Genesis 1:2

God] Heb. EloMm. The word probably signifies 'strength,' but the etymology is obscure; cp. Arabic Allah. The Heb. word is plural in form, but as a rule it is significantly followed by verbs in the singular, except when used of heathen gods. The plural form may be used to express the variety of attributes and powers which are combined in the divine nature, or it may indicate that with the Hebrews one God had taken the place of the many gods who were worshipped by their heathen kindred. Created] Heb. Bara; a word used only of the creative action of God. The heaven and the earth] the ordered universe as contrasted with the dark watery waste of Genesis 1:2. The creation of the heaven and the earth did not precede the work of the six days, but comprised it, cp. Genesis 2:1. There was no 'heaven' until the second day. With the whole v. cp. Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 3:4; Hebrews 11:3. Without form (RV 'waste') and void] The word rendered void is bohu. It reminds us of the Phœnician myth that the first men were the offspring of 'the wind Kolpia and his wife Baau which is interpreted Night,' and of the yet earlier Babylonian Bau, 'the great mother,' who was worshipped as the bestower of lands and flocks on mankind, and the giver of fertility to the soil. The deep] Heb. tehom: the mysterious primeval watery mass which, it was conceived, enveloped the earth. The Babylonians personified it as Tiamat, the dragon goddess of darkness whom Merodach must conquer before he can proceed to the higher stages of creation. The Spirit (RV 'spirit': lit. 'breath' or 'wind') of God] In the Bab. myth the gods are first evolved from the primeval deep: here the Divine agency is described as working on formless matter from the beginning. Moved] rather, 'was brooding' with life-giving power as a bird on her nest.

3-5. First day:—Creation of Light.