The Bible says God made the sun as a light "to divide the day from the night" and "for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years" (Genesis 1:14). The psalms call on the sun to praise its Maker, and Scripture never treats it as a god. The Bible also uses the sun as a picture of Christ: "unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings" (Malachi 4:2).
Every sunrise is a small sermon. Ancient nations around Israel worshipped the sun as a god, but the Bible describes it as something God made, named and put to work: a lamp for the day, a clock for the seasons, and a daily reminder of His faithfulness. Scripture also uses the sun as a picture of strength, of joy, of the faces of the righteous and even of Christ Himself. These twelve King James verses follow the sun through the Bible: its place in creation, the days it did something unusual, life under the sun in Ecclesiastes, and the promise of a light brighter than the sun. For evening verses about its setting, see Bible verses about the sunset, and for the night sky, the moon and stars.
The sun God made and set to work
1. Genesis 1:14-15
"And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so."
On the fourth day God made lights for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years. Interestingly, Genesis 1 never uses the word sun; it calls it "the greater light to rule the day" (Genesis 1:16). Many scholars think this was deliberate, in a world where the sun was worshipped. In the Bible the sun is not a god to fear or serve. It is a servant, given to give light upon the earth, and every calendar and clock we use still follows its rhythm.
2. Psalms 136:8
"The sun to rule by day: for his mercy endureth for ever:"
Psalm 136 repeats one line twenty-six times: for his mercy endureth for ever. In the middle of a list of God's great works comes the simple gift of the sun to rule by day. The psalmist saw the sunrise as an act of mercy, not just a law of nature. Read it slowly some morning as the light comes up. The sun that rose today is one more line in that long song of God's faithful love.
3. Psalms 19:4-6
"Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof."
Psalm 19 begins, "The heavens declare the glory of God" (Psalm 19:1), and C. S. Lewis called it the greatest poem in the Psalter. Here the sun is a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, full of joy, and a strong man to run a race. Nothing escapes its warmth: there is nothing hid from the heat thereof. The psalm then turns to God's law, which is "perfect, converting the soul" (Psalm 19:7). The sun lights the world; God's word lights the heart.
4. Psalms 50:1
"The mighty God, even the LORD, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof."
From the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof is a Hebrew way of saying everywhere, east to west. When the mighty God speaks, He calls the whole earth to listen. The same phrase appears in Malachi's promise that God's name will be great among the nations (Malachi 1:11). Wherever the sun shines, God is Lord. There is no corner of the world, and no part of your day, outside His care and authority.
Under the sun: days, seasons and wonders
5. Ecclesiastes 1:9
"The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun."
The phrase under the sun appears 29 times in Ecclesiastes. It describes life seen only from ground level, without looking up. From there, everything seems to go in circles: there is no new thing under the sun. The Teacher is honest about how tiring that feels. Yet his book ends by pointing beyond the sun: "Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man" (Ecclesiastes 12:13). Meaning comes from above the sun.
6. Joshua 10:13
"And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day."
During a battle to defend the city of Gibeon, Joshua prayed and the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day. The writer even cites another record, the book of Jasher, also mentioned in 2 Samuel 1:18. Christians have explained the event in different ways, but the next verse gives the main point: "there was no day like that before it or after it, that the LORD hearkened unto the voice of a man" (Joshua 10:14). God, who made the sun, also hears prayer.
7. Isaiah 38:8
"Behold, I will bring again the shadow of the degrees, which is gone down in the sun dial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward. So the sun returned ten degrees, by which degrees it was gone down."
When King Hezekiah was dying, God promised him fifteen more years (Isaiah 38:5) and gave him a sign: the shadow on the sun dial of Ahaz moved backward ten degrees. The same story is told in 2 Kings 20:9-11. It is a striking picture: the God who set the sun's course can turn back the shadow of a sundial when He chooses. Time is His creation, and our days are in His hands.
8. Mark 16:2
"And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun."
The women came to Jesus' tomb very early in the morning, at the rising of the sun, expecting to anoint a body. Instead they found the stone rolled away and an angel saying, "he is risen; he is not here" (Mark 16:6). This is why many churches hold Easter sunrise services. Every sunrise can remind a believer of that first Easter morning, when the darkest weekend in history gave way to light.
