For thus says the Lord,

Who created the heavens,

Who is God,

Who formed the earth and made it,

Who has established it,

Who did not create it in vain,

Who formed it to be inhabited:

I am the Lord, and there is no other.

Isaiah 45:18

In vain, tohu, Strong’s #8414.  A formless, chaotic mess, a waste, a worthless thing, emptiness and desolation, for no purpose, for nothing. First Mention is in Genesis 1:2, “The earth was without form [tohu], and void [bohu].” These two rhyming words are used to describe a scene of disorder, confusion, and lack of arrangement.

However, the Lord brought order out of chaos, as Genesis (and our present Earth) testifies. Tohu in other places refers to a howling waste, a wilderness, a scene of total disarray, desolation, and barrenness. Tohu represents “sheer emptiness” which stands in stark contrast to order and balance.