Scripture alone does
not clearly resolve the question of the origin of matter. Genesis 1:2, which
speaks of “the earth [being] without form and void” and the deep waters, was
interpreted by ancient Jews and many early Christians to mean that God created the
world from preexisting matter. This is also the consensus of modern biblical scholars.
This reading of Genesis seems to be presupposed by the author of the Wisdom of Solomon,
who refers to God’s “all-powerful hand, which created the world out of formless
matter” (Wis. 11:17). While these passages do not definitely rule out creatio
ex nihilo, neither do they confirm it.
. . .
By the second and
third centuries, these texts[2 Maccabees 7:28-29; Rom 4:17; Heb 11:3] were
taken as evidence of creatio ex nihilo. Yet these passages were not decisive.
The language used here is similar to the philosophical language of the Stoics
and the Platonists. These philosophers held that matter always was there and
that God gave form to matter, which, because it was formless, did not properly
have the status of existing (“to ex-ist” means, literally, “to stand out”). But
in light of the challenges of philosophy and Gnosticism, Christianity in the
second century asked more clearly about the extent of God’s almighty power and
the origin of matter. By working through these challenges, Christians drew out
what was implicit in Scripture and their beliefs about God. (Jared Ortiz and
Daniel A. Keating, The Nicene Creed: A Scriptural, Historical and
Theological Commentary [Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Academic, 2024], 65-66)
Further Reading:
Blake T. Ostler, Out of Nothing: A
History of Creation ex Nihilo in Early Christian Thought
