" and "the solemn feast," as well as the season or appointed time at which they kept it. So "seasons" may have a sacred sense, but the more ordinary sense seems confirmed by what follows. Very little astronomy is needed to know how "days and years" are marked out by these lights, but only for man.
Commentators also read the fourth day as a picture, where light in the sky stands for light of another kind.
The lights set in the heavens speak very plainly of Christ and of the Church… Here Christ, revealed by the Holy Spirit, shines out for men in the word of His grace. The Church is the responsible reflector of Christ, His letter to the world… Let this scene preach to us that all true and divine light now is heavenly. To let our "light shine" is nothing else than to let men see we belong to another sphere.
For a single believer, the fourth day points away from self.
The sun speaks of the Lord Jesus, "the Sun of Righteousness" (Malachi 4:2), whose brightness is so welcome, yet too dazzling for our eyes… The fourth day teaches us that we must have a proper Object outside of ourselves and of our fruitfulness. The person of the Lord Jesus is that Object. When we are blessed with the sight of His own glory, this lifts our hearts above our circumstances, and above our own spiritual state and experience.
- Appointed — God is not creating the sun here; He is setting it to work, dividing day from night.
- Aimed at earth — sun and moon rank as the great lights because the record measures them by what they do for man, marking his days, years and seasons.
- Signs upward — their steady order points to the glory of their Maker, not to fortunes read in the stars.
- Signs in history — the sun standing still for Joshua, the shadow going back for Hezekiah, darkness at the cross.
- Signs for us — Christ shines and the Church reflects Him; borrow all your light, and let others see where it comes from.
and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens, to give light on the earth. And it was so.
On the fourth day God does not make new matter; He gives the lights of the sky a job, and that job is measured by the earth below. So were the sun and moon made here for the first time, or only set to work for us?
One writer weighs what the text says and what it does not say.
It is certainly not the creation of the sun and the rest. The inspired historian does not say this. He says only that God now appointed the heavenly lights for the earth of Adam's day, after the plants and before the animals. Light had shone in another way since the first day of the great week. Now He set the light-bearers of the heavens to do their assigned work, but it is for the earth, and indeed for man. Their creation was implied in verse 1, for God did not create either heaven or earth empty; and what would heaven be without its host? ... The same design is repeated: they are to be lights in the expanse of the heavens. It was their effect, not their structure, that is meant.
Another writer names the opposite view, then gives his reason for rejecting it.
Some have thought that light was independent of the sun, that on the first day God created the light, and that on the fourth day He created the sun. But we are not told that on the fourth day He created the sun and the moon, but that He made two great lights... What proves that they were there from the beginning, we believe, is that there was evening and morning on the first day. That shows the daily motion of the earth in relation to the sun, which gives day and night.
The record measures the sky by what it does for the earth. The stars show how far that goes.
"He made the stars also" (v. 16, in an older translation). The record mentions this only in passing, as something of much lesser importance. Many of the stars turn out to be huge, much larger than the sun. Their number is beyond counting, and their distances range into billions of light years. Yet the sun and the moon are more important to us on earth, and God's revelation is for the benefit of human beings.
The verse closes with four words that come again and again through the chapter.
Six times in the chapter the words "And God said" have the fitting sequel, "and it was so." From the very start, the word of God shows itself powerful. It never fails of its effect. How encouraging to learn this in the first chapter of the Bible, for we may be sure it applies to every word that God has spoken. When we reach the end of the story we shall be able to say with triumph, "and it was so," about every promise He has made, every prediction He has uttered.
One writer reads the sun as a picture of Christ, because of what sunrise does to a long night.
The sun is the great centre of light, and the centre of our system. The lesser bodies revolve around him and get their light from him. So we may rightly see him as a fitting symbol of Him who is soon to arise, with healing in His wings... The mists and shades of night are all scattered, and the whole creation seems to welcome the returning source of light.
One writer applies the fourth day to the present.
The lights set in the heavens speak very plainly of Christ and of the Church... Christ, revealed by the Holy Spirit, shines out for people in the word of His grace. The Church is the responsible reflector of Christ, His letter to the world... Let this scene preach to us that all true and divine light now is heavenly. To let our "light shine" is nothing else than to let people see we belong to another sphere.
