If it were the case that the stars didn't come into existence until day 4, then that would be correct, yes, but instead I think what happened is like part of what
Isaac Newton thought (as quoted below), and in part this is from noticing the normal day/night cycle of Earth began in day 1, but
that's not the only reason.
-->The stars, sun and moon became
visible on day 4 in the vision is what fits the best of all to all the various parts put together. So on day 4 the sun which already existed was now finally directly visible due to a first-time clear sky so that they could be seen from the perspective of being on the surface of the Earth. (with clouds you get day/night cycle, without seeing the sun that is causing the day/night cycle as the Earth rotates) Previous to day 4 they were not shown in the vision, which would be from the perspective of being on the Earth (not up in space), but the sun, moon and stars did already exist it seems from
verse 1, in which the entire Universe comes into existence (in verse 1)... But you might like this:
Here's how Newton worded it:
(
Bolding added)
Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
Pg 450 of that book we find:
( from a letter written by Newton to Thomas Burnet in January 1680.):
(by 'vulgar' Newton seems to mean simply the typical notions of the common people, who are not scientists nor very mathematically inclined, etc.)
"As to Moses, I do not think his description of ye creation either philosophical or feigned, but that he described realities in a language artificially adapted to ye sense of ye vulgar. Thus when he speaks of two great lights, I suppose he means their apparent not real greatness. So when he tells us God placed these lights in ye firmament, he speaks I suppose of their apparent not real place, his business being not to correct the vulgar notions in matters philosophical, but to adapt a description of the creation as handsomely as he could to ye sense and capacity of ye vulgar. So when he tells us of two great lights, and ye stars made ye 4th day, I do not think their creation from beginning to end was done the 4th day, nor in any one day of ye creation, nor that Moses mentions their creation, as they were physicall bodies in themselves, some of them greater than the earth, and perhaps habitable worlds, but only as they were lights to this earth, so therefore though their creation could not physically [be] assigned to any one day, yet being a part of ye sensible creation which it was Moses’s design to describe, and it being his design to describe things in order according to the succession of days, allotting no more than one day to one thing, they were to be referred to some day or other, and rather to the 4th day than any other, if they [the] air then first became clear enough for them to shine thro’ it, and so put ye appearance of lights in ye firmament to enlighten the earth…”
Isaac Newton on the Mosaic Account of Creation
Since Newton famously wrote many religious tracks, and is such a towering figure in the modern age of science, he's a fun example to look to out of curiosity to learn what he thought.
From the article on
Isaac Newton's faith:
Newton’s Faith
For Newton the world of science was by no means the whole of life. He spent more time on theology than on science; indeed, he wrote about 1.3 million words on biblical subjects. Yet this vast legacy lay hidden from public view for two centuries until the auction of his nonscientific writings in 1936.
Newton’s understanding of God came primarily from the Bible, which he studied for days and weeks at a time. He took special interest in miracles and prophecy, calculating dates of Old Testament books and analyzing their texts to discover their authorship. In a manuscript on rules for interpreting prophecy, Newton noted the similar goals of the scientist and the prophecy expositor: simplicity and unity. He condemned the “folly of interpreters who foretell times and things by prophecy,” since the purpose of prophecy was to demonstrate God’s providence in ...
The Faith Behind the Famous: Isaac Newton
Newton is perhaps the single most towering figure in the early key steps to the establishment of modern science. And a very strong believer.
