Genesis 1:1-5 (KJV) - In the beginning God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) created the heavens and the earth. (בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא אֱלֹהִים אֵת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֵת הָאָרֶץ) And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) moved upon the face of the waters. And God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

Genisis 1:1-5 (NIV) - In the beginning God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) was hovering over the waters. And God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning-the first day.

We will look at the Hebrew word (אֱלֹהִים) - ELOHIM.

In Hebrew any word ending with "im" is plural - So "im" means it is plural! There are several well known examples of this. ELOHIM - (אֱלֹהִים) is just one of them. So ELOHIM - (אֱלֹהִים) are the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit. All three were present with CREATION.

Meaning of Names
Genesis - (בְּרֵאשִׁית‎) - The Book of beginnings.
Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) - Plural - Father, Son (Jesus) and Holy Spirit - Trinity.
Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) - plural of H433; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; (Blue Letter Bible).
Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) comes from the Hebrew root word El which means strong, God, etc (Blue Letter Bible).
Bara בָּרָא - creator - to create, shape, form, (Qal) to shape, fashion, create (always with God as subject)

Genesis 1 - God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) is God the Creator (bara) - ELOHIM BARA (בָּרָא אֱלֹהִים)

We have all names. We are known by our names. That is part of our identity. When somebody calls us we re-act because we know our name. God loves it when we call on His name. Today we are going to look at His very first name as found in - Genesis 1-5. I am referring to the name "Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים)."

Turn with me to Genesis 1 and follow along as I read the opening verses. I will insert His Hebrew name as I read: "In the beginning Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) was hovering over the waters. And Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light. Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) called the light 'day,' and the darkness He called 'night.'"

This first name for God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) is used 32 times in the first chapter of Genesis alone. Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) derives from the Hebrew word El, which in turn comes from the word which means "strong." Specifically, this name means that He is the strong Creator God. We must remember that God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) is the One who is creatively powerful, completely sovereign, and gloriously great.

A. Four Facts about Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים). The Book of Genesis gets its name from the Hebrew language and it means it is the book of "beginnings." God calls Himself Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים), there are at least four foundational facts about this name that will strengthen our faith.

1. Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) is Eternal (Genesis 1:1a). Look again at the first four words in the Word of God: "In the beginning God [Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים)]. . ." This is a declaration that God has always been; He had no beginning and He will have no end. We also know He is the Alpha and the Omega (Greek) which is in the New Testament. This is the first and last letter of the Greek alphabet. Jesus did not speak Greek, He spoke Hebrew so it should be the Aleph "א" and the Tov "ת" (Hebrew Aleph-Tov "את") which is the first and the last of the Hebrew alphbet.

The Bible just assumes that He is. He is here today. He was here yesterday. And He will be here tomorrow. He was, He is, and He will be. You can count on Him. Psalm 14:1 says, only those who are foolish doubt God's existence: "The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.'"

2. Creationism is Correct (Genesis 1:1b). God alone is eternal and that which is created is not eternal. Look at the last part of Genesis 1:1: " . . . created the heavens (šāmayim הַשָּׁמַיִם) and the earth (ereṣ אֶרֶץ)." The Hebrew word for "create" means "to create out of nothing." Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) spoke (dabar H1697 דָּבָר)(Genesis 15:1) the word and it was created, it manifested. Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) brings design out of disorder; He created the cosmos out of chaos. He birthed beauty out of barrenness and He continues to do the same in our lives. Let's look at just a few more phrases from Genesis 1
"So God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) made the expanse . . ." (7)
"And God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) made two great lights . . ." (16)
". . . He also made the stars." (16) - He also made - This part of translation was added (BLB)
"So God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) created the great creatures of the sea . . . "(21)
"God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) made the wild animals . . ." (25)
"God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) saw all that He had made and it was very good . . . " (31)
It is no accident that the first thing God wanted us to know in the Bible about Himself is that He is the Creator. The whole revelation of Scripture is rooted in this fact. We see this from Genesis to the Book of Revelation.

3. The Trinity is True (Genesis 1:26-27).
The third application from the name Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) is the Trinity. The "im" ending of Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) is a plural suffix. This is similar to cherub (כְּרוּב) becoming cherubim (הַכְּרֻבִים) and the plural of seraph (שָׂרָף) being seraphim (שְׂרָפִים). Now here is the cool part. In this part we come now to the climax of creation where God creates a human being. The key in this part is in the words: "Let us make man in our image," We see here "us" and "our" which are both plural words. Why does God speak of Himself as more than one person?

Genesis 1:26-27 (KJV) - "And God (Elohim אֱלֹהִים) said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) created man in his own image, in the image of God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) created he him; male and female created he them."

Here we see the Trinity in action. God is speaking as a Trinity: The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit. According to scripture the full Trinity was present in creation. We saw earlier in Genesis 1:2 that describes the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters, and in John 1:1-3 reveals that the Word, Jesus Christ, was active in the creation of all things.God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים), who is eternal in nature, has always existed in three persons. This concept is found throughout the Word of God.
a. At the baptism of Jesus, we see God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit (see Matthew 3:16-17).
b. When Jesus gave the Great Commission to the church, He called on all three members of the Trinity in Matthew 28:19: "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."
c. One of the most obvious and clearest passages is found in 2 Corinthians 13:14: "May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all."
d. God the Father sent the Son to save us from our sins and now the Holy Spirit has sealed our salvation. The Trinity makes redemption possible. The name Elohim - (אֱלֹהִים) establishes that God exists, that He is the Creator, and that He is three-in-one.

4. Every Person Has a Purpose (Genesis 1:26-27).
Every person is made in the image of God and therefore has dignity, worth, and purpose. Look again at Genesis 1:27: "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." The word "created" is used three times and we are told twice that humans are made in the image of a holy God.

God (Elohim - אֱלֹהִים) also stated: "and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth". So God had a plan and that is that man must rule over creation here on earth. This was our purpose before the fall.