The moon carries a warning as well as a lesson.
The moon is a fitting illustration of the church, and it guards against the tendency to exalt the church at the expense of her Head. It is a dark body with no light of its own, and its only usefulness lies in reflecting the light of the sun. Moonshine, strictly, there is none — it is the reflected light of the sun. So the only use the church can be in this world is shedding the light of Christ during the night of His absence.
- Set, not started. The fourth day gives the heavenly bodies their job, not their beginning. Verse 1 already implies their creation.
- Set for earth. The record measures everything by what reaches the ground. That is why stars far larger than the sun get one passing clause.
- Set by a word. Six times "God said" ends with "and it was so." That unbroken pattern stands behind every promise God has spoken since.
- Set as a picture. The greater light points to Christ, whose rising scatters the night. The lesser light points to His people, who shine in the night with borrowed light.
- Set to reflect. A dark body shines only with light it receives. That is the calling, and the limit, of any witness during the night of Christ's absence.
And God made the two great lights, the great light to rule the day, and the small light to rule the night, -- and the stars.
On the fourth day God turns from shaping the earth to filling the sky. One verse hands the day and the night to two rulers, then adds the stars in a few words. That wording raises real questions. Were the sun and moon created here? Why "made" and not "created"? And why do the stars get so little space?
The verb here is not the verb of verse 1. One writer sets the two words side by side:
Notice that the word "made" (v. 16) is not the same as "created" (v. 1). The verse does not say that sun, moon and stars were created at the time of verse 16. It says that God then appointed them as lights for the earth. The Bible is not a textbook on astronomy, yet its language is exact: it never confuses creating things with setting them in their order.
That reading answers an old objection — that light on day one without a sun is impossible:
The work of the fourth day has caused difficulty for many. Years ago, under mistaken scientific ideas, people thought light (v. 3) without the sun (v. 16) was impossible. And people did not read closely what verses 14 to 18 do say, and do not say. Sun and moon were created as given us in verse 1; they were only made as "two great lights" on the fourth day.
Calling the sun and moon the two great lights is not a ranking by size. Something else sets the scale here:
Even here, where the subject is the heavenly bodies, the record looks at them only in view of man and this earth... On the fourth day He gave the lights of heaven their unhindered place, to divide the day from the night.
The word "rule" matters. Scripture uses these lights as a picture of authority in three levels.
In this symbolism the stars stand for subordinate authority. So the sun is supreme, the moon derived, and the stars subordinate. They are also light-bearers, and God Himself sets them in the expanse of heaven. Keeping these features in mind helps when the same symbol is applied to the angels of the churches.
The lights that govern day and night also mark out time. One writer follows that to its end:
Time is tied to the "two great lights" (Gen. 1:16), which God set in the heavens "for signs and for seasons, and for days and years" (v. 14). When these disappear, time stops and eternity begins.
The verse gives the stars only three words.
One writer explains why the smaller bodies get the larger place:
The stars are mentioned as though they were incidental and of much less importance. Many of them are huge, far larger than the sun, their distances run into billions of light years, and no one can count them. Yet the sun and the moon matter more to us on earth, and God's revelation is for the benefit of human beings.
Commentators also read the greater and lesser lights as a picture of Christ and the church:
Now, as the sun is a beautiful and fitting symbol of Christ, so the moon strikingly reminds us of the Church. The source of her light is hidden from view. The world does not see Him, but she sees Him; and she is responsible to reflect His beams upon a darkened world.
The picture also sets a limit on what the church may claim:
The moon is a good illustration of the church, guarding against the tendency to exalt the church at the expense of her Head. It is a body with no light of its own, and its only usefulness lies in reflecting the light of the sun. Strictly, there is no such thing as moonshine — it is the reflected light of the sun. So the only use the church can be in this world is to shed the light of Christ during the night of His absence.
after_note: DISCUSS
These pictures need care. One writer draws the line:
People often mistake how a symbol is applied for what it means. Christ is called the Sun of Righteousness; but Sun does not mean Christ. The sun is only a symbol of glory and supreme government. God made the sun to rule the day (Gen. 1:16). It is a mistake to drop that general idea and take the sun to mean Christ.
