Earth vs. the ‘Let There Be Light!’ Big Bang.

[miamited]

I understand and I agree with what you said. I was just expressing my views about creation and also sharing a mistake I have seen Christians make around non Christians. Maybe someone might remember that if ever in a future situation.

Hi mary,

Sounds fair, and I'd agree.

God bless you
In Christ, ted

 

[mark kennedy]

Earth verses the big bang is the epic, David and Goliath battle, of God’s Creation story. God created Earth first, then the ‘Big Bang’, ‘Let There Be Light!’. Atheist scientists hate this part of God’s Creation story and disallow the thought of earth being created apart from their ‘Big Bang’. The thing is, for us, one week’s time, creationists, the way God explains it, we have two separate events. Two separate events allows for Time Dilation, big time!, in God’s Creation of everything that exists.

God created the earth. Earth existed for a while before light was created by God. God ‘s ‘Let There Be Light!’ is the ‘Big Bang’ going off.

I can't really get into the rest, Genesis 1:1 says God created the heavens and the earth, 'in the beginning', it doesn't say when exactly. Here's a scenario, God made the heavens and the earth and there was the Big Bang that included everything in the universe. The sun, moon, stars and of course earth. Then, sometime later, perhaps billions of years later, God decided to do creation week. It might have been minutes or it could have been billions of years. That's not even the best part, what God did here he might being doing across the galaxies.

It's not that complicated, God spoke and BANG, there it was. The Big Bang is actually based on the fact that everything is expanding and moving away from everything gradually. The model is just a projection backwards. It fits perfectly with the Biblical narrative as far as I can tell and the best part, maybe God is doing the creation thing all over the universe and we get to see the next time.

Grace and peace,
Mark

 

[paulmojo]

God made the heavens and the earth and there was the Big Bang that included everything in the universe. The sun, moon, stars and of course earth. Then, sometime later, perhaps billions of years later, God decided to do creation week. It might have been minutes or it could have been billions of years.

Hi Mark, as I said in my original post, If we take the Hebrew calendar as Gods calendar the evening and the morning one day, one day means one day, any doubts we only need go to Exodus 20:8 and 11 "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. In order for the Universe to be millions or billions of years old, it would have had to be in existence before the earth, Genesis 1:16 says otherwise, God made two great lights--the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. And there was evening, and there was morning--the fourth day. So the Sun, Moon and stars which make up the Universe were not around until the 4th day, that also knocks out the big bang theory. Blessings

 

[Armoured]

Earth verses the big bang is the epic, David and Goliath battle, of God’s Creation story. God created Earth first, then the ‘Big Bang’, ‘Let There Be Light!’. Atheist scientists hate this part of God’s Creation story and disallow the thought of earth being created apart from their ‘Big Bang’. The thing is, for us, one week’s time, creationists, the way God explains it, we have two separate events. Two separate events allows for Time Dilation, big time!, in God’s Creation of everything that exists.

God created the earth. Earth existed for a while before light was created by God. God ‘s ‘Let There Be Light!’ is the ‘Big Bang’ going off. All of a sudden, next to earth, was the mass of one septillion stars on the head of a needle. Some say that God is not powerful enough to accelerate a planet the size of earth to light speed. I say, God popping into existence the mass of one septillion stars on the head of a needle is, light speed for earth accomplished! The gravitational pull of the mass of one septillion stars, on the head of a needle, is enough force to put earth into light speed, immediately. Or God can simply have created earth into existence already traveling at the speed of light. Science tells us that empty space probably flowed out into existence in front of the Big Bang. There is earth, traveling at the speed of light, through empty space, riding the wave of empty space coming into existence. Surfs up Dude!

With the explosion of the big bang, now earth has a light source to revolve next to, and thus day and night, equaling the passage of time; or in other words, days going by and the passage of time. God’s clock, as well as our clock on earth, even scientists with theoretical starships, is our revolving earth past a light source. God did not put the sun and stars into earth’s sky until the fourth day of creation. For four days, the 'Big Bang' was earth's, day vs night, light source. Using Time Dilation, the earth, traveling at the speed of light, and the big bang, traveling at a much slower velocity, then billions of years of star formation can occur in four days. This is Time Dilation. It only makes sense for God to do it this way. The explosion of the ‘Big Bang’ needs time to cool off before God inserts earth into the ‘big bang’ Cosmos. Besides that, even traveling at the speed of light, light is going to need some time to travel the billions of miles from the stars to earths target area of our sun’s orbit. So earth traveling at, or near, the speed of light, only makes sense for God to do it this way, while billions of years of star formation come into existence, for every day/night rotation on earth.

After a couple days on earth, which equates to many billions of years at the lower velocity of the big bang, earth enters into the the big bang debris field. Stars have already been born, lived, went super nova, and died in this debris area. Remember, earth, traveling near the speed of light is only seeing days go by while the big bang Cosmos has already experienced many billions of years of elapsing time, due to Time Dilation. Earth is absorbing some of this, billions of years old, debris like bugs on a windshield. The reason earth looks five billion years old is due to this, bugs on a windshield, effect on young earth that was born before the big bang, traveling through the billions of years of debris of the big bang. Earth herself is only days old while the debris she is runing into and absorbing is billions of years old. This is Time Dilation.

Finally, earth is captured by our sun’s gravitational pull and imprisoned in our sun’s orbit, on the fourth day of creation. A couple days go by on earth and God put man on earth. And God said, ‘It is good!’.

Anything can happen when God and Time Dilation are involved.

Creationists are not asking atheist scientists to say that this is the way it happened. Creationists are only asking atheist scientists to confirm that seven days of creation by God is a plausable and acceptable theory.

Time dilation and space flight​

Time dilation would make it possible for passengers in a fast-moving vehicle to travel further into the future while aging very little, in that their great speed slows down the rate of passage of on-board time. That is, the ship's clock (and according to relativity, any human traveling with it) shows less elapsed time than the clocks of observers on earth. For sufficiently high speeds the effect is dramatic. For example, one year of travel might correspond to ten years at home. Indeed, a constant 1 g acceleration would permit humans to travel through the entire known Universe in one human lifetime. The space travelers could return to Earth billions of years in the future. A scenario based on this idea was presented in the novel Planet of the Apes by Pierre Boulle.

Quoted From: Wikipedia Time Dilation


​

You are aware that the person who postulated the Big Bang theory was a devout Catholic monk, right?

 

[StevenMerten]

Actually, you should refer to God's creation as the six day creation and not the seven day creation because God created everything in six literal 24 hour days and not in seven days. God rested (stopped) from his work on the 7