Light On Day 1, Sun On Day 4. How Can This Be?

Q

In Genesis 1:3 it says, “And God said let there be light and there was light. ” It was day 1. In Genesis 1:16 it says, “And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.” It was day 4. So if God didn’t create the Sun and Moon until day 4, what was the light He created on day 1? Also, evenings and morning are determined by the rising and setting of the sun are they not? But if the sun was not created until the fourth day then what determined the days before that?

A

The answer lies in the comparison of the Hebrew language in Genesis 1:3 with that of Genesis 1:16. In the first instance the word for light is owr which means light. In the second it’s mowr which is a light repository, literally a candle stick or chandelier. So God created the light on day 1 and separated it from the darkness, permitting the distinction between day and night. Then He gathered the light into one location (the Sun) on day 4, where it’s been ever since. Remember, the Moon only reflects light from the Sun, it doesn’t generate any light itself.

Evenings and mornings are not really created by the rising and setting of the Sun. They’re created by the rotation of the Earth on it’s axis, any given area spinning into and out of the path of the light every 24 hours.