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“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1), that is, the essence of heaven and the essence of earth. No one should think that the six-day creation is an allegory. It is also impermissible to say that what according to the description was created over the course of six days was created in one instant, and also as if in the description only names are presented: either meaning nothing, or meaning something else. On the contrary, one must know that just as heaven and earth, created in the beginning, are really heaven and earth, and nothing else is meant by the name heaven and earth, so what is said about everything else that was created and brought into order after the creation of heaven and earth does not contain empty names, but the very essence of created natures corresponds to the power of these names. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” The work of the original creation was limited to this, because nothing else was created along with heaven and earth. Even the natures created on the same day were not yet created, for if God had created them along with heaven and earth, then Moses would have spoken about it. He does not say so as not to suggest that the name of natures is older than their existence. From here it is clearly revealed that heaven and earth were created from nothing, because neither water nor air existed yet, neither fire, nor light, nor darkness had yet come into being; They were produced later than heaven and earth, therefore they are creatures, for they occurred after heaven and earth, and are non-eternal, for they did not exist before heaven and earth. Afterwards Moses speaks not of what is above the firmament, but of what is between the firmament and the earth, as if in the depths of some. He did not write to us about spirits, he does not tell us on what day they were created. He writes about the earth that “it was uneducated and empty” (Gen. 1:2), that is, it had nothing on itself and was deserted. And so he said, wanting to show that emptiness arose before nature. However, I am not saying that emptiness is something that really exists, but I only want to show that at that time there was only one earth, and besides it, nothing else existed. Having spoken about the creation of heaven and earth and pointing to the void (since time is older than the natures created in time), Moses turns to the description of the natures themselves and says: “and darkness is on the top of the deep” (Gen. 1:2). This shows that the depths of water were created at the same time. But how was she created on the day on which she was created? Although it was created on that day and at that time, Moses did not write here how it was created, therefore we must accept that the abyss appeared at the time it was written, and expect an explanation from Moses himself about how it was created. Some consider the darkness “at the top of the abyss” to be the shadow of the sky. If the firmament had been created on the first day, then their opinion could have taken place. And if the heavens above were like the firmament, then deep darkness would lie between the heavens and the heavens, because God has not yet created and installed light that would disperse the darkness there with its rays. If the heavenly region is light, as Ezekiel, Paul and Stephen testify, and the heavens disperse darkness with their light, then how did they spread darkness over the abyss? If everything created (whether it is written or not written about the creation of it) was created in six days, then the clouds appeared on the first day. Fire - together with air, although it is not written about it; So the clouds were created together with the deep, although it is not written that they were created together with the deep, just as it is not written about the creation of fire along with air. For it was necessary that everything should be created in six days. We know the origin of the clouds, and therefore we must believe that the clouds were created together with the abyss, for they are always born from the abyss. “And Elijah saw a cloud... rising from the sea” (1 Kings 18:44), and Solomon says: “in his senses the depths opened, and the clouds poured out the dew” (Proverbs 3:20). That the clouds were created at this particular time, that is, on the first night, is convinced not only by the essence of the clouds, but also by their very action, for we believe that thanks to them the first night was produced. Just as the clouds spread over Egypt for three nights and three days and created night, so the clouds spread over the whole world on the first night and on the first day of creation. If the clouds were transparent, then the first day had some illumination, because the radiance of the high heavens was enough to replace the light created after that on the first day. After the lapse of night and day, on the second evening, the firmament was created, and from that time on it produced the following nights with its shadow. Thus, on the evening before the first night, God created the heavens and the earth, with them he created the abyss and the clouds, and they, spreading over everything, brought about the dark night. And after this shadow had covered everything for twelve hours, light was created and it dispelled the darkness that had spread over the waters. Having said about the darkness that the darkness was spread out “on the top of the deep,” Moses continues: “and the spirit of God was carried on the top of the waters” (Gen. 1:2). The Spirit of God is the