Before the beginning of creation, there was God. It's hard for our finite human minds to comprehend, but God has always existed and always will. Some time (we don't know how long) before God created the universe, He created the angels. Job 38:7 says they were there at creation. "When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?"
God (Elohim in Hebrew) consists of three distinct eternal Persons, or centers of consciousness. In the first three verses in the Bible, we see the plurality of God with the three Persons or manifestations of God: God the Father, God the Son (also known as the Word), and God the Holy Spirit. “In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light” (Genesis 1:1-3). God, the Father, is mentioned in the first verse. God, the Spirit, is mentioned in the second verse, and God, the Son, is mentioned in the third verse.
Although not fully revealed in Genesis 1:3, when God said, "Let there be light," it is as "the Word," the second Person of the Trinity. The Word uttered these four words, and there was light. He then divided the light from the darkness, and the first day of creation began. In John 1, we see the progressive revelation of God's word regarding the Creator. We know from John 1:1-5 and verses 14-17 that the "Word" (Λόγοςis or Logos in Greek) is the second Person of the Trinity, the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ" (John 1:1-5,14,17-KJV).
John 1:1-3 is not the only scripture that speaks of the Word's work at creation. The sub-heading of Proverbs 8 is called "The Blessing of Wisdom." Proverbs 8:22-30 tells of the Lord Jesus' existence before (and during) the Creation, which is confirmed in Micah 5:2. "The LORD possessed me in the beginning of his way, before his works of old. I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was" (Psalm 8:22-23 - KJV). The LORD (Yahweh) is the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ, the Word, and the "me" (and "I") is "wisdom." Proverbs 8:22-26 speaks of the time before creation, and verses 27-31 speak of the LORD's work at creation. These verses speak of wisdom as if it were a companion or witness of the LORD; however, it is Jesus Himself who is the embodiment of wisdom. "For he who finds me finds life and obtains favor from Yahweh" (Proverbs 8:35). It is not merely wisdom that finds eternal life, but wisdom in knowing Jesus Christ as Lord and savior that brings eternal life.
Some scholars believe the phrase, "in the beginning," of John 1:1 matches "the beginning" of Proverbs 8:22-23 and refers to pre-creation, and John 1:2-3 matches Proverbs 8:27-31 (and Genesis 1:1-3) and refers to creation. John 17:5 is another scripture that refers to the pre-incarnate Jesus, the Word, before creation. "And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was."
Regarding when the angels were created, I found this one on Jack Kelley's website. When Were The Angels Created? Follow Up – Grace thru faith.
JESUS came here in the fourth Day, or around 4000 years after Adam. GOD was still working, the Greater Light-JESUS- said that the Father was still working, of course, it was still the 4th Day, and now, after another 2000 years, we arrived to the sixth and final Day, so Genesis 1:26 combined with Luke 20:35-36 will be LITERALLY fulfilled.
Why does Genesis 1:2 describe a chaotic scenario though the Spirit of GOD be within it? What happened? Well, it was around 6000 years ago, what can we say? There was a rebellion in the garden of Eden, the Paradise desappeared, so GOD PLANNED to restore all things in six Days of 1000 years(2Peter 3:8):that was destroyed by the rebellion.->So Acts 3:19-26 written around two thousand years ago recommend, saying:->19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. 20 And He -GOD- shall send JESUS Christ, which before was preached unto you: 21 Whom the heaven must receive until the times of RESTITUTION of all things, which GOD hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began. -> Be prepared or else get ready.
As we know, GOD had already created and established a celestial and peculiar Paradise upon the earth, actually an heaven, an heavenly place, an environment so wonderful specifically for those created in His own image(Paul Apostle knew (in part) how the 3rd heaven is, and said it is the Paradise), so in the image of GOD created He man-Genesis 1:27, male and female created He them, the Lord GOD formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul, you see? The Lord GOD planted a garden eastward in Eden so wonderful that only GOD knew how to described it and revealed it, which He called Garden of Eden, made specifically for those created in His own image, and there GOD put the man whom He had formed, male and female created He them, you see? There was a population in the garden of Eden(Jude 1:6, take a look), beside to have established by GOD a RULER in the Day that the Lord God(JESUS) made the earth, and the heavens, and their generations.->
There having been a rebellion or general disobedience to the Word of GOD in the paradise, beginning by the RULER of the garden of Eden, then the earth become FORMLESS AND VOID-> (total spiritual chaos in the blackness of the darkness, an abyss, and the wonderful Paradise desappeared in the darkness); then there was only darkness upon the face of the waters, face of the deep --> (this has nothing to do with H2O), but the Spirit of GOD->(the Word was GOD) was moving upon the face of the waters--> (that is, the Spirit of GOD still remained among the fallen sons of GOD, however, even so the lamps of all them were all extinguished, there was only the blackness of the darkness within which they all were living.)
