When Genesis 1:5 and Culture Collide

Now moving on to Genesis 1:5! After the separation of light from dark, we get a fuller explanation of what this separation entails:

 וַיִּקְרָ֨א אֱלֹהִ֤ים ׀ לָאֹור֙ יֹ֔ום וְלַחֹ֖שֶׁךְ קָ֣רָא לָ֑יְלָה וַֽיְהִי־עֶ֥רֶב וַֽיְהִי־בֹ֖קֶר יֹ֥ום אֶחָֽד׃

“And God named the light ‘day,’ and the darkness he named ‘night.’ And there was evening, and there was morning: Day one.”

This is the first time the word יוֹם (yōm, “day”) appears in this passage. Note the poetic feel to this passage. Not only is this word paralleled by לָיְלָה (laylah, “night”), but the second half of the verse refers to evening and morning.

Lend Me Your Thoughts

What do you make of the fact that this is the first reference to יוֹם in this account? What is this account doing with the word יוֹם?