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As an aside, one really needs to have a correct understanding of Genesis 1 to have a clear idea about many other Old Testament stories and passages. For example, only a correct understanding of the literary roots of Genesis 1 can reveal the full impact of the purpose and meaning behind the story of Noah's flood. Without going into great detail, creation—the defeat of "chaos" was accomplished through staving off the primordial stew of water in the form of erecting a barrier to keep the water out. In Genesis 9, God destroyed earth by opening the "windows in the sky" and letting all that watery chaos back in. The story of Noah's flood is no less than an un-creation in the ancient mindset.
Another—in my mind more interesting—example appears in Jeremiah 4. Beginning in v. 23, the prophet utters the following cry of lament:
"I look at the earth, It is unformed and void; At the skies, And their light is gone. I look at the mountains, They are quaking; And all the hills are rocking. I look: no man is left, And all the birds of the sky have fled. I look: the farm land is desert, And all its towns are in ruin — Because of Yahweh, Because of his blazing anger."
This is part of a larger prophecy contained in the whole chapter, and it was spoken over the city of Jerusalem during the Babylonian conquest. If you look closely, you can see a deliberate reversal of the story of Genesis 1 in the prophet's description. In essence, according to the ancient Hebrew mindset, the destruction of the Judean capital and the most holy place on earth, Solomon's temple, was akin to un-creation. This is not merely a description of the horrors of conquest, it is a reflection of a much deeper sentiment. The speaker is describing the end of the world—or, at least HIS world.
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