This world seems to grow darker and darker by the day. Mainstream news and social media are full of stories about horrible events happening every day. It can be scary to see the darkness surrounding us on all sides. But as believers, we must remember that we know the way to ward off the darkness: Jesus. 

Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”  John 8:12

In a previous blog post called 4 Promises to Those Rooted in Truth, we looked at how “the Word” mentioned in John chapter 1 is referring to Jesus. This same passage also states that Jesus is life and light.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.  John 1:1-5

In the Beginning

Let’s go back to the beginning to learn more about the importance of light throughout the Bible. In the very beginning, on the first day, before anything else, there was light.

Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day. Genesis 1:3-5

This light was different from the light of the sun, moon, and stars as those heavenly lights were not created until the fourth day (Gen. 1:14-19). The light from the first day was divided from the darkness from the first night. Light and darkness are separate from each other. 

We see from these verses that darkness has existed from the beginning as well. In fact, many of the most tragic stories in the Bible take place in the literal darkness of night. The sin of Sodom was at night but the rescue of Lot occurred in the morning (Gen. 19:1-29). The ninth plague of Egypt was darkness over the entire land except for the dwellings of the children of Israel (Exod. 10:21-23). The tenth plague of Egypt was death for all the firstborn at midnight except for those households who had obeyed God by putting the blood of the Passover lamb on their doorposts (Exod. 12:21-30). Jesus was betrayed by Judas, arrested in the garden of Gethsemane, and put on trial by the Sanhedrin, all during the night (Matt. 26, Mark 14, Luke 22, John 18). Then there was darkness for three hours when Jesus was dying on the cross (Matt. 27:45, Mark 15:33, Luke 23:44).

Darkness

Darkness hates the light. Jesus Himself explains why:

And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God. John 3:19-21

Those who practice evil believe that the darkness conceals them. Evildoers prefer the darkness to cover their lies, deception, and confusion. Light reveals truth and exposes all that is false. Jesus is the Light (John 9:12, John 12:46) and Jesus is the Truth (John 14:6). Jesus knows and uncovers what’s happening in the darkness. Nothing can hide from Him. 

He uncovers deep things out of darkness and brings the shadow of death to light. Job 12:22

He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, and light dwells with Him. Daniel 2:22

For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. Mark 4:22

Light by Night

In the New Testament, we learn that Jesus is the Light so whenever light is mentioned in the Old Testament, we can see how it points to Jesus.

After God had delivered the Israelites from Egypt and were at the Red Sea, the Egyptians came after them. 

And the Angel of God, who went before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud went from before them and stood behind them. So it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. Thus it was a cloud and darkness to the one, and it gave light by night to the other, so that the one did not come near the other all that night. Exodus 14:19-20

God used darkness and light just as when the ninth plague had brought darkness to the Egyptians but light to the Israelites. Many Bible scholars believe that the term “Angel of God” in the Old Testament refers to Jesus so these verses mean even more when we picture Jesus as the pillar of cloud providing light to His people. This pillar of cloud and fire led the Israelites throughout their 40 years in the wilderness before they entered the Promised Land.

From Evening Until Morning

Later, while the Israelites were in the wilderness, God instructed Moses on how to build the tabernacle and all of its furnishings. One of these furnishings was the golden lampstand (Exod. 25:31-40). God also gave instructions on how to tend to the lamp in the tabernacle.

And you shall command the children of Israel that they bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to cause the lamp to burn continually. In the tabernacle of meeting, outside the veil which is before the Testimony, Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening until morning before the Lord. It shall be a statute forever to their generations on behalf of the children of Israel. Exodus 27:20-21

From evening until morning—the time of darkness. The lamp was to shine during the time when the darkness was at its height. God had prepared Israel with this light as a picture of when He would provide the Light, the Messiah Jesus, to them.

The Lamp

Later, once David was king over Israel, he praised God for delivering him from his enemies. A beautiful foreshadowing of Jesus, the Messiah, the Light of the world.

For You are my lamp, O Lord; the Lord shall enlighten my darkness. 2 Samuel 22:29

God Himself used the picture of a lamp as part of His covenant with David. Because of Solomon’s sin of idolatry, God split the kingdom of Israel during the time of David’s grandson, Rehoboam.

And to his son I will give one tribe, that My servant David may always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen for Myself, to put My name there. 1 Kings 11:36

The lamp represents the line of David reigning as king with the final fulfillment being King Jesus whose kingdom will have no end. This promise of the lamp was repeated two more times in the Old Testament at times when the people had sinned but God saved them because of His covenant with David.

Yet the Lord would not destroy Judah, for the sake of His servant David, as He promised him to give a lamp to him and his sons forever. 2 Kings 8:19

Yet the Lord would not destroy the house of David, because of the covenant that He had made with David, and since He had promised to give a lamp to him and to his sons forever. 2 Chronicles 21:7

The Lord is My Light

Throughout the Psalms, David referred to the Lord in terms of light. Each of these verses points to the Light, Jesus.

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1

Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me; let them bring me to Your holy hill and to Your tabernacle. Psalm 43:3

Your word is a lamp to my feet, And a light to my path. Psalm 119:105

Light to the Gentiles

In the book of Isaiah, God provides a very clear prophecy about the coming Messiah. 

Indeed He says, “It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.” Isaiah 49:6

This is incredible! Right there in the Old Testament, God promised that the coming Messiah of Israel would also be a light to the Gentiles for salvation to the ends of the earth. We see the fulfillment of this in Jesus, the Light of the world. The world, not only Israel. Whoever believes in Him will be saved.

I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness. John 12:46

If we put our trust in Jesus, we don’t have to fear the darkness. We will not abide in the darkness as long as we have the Light, Jesus.

*Next month, we’ll share part 2 of “Light in the Darkness” with a focus on how blindness (in the Bible) is a type of darkness, how Jesus healed many blind people, and we’ll look more at what the New Testament says about light.

Related resources

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Podcast episode 20 - You Were Made for This Moment of Darkness

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The Covenants Study - Davidic Covenant

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