The father of biblical
theology, Geerhardus Vos, says that Day #1 in Genesis did not begin until
"God said" in verse 3. Before that the heavens and the earth were
created, but the earth was "without form, and void; and darkness was on
the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the
waters." Therefore, the stars and sun were created before the first day.
Each day started with "God said." Therefore, we must make a
distinction between the age of the universe and the age of God's new earth.
The darkness was caused
by a thick vapor. But when God spoke, the vapor diminished enough for light to
show. On day 2, enough vapor diminished to make "a firmament in the midst
of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”
On day 3, God's breath
diminished enough moisture to “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered
together into one place, and let the dry land appear.”
On day 4, God said,
"Let there be two great lights... 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." In the beginning God created (Hebrew baw-raw' ). But on
the 4th day He "made" (aw-saw). The lights were already there, but
now He made them be seen from earth's point of view. Therefore, God did not
created the sun, moon, and stars on the 4th day. He created them in the beginning
and made them to be seen on the 4th day.
When was the beginning?
The beginning of what? None of your business. The secret things belong to God
and only what is revealed belongs to us. The age of the universe cannot be
known unless God reveals it. First and foremost, in the beginning, there must
be a broken spirit and a contrite heart. And only God can create that.
