TEXT: Genesis 1:6-8

SUBJECT: Henry on Genesis 1 #5

Tonight, with the Lord’s blessing, we’ll get back to the Puritan study we began a few weeks ago. It’s called Matthew Henry on Genesis 1. The man needs no introduction. His Commentary on the Whole Bible has stayed in print for 300 years and remains the best-selling book of its kind in English. Charles Spurgeon who knew a thing or two about books, called it,

Underscore the word, "general", for there’s something in the Commentary for everyone. The new believer can read it with great profit—and so can the mature Bible scholar. If you haven’t read it at all, I encourage you to give it a try. Read along in Genesis 1 (if you want to) or read something else—the books are great!

Thus far, we’ve studied just One Day in the Creation Week. From that First Day, we’ve leaned much. Here are some of the highlights:

• Genesis 1 is not about the Creation, so much, as it is about the Creator.

• The Creator is not the god of the philosophers (i.e., a Divine Force or an Unmoved Mover), but "God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth".

• In some mysterious way, this One God is also more than One. It is Elohim Who created all things—and the word is plural—something like gods, but not quite.

• The Creator is powerful, wise, beautiful, good, and mysterious.

• God’s first creation is Light, which He made by the power of His Word. The first light hints at another work of illumination He will do in the hearts of His people.

That’s enough review; let’s move on, now, to Genesis 1:6-8. What we have here is the creation of the firmament. Henry divides the passage into four parts.

First we have the command.

"Firmament" is an old-fashioned word; it simply means the sky. The verse says the firmament divides the upper and lower waters. The upper waters are the clouds; the lower waters are the seas. The dry stuff between them is the sky or the atmosphere if you prefer a fancier word.

The firmament was created by the Word of God. This again proves the power, wisdom, and goodness of that Word. Think of the science involved in the manned space program. How hard it must be to pump oxygen into a place where there isn’t any! Yet that’s exactly what God on the Second Day! And unlike human technologies, He did it without noisy machines and without tanks that will one day run out of air. What power and wisdom were put into making the firmament!

And what goodness! God could have made us fish, living in the water, or worms living underground. If He had, we would have missed so much beauty. Fish hardly see the light and worms don’t at all. But the Lord is so good to us He put us in a lovely place and gave us the senses to perceive the glory of the world and the hearts to feel it.

Familiarity breeds contempt. When was the last time you praised God for the firmament? The blueness of the sky, the smell of the air, the feel of a warm summer night!

The firmament—Henry says—serves two purposes. One is physical, the other is spiritual.

The physical purpose is to take care of our bodies.

This is an obvious one, but when did you last think about it? What if God had created light, but then made the atmosphere out of something like iron? It would be wonderfully bright up in space, but the light would do us no good. We’d be bumping into walls and falling into ditches. We’d be worse off than the blind, because nobody could guide us.

And here—I’d like to add—what if the atmosphere were as thick as syrup? We could move in it, but what a pain it would be even getting out of bed

The sky not only carries the light our way, but it also contains the precipitation we need—rain, snow, hail, dew, and humidity. We cannot live without water. If it didn’t come down from the sky, the lakes, rivers, ponds, and springs we depend on would have dried up long ago—and there would be no life on earth.

Water is necessary. But, note too, the variety of water that comes down on us. How beautiful it is and how useful. We don’t get any snow here, but we very much depend on it. If it only rained in the Sierras, everything would flood for two or three months—and then we’d have no water at all. Our water supply depends very much on melting snow.

The physical blessings of the firmament are free to everyone. You’ve got to pay the Alameda Country Water Department for the water you use at home. But God gives it away. He gives it away—not only to His best friends, but also to His worst enemies—

This is one of the sad things about unbelief: the sinner rejects the very God who gives him the air, the sun, and the water that are keeping him alive in his unbelief. No wonder Paul condemns the whole human race, by saying,

The firmament serves a necessary physical purpose. But Henry also sees a spiritual side to it.

This is something I never thought of—but it’s highly significant. There is an uncrossable mote between heaven and hell. Why? Because neither side can or should visit the other. But there is no such barrier between heaven and earth. God would come down to earth and His people would go up to heaven. The sky is not a dome; it’s a road—a two-way road!

His handiwork of grace is there for anyone to see—all you’ve got to do is look up.

Henry’s third point is creating the firmament—and who did it.

Unless you’re looking at the text, you may not see what he’s getting at. Here are the verses,

The key phrases are "God said" and "God made". What does this mean? Henry says,

This is a very stimulating thought: What God commands we cannot produce. Unless God does it for us! And, for His Elect, that is precisely what He does. He commands us to repent of our sins, but He not only commands it, He

He commands us to believe. And we

The same is true of every other grace—pity, patience, courage, humility, joy, you name what: what God commands of us He also creates in us.

This is Royal Generosity! The King commands His subjects to pay Him tribute—but first gives them the money. That’s the kind of God who made the world in Six Days. And the God we have the privilege to serve.

Henry closes the section in the usual Puritan way—with the uses (or applications). If

Then,

Every word here is gold. The next time you look up in the sky, remember you have a Father up there. On the next crystal-clear day, remember your God is crystal clear in His holiness. Where is the sky? It’s everywhere—and so is God and His loving care for you.

That’s Matthew Henry on the creation of the Firmament. Think about these things and you’ll be the better for it. Amen.