- Made — the verb is not "created". Here God appointed the sun and moon as lights for the earth; He did not bring them into being.
- Measured — the record speaks from the earth's standpoint. "Great" means great to us, which is why huge stars get only three words.
- Ruling — the lights govern: the sun supreme, the moon derived, the stars subordinate. They also mark out time itself.
- Reflecting — the moon has no light of its own. Commentators see in it the church, shining only with light borrowed from Christ.
- Restrained — how a symbol is used is not what it means. The sun pictures supreme government, so calling the sun Christ goes too far.
And God set them in the expanse of the heavens, to give light on the earth,
God's fourth day of work ends with an act of placing. He puts the lights where they belong and gives them a job to do. So what does it mean that God "set" them? And why does Scripture describe this work in the heavens by what it does for the earth below?
The verb "set" means more than putting something in place. One writer looks at its form:
This word first appears in Genesis 1:17, where we read that God set "two great lights" in the expanse. The verb here is in the middle (reflexive) voice, so the glory of the action belongs to the One who performed it.
Commentators read this day as the ordering of things already made, not the first making of sun and moon. Scripture mentions the stars almost in passing, and that restraint has a purpose:
I fully believe that God set the sun and the moon at this time to be for signs and seasons and years, and to make day and night. But the account looks at them here only in what they do for the earth, and only as lights. God made the two great lights, and God gave them as such. There is no creation of the bodies here. What we have is the setting up of how they appear and work, and their purpose. So when he speaks of the stars, he only reminds us that God had made them too. Instead of men worshipping them, God had distributed them to all men under heaven.
God set them in "the expanse of the heavens." That word carries a range of meaning:
The Hebrew word is raqia, meaning 'expanse.' It stands for the sky we see when we look up, and also for the air in which the birds fly. We read that God called the expanse 'heaven.' This is 'heaven' in a broad sense. Elsewhere we read of 'the stars of heaven,' but also of 'the birds of heaven.'
The whole account of this day is written from the ground up. What God pronounced good was not the newness of these bodies but the work He handed them:
God gave sun and moon to rule over the day and over the night. They were His creatures and gifts for man's use, dividing between the light and the darkness. "And God saw that it was good" — not as if they had just been created, but in the assigned work He gave them to do.
That arrangement still steadies ordinary human life, right down to navigation:
We see the wisdom and kindness of our faithful Creator in these lights above us, and we enjoy them and give thanks for them. Life would be impossible without them. They bring order, method, variety and guidance into our lives. Anyone who wants to live well and long must not ignore "the signs and seasons and days and years" for which these lights were made. The shipmaster steers his ship safely if he can take his bearings by the lights in the sky. Many a fine ship has been lost because her crew steered by dead reckoning.
God placed the lights above the earth they serve. One writer sees a pattern there for how the earth is governed:
The fourth day of creation showed that earth was to be ruled from heaven, and that the authorities were to have their place there.
One writer takes the two lights as a picture of Christ and the church:
As the sun is a beautiful and fitting symbol of Christ, so the moon strikingly reminds us of the church. The source of her light is hidden from view. The world does not see Him, but she sees Him; and she is responsible to reflect His beams upon a darkened world. The world has no other way to learn anything of Christ except through the church. "You," says the inspired apostle, "are our letter … known and read by all."
Read that way, the lights in heaven show where a believer's light must come from:
Let this scene preach to us that all true and divine light now is heavenly. To let our "light shine" is nothing else than to let people see that we belong to another sphere, and that we are not of the world, even as Christ was not. It is to let them see our faces brightened with the joy of what He is. Our hearts are satisfied with Himself, and so independent of the broken cisterns from which they try to draw refreshment.
- Set. The verb points back to the One acting; the glory of placing the lights belongs to God Himself.
- Purposed. This is not the first making of the sun and moon but the fixing of their work — and it rules out worshipping them.
- Given. They are gifts for human use, and what God calls good is the work He assigns them, not their bare existence.
