Here's my view, based on scripture, which I'll quote heavily.
God the Father, the Holy Spirit, The Son and angels were present at creation.
Genesis 1:1-2 KJV
1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
The word God is Elohim, which is plural. See Strong's
H430 (Gods, angels.)
The earth was without form and void. See Strong's
H8414. (Formlessness. Empty space.) It didn't exist.
The Son (Jesus) is our creator.
Colossians 1:16-20 KJV
16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;
20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
God created light and darkness on the first day.
Genesis 1:3-5 KJV
3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
This is the start of day/night cycles, in other words, time; the first day. Note that the sun, moon and stars
weren't created until the fourth day, so we know God created light and darkness to separate night from day. From the start, we can see God's deliberate plan for 6 days of work, 1 day of rest. More on this later.
God spoke creation into existence.
Speaking things into existence doesn't take thousands or even millions of years. Each day, God spoke and His creation appeared.
God had a complete plan before creation.
Ephesians 1:4 KJV
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love.
Hebrews 4:1-5 KJV
1 Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.
2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.
3 For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.
4 For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works.
5 And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest.
Revelation 13:8 KJV
8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
The plan for the Sabbath and for us. The Son knew He would have to die for us, from before the foundation of the world.
God hallowed and sanctified the seventh day.
Genesis 2:1-4 KJV
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
4 These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.
Mark 2:27-28 KJV
27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:
28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.
Creation points forward, to Earth's history as it would unfold.
2 Peter 3:8 KJV But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
The first inclination is to take this verse to mean that creation actually took 6,000 years, but this makes no sense because Adam and Eve would've been 1,000 years old by the end of the first Sabbath rest. Adam's full life was 930 years.
Genesis 5:5 KJV And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
This shows us that the six days of creation were literal days, not thousands of years.
The creation week set an example for man, in the 6 day work week and the 1 day of rest. It also pointed forward to the entirety of Earth history.
Six days is six thousand years to God. One day is one thousand years to God.
The Millennial Week
Creation to Crucifixion: 4,000 years
Crucifixion to Second Coming: 2,000 years
Second Coming to Judgment: 1,000 years
6,000 years of work and 1,000 years of rest.
What is the work?
- God's case is made against Satan in the eyes of all created beings.
- Saving of as many as possible.
What is the rest?
- Sabbath rest.
- God rests His case.
- Jesus reigns as King.
- Satan is bound, sin is no more.
Of dire importance.
This would put us at the very end of the 6,000 years of Earth's history.
If Jesus was crucified in 31-33 AD, we're about a decade from the Second Coming! Jesus said He would come like a thief in the night, so it could be sooner!