So, for to have light again in the earth, GOD planned to restore or restitue all things, but how? The spiritual chaos was exceeding, very very far of the prior state in which the earth and man had been created. Actually the Paradise desappeared,all things were in MORTAL state,mortal nature, oh very very terrible. The Lord GOD walking in the garden in the turn of more a Day(in the end of more a period of a thousand years): Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord GOD. In what sense were they hid from GOD? Well, GOD had given dresses to them to covered their nakedness(spiritual clothes), but now they were dressed by fig leaves aprons because were deceived by the Devil-John 8:44 combined with Matthew 21:18-19).
So the problem was that they were not dressed in the clothes that GOD had given to them(spiritual dress), but in the clothes that the Devil had given to them, clothes made by leaves of fig tree(John 8:44 combined with Matthew 21:18-19), so before GOD they were naked and in mortal state.
In the first Day or first millennium GOD said: Let there be light, and there was light, and GOD divided the light from the darkness. The fact is or proof is that even after 1550 years after Adam, after several sinful generations--> (but GOD was not left without seed and separated a lineage for He Himself-> Genesis 5:1-32), the scenario or the environment in the earth was full of violence, then around 1556 years after Adam(after a Day and a half of works), GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually-Genesis 6:1-8.
To restore or to return all things as how they were in GOD's Paradise, it was necessary to declare or make WAR against the Devil for an extended period, a long period, today we know that it is exactly 6000 years (biblical Chronology and human calendar), for our GOD six complete Days.
So after GOD contacted with man in the Garden of Eden in the turn of more a Day, or at the turn of another 1000 years period(this way of GOD counting time is from everlasting to everlasting, get it?), then GOD began WAR against the Devil and GOD cried out loud and strongly, saying: Let there be light!, and there was light. Well, GOD is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. And GOD divided the light from the darkness, and the evening and the morning were the first Day, the first thousand years period.
But what was the effect of light on GOD's first day works? It is written in Genesis 5:1-32. With the light, GOD created a generation of men for Him, beginning when MAN, now called Adam by GOD, was 130 years old and Seth was born, and so on. And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then BEGAN MEN to call upon the name of the Lord, in LITERAL fulfillment of Genesis 1:3. By the way, Noah was born 1056 years after Adam, it already was the beginning of the first century of the second Day, second period of a thousand years.
In the other hand, at the same period of time, the first Day, GOD was fighting against the Devil, GOD was (and still is) in WAR against the Devil. GOD had made be born Abel for Him, but the Devil killed Abel-Genesis 4:8 combined with Matthew 23:33-35. And the earth continued without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the waters, but the Spirit of GOD moved upon the face of the waters (still moved among the rebelled sons of GOD).
And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; GOD repenteth that had made man. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. We are writing our messages here because Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord, as GOD testified of Noah by His Word. Praise GOD. But in continuation of GOD's Plan of salvation of man He created, other Saviors was provided by GOD throughout time, the last was JESUS. Praise GOD.
Great explanation! He is the Light of the world that is needed so much these days. Happy & blessed Easter ✝❤
Hi Randy, concerning the angels, scripture does not support their being created before the universe. Only God inhabits eternity. Consider the name 'Lucifer' which means, 'light bearer'. Does it make sense to have a light bearer before light (day 1)? Or 'morning stars' before there was morning (day 1) or stars (day 4)? More likely that the creation of angels is accounted for in day 1 when God created light. This would be consistent with Genesis 2:1-2 'Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.'
and Ezekiel 28:15 'Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.' The first 'day' was created in Genesis 1:5 'And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first (one) day.'
Hi, Randy! Those verses in John 1 are my very favorite in the Holy Bible. They give me goosebumps!
I started studying John again a few weeks ago, and I’m only on John 5! Taking my time with these powerful , otherworldly concepts. I felt strongly drawn to John this spring. I think the Father was telling me to mind the lateness of the hour, and use the remaining time to be intimate with Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior.
I’m so thrilled that you had these verses on your heart, too! God bless you. I’ll see you soon - Maranatha!