- First Day of the Creation: Light, Darkness
- Second Day of the Creation: Expanse, Separating the Water Under the Expanse From the Water Above It
- Third Day of the Creation: Sea, Land, Plants
- Fourth Day of the Creation: Sun, Moon, Stars
- Fifth Day of the Creation: Fish, Birds
- Sixth Day of the Creation: Animals, Man
- Seventh Day of the Creation: Rest
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Ge 1:1
At the beginning of Genesis the first book of the Bible, the creation of God (Elohim1) is recorded. God made the heavens and the earth in six days and rested on the seventh day. The history of the Bible begins with the creation of the heavens and the earth, and ends with the coming of a new heaven and a new earth, that is, the Kingdom of Heaven where there is no death or pain (Rev 21:1–4).
- The plural form of God (El, Eloah) in Hebrew. Starting from the first page of the book of Genesis, the Old Testament records God as Elohim about 2,500 times.
God is leading His people to the Kingdom of Heaven. The six-day creation is a prophecy about His work of redemption. Let’s take a look at the process of the Creation and its prophetic meaning.
First Day of the Creation: Light, Darkness
On the first day, God created light and separated the light from the darkness, and called the light “day” and the darkness “night” (Ge 1:3–5). Literally, this light can be interpreted as physical light, but prophetically it refers to the light of life, that is, the light of knowing God who is life.
In the beginning was the Word . . . and the Word was God . . . Through him all things were made . . . In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. Jn 1:1–5
For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.2 Co 4:6
The prophetic period of the first day is from Adam to Noah. God had shone the light of the knowledge of the glory of God from the time of Adam, the father of humankind. However, people did not understand the light, and the world was filled with sin in the days of Noah. God was grieved that He had made humans on the earth, and judged them with water (Ge 6:5–7).
Second Day of the Creation: Expanse, Separating the Water Under the Expanse From the Water Above It
On the second day, God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it, and called the expanse sky (Ge 1:6–8). The expanse refers to the sky and the atmosphere. The water was separated into the water above the sky [clouds] and water under it.
Then the angel said to me, “The waters . . . are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages.”Rev 17:15
In the Bible, water stands for people. The waters above the sky represent God’s people who will be saved, while the waters under it represent those who will not be saved.
The prophetic period of the second day is from Noah to Abraham. After the flood, the descendants of Noah built the Tower of Babel against God’s will to exalt their names and avoid being scattered over the whole earth. God broke their plan and confused their language so that people spread over all the earth (Ge 11:1–9).
Third Day of the Creation: Sea, Land, Plants
On the third day, God gathered the water under the sky to one place and let dry ground appear. After that, He called the dry ground land, and the gathered waters He called seas (Ge 1:9–10). He let the land produce vegetation: plants bearing seed, and trees bearing fruit with seed in it (Ge 1:11–13).
The waters of the sea created on the third day represent humankind (Rev 17:15). The plants and trees also represent humankind (Isa 40:7; Lk 23:31). The gathering of water in one place to form the sea means that people gather in various places to form the tribes and nations.
The prophetic period of the third day is from Abraham to Moses. The prophecy of the third day was fulfilled by the formation of many nations during the life of Abraham, the forefather of faith.
Fourth Day of the Creation: Sun, Moon, Stars
On the fourth day, God made two great lights, the sun and the moon, to govern the day and the night, and let the stars give light on the earth. He also marked the seasons, days, and years (Ge 1:14–19).
The prophetic period of the fourth day is from Moses to Jesus. During this period, the Old Testament and the New Testament were codified. Among the “two great lights” created on the fourth day, the sun stands for the New Testament and the moon the Old Testament. The moon does not emit its own light, but only reflects the sunlight. Likewise, the law of the Old Testament reflected the light of the truth of the New Covenant, which would be completed in the New Testament times. Ultimately, it played a role of leading God’s people to Christ who would appear in the New Testament times (Gal 3:24).