Holy Spirit of God the Father, emanating from Him not temporarily, and in essence and creative power equal to the Father and His Only Begotten Son. This Spirit, especially and independently distinguished from the Father, in Divine Scripture is called the Spirit of God and the Holy Spirit. It is said about him: “hovering over the waters to put generative power into the waters, into the earth and into the air, and they were fertilized, gave birth to and produced plants, animals and birds.” It was fitting for the Holy Spirit to be carried about as proof that He was equal in creative power to the Father and the Son. For the Father spoke, the Son created; It was fitting for the Spirit to bring His work. And He showed this by “wearing”, clearly showing that everything was brought into being and accomplished by the Trinity. Moreover, we must know that Scripture, when it talks about the creative power of the Divine, does not present us with another spirit, which, as something created and produced, would hover over the waters together with God - but speaks of the Holy Spirit. He warmed, fertilized and made the waters fertile, like a bird when it sits on its eggs with outstretched wings and during this outstretched warmth warms them and produces fertilization in them. This Holy Spirit then presented to us the image of Holy Baptism, when by “carrying” Him over the waters He gives birth to the children of God. 1 Having spoken about the creation of heaven, earth, darkness, the deep and the waters at the beginning of the first night, Moses turns to the story of the creation of light on the morning of the first day. So, after twelve hours of the night, light was created among the clouds and waters, and it dispelled the shadow of the clouds that hovered over the waters and caused darkness. Then the first month of Nissan began, in which days and nights have an equal number of hours. The light had to remain for twelve hours, so that the day would contain the same number of hours as the measure and length of time the darkness remained. For although both light and clouds were created in the twinkling of an eye, both the day and the night of the first day lasted twelve hours. The light that appeared on earth was like a bright cloud, or a rising sun, or a pillar that illuminated the Jewish people in the desert. In any case, the only certainty is that the light could not have dispelled the darkness that embraced everything if it had not spread its essence or rays everywhere, like the rising sun. The original light was spread everywhere, and was not confined to one known place; it scattered darkness everywhere, without movement; all his movement consisted of appearance and disappearance. With his sudden disappearance, the dominion of the night began, and with his appearance, its dominion ended. So that the light does not turn into nothing, as if it came from nothing, God specifically said about it: “as good” (Gen. 1:4). Thus, he testified that all creatures that came before the light, about which it was not said that they were good, were “very good.” For although God did not speak about them at the time of their creation from nothing, nevertheless later, when he formed all creatures, he confirmed this about them. All created things that were created in six days include the words spoken at the end of the sixth day: “And God saw everything that was created, and every thing was good” (Gen. 1:31). That original light, called good after creation, by its ascent produced (formed) three days. He is said to have contributed to the conception and generation of all that the earth was to produce on the third day; the sun, established in the firmament, had to bring to maturity what had already happened with the assistance of the original light. They say that the sun, which is in the firmament, was made from that light scattered everywhere and from the fire created on the first day, and that the moon and stars are made from the same original light. Therefore, just as the sun, which rules the days, should illuminate the earth and at the same time bring its products to maturity, so the moon, which rules the nights, should not only temper the heat of the night with its light, but also help the earth produce the fruits and products inherent in its original nature. And Moses in his blessings says: “From the fruit that the moon produces” (Deut. 33:14). About the light they note that, among other things, it was created on the first day and for the products of the earth. But the earth, through the medium of light, produced everything that happened on the third day, although the light was in its original state, however, all the fruits of the earth, through the medium of the moon, as well as through the medium of light, received a beginning; with the help of the sun, they came to maturity. So, the earth produced everything from itself with the assistance of light and waters. Although God could have produced everything from the earth without them, such was His will; He wanted to show that everything created on earth was created for the benefit of man and to serve him. The waters that covered the earth on the first day were unsalted. Although there was an abyss of water above the earth, the seas had not yet appeared. The waters became salty in the seas; Before they were gathered into the sea, they were not salty. When the waters spread over the face of the earth to irrigate it, then they were sweet. Having gathered into the seas on the third day, they became salty, so that from copulating in one place they would not rot, and receiving the