Can something be new to God? Greek philosophers didn't think so, but yes—God can write a new song, paint a new picture, and create something new.
If God were to write a new song, what might be the first thing He would do? I believe the first thing He would do is to name the song. I am blessed to have three children, and being new, they had to be named. Naming things is not an insignificant event; it is an honor and it is crucial in more than one way. So when God names something, you ought pay close attention!
In Genesis 1, God names five things in this order: Day, Night, Heaven, Earth, and the Seas. There are many other things that He mentions, but He does not give them names, such as land, water, light, the firmament, stars, and other entities.
Question: Why name those five and not the others?
Lets examine them one by one.
Day and Night: There are literally countless other planets in the galaxies. What would be different about light and darkness on a planet? The difference is life. Life gives a new context—a new dynamic—that light and darkness alone do not describe. Daytime and nighttime are of major importance to life and have no significance without it. An astronomer would not typically describe day and night on Mercury, Mars, or Pluto simply as "dark" or "light" and they would never say, as God did, that it was good. Conclusion: Earth is the only planet with life.
Heaven: Heaven is the first thing that God may have created or apparently made. We learn from Psalm 19:1: "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handywork." If the biblical chronology is correct, heaven was present in Genesis 1 but was not named at that time. Then, in Genesis 1:8, it is described as part of the earth, and God names it. It becomes "Heaven," or something new, when it is put into service.
I believe the materials that God used to make it were not new. However, as an assembly with the earth—to separate the waters, which is the purpose of the firmament—it was new, and He named it Heaven.
Earth, Seas: Heaven, Earth, and Seas have one thing in common: water. Dry land, in the presence of water, becomes Earth. Water in a pool becomes Seas. Water on both sides of the firmament make it Heaven.
That covers the five things that have a new context that God decides to name, next are the major things that He didn't feel the need to name.
Land: God says the "dry land" appeared and he called it "Earth". That tells me that, land was known to him but Earth was not. But are those two not the same? To us they are but at that moment, at that time there was a distinction. The clear distinction is that Earth is land in the presence of water. My takeaway is that water in conjunction with land, needed a name as it was new to Him. Water and land have far more capacity than either do alone. Conclusion: Earth is the only planet with abundant liquid water.
Water: Why would God not name water? It is the most important substance perhaps in the universe? Well according to astronomers water is present outside our solar system. If God created those before earth, then He was familiar with water and no need to name it.
Light: God in Genesis 1:3 "let there be light" or "I command light to shine" is another translation of the verse. What ever be the case, God appears to be familiar with light as He did not feel the need to name it.
Firmament: Likely the most interesting one in my view. God didn't feel the need to name this solid, foundational aspect of creation, but He did feel the need to name what He constructed with it—Heaven. This clearly indicates that the firmament was used by God as He created Heaven. Conclusion: Metals were known to God, but fashioning those metals into Heaven was a new act of His handiwork. Click on the link at the bottom to see a piece of the firmament.
Stars: What is a star? This should not be much of a debate! Generally, a star is understood to be a luminous point in the night sky—an astronomical object that produces its own light through nuclear fusion. However, throughout history, there have been some notable misconceptions. For instance, the Star of Bethlehem was famously considered a star, but many scholars believe it was not actually a star at all.
Additionally, bright planets such as Mars (sometimes called the "Red Star") and Venus have historically been mistaken for stars because of their brightness and fixed positions in the sky. Then there are falling stars, which we all know are not stars at all but meteorites—debris burning up as they enter Earth's atmosphere. In essence, a star is typically defined as a bright point in the distant heavens that shines with its own light. Interestingly, the Bible and many ancient texts do not specify exact names for these celestial objects, implying that God, who created them, was familiar enough with their nature that He did not feel the need to label each one explicitly.
All of those verses point to stars more as planets than suns. "If" suns were not new to God, that could mean He created at least one of them before He created our sun.
In the Beginning... with this new context would mean "In the beginning of, Heaven, Day, Night, Earth, and Seas and not starts, and the context for all of those is life.
This article is my work, using only the Bible and common sense, nothing was cut and pasted from the internet.
If God were to write a new song, what might be the first thing He would do? I believe the first thing He would do is to name the song. I am blessed to have three children, and being new, they had to be named. Naming things is not an insignificant event; it is an honor and it is crucial in more than one way. So when God names something, you ought pay close attention!
