“Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens: when I call unto them, they stand up together” (Isaiah 48:13).

The human hand is an anatomical marvel; nothing remotely comparable exists among the primates or any other animals. It is a marvel of design. But surely the “hand of God”—of which man’s hand is only a very dim shadow—is infinitely more powerful and skillful.

Note the testimony of Isaiah 45:12: “I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded.” God did not have to use intermediate processes or pre-existing materials. Everything was “commanded” into existence and “I, even my hands,” made all of it, including man. Creation was direct—a direct product of God’s mighty hands.

Not only was it direct, it was also immediate, as our text above makes emphatically plain. His hand laid the earth’s foundation and spanned the heavens. Then, “When I call unto them,” He says, “they stand up together!” Not one by one—first the universe, then the sun, then the earth, and so on. No, “they stand up together.” “He spake, and it was done” (Psalm 33:9). It did not take 16 billion years; it took six days—and the only reason it took that long was so that God’s work week could serve as a pattern for man (Exodus 20:8–11).

God’s hand is omnipotent, and “He’s got the whole world in His hand.” It is wonderful to know His hand is gentle and loving as well as powerful. His hands will bear eternal scars, where they were spiked to the cross, because He loved us, and died for us. “My sheep hear my voice,” He says, “and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:27,28). The hand that spanned the heavens can hold on to those who trust Him. HMM