[A] woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet . . .Rev 12:1
[F]or all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.Gal 3:27
The fact that the moon is under the feet of a woman clothed with the sun means that the Old Testament was over and the New Testament began. The Old Testament times under the moonlight was the period of waiting for the sunlight of the New Testament, that is, the light of Christ, to shine.
The seasons, days, and years were set on the fourth day of the Creation. This was a prophecy that God’s laws and regulations, feasts, and the Sabbath would be established.
Fifth Day of the Creation: Fish, Birds
On the fifth day, God made the creatures of the sea and birds of the sky, and let them increase in number (Ge 1:20–23). The temporary ruler of the sea that stands for human society, is Satan (Rev 12:9). According to Jesus’ parable, the birds of the air too represent the devil. The devil destroys God’s word, the gospel (Mt 13:3–4; Lk 8:11–12; 1 Pe 1:23).
The prophetic period of the fifth day goes through the period of persecution after the crucifixion of Jesus and the Dark Age of 1,260 years that lasted until the Pope Pius VI was captured by the armies of the French Revolutionary government in AD 1798. During this age, Satan gained power and God’s truth of life disappeared; and the customs and symbols of pagan took their place in Christianity.
“He will speak against the Most High and oppress his saints and try to change the set times and the laws. The saints will be handed over to him for a time, times and half a time.”Da 7:25
According to the prophecy that God’s set times and laws would disappear by Satan, the truths began to change one by one after the Apostolic Age. The Sabbath Day was changed to Sunday worship in AD 321, and the Passover was abolished in AD 325. Afterwards, Christmas, the birthday of the sun god, and the cross idolatry were introduced into the church. During the Dark Ages, the saints fled into the wilderness and spent a miserable time in the deserts, mountains, and caves (Rev 12:6, 14).
Sixth Day of the Creation: Animals, Man
On the sixth day, God made all kinds of animals, and created Adam and Eve last of all (Ge 1:24–31). At that time, He created both man and woman, saying, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness.” God created man in the image of God the Father, and woman in the image of God the Mother.
Adam was a “pattern of the one to come [Jesus]” (Ro 5:14), and Eve, Adam’s wife, was called the “mother of all the living” (Ge 3:20). Adam and Eve, who appeared on the last day of the creation in six days, represent God the Father [Second Coming Jesus] and God the Mother, who will appear in the last days of the redemptive work. In 1 Corinthians, it is written that the “last Adam” is a “life-giving spirit,” that is, the Savior who gives eternal life to humankind (1 Co 15:44–49). Apostle John wrote that the last Adam and Eve, whom he saw in his revelation, were the “Holy Spirit and the Bride.”
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.Rev 22:17
The Holy Spirit and the Bride, who give the free gift of the water of life to those who want it, refer to God the Father [Second Coming Jesus] and God the Mother, who will give eternal life to all people.
Animals represent the Gentiles in the Bible (Ac 10:1–16, 24–29). The fact that Adam and Eve ruled over all the animals is a prophecy that the Spirit and the Bride, the last Adam and Eve, appear in the flesh and lead all people to salvation.
Seventh Day of the Creation: Rest
On the seventh day when God finished the work of creation, He rested and blessed that day and made it holy (Ge 2:1–3). The seventh-day Sabbath was a day to commemorate the power of God the Creator, and it was established as a law that must be observed (Ex 20:8–11; Lk 4:16).
In regard to the seventh day, there are no words that say, “And there was evening, and there was morning—the seventh day.” This is because it represents eternal rest (Heb 4:1–11). God gave the Israelites the land of Canaan on the earth as a rest (Jos 21:44). The spiritual Israelites will enter the heavenly Canaan as an everlasting rest.
Thus, God put His great will to redeem His people in His Creation work, and has been fulfilling it without fail. The writer of the Psalms praised God for His creating all things with love, and sang that His glory and word would reach the ends of the world (Ps 33:6–7; 19:1–4). Like the hymn, the light of the knowledge of the glory of God Elohim, the Creator, is shining all over the world in this age. Now it is time for all people to receive the Holy Spirit and the Bride, the last Adam and Eve, who give them the water of life.