rivers flowing into them, they would not overflow. The waters of the rivers flowing into the sea were sufficient nutrition for him: so that the sea does not dry up from the heat of the sun, rivers flow into it, and so that the sea does not expand, overflow and flood the earth, taking in the waters of the rivers, their waters are absorbed by the salinity of the sea. If we assume that with the creation of the waters the seas were also created, and were covered (filled) with waters, and that the waters of the seas were bitter, then even then we must say that the waters above the seas were not bitter. For although the seas that were created at that time were covered with water during the flood, they could not impart their bitterness to the sweet waters of the flood that were over the seas. And if the seas could make the flood waters bitter, how would olives and all other earthly plants survive in them? Or how would Noah and those with him drink them during the flood? Noah was commanded to bring food into the ark for himself and for everyone with him, because there would be nowhere to get food; water was not commanded to be brought in, so those in the ark could drink the water that surrounded the ark from everywhere. Thus, just as the flood waters were not salty, although they covered the seas, so the waters collected on the third day were not bitter, although the waters of the seas that were under them would have been bitter. But since the gathering of the waters did not occur before God said: “let the waters be gathered together... and let the dry land appear” (Gen. 1:9), then, of course, there were no seas before God “gathered the waters called the sea” (Gen. 1:10). Therefore, the seas, having received a name and occupied their container, changed and took on a salinity that they did not have before they entered their container. And the very container of the seas became deepened at the very time when it is said: “let the waters be gathered... into one gathering” - that is, either the bottom of the seas became lower than the rest of the earth and, together with the waters that were above it, took in the waters that were above the whole earth, or the waters swallowed each other so that there was enough space for them, or the bottom of the sea dissipated, and a great deepening occurred, so that the waters rushed down the slope in the blink of an eye bottom. Although the waters gathered together by God’s command, even at the very creation of the earth a door was opened for them so that they could gather into one container. Just as when the waters of the first and second were collected there was no such enclosed place from which they could not come out, so subsequently they come out from different streams and sources, and are collected into their seas along those paths and paths that were laid out for them from the first day. And the waters of the mountains, separated on the second day from the other waters by the expanse stretched between them, were as sweet as the waters of the valley. They are not the same as the waters that were salted in the seas on the third day, but they are the same as those separated from them on the second day. They are not salted because they are not subject to rotting. They are not on the earth, from which they could rot, for on earth the air does not serve to ensure that the waters give birth to and produce reptiles. Those waters do not require rivers to flow into them; they cannot dry up, because there is no sun there that would dry them up with its heat; these waters remain there as a dew of blessings and are reserved for the pouring out of wrath. It is also impossible to assume that the waters above the firmament are in motion, for what is brought into order does not swirl without order, and what is, is not set in motion by what is not. What is created in something else, then during the creation itself receives everything for itself: movement, ascent, and descent in that in which it was created. But the mountainous waters are not surrounded by anything, therefore they cannot flow down or swirl, because for them there is nothing for them to flow down or swirl through. Thus, according to the testimony of Scripture, heaven, earth, fire, air and water were created from nothing, but the light created on the first day, and everything else that was created after it, was created from what was before. For when Moses speaks of being created out of nothing, he uses the word “create” - “God created heaven and earth.” And although it is not written about fire, water and air that they were created, it is also not said that they were produced from what was before. And therefore they were created from nothing, just as heaven and earth were created from nothing. When God begins to create from what has already been, then Scripture uses an expression similar to this: “God said: Let there be light” (Gen. 1:3) and everything else. If it is said: “God make great whales” (Gen. 1:21), then before that the following is said: “Let the waters of the creeping things take away the souls of the living” (Gen. 1:20). Therefore, only the five kinds of creatures named above were created from nothing, but everything else is from what was already created from nothing. And fire was created on the first day, although it is not written about it, because it was contained in something else. As something that exists neither in itself nor for itself, it is created together with that in which it is contained. Since it does not exist for itself, it could not exist before that which constitutes the final cause