As we have seen already, God's creation is fully covered in chapter 1, verse 1. "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Also, Satan's rebellion is covered in the first half of verse 2. "And the earth became waste and empty; and darkness was upon the surface of the deep." In verse 2a, there are five main points: the fact that the earth became something different from what it was originally; the waste and the emptiness; the darkness and the deep. Keep these five items in mind. After the earth was judged due to Satan's rebellion, it became waste and empty.
Darkness is another indication of judgment. Exodus 10:21-22 and Revelation 16:10 show that darkness is a result of God's judgment. There was darkness when God exercised His judgment upon Pharaoh, and there will be darkness when He exercises His judgment over the antichrist. Thus, the darkness in Genesis 1:2a points to God's judgment.
In addition, we know that light accompanies life and that darkness always signifies death. Where life is, there is light; where death is, there is darkness. The reverse is also true: where there is death, there is darkness. Thus, the darkness in Genesis 1:2 also signifies that the earth was under a condition of death.
The word "deep" means the deep water. In the Bible, water has two meanings and symbolizes two different things, one positive and the other negative. In the positive sense, water always signifies something living. The flowing water brings life to people and quenches their thirst. In the negative sense, water signifies death. For instance, when we were baptized in water, that water represented death. Also, the waters of the Red Sea and the waters of the River Jordan both represent death. The water mentioned in Genesis 1:2 doesn't represent life, but indicates death. Therefore, we conclude that the earth was under death. The earth not only was waste, empty, and meaningless, but was filled with death and was under death. In the midst of this situation, God came in.