- Ruling. The lights stand above the earth they light, marking out that the earth is ruled from heaven.
- Reflected. Applied to us, the light we shine is borrowed light, and its whole worth lies in showing others the One it comes from.
and to rule during the day and during the night, and to divide between the light and the darkness. And God saw that it was good.
The wording here is careful, and readers often miss it. The fourth day sets the lights in place; it is not when they first came into being.
The work of the fourth day has caused difficulty for many. Partly because years ago, under mistaken scientific ideas, light (v. 3) without the sun (v. 16) was thought impossible. Partly because people did not carefully notice what verses 14 to 18 actually say, and do not say. Sun and moon were created as given to us in verse 1; they were only made as "two great lights" on the fourth day. Further, they were set in relation to the earth — or the earth to them, as the case may be — so that they ruled over the day and over the night. In this way they divided the light from the darkness.
God's approval here is attached to something specific. It is not admiration of newly minted objects but satisfaction in the work assigned to them.
God gave sun and moon to rule over the day and over the night. They were His creatures and gifts for man's use, dividing between the light and the darkness. "And God saw that it was good" — not as if they had just been created, but in the assigned work He gave them to do.
The word "good" is repeated across the chapter, and one writer draws a large conclusion from that.
All that God made was good. This is said five times (in verses 10, 12, 18, 21, and 25) about matter, whether living or not. These are important statements, because the ordered scene of creation was so soon invaded by evil. It proves that the evil was an invasion from outside and not produced from within. All as it left God's hand was perfect and undefiled.
The word "rule" is not decorative. From the start, the earth takes its light and its order from above. That pattern says something about how God governs.
Then again, they were to rule, one over the day and one over the night. From the outset God placed the earth under the rule and control of heaven, even in the working of lifeless matter. So these heavenly bodies become a sign that "Heaven rules" (Dan. 4:26), and a faint prophecy of "the kingdom of heaven," which we read of in the Gospel of Matthew. Sadly, fallen man soon twisted all this. He began to worship these lights as though they were creator and not creature, and so changed God's truth into a lie. Romans 1:25 refers to this, we believe.
Now, as the sun is a beautiful and fitting symbol of Christ, so the moon strikingly reminds us of the church. The source of her light is hidden from view. The world does not see Him, but she sees Him; and she is responsible to reflect His beams on a darkened world. The world has no other way of learning anything of Christ except through the church. "You yourselves are our letter ... known and read by all," says the inspired apostle. And again, "You show that you are a letter from Christ." (2 Cor. 3:2-3.)
The same writer's grammar is worth noticing: the lesser light is given a rule of its own, not merely a glow. One writer draws that parallel out, and adds that the present arrangement is temporary.
His is a full, unchanging, underived light; hers a reflected, unsteady one. Yet it is said, "The moon to govern the night," just as it is, "The sun to rule the day." "You are the light of the world," just as "I am the light of the world." But Christ is absent, and it is now night — although, thank God, "the night is far spent, the day is at hand."
If the church is the moon, the picture itself corrects anyone who makes her the source of the light instead of the channel.
But here we are on ground that has its dangers. The Roman Catholic system exalted the church at the expense of her Head, and this tendency is clearly seen in quarters where it was least expected. The moon is a fitting illustration of the church, and it guards against this tendency. It is a dark body with no light of its own. Its only usefulness lies in reflecting the light of the sun. Strictly speaking there is no such thing as moonlight — it is the reflected light of the sun. So the only use the church can be in this world is shedding the light of Christ during the night of His absence.
- Made — sun and moon were created in verse 1. On the fourth day God made them "two great lights," set in relation to the earth to govern and divide.
- Given — they rule as creatures and gifts for man's use, never as powers in their own right.
- Ruled — the earth takes its light and order from above, a sign that "Heaven rules." Man's sin was to worship the lights instead of their Maker.
- Reflected — the sun pictures Christ, the moon the church. Her light is all borrowed, and her one use is to shine it into the night of His absence.
- Good — God's approval rests on the work He assigned, not on the objects. Creation is called good five times, so the evil that later spoiled it came from outside.