And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
What does Genesis 1:31 mean?
When we come to think about our works, we find, to our shame, that much has been very bad; but when God saw his work, all was very good. Good, for it was all just as the Creator would have it to be.
Key themes
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Keep this verse inside Genesis 1:29-31 and alongside a few nearby related passages.
Commentary on Genesis 1:31
And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. Here we have the general review and approval of everything God had made, at the close of the six days' work of creation. Man, as well as other things, was very good when he came from his Maker's hand; but good as yet untried, and therefore good in capacity rather than in victory over temptation. It remains yet to be seen whether he will be good in act and habit. This completes, then, the restoration of that order and fullness the absence of which is described in the second verse. The account of the six days' work, therefore, is the counterpart of that verse.
Key words
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And God saw everything that he had made,.
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And God saw everything that he had made,.
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And God saw everything that he had made,.
Context in Genesis 1
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Genesis 1 belongs to the opening movement of the book, especially the section often described as primeval history from creation to Babel. Genesis opens the whole Bible with creation, fall, flood, Babel, and the long patriarchal story that carries the reader from Eden to Egypt. Read this chapter with the wider themes of creation, fall, and covenant in view so the individual verses keep their proper weight.
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A collection of passages on hope under pressure, future inheritance, resurrection expectation, and confidence in God’s final faithfulness.