Prayer
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth is it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one; for yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever and ever, Amen.
Reading
Psalm 105 & 1 Cor 12.
Gen 1:6-8.
“And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” 7. And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. 8. And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.”
Meditation
There is a logical and necessary connection between days one and two in the Genesis prologue. On day two, God very much builds upon the purpose revealed in day one. In our studies of day one, we saw that God’s purpose was to shine his glory into the creation as he filled the creation with his presence. As we consider God’s purposes in day two, the very first observation we can make is that God creates heaven. That’s what day two is all about. Day one was all about light, day two is all about heaven. That’s what the text says! God makes an expanse (v6-7), and he gives this expanse a name: “heaven” (v8). Heaven is the subject of day two.
It would be easy for us to overlook something significant here, and it’s the fact that God himself names this expanse. He creates the expanse physically, and then he puts a name to it, a word. Now this is important, because God does not waste words. He did not call the expanse “heaven” for no reason. He didn’t give it that name because he couldn’t really think of another one. No, this naming is deliberate and significant. The question is: Why did he call it heaven? This will be a slightly longer meditation, but it will need to be if we are to properly answer that question. To begin our answer, I’m going to start us off with two general observations about heaven.
The first observation is this: there are three heavens. In the broader sense, the scriptures use this term “heaven” in three different ways. In the first place, it can be used to refer to the atmosphere of our planet. For example, in Genesis 1:20 the scriptures say that the birds fly across “the expanse of the heavens”. As we know, that’s a reference to the atmosphere. This is the sense in which day two is using the word as well. The second way in which this word can be used is in reference to space. For example, on day four (Gen 1:14-19) we have a description of the sun, moon, and stars as God sets them in “the expanse of the heavens”. It’s the same word again in the Hebrew. Finally, this word is also used in reference to the dwelling place of God himself. Psalm 2:4 speaks of the Lord sitting in the heavens. In Psalm 115:3 we read: “Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases”. In Matthew 6:9 in the Lord’s Prayer we learn that our Father is in heaven. God, as a spiritual being, and not having a body like men, does not dwell in the physical heavens of space or atmosphere, he dwells eternally in his heavenly dwelling place.
So then, in the biblical worldview, there are three heavens. There’s the atmosphere, there’s space, and there’s the spiritual dwelling place of God. The Apostle Paul actually makes a reference to this in 2 Corinthians 12:2. In that passage he says: “I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven – whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows – and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter.” There is probably much that could be said about this verse, but the only thing I’m going to point out is that phrase that Paul uses: “the third heaven.” He does this to make it clear which heaven he’s referring to, not sky or space, but the dwelling place of God. So, there are three heavens.
Now, building on this, we’ve still got the question before us on day two: Why did God name the atmosphere, the expanse between sea and clouds described in our passage, why did he name this expanse heaven? Why give it the same name as he had given to his very own dwelling place? We should not think of this as mere coincidence. Here is what I believe to be the answer to this question: the heavens are a type of heaven. The heavens created on day two are a type or symbol of the original heaven, there’s an analogy between the heavens and Heaven. To say that there is an analogy means that there is a symbolic parallel between them. The heavens on earth are supposed to be symbolic of God’s heavenly dwelling place. Just as the Lord’s Supper is a physical reminder and symbol of the gospel, so too the heavens are a physical reminder and symbol of heaven itself. The heavens are a metaphor of Heaven, if you like, built in to the physical makeup of the universe pointing to the higher reality of heaven itself.
Now perhaps you’re thinking at this point: “He’s drawing a long bow here! I don’t see what he’s saying in the text, this seems like a bit of a stretch.” It’s a fair objection, so now it’s on me to show you the truth of this from scripture. Before I do that, however, I will say this: once you start looking for what I’m talking about here, you start to see parallels everywhere! You start to see this heavenly imagery repeated again and again in the scriptures. But let me just prove this from a few examples.
First, consider Genesis 1:8. “And God called the expanse Heaven.” This one is so obvious that it’s easy to miss. I’ll put it this way: God didn’t call the expanse “heaven” just to confuse us. Think about it. If God didn’t intend for the expanse to have some relationship to his heavenly dwelling place, why would he use the same word for both places? It’s literally the same word! If the heavens have no relationship to Heaven, then calling the expanse “heaven” is misleading, illogical, and confusing. God, however, is not in the business of being illogical. He called it heaven for an obvious reason, a reason that he intended for us to see, and the reason is to show us that the heavens have a relationship with Heaven itself. But there are plenty of other passages beside that show this was God’s intention.
Consider secondly Exodus 40:34. This passage describes what happened after the Tent of Meeting had been finished when God came down and manifested his presence in the tent. In Exodus 40:34 we read: “Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.” Do you see what God is doing there? God is using an element from the physical heavens, as established on day two – clouds being part of the atmosphere – God is using the clouds to represent his heavenly presence. In this passage, God literally joined his own heavenly glory together with an earthly cloud to manifest his presence. We saw something similar in Exodus 19:6 when God came down on Mount Sinai to give the ten commandments. Another example of this comes in the fact that God used a pillar of cloud to lead Israel through the wilderness. And so, when the Old Testament Israelites read Genesis 1:8 for the first time, and they saw that God called the expanse “heaven”, they wouldn’t have been puzzled like we might be. For them, it would have made perfect sense! Of course God called the expanse heaven! They had already seen the clear relationship between God as dwelling in heaven, and the heavens and elements of the atmosphere above them.
