Genesis 1:18

Modern

…to preside over the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.

Traditional

And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.

Literal

…and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide between the light and between the darkness. And God saw that it was good.

Latin

…et præessent diei ac nocti, et dividerent lucem ac tenebras. Et vidit Deus quod esset bonum.

Hebrew

English

…to preside over the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.

On days four through six, God filled the domains that had been formed during days one through three (1:3–13).

These verses introduce the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible). They teach Israel that one true God created, ordered, and populated the world, not the gods of nearby nations.
God blessed three specific things:
- animal life (1:22–25),
- human life (1:27), and
- the Sabbath day (2:3).
These three blessings emphasize the Creator's plan. God made humans in his image to rule in his place over earth's creatures and to join in God's Sabbath rest.

Theme notes and profiles

Jeremiah 31:35
Thus says the LORD, who gives the sun for light by day, who sets in order the moon and stars for light by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—the LORD of Hosts is His name:
Psalm 19:6
…it rises at one end of the heavens and runs its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth.