The Second Day of Creation

Thomas Whytehead

“And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.” (Genesis 1:6-8)

These three verses form the framework of Thomas Whytehead’s masterful meditation on the firmament of the heavens—a poem that combines vivid imagery with skillful symbolism in a thought-provoking study of one of the most familiar objects in our world.

“The Second Day of Creation” was written as part of an intended series on the entire creation week. Whytehead completed six of the seven poems (days two through seven) before his death on the New Zealand mission field in the spring of 1843. He was only 28 years old, but he left behind him a legacy of English poetry that would continue to live and speak to the glory of the Creator he loved.