mentioned after the six, from its being
devoted to cessation from work.
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SECOND ARTICLE [I, Q. 74, Art. 2]

Whether All These Days Are One Day?

Objection 1: It would seem that all these days are one day. For it is
written (Gen. 2:4, 5): "These are the generations of the heaven and
the earth, when they were created, in the day that the Lord . . .
made the heaven and the earth, and every plant of the field, before
it sprung up in the earth." Therefore the day in which God made "the
heaven and the earth, and every plant of the field," is one and the
same day. But He made the heaven and the earth on the first day, or
rather before there was any day, but the plant of the field He made
on the third day. Therefore the first and third days are but one day,
and for a like reason all the rest.

Obj. 2: Further, it is said (Ecclus. 18:1): "He that liveth for ever,
created all things together." But this would not be the case if the
days of these works were more than one. Therefore they are not many
but one only.

Obj. 3: Further, on the seventh day God ceased from all new works.
If, then, the seventh day is distinct from the other days, it follows
that He did not make that day; which is not admissible.

Obj. 4: Further, the entire work ascribed to one day God perfected in
an instant, for with each work are the words (God) "said . . . . and
it was . . . done." If, then, He had kept back His next work to
another day, it would follow that for the remainder of a day He would
have ceased from working and left it vacant, which would be
superfluous. The day, therefore, of the preceding work is one with
the day of the work that follows.

_On the contrary,_ It is written (Gen. 1), "The evening and the
morning were the second day . . . the third day," and so on. But
where there is a second and third there are more than one. There was
not, therefore, only one day.

_I answer that,_ On this question Augustine differs from other
expositors. His opinion is that all the days that are called seven,
are one day represented in a sevenfold aspect (Gen. ad lit. iv, 22;
De Civ. Dei xi, 9; Ad Orosium xxvi); while others consider there were
seven distinct days, not one only. Now, these two opinions, taken as
explaining the literal text of Genesis, are certainly widely
different. For Augustine understands by the word "day," the knowledge
in the mind of the angels, and hence, according to him, the first day
denotes thei