For the fourth-century bishop Basil the Great, the first pages of Genesis were not a puzzle to be solved but a doorway into wonder. Preached during Lent in the late 370s, The Hexaemeron is a series of nine sermons on the six days of creation - a journey from "In the beginning" to the making of the first human being. With a naturalist's eye and a poet's delight, Basil watches light spill out on the first day, reads the sky as a set by an unseen hand, and finds lessons in the smallest fish and the farthest star. This edition renders his famous homilies in clear, present-day English, making one of the great works of the early church as inviting to modern readers as it was to its first hearers. An introduction, glossary, and reading notes help orient newcomers, while faithful translation preserves the rhythm and warmth of Basil's voice. Discover why this ancient classic has inspired readers for over sixteen centuries. Part of The World Scriptures Library.