“In the beginning…” Do John’s opening words sound familiar? They
should. They are also the very first words in the entire Bible. But there are
many creation stories in the Bible, and they all speak of the awesome glory and
beauty of God – a God who is active and present in his Creation. Think about
that as you read these passages.
From the Torah: Genesis 1:1-2:3
From
the Former Prophets: 1 Samuel 2:1-10
From
the Latter Prophets: Isaiah 51:1-23
From
the Books of Wisdom and Poetry: Job
26:1-14
From
the Late Books: 1
Chronicles 16:7-36
From
the Gospels: John
1:1-18
From the Epistles: Hebrews 1:1-2:4
From the Torah
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of
the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was
light. God
saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness
he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first
day.
And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” So God made the vault and separated
the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. God called the vault “sky.” And there was evening, and there
was morning—the second day.
And God said, “Let the water under
the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. God called the dry ground “land,” and the
gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.
Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on
the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.”
And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed
according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to
their kinds. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there
was morning—the third day.
And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate
the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, and let them be lights in the vault
of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. God made two great lights—the
greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to
govern the
night. He
also made the stars. God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on
the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from
darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there
was morning—the fourth day.
And God said, “Let the water teem
with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of
the sky.” So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which
the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every
winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them and said, “Be
fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the
birds increase on the earth.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth
day.
And God said, “Let the land produce
living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that
move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And
it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the
livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the
ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may
rule over
the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild
animals, and
over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in
number; fill
the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds
in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on
the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They
will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in
the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has
the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.
God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there
was morning—the sixth day.
Thus the heavens and the earth were
completed in all their vast array.
By the seventh day God had finished the work he had
been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day
and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Genesis 1:1-2:3
From the Former Prophets
Then Hannah prayed and said:
“My heart rejoices in the Lord;
in the Lord my horn is lifted high.
My mouth boasts over my enemies,
for I delight in your deliverance.
“There is no one holy like the Lord;
there is no one besides you;
there is no Rock like our God.
“Do not keep talking so proudly
or let your mouth speak such
arrogance,
for the Lord is a God who knows,
and by him deeds are weighed.
“The bows of the warriors are
broken,
but those who stumbled are armed
with strength.
Those who were full hire themselves out for food,
but those who were hungry are hungry no more.
She who was barren has borne seven children,
but she who has had many sons pines
away.
“The Lord brings death and makes alive;
he brings down to the grave and
raises up.
The Lord sends poverty and
wealth;
he humbles and he exalts.
He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap;
he seats them with princes
and has them inherit a throne of
honor.
“For the foundations of the earth are the Lord’s;
on them he has set the world.
He will guard the feet of his faithful
servants,
but the wicked will be silenced in
the place of darkness.
“It is not by strength that one prevails;
those who oppose the Lord will be broken.
The Most High will thunder from heaven;
the Lord will judge the ends of the earth.
“He will give strength to his king
and exalt the horn of his anointed.”
1 Samuel 2:1-10
From the Latter Prophets
“Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness
and who seek the Lord:
Look to the rock from which you were cut
and to the quarry from which you
were hewn;
look to Abraham, your father,
and to Sarah, who gave you birth.
When I called him he was only one man,
and I blessed him and made him
many.
The Lord will surely comfort Zion
and will look with compassion on
all her ruins;
he will make her deserts like Eden,
her wastelands like the garden of the Lord.
Joy and gladness will be found in her,
thanksgiving and the sound of singing.
“Listen to me, my people;
hear me, my nation:
Instruction will go out from me;
my justice will become a light to the nations.
My righteousness draws near speedily,
my salvation is on the way,
and my arm will bring justice to the nations.
The islands will look to me
and wait in hope for my arm.
Lift up your eyes to the heavens,
look at the earth beneath;
the heavens will vanish like smoke,
the earth will wear out like a
garment
and its inhabitants die like flies.
But my salvation will last forever,
my righteousness will never fail.
“Hear me, you who know what is
right,
you people who have taken my
instruction to heart:
Do not fear the reproach of mere mortals
or be terrified by their insults.
For the moth will eat them up like a garment;
the worm will devour them like wool.
But my righteousness will last forever,
my salvation through all
generations.”
Awake, awake, arm of the Lord,
clothe yourself with strength!
Awake, as in days gone by,
as in generations of old.
Was it not you who cut Rahab to pieces,
who pierced that monster through?
Was it not you who dried up the sea,
the waters of the great deep,
who made a road in the depths of the sea
so that the redeemed might cross over?
Those the Lord has rescued will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their
heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee
away.
“I, even I, am he who comforts you.
Who are you that you fear mere mortals,
human beings who are but grass,
that you forget the Lord your Maker,
who stretches out the heavens
and who lays the foundations of the
earth,
that you live in constant terror every day
because of the wrath of the
oppressor,
who is bent on destruction?
For where is the wrath of the oppressor?
The cowering prisoners will soon be
set free;
they will not die in their dungeon,
nor will they lack bread.
For I am the Lord your God,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
the Lord Almighty is his name.
I have put my words in your mouth
and covered you with the shadow of
my hand—
I who set the heavens in place,
who laid the foundations of the
earth,
and who say to Zion, ‘You are my
people.’”
