Topical Bible: Darkness: Separated from the Light

◄ Darkness: Separated from the Light ►

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In the biblical narrative, darkness is often depicted as the absence of light, both in a physical and spiritual sense. It symbolizes chaos, evil, ignorance, and separation from God. The concept of darkness is introduced in the opening verses of the Bible, where it is contrasted with light. Genesis 1:2-4 states, "Now the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. And God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness."

Creation and Separation

The act of God separating light from darkness in the creation account establishes a fundamental dichotomy that persists throughout Scripture. Light is associated with God's presence, order, and goodness, while darkness is linked to disorder and the absence of divine illumination. This separation underscores the distinct roles that light and darkness play in the divine order.

Symbolism and Spiritual Implications

Darkness is frequently used as a metaphor for spiritual blindness and moral depravity. In the New Testament, darkness is often associated with the realm of sin and the domain of Satan. Jesus Christ, the "light of the world" (John 8:12), came to dispel this darkness and bring spiritual enlightenment. John 1:5 declares, "The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."

The Apostle Paul further elaborates on this theme in his epistles. In Ephesians 5:8 , he writes, "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light." This transformation from darkness to light signifies a change in spiritual status and moral conduct, emphasizing the believer's call to live in accordance with God's truth.

Judgment and Deliverance

Darkness is also a motif in the context of divine judgment. The plagues of Egypt included a plague of darkness, described in Exodus 10:21-23 , where "a darkness that could be felt" enveloped the land, symbolizing God's judgment against Pharaoh and the gods of Egypt. Similarly, the Day of the Lord is often depicted as a time of darkness and gloom, as seen in passages like Joel 2:2 : "a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness."

Conversely, deliverance from darkness is a theme of hope and redemption. Colossians 1:13 speaks of God's redemptive work: "He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of His beloved Son." This deliverance is a central aspect of the Christian gospel, highlighting the transformative power of Christ's sacrifice and resurrection.

Eschatological Fulfillment

In eschatological terms, the ultimate separation of darkness from light is realized in the new creation. Revelation 21:23-25 describes the New Jerusalem, where "the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light the nations will walk, and into it the kings of the earth will bring their glory. Its gates will never be shut at the end of the day, because there will be no night there."

This vision of eternal light signifies the complete eradication of darkness, both physical and spiritual, in the presence of God. The absence of night in the New Jerusalem symbolizes the fulfillment of God's redemptive plan, where His people dwell in perpetual light, free from the shadows of sin and death.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Genesis 1:4
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Of the Words which Follow the Separation of Light and Darkness ...
... added, "And God saw the light that it was good." No such expression followed the
statement that He separated the light from the darkness, and called the light ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/augustine/city of god/chapter 20 of the words which.htm

Whether the Demons' Intellect is Darkened by Privation of the ...
... but "nocturnal" knowledge. Accordingly we read in Gn.1:5 that the darkness,
which God separated from the light, "He called night.". ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether the demons intellect is.htm

The First Three Properties of Nature were Never to have Been Seen ...
... find and work with that center and root of darkness, on which ... nature, hence came
forth a dark, wrathful substantiality, separated from the light and glory ...
/.../law/the way to divine knowledge/way-3-32 the first three properties.htm

Petilianus Said: "But There is no Fellowship of Darkness with ...
... gentle temper appropriate the term of light, where shall ... Circumcelliones be esteemed
to be, excepting in the darkness? ... in fact, that you are separated from the ...
/.../chapter 39 92 petilianus.htm

Whether the Damned are in Material Darkness?
... ix): If this fire gave any light, "he would by no ... brightness of the fire will be
separated from its ... damned." Therefore the damned will be in material darkness. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/aquinas/summa theologica/whether the damned are in.htm

Of the Two Different and Dissimilar Communities of Angels, which ...
... and delivered them into chains of darkness to be ... either in foreknowledge or in act,
separated between these ... that the rest are justly called "light?" For even ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 33 of the two different.htm

The Holy Jesus Said, "I am the Light of the World...
... followeth me, walketh not in darkness." Here spiritual light and darkness are as
immutably fixed, and separated from one another, as the light and darkness of ...
/.../address 144 0 0 the holy jesus.htm

Then, Again Discussing the True Light and Unapproachable Light of ...
... one thing, and the Light of the Son as another, separated one from ... Ungenerate Light,
the one will be found to be [1065] light, the other darkness." Let him ...
/.../gregory of nyssa dogmatic treatises etc/section 5 then again discussing.htm

The Docet??.
... of darkness and the simplicity of light, proceeded to create heaven; and after having
rendered firm what intervened, He separated the darkness from the light. ...
/.../hippolytus/the refutation of all heresies/chapter xii the docetae.htm

Whether Even vices Themselves as Objects of Intellectual ...
... foolishness, which I might fittingly designate mental darkness; I should ... separated
from that Author from whom yonder light is not separated, whatever they ...
/.../chapter 6 name even vices.htm