The Sun of righteousness and the light to come
9. Malachi 4:2
"But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall."
In the last chapter of the Old Testament, Malachi promises that the Sun of righteousness will arise with healing in his wings; the wings may picture the sun's spreading rays. Christians have long seen this as a promise of Christ, and Charles Wesley put it into the carol Hark! The Herald Angels Sing: Hail the Sun of Righteousness... Risen with healing in His wings. Those who receive Him go forth, and grow up, free and full of life.
10. Matthew 13:43
"Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear."
Jesus said this at the end of His explanation of the parable of the wheat and the tares. At the close of the age, shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Daniel had seen a similar picture of the wise shining "as the brightness of the firmament" (Daniel 12:3). Ordinary believers who seem unimportant now will one day shine with a glory that is not their own but God's.
11. Revelation 1:16
"And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength."
When John saw the risen Jesus on the island of Patmos, words almost failed him. The best he could do was this: his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. Anyone who has tried to look straight at the midday sun knows what he meant. Peter, James and John had glimpsed the same brightness at the transfiguration, when Jesus' face "did shine as the sun" (Matthew 17:2). John fell at His feet, and Jesus said, "Fear not" (Revelation 1:17).
12. Revelation 7:16
"They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat."
In John's vision of a great crowd from every nation standing before God's throne, the promise is complete rest: neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. In hot lands the sun could be cruel to travellers and workers, and Isaiah had promised the same relief (Isaiah 49:10). The next verse says, "God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes" (Revelation 7:17). The God who made the sun to bless us will also shelter us from every harm.
A short prayer
Creator God, thank You for the sun that rose this morning, for its light, its warmth and the seasons it brings. Thank You that it is Your servant and that Your mercy endures for ever. When my days feel like the same thing over and over under the sun, lift my eyes to You. Shine on me, Sun of righteousness, with healing in Your wings, and let my life reflect Your light to others. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Go deeper: a SOAP study prompt
Pick one verse above and write: - Scripture: copy the verse by hand. - Observation: what does it say? Who is speaking, to whom? - Application: what does it mean for you today? - Prayer: turn it into a two-line prayer.
New to this method? See our Bible study guide or pick a Bible reading plan.
Study Psalm 19 slowly with the SOAP Bible Study Journal · Memorize a sunrise verse with the Scripture Memory Cards · Print a free Bible coloring page for a sunny afternoon
Frequently asked questions
What does the Bible say about the sun?
The Bible says God created the sun to give light, mark time and bring the seasons (Genesis 1:14-16), and that it praises Him: "Praise ye him, sun and moon" (Psalm 148:3). It warns against worshipping the sun (Deuteronomy 4:19), records days when the sun stood still or its shadow went back, and uses it as a picture of God's goodness: "the LORD God is a sun and shield" (Psalm 84:11).
Who is the Sun of righteousness in the Bible?
The phrase comes from Malachi 4:2, the last chapter of the Old Testament. Christians have long understood it as a promise of Jesus Christ, who brings healing and light. Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, used a similar picture when he said that "the dayspring from on high" (Luke 1:78) had visited us. The carol Hark! The Herald Angels Sing sings of Jesus as the Sun of Righteousness.
Was there a solar eclipse when Jesus died?
Luke records that "the sun was darkened" (Luke 23:45) for about three hours while Jesus was on the cross (Mark 15:33). It was probably not an ordinary solar eclipse: Jesus died at Passover, which falls at full moon, and a solar eclipse can only happen at new moon. The Gospels present the darkness as a sign from God. See Bible verses about Good Friday.
What does God making the sun rise on the evil and the good mean?
Jesus said God "maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust" (Matthew 5:45). He was teaching us to love our enemies. God's daily kindness, like sunshine and rain, falls on everyone, and His children should be generous in the same way. See Bible verses about loving your enemy.
Sources: All Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (KJV), public domain in the United States. References were checked against the KJV text from bible-api.com.
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