Genesis 1:14-31 (selected)
And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens…to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.
20 And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” 21 So God created… And God saw that it was good… 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.
24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds…And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image…
27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
28 And God blessed them…31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
Throughout the account of creation ring two refrains, “there was evening and there was morning,” and “God saw that It was good.” There are any number of arguments for or against a literal interpretation and understanding of the days of creation. Textually, however, the question is well settled, “evening and morning the [first, second, etc.] day,” offers us a framework of understanding clearly portraying these as what we understand to be 24 hour days.
The other and perhaps even more important phrase, “it was good,” with the encore, “it was very good,” alert us to the nature of primal creation as well as a view into the nature of good and evil. Creation must have had it’s cataclysmic moments – stars bursting into existence, mountains thrusting up into the sky, waters expanding and receding, valleys appearing: all these things must surely have been dramatic and awesome moments! But at the end of each day the work of creation is pronounced good.
Goodness is not so much a matter of quiet and peace, tranquillity and calm as it is the state of creation under the perfect will of God. Good is God’s rule and design being played out without protest or question. God determined the limits of the water, commanded the sun to run its course, as the morning stars “sang together” (Job 38). These were good moments.
We get glimpses of the goodness of creation now and then, but the ultimate experience of good is yet to come when Christ returns and the new heaven and new earth appear. Next time you see a beautiful sunset, or gaze into the starry skies, experience the beauty of a flower garden or see a newborn baby, let that be a reminder of the goodness of God. Surely we have enough reminders of sin and its consequences. Thankfully we have testimony to God’s goodness and creative glory. And as we await the full restoration of all things, we can also thank God that we have a Savior who showed us goodness in his life of perfect obedience to the will of God, and who is our righteousness, hope and salvation.
David Bahn - Reflections 
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