of its existence. Fire is in the earth, as evidenced by nature itself, but Scripture does not declare that fire was created along with the earth, saying simply: “In the beginning God created heaven and earth.” Therefore, although now the fire will not be in the earth, but in the waters, wind and clouds, the earth and waters are commanded at all times to generate it from their bowels. And darkness is not something eternal; it is not even a creature, because darkness, as Scripture shows, is a shadow. It was not created before the sky and not after the clouds, but along with the clouds and generated by them. Its existence depends on something else, because it does not have its own essence, and when that on which it depends ceases to be, then, along with this and like this, darkness ceases to be. But what ceases together with something else that ceases to be is close to non-existence, for something else serves as the fault (reason) for its existence. Therefore, could the darkness, which was with the clouds and the firmament and which disappeared with the initial light and the sun, be independent when one gave birth to it by its prostration, and the other dispelled it by its appearance? And if one produces darkness and gives it existence, and the other turns it into nothingness, then is it possible to consider it eternal? For, behold, the clouds and the firmament, which were created in the beginning, gave birth to darkness, and the light, which was created on the first day, dispelled it. If one creature produced it, and another scattered it, and one constantly, together with itself and at the same hour brings it into visibility, and the other turns it into nothing at the very time when it turns into nothing, then it is necessary to conclude that one gives rise to its existence, and the other ceases its existence. Therefore, if creatures (created things) give darkness existence and cease it, then it follows that darkness is the product of creatures (for it is the shadow of the firmament), and that darkness ceases to exist with another creature (for it disappears with the sun). And this darkness, which is completely enslaved to creatures, is considered by some teachers to be hostile to creatures! She, who has no essence of her own, they recognize as eternal and independent! Moses, having spoken about what was created on the first day, proceeds to describe the creation on the next day and says: “And God said: Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let there be separation... between the waters that are under the firmament, and between the waters that are above the firmament” (Gen. 1: 6-7). The firmament, established between waters and waters, had the same extent as the waters spread over the earth's surface. Since there are waters above the firmament, as there are above the earth, and under the firmament there is earth, water and fire, then the firmament is contained in this, like a baby in its mother’s bowels. Others, believing that the firmament is in the middle of everything created, consider it the depths of the universe. But if the firmament had been created as the middle of the universe, then the light, darkness and air that were above it when God created it would have remained above the firmament. If the firmament was created at night, then together with the waters remaining there, darkness and air would remain above the firmament. And if it was created during the day, then light and air would remain there along with the waters. If they remained there, then those who are here are already different. So the question is: when were they created? But if they did not remain there, then how did the natures that were at the creation of the firmament above it change their place and end up under the firmament? The firmament was created on the evening of the second night, just as the sky was created on the evening of the first night. Along with the origin (emergence) of the firmament, the canopy of clouds disappeared, which served instead of the firmament throughout the night and day. Since the firmament was created between light and darkness, darkness took its place above the firmament, just as the shadow of the clouds was removed with the removal of the clouds. But the light did not remain there, because the measure of its hours was fulfilled, and it plunged into the waters that were under the firmament. So, along with the firmament, nothing moved upward, because nothing remained above it; it was appointed to separate waters from water, but it was not appointed to separate light from darkness. So, there was no light on the first night of the universe, but on the second and third nights, as we said, the light sank into the waters that were under the firmament and emerged from them (passed through them). On the fourth night, when the waters were collected in one place, and, as they say, light was brought into being (created), then from it and from fire the sun, moon and stars arose. And all these heavenly bodies were assigned their places: the moon was placed in the west of the firmament, the sun in the east, the stars at the same hour were scattered and located throughout the firmament. About the light that was on the first day, God said: “as good”; about the firmament created on the second day, he did not say this, for it was not yet completely perfect, did not receive complete structure and decoration. The Creator hesitated to utter a word of approval until the luminaries appeared, so that when the firmament was decorated with the sun, moon and stars, and these luminaries, shining on the