Awake, awake!
Rise up, Jerusalem,
you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord
the cup of his wrath,
you who have drained to its dregs
the goblet that makes people
stagger.
Among all the children she bore
there was none to guide her;
among all the children she reared
there was none to take her by the
hand.
These double calamities have come upon you—
who can comfort you?—
ruin and destruction, famine and sword—
who can console you?
Your children have fainted;
they lie at every street corner,
like antelope caught in a net.
They are filled with the wrath of the Lord,
with the rebuke of your God.
Therefore hear this, you afflicted one,
made drunk, but not with wine.
This is what your Sovereign Lord says,
your God, who defends his people:
“See, I have taken out of your hand
the cup that made you stagger;
from that cup, the goblet of my wrath,
you will never drink again.
I will put it into the hands of your tormentors,
who said to you,
‘Fall prostrate that we may walk on you.’
And you made your back like the ground,
like a street to be walked on.”
Isaiah
51:1-23
From
the Books of Wisdom and Poetry
Then Job replied:
“How you have helped the powerless!
How you have saved the arm that is
feeble!
What advice you have offered to one without wisdom!
And what great insight you have displayed!
Who has helped you utter these words?
And whose spirit spoke from your
mouth?
“The dead are in deep anguish,
those beneath the waters and all
that live in them.
The realm of the dead is naked before God;
Destruction lies uncovered.
He spreads out the northern skies over empty space;
he suspends the earth over nothing.
He wraps up the waters in his clouds,
yet the clouds do not burst under
their weight.
He covers the face of the full moon,
spreading his clouds over it.
He marks out the horizon on the face of the waters
for a boundary between light and
darkness.
The pillars of the heavens quake,
aghast at his rebuke.
By his power he churned up the sea;
by his wisdom he cut Rahab to pieces.
By his breath the skies became fair;
his hand pierced the gliding
serpent.
And these are but the outer fringe of his works;
how faint the whisper we hear of him!
Who then can understand the thunder
of his power?”
Job 26:1-14
From the Late Books
That day David first appointed Asaph and his associates to give
praise to the Lord in this manner:
Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name;
make known among the nations what he has done.
Sing to him, sing praise to him;
tell of all his wonderful acts.
Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek
the Lord rejoice.
Look to the Lord and his strength;
seek his face always.
Remember the wonders he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,
you his servants, the descendants of Israel,
his chosen ones, the children of
Jacob.
He is the Lord our God;
his judgments are in all the earth.
He remembers his covenant forever,
the promise he made, for a thousand
generations,
the covenant he made with Abraham,
the oath he swore to Isaac.
He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree,
to Israel as an everlasting
covenant:
“To you I will give the land of Canaan
as the portion you will inherit.”
When they were but few in number,
few indeed, and strangers in it,
they wandered from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another.
He allowed no one to oppress them;
for their sake he rebuked kings:
“Do not touch my anointed ones;
do my prophets no harm.”
Sing to the Lord, all the earth;
proclaim his salvation day after
day.
Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous deeds among all
peoples.
For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise;
he is to be feared above all gods.
For all the gods of the nations are idols,
but the Lord made the heavens.
Splendor and majesty are before him;
strength and joy are in his
dwelling place.
Ascribe to the Lord, all you families of nations,
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his
name;
bring an offering and come before
him.
Worship the Lord in the splendor of
his holiness.
Tremble before him, all the earth!
The world is firmly established; it
cannot be moved.
Let the heavens rejoice, let the
earth be glad;
let them say among the nations,
“The Lord reigns!”
Let the sea resound, and all that is in it;
let the fields be jubilant, and
everything in them!
Let the trees of the forest sing,
let them sing for joy before the Lord,
for he comes to judge the earth.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.
Cry out, “Save us, God our Savior;
gather us and deliver us from the
nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name,
and glory in your praise.”
Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.
Then all the people said “Amen” and “Praise the Lord.”
1 Chronicles 16:7-36
From the Gospels
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the
beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made
that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the
darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
There
was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that
through him all might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the
light.
The
true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though
the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his
own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him,
to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of
natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
The
Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only
Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
(John
testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke
about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was
before me.’”) Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already
given. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through
Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who
is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.
John 1:1-18
From the Epistles
In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the
prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of
God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he
had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand
of the Majesty in heaven. So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has
inherited is superior to theirs.
For to
which of the angels did God ever say,
“You are my Son;
today I have become your Father”?
Or again,
“I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son”?
And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says,
“Let all God’s angels worship him.”
In speaking of the angels he says,
“He makes his angels spirits,
and his servants flames of fire.”
But about the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God, will last for
ever and ever;
a scepter of justice will be the
scepter of your kingdom.
You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set
you above your companions
by anointing you with the oil of joy.”
He also says,
“In the beginning, Lord, you laid
the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of
your hands.
They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a
garment.
You will roll them up like a robe;
like a garment they will be
changed.
But you remain the same,
and your years will never end.”
To which of the angels did God ever say,
“Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet”?
Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will
inherit salvation?
We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have
heard, so that we do not drift away. For since the message spoken through
angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its
just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? This salvation, which was first
announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by
signs, wonders and various miracles, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit
distributed according to his will.
Hebrews 1:1-2:4
