The background of Genesis 1 is in this passage. All that was created came into existence through God's Word (Genesis 1:3,6,9,11,14-15, 20, 24, 26). Light was the first creation through the Word (Genesis 1 :3) and the word 'light' is then used by John to mean true wisdom and spiritual under-standing which is the knowledge of God's will (Proverbs 8 :35, Job 28 :28) communicated to mankind by the Word. Mankind was given not only physical life but spiritual understanding and moral insight through God's Word (l: 4). The evil powers of the world, described symbolically as 'darkness' have never been able to put out the divinely given 'light' in mankind, 1 :5.