The deep end of a residential swimming pool may be six or seven feet deep. But there are places in the ocean where it is several miles deep. Now that is really deep!
The ocean is often referred to as “the deep,” and that is true in the Bible as well. But the reference to “the deep” in the creation account is something altogether different. In Genesis 1:1-2 we read, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was without form and void, and the darkness was upon the face of the deep.” So, the newly created earth was enveloped in darkness, and the entire mass of the earth was called “the deep.”
The word “deep” here refers to a surging mass of water. It comes from the root word which means, “to make an uproar, to agitate greatly.” So the idea seems to be that the original mass of material that God created was a huge watery mix.
Dr. Henry Morris, in his Genesis commentary put it this way: “The picture presented is one of all the basic material elements sustained in a pervasive watery matrix throughout the darkness of space.” He goes on to say that “the same picture is suggested in 2 Peter 3:5: “…the earth standing out of the water and in the water.”
Well, what this means is that:
- Elements of matter and molecules of water were present, but not yet energized.
- The force of gravity was not yet functioning to draw such particles together into a coherent mass with a definite form.
- It was solid material and water in a giant mix, and that mix was called “the deep.”
Now you know the real meaning of the word.
Hey – When God made you a new creation in Christ, He also started with a mere blob of stuff.