Back to: Advanced Course
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. (Genesis 1:3-5)
Begins somewhere between approximately 3.9 to 3 Ga
From the scientific perspective, during this period in the earth’s development the quantity of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, and perhaps that of methane also, correlates with the degree of cloud cover. More carbon dioxide and more methane mean more clouds. So, before the first day of creation there was great darkness where it was difficult for light to get through the clouds.
Since we taking the point of view for Genesis 1 as the Spirit of God hovering over the waters of the earth, then this day 1 description of light appearing would suggest that the cloud cover over the earth became translucent – not totally clear, but thin enough in places so that light could come through the clouds of carbon dioxide and methane. This is consistent with scientific studies that have shown the early earth atmosphere to be composed of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and methane.