Question: What does the phrase “And there was evening, and there was morning” mean in the book of Genesis?
Starting at the beginning of the Bible, and reading Gen. 1:1 (KJV Companion Bible) we see:
"In the beginning God (Heb. Elohim) created The Heaven/s (the Hebrew word is always plural) and the Earth".
Gen. 1:2 states:
"And the Earth was (became) without form, (waste) and void; and darkness was (became) on the face of the deep".
So the corrected text (to the Hebrew) reads:
"And the Earth became without form, and waste; and darkness came on the face of the deep".
Clearly something evidently happened after Gen. 1:1, and was between that and Gen. 1:2!
The fact seems to be that God Himself ended whatever was in that time period between the two verses.
This was the time when Almighty God put a stop to the progress of the Created Earth, which included the Sun, because of what was happening to His Creation, under the influence of Satan (Adversary); who had been cast to Earth because of his rebellion in Heaven, together with his followers, out of the Angelic hordes, and it seems influenced the Creation that was then to take the wrong pathways; which would have been Pro. Satan, and anti-God! Jesus refers to that event in Luke 10:18, and refers to Satan in his earthly title; 2Cor.4:4
Lucifer/ Satan, had been the cause of the “overthrow”; which is almost certainly shown in Gen.1:1–2; and which has led to much confusion in many Christians as to the misunderstanding of the creation of “Earth prior to the Sun” argument.
This thesis proposes that what seemed like failure in earlier Creation, was in fact one of the steps taken by God towards the ultimate purpose of dealing with the "Mystery of Iniquity" (2Thess. 2:7). (See: The Genesis 1:1 Enigma) e.g: The abject failure of Satan in the earlier Creation, to "be as God" (Ezek.28: 11–17)! The failure of Adam/Eve to resist Satan in Eden. The failure of all but Noah's family against the Nephilim, (see: Nephilim;)
God does not mention previous Creation at that stage; but it is indicatively implicit in the accounts given in the Bible regarding Satan, and also in the KJV of Genesis 1:28 (“replenish the Earth”). The word in KJV was translated “fill”; as according to some comment the meaning changed to “fill” between AD1611 and the 1800s. However; many hold to the word “replenish” (i.e. renew or refill) as the actual meaning, replenish indicating “replacement population”; which again underlines previous population!
Regarding the “previous populations”; there is much evidence in skeletal form of ancient man like creatures, some estimated to be millions of years old. Also many of large animals, of which many are on show in Museums around the world, see: Old relics ignored by Science: (By Dr. J.R. Jochmans, Litt.D.)
The question you ask above, after the “overthrow” described above; God reinstated the orientation of the Sun relative to His refreshed Earth, which allowed the flora and fauna to flourish, as described in vs. 11–13, with the seasons etc. necessary for human and animal life!
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