In Genesis 1, God names five things in this order: Day, Night, Heaven, Earth, and the Seas. There are many other things that He mentions, but He does not give them names, such as land, water, light, the firmament, stars, and other entities.
Question: Why name those five and not the others?
Lets examine them one by one.
Day and Night: There are literally countless other planets in the galaxies. What would be different about light and darkness on a planet? The difference is life. Life gives a new context—a new dynamic—that light and darkness alone do not describe. Daytime and nighttime are of major importance to life and have no significance without it. An astronomer would not typically describe day and night on Mercury, Mars, or Pluto simply as "dark" or "light" and they would never say, as God did, that it was good. Conclusion: Earth is the only planet with life.
Heaven: Heaven is the first thing that God may have created or apparently made. We learn from Psalm 19:1: "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handywork." If the biblical chronology is correct, heaven was present in Genesis 1 but was not named at that time. Then, in Genesis 1:8, it is described as part of the earth, and God names it. It becomes "Heaven," or something new, when it is put into service.
I believe the materials that God used to make it were not new. However, as an assembly with the earth—to separate the waters, which is the purpose of the firmament—it was new, and He named it Heaven.
Earth, Seas: Heaven, Earth, and Seas have one thing in common: water. Dry land, in the presence of water, becomes Earth. Water in a pool becomes Seas. Water on both sides of the firmament make it Heaven.
That covers the five things that have a new context that God decides to name, next are the major things that He didn't feel the need to name.
Land: God says the "dry land" appeared and he called it "Earth". That tells me that, land was known to him but Earth was not. But are those two not the same? To us they are but at that moment, at that time there was a distinction. The clear distinction is that Earth is land in the presence of water. My takeaway is that water in conjunction with land, needed a name as it was new to Him. Water and land have far more capacity than either do alone. Conclusion: Earth is the only planet with abundant liquid water.
Water: Why would God not name water? It is the most important substance perhaps in the universe? Well according to astronomers water is present outside our solar system. If God created those before earth, then He was familiar with water and no need to name it.
Light: God in Genesis 1:3 "let there be light" or "I command light to shine" is another translation of the verse. What ever be the case, God appears to be familiar with light as He did not feel the need to name it.
Firmament: Likely the most interesting one in my view. God didn't feel the need to name this solid, foundational aspect of creation, but He did feel the need to name what He constructed with it—Heaven. This clearly indicates that the firmament was used by God as He created Heaven. Conclusion: Metals were known to God, but fashioning those metals into Heaven was a new act of His handiwork. Click on the link at the bottom to see a piece of the firmament.
Stars: What is a star? This should not be much of a debate! Generally, a star is understood to be a luminous point in the night sky—an astronomical object that produces its own light through nuclear fusion. However, throughout history, there have been some notable misconceptions. For instance, the Star of Bethlehem was famously considered a star, but many scholars believe it was not actually a star at all.
Additionally, bright planets such as Mars (sometimes called the "Red Star") and Venus have historically been mistaken for stars because of their brightness and fixed positions in the sky. Then there are falling stars, which we all know are not stars at all but meteorites—debris burning up as they enter Earth's atmosphere. In essence, a star is typically defined as a bright point in the distant heavens that shines with its own light. Interestingly, the Bible and many ancient texts do not specify exact names for these celestial objects, implying that God, who created them, was familiar enough with their nature that He did not feel the need to label each one explicitly.
- Genesis 1:14-16, celestial bodies such as the Sun, Moon, and "stars" are mentioned as signs and markers for seasons, days, and years.
- Job 9:9 mentions "the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades," which are constellations, but also references to wandering stars (planets) are implied in other passages.
- Matthew 2:9-10 describes a star that guided the Wise Men, which some interpret as a planetary conjunction or a special celestial event.
All of those verses point to stars more as planets than suns. "If" suns were not new to God, that could mean He created at least one of them before He created our sun.
In the Beginning... with this new context would mean "In the beginning of, Heaven, Day, Night, Earth, and Seas and not starts, and the context for all of those is life.
This article is my work, using only the Bible and common sense, nothing was cut and pasted from the internet.
