Genesis 1: 9-11 Then God said,
Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let
the dry [land] appear; and it was so.
10 And God called the dry
[land] Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God
saw that it was good.
11 Then God said, Let the
earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that
yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth; and
it was so.
You will notice in your Bibles that the word “land” is in italics. That means it is not in the original Scriptures. It was added by the translators because they thought it would make more sense. There is a Hebrew word for “land” and it is erets. However, the Holy Spirit did not allow the writer of the Book of Genesis to use erets here. Sometimes the absence of a word or the absence of a bit of information is a key to some spiritual truth, and we believe that is the case here.
If you are viewing these three verses only in a natural sense, then the word “land” needs to be inserted to make it reasonable to the natural mind. But the absence of the word “land” causes us to look for a mystical interpretation. Notice the train of events. Verse 10 gives the indication of water everywhere. Then God gathers the waters in certain places so that what is left is dry. Then in verse eleven there is fruitfulness. God makes the dry and then out of the dry He brings forth fruitfulness. That is a very important principle in the Scriptures.
Anyone who has ever planted a garden knows that dry ground cannot be fruitful; without water nothing will grow. On the other hand, it is an absolute must for spiritual growth. God only brings fruitfulness out of dry. The same series of events are seen in the 107th Psalm.
Psalm 107:31-38 Oh, that men
would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to
the children of men!
32 Let them exalt Him also in
the assembly of the people, and praise Him in the company of the elders.
(The people are not worshiping the Lord and exalting Him as they should. So
what does the Lord do?)
33 He turns rivers into a
wilderness, and the watersprings into dry ground;
34 A fruitful land into
barrenness, for the wickedness of those who dwell in it. (The Lord drains
all the rivers and springs of human abilities, making them barren.)
35 He turns a wilderness into
pools of water, and dry land into watersprings.
36 There He makes the hungry
dwell, that they may establish a city for a dwelling place,
37 And sow fields and plant
vineyards, that they may yield a fruitful harvest.
38 He also blesses them, and
they multiply greatly; and He does not let their cattle decrease.
Do you see it? In order for you to be fruitful in God, your human resources must be dried up. You will not hunger and thirst after the Lord until you become dry. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled. Matthew 5:6. You will not hunger and thirst for righteousness until you become dry. Jesus stood and cried out, saying, If anyone thirsts, let him come unto Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. John 7:37-38. No one who has been feeding off the things of this world will be hungry for God. You will only thirst after Him when you have become a dry desert. Hear the prophet Isaiah. Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:19. It is the desert-people of God who experience the living waters of the Spirit. Those who become a wilderness will become a highway of the Lord God. This is what He is speaking of in the third day of Genesis chapter one. God only brings fruitfulness out of the dry.
Copyright © 2005 by Henry DuBose