The Creation Story

What does the book of Genesis say about creation?

Timeline

Creation

Christians believe that the world and everything in it was planned and created by God - nothing was an accident. You can read the Christian creation story inu00a0Genesis.u00a0 This can be found in the Old Testament; the part of the Bible that tells us about God and His people before Jesus was born.

The First Day

In the beginning, when God created the universe, everything dark and an ocean covered everything.rnrnThen God said, u201cLet there be lightu201d - and light appeared. God was pleased with what he saw. Then he separated the light from the darkness, and he named the light u201cDayu201d and the darkness u201cNight.u201d Evening passed and morning came - that was the first day.

The Second Day

Then on the second day, God decided that a sky was needed. God spoke and the sky was created. The sky separated the water under it from the water above it. God looked at the sky and he thought that it was good.

The Third Day

Then God said, u201cLet the water below the sky come together in one place, so that the land will appearu201du2014and it was done. He named the land u201cEarth,u201d and the water which had come together he named u201cSea.u201d And God was pleased with what he saw. Then he said, u201cLet plants grow on the earth u2014 and it was done. God was pleased with what he saw. Evening passed and morning came - that was the third day.

The Fourth Day

Then God said, u201cLet there be a sun to rule the day and a moon for the night. Let there also be stars in the sky. He placed the lights in the sky to shine on the earth, to rule over the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God was pleased with what he saw. Evening passed and morning came - that was the fourth day.

The Fifth Day

Then God said, u201cLet the water be filled with many kinds of living things, and let the air be filled with birds.u201d So God created the great sea monsters, all kinds of creatures that live in the water, and all kinds of birds. And God was pleased with what he saw. He blessed them all and told the creatures that live in the water to reproduce and to fill the sea, and he told the birds to increase in number. Evening passed and morning came - that was the fifth day.

The Sixth Day

Then God said, u201cLet the earth produce all kinds of animals u2014 and it was done. So God made them all, and he was pleased with what he saw.rnrnThen God said, u201cAnd now we will make people; they will be like us. They will have to look after all the rest of creation.u201d So God created people, making them to be like himself. He made man and woman, and he said to them, u201cHave many children, so that your families will live all over the earth and look after it. I have given you all kinds of grain and all kinds of fruit for you to eat; but for all the wild animals and for all the birds I have provided grass and leafy plants for foodu201d - and it was done. God looked at everything he had made, and he was very pleased. Evening passed and morning came - that was the sixth day.

The Seventh Day

And so the whole universe was made. He blessed the seventh day and set it apart as a special day, because by that day he had finished his work. And that is how the universe was created.

Think...

What do you think God enjoyed creating most? What would you have enjoyed creating? If you were planning the world is there anything you would have left out? Is there anything that you would have included that isn't mentioned in Genesis?rnrnWhat do you think the most important part of the creation story is for Christians? Try and draw this part of the story.rnrnWhy not make a model of your favourite day? You could make it from clay, or blocks or junk material.

There are many stories in the Bible that teach us about God and the way God wants us to live. The Bible begins with the story of Creation. This story can be found in Genesis, which is in the Old Testament. This is in the first section of the Bible, the part of the Bible that tells us about God and His people before Jesus was born.

Do you know what happened on the different days of creation?

What was there first?
When did the snails and the whales appear?
Did the land or the seas come first?
What happened on day 7?

Find out the answers to these questions and more by viewing this timeline…