The only reason this might seem a bit alien to us at first is because we don’t yet know our Old Testament well enough, and we’re not yet thinking hebraically. This is something we need to learn and grow in! Let me draw out three other passages as examples of this divinely ordained connection between his heavenly dwelling place and the heavens that he has made. I do this, because it may take some work to make these links in our own minds, once they are made, though, it will be worth the effort.
Consider Exodus 24:9: “Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up, and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness.” We see the link here between the heavens of earth’s atmosphere and the heavenly dwelling place of God. Something similar is going on in Ezekiel 1:22-26, which pictures the throne of God sitting over the expanse – which explains why some other passages also describe the heavens as his throne room and the earth as his footstool. In Exodus 24:9 and Ezekiel 1 God even more explicitly uses the heavens of our atmosphere to represent his divine throne room.
Consider Isaiah 40:22: “It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in.” In this image from Isaiah, we see a poetic mingling of the expanse of heaven – as created on day two – and the heavenly dwelling place of God. He even describes the atmosphere as a heavenly tent in which God dwells, an allusion to the Tabernacle. This shows the link between the heavens and Heaven that we’ve been talking about, and establishes the truth of it. Isaiah would’t make that link between Heaven and the heavens if God hadn’t intended for the link to be made.
Consider Psalm 104:1-3: “Bless the LORD, O my soul! O LORD my God, you are very great! You are clothed with splendour and majesty, covering yourself with light as with a garment, stretching out the heavens like a tent. He lays the beams of his chambers on the waters; he makes the clouds his chariot; he rides on the wings of the wind”. This psalm literally uses pictures from the heavens – light, clouds, wind – and refers to them as God’s “garments”. It describes the heavens as a tent, built with the beams of a house. The heavens of earth’s atmosphere are used as a picture of God’s heavenly dwelling place. I could give more examples, such as Revelation 4:1-6, or Psalm 19:1, but I think we are getting the point. There is a clear link in scripture between the heavens and God’s dwelling place in heaven.
Be ye doers of the word…
Now, having said all of that, let’s close with our final question: What does all this mean for us? Let me leave you with a few applications. Firstly, we need to see heaven with new eyes. When you walk outside in the morning, and you look up to the sky, what do you see? Part of what it means to have a biblical worldview is that we view the world biblically. To modern, western, materialistic eyes, assuming we pay any attention to the sky at all, we look up and see the vapours of the clouds, we consider the burning gas of the sun, and the vacuum of space. But when we look at the sky with eyes of faith, certainly we can marvel at it from a scientific perspective, but we should see so much more.
When the Israelites saw a cloud formation, how could they not think of that cloud that had led them and their fathers through the wilderness? When they heard thunder rumbling on a dark and stormy night, how could they not remember Sinai and the shaking of the mountain? On a radiant, sunny day, how could they not think of the Lord who wraps himself in light as with a garment? When you up at the sky, what do you see? Do you ever look up to the clouds with expectation? Have you ever looked at the clouds and wondered if today might be the day? Maybe – just maybe – as you see the clouds, Christ might descend even in that moment and call you up. It’s an encouragement. Brothers and sisters, we need to see heaven with new eyes. There is much spiritual encouragement to be gained by doing that.
And for all of us, we ought also to consider: Will I be there on that day? When Christ returns, will I be numbered among those who will be called up? Because that day will bring with it one of two outcomes for each and every one of us. For those who have believed in Christ, being set free from sin, and getting fruit that leads to sanctification and its end of eternal life (Rom 6:22-23), we will rise to meet our Lord in the air. We will literally see heaven come down to earth! But for those who do not believe in Jesus Christ as the only Son of God, it will be a day of judgment. The thunders of Sinai will rumble, and the lighting and fire of God will consume his enemies. If you have not believed in Christ, then that will be your position on that great and terrible day. If you would escape the judgment of that day, you too must come and believe in Christ. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already.
When you walk outside and look up, consider this. Learn to think like a Hebrew! When you lift your eyes to the heavens, you are not looking merely at a gaseous expanse of nothing, and a vacuous expanse of nothing beyond that. That is what your conditioning in a western, materialist culture has taught you to see! No, you are looking at a divinely appointed analogy of the very dwelling place of God. Think about that. Muse upon it. Take time every so often to gaze into the heavens and ponder what God is saying to us. And every time you see a reference to the heavens and the elements of the expanse in scripture, pause and consider their relationship to the second day of creation. What we’ve begun to unpack in this study is only the beginning of a very exciting theme that runs right through the Word of God! SDG.
Prayer of Confession & Consecration
Heavenly Father, I confess that one of the greatest difficulties in my life is that I am earthly minded far too often. So often, I step into my day, or into some situation in my day, and I think nothing of your presence, or nothing of the heavenly glory that has been set before me. I pray, Lord, please help. Please renew my mind, to be aware of heavenly realities even to a greater degree than the earthly – but both to your glory. Help me also, then, to consider the heavens, the works of your hands. Help me to look up to the skies, and always receive tokens and reminders of your plans, purposes, and gracious mercies. I pray too for your people in my local church, that they may increasingly become likewise heavenly minded. These things I pray, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Day 14: God creates heaven (Gen 1:6-8).