firmament, dispelled the deep darkness on it, then about it He could say the same thing that He said about other creatures, namely, that they are “very good.” Having spoken about the firmament produced on the second day, Moses turns to the story of the gathering of the waters, as well as the grains and trees that the earth produced on the third day, and says this: “And God said: Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together into one, and let the dry land appear” (Gen. 1:9). What was said: “let the waters be gathered... into one gathering” makes it clear that the earth supported the waters, and not under the earth there were abysses, holding on to nothing. So, that same night, as God quickly spoke, the waters gathered together, and the surface of the earth was dried up in the blink of an eye. When both were accomplished, God in the morning commanded the earth to produce all kinds of grain and grass, as well as various fruit-bearing trees. At the time of their creation, the grains became the creatures (appeared) of one moment, but in appearance they seemed to be the creatures of months. Likewise, trees, at the time of their creation, appeared to be the product of one day, but in their perfection and in the fruits that loaded the branches, they seemed to be the product of years. The grains required for food were prepared for the animals, which were created two days later; The Lord also created the grains (ears of corn) needed for food by Adam and Eve, whom God expelled from paradise four days later. Having spoken about the gathering of waters and about earthly growths on the third day, Moses turns to the story of the lights created in the firmament, and says: “And God said: Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven... to separate between the day and the night” (Gen. 1:14), that is, let one of them rule over the day, and the other over the night. God said: “And let them be in the signs (hours), and in the seasons (indicating summer and winter), and in the days (the rising and setting of the sun) and in the years” (Gen. 1:14), because years are made up of sunny days and lunar months. It is said: “God made two great lights: the great light at the beginning of the day, and the lesser light at the beginning of the night, and the stars” (Gen. 1:16). In the days preceding the fourth, the creation of creatures refers to the evening, but the bringing into creation of the creatures of the fourth day took place in the morning. After the third day ended, and it was said: “And there was evening, and there was morning, the third day” (Gen. 1:13), - God did not create the two luminaries in the evening, so that the order of night and day would not be disrupted, and morning would not become earlier than evening. Since the subsequent days followed the same order as the first day, the night of the fourth day, like the previous nights, preceded the day. If the evening of this day was earlier than the morning, then it follows that the luminaries were not created in the evening, but in the morning. To say that one of the lights was created in the evening, and the other in the morning, does not allow the following: “let there be lights” (Gen. 1:14), and: “God create two great lights” (Gen. 1:16). If the luminaries were great at the time of their creation, and they were created in the morning, then it follows that the sun then stood in the east, and the moon opposite it in the west, the sun was seen low and partly submerged, because it was created at the place where it rose above the earth, and the moon stood higher, because it was created where it happens on the fifteenth day. Therefore, at the time when the sun became visible on the earth, both luminaries saw each other, and then the moon seemed to sink. And the very place where the moon was at its creation, its size and brightness show that it was created in the form in which it appears on the fifteenth day. Just as trees, grass, animals, birds and people appeared together, both old and young: old in the appearance of their members and compositions, and young in the time of their creation, so the moon was both old and young: young because it was barely created, old because it was full, as on the fifteenth day. If God had created the moon as we see it on the first or second day, then due to its proximity to the sun it could not shine or even be visible. If the moon appeared, as it does on the fourth day, then, even if it appeared visible, it would not shine, and what was said would be incorrect: “God create two great lights,” and also: “let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to illuminate the earth” (Gen. 1:14). Just as the moon was created, as we see it on the fifteenth day, so the sun, although it was the first day, at its creation appeared to have four days, because all days were and are counted by the sun. The eleven days by which the moon is “older” than the sun, and which are added to the moon in the first year, are those days added to the moon annually by those who use lunar reckoning. The year of Adam was not an incomplete year, because the missing number of days of the moon was replenished at its very creation. According to this year, the descendants of Adam learned to add eleven days to each year. Hence it is clear that it was not the Chaldeans who instituted the calculation of times and years in this way, but this was instituted even before Adam. Having spoken about the luminaries created in the firmament, Moses turns to the story of creeping things, birds and whales, which were created from the waters on