Two great lights, or, enlighteners, as the word properly signifies. The sun, which is really and considerably greater than the moon, or any of the stars, or the whole earth. And the moon, called here the lesser light, is greater than any of the stars, not really, but in appearance, and in clearness and light, in respect of which it is called great in this place, and both are much greater in efficacy and use than any of the stars. To rule the day; either,
1. To influence the earth and its fruits with heat or moisture, and to govern men's actions and affairs, which commonly are transacted by day; for the word day is sometimes put metonymically for the events of the day, as Proverbs 27:1 1 Corinthians 3:13. Or,
2. To regulate and manage the day; by its rise to begin it, by its gradual progress to carry it on, even to the mid-day, and by its declination and setting to impair and end it. Which seems most probable, because the moon is in like manner said to rule the night, which is meant of the time, and not of the actions or events of the night.