The first recorded spoken words of Scripture are found in the third verse of the Torah:
And Elohim said, ‘Let light come to be,’ and light came to be.” – Bereshith (Genesis) 1:3
These words commenced the creation of this awe-inspiring universe in which we have the privilege to live.
Worldly learned men who reject Scripture as the authority on the subject love to theorize and speculate about the origin of it all. They came up with a “Big Bang” – a theory where nothing exploded and somehow became everything that exists. Now that takes some serious faith!
However, Scripture simply explains that there was a bursting forth of light, pure energy, emanating from the inside of the Eternal, set-apart Spirit-Being in verbal form. YaHuWaH spoke light from out of Himself. Isn’t that so much more believable than the theories of men?
These first two Hebrew words, yehi or (יְהִי אוֹר – “Let there be light”), are not only the beginning of Day One of creation, but they also set the tone for what Scripture is all about: how mankind should live the life that was breathed into him. This breath of life into man was the crowning touch of six days of magnificent creative work.
How Words Begin
Words cannot be spoken without breath flowing from within the speaker. The light that sustains the life of man was originally breathed out of the Eternal One in the form of those initial spoken words. In the very same way, He later breathed His life into Adam:
And YaHuWaH Elohim formed the man out of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils breath of life. And the man became a living being.”
– Bereshith (Genesis) 2:7
Thus, Scripture reveals that light and life are synonymous, both proceed from the very breath (Ruach) of YaHuWaH.
Before He uttered yehi or, we read in:
And the earth came to be formless and empty, and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of Elohim was moving on the face of the waters.”
– Bereshith (Genesis) 1:2
The Ruach, the breath, the Spirit, was hovering over water. That is profound because we know that biological life depends on two things: light and water. The first words were spoken over the dark depths of lifeless water.
Only then, after speaking light, did the Life-Giver begin His creative work.
Day 1 & 2 – He prepared the perfect environment to sustain life.
Day 3 – He created plant life, each with seed to reproduce after its own kind.
Day 4 – He made the sun, moon, and stars within the firmament for appointed times, days, and years.
Day 5 – He filled the sea and sky with living creatures.
Day 6 – He brought forth animals and creeping creatures from the earth. And finally, He created man in His own image, designed for an intimate relationship.
The Power of Words and the Gift of Relationship
The highest form of created life, man, was the only creature with whom YaHuWaH communicated through spoken words. Relationship is built and sustained through communication. What a tremendous gift! Not only can we speak to our Creator at any time (and yes, choice is also a gift), but we can also hear Him as we meditate on, study, and contemplate His most intimate thoughts.
These thoughts are recorded in the form of written words, both tangible (that we can read, speak, hear) and spiritual (that nourish our spirit, soul, and body).
Wow! Words escape me as I try to grasp the unthinkable, that the Infinite, Eternal One bridged the vast gulf between Himself and finite humanity with words. And even more mind-blowing is this: He somehow compressed His eternal thoughts into a single, living Word.
That Word became flesh and walked among us as the Light of the world:
The words that I speak to you are Spirit and are life.” – Yoḥanan (John) 6:63
In this series of short essays, we will meditate further on the first recorded words of our Creator, and explore how the Torah and the rest of Scripture expand upon them.
We do this, not as an intellectual exercise, but with a sincere desire to seek what YaHuWaH requires of us, those He formed with the capacity to think, choose, and respond. We will wrestle with foundational questions such as:
Why did He create us in the first place?
What exactly is His purpose for us?
If we fail to fulfill that purpose, what are the consequences?
Let there be light, not only in the heavens, but in us.