the fifth day, and says: “And God said: let the waters take away the spirits of the living creatures, and the birds that fly on the earth... And God create the great whales, and every living creature that moves along the waters, according to their kind. them" (Gen. 1:20–21). When, after the gathering of waters on the second day, rivers formed, springs, lakes and swamps appeared, then the waters, scattered throughout the entire universe, according to the word of God, gave birth to reptiles and fish, whales were created in the abysses, and at the same time birds soared into the air among the waves. The creation of leviathan (whale) and hippopotamus is also mentioned by the prophets. About the first they say that he lives in the sea (Ps. 65:8), while Job says about the hippopotamus that he lives on dry land (Job 40:10). And David says of him that he grazes on the mountains (Ps. 49:11). It is likely that after creation he also indicated the places of residence, so that the leviathan lived in the sea, and the hippopotamus lived on land. Having spoken about the creation of creeping things, birds and whales on the fifth day, Moses goes on to describe the creation of those creeping things, beasts and livestock that were created on the sixth day, and says: “And God said: Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind, four-legged, and creeping things, and beasts” (Gen. 1:24). The earth destroyed the reptiles everywhere, and beasts and cattle were created near Paradise so that they could live next to Adam. So the earth, by God’s command, immediately drove out creeping things, wild beasts, wild beasts and livestock, as many of them were needed to serve the one who on that same day transgressed the commandment of his Lord! Having spoken about the creation of creeping things, beasts and cattle on the sixth day, Moses turns to the narration of the creation of man, who was created on the same day, and says: “And God spoke.” To whom does God speak, both here and on other occasions during creation? It is obvious that he speaks to His Son. The Evangelist said about the Son: “All things were, and without Him they were nothing” (John 1:3). Paul also points to Him, saying: “By this, all things were created, both in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible” (Col. 1:16). “And God said: Let us make man in our image” (Gen. 1:26), that is, so that he would have power if he wants to obey Us. Why are we the image of God? Moses explains this with the following words: “may he have power over the fish of the sea, and the birds of the air, and the livestock, and all the earth” (Gen. 1:26). Therefore, the dominion that man has assumed over the earth and over everything on it is the image of God, possessing those above and below. With the words: “Make them husband and wife” (Gen. 1:27), Moses makes it known that Eve was already in Adam, in the bone that was taken from Adam. Although Eve was in him not in mind, but in body, yet not only in body, but also in soul and spirit, for God did not add anything to the bone taken from Adam, except beauty and external image. Since the bone itself contained everything that was necessary for the formation of Eve from it, it is rightly said: “Make them husband and wife.” “And God bless them, saying: Grow and multiply, and fill the earth, and rule over it, and subdue the fish of the sea, and the birds of the air, and every livestock... and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth” (Gen. 1:28). God blessed the first parents on earth, because even before they sinned, He prepared the earth for them to live in, for before they sinned, God knew that they would sin. “Grow and multiply and fill,” it does not say paradise, but “the earth... and subdue the fish of the sea, and the birds of the air, and all livestock.” But how could the ancestors possess the fish of the sea when they were not near the sea? How could they have possessed birds that flew to all ends of the universe if the offspring of the ancestors had not subsequently populated the ends of the universe? And how could they possess all the beasts of the earth if their race were not subsequently to live throughout the whole earth? Although Adam was created and blessed to possess the earth and everything on it, God placed him in paradise. Thus, God, pronouncing a blessing on the progenitor, showed His foreknowledge, and by settling him in paradise, He showed His goodness. So that they do not say: “Paradise was not created for man,” God settled him in paradise; and so that they would not say: “God did not know that man would sin,” He blessed man on earth. And moreover, God blessed man before he transgressed the commandment, so that the crime of the one receiving the blessing would not withhold the blessing of the Blesser, so that the world would not be returned to insignificance by the recklessness of the one for whose sake everything was created. God did not bless man in paradise, for both paradise and everything in it are blessed. He blessed them before moving into heaven on earth, so that with the blessing that was preceded by goodness, they could weaken the power of the curse that soon struck the earth with the truth (of God). The blessing was only in the promise, for it was fulfilled after the expulsion of man from paradise. Grace appeared in reality itself, because on the same day it settled man in paradise, adorned him with glory and transferred all the trees of paradise to his power. This is how this passage reads in the Syriac edition of Asseman, vol. 1, p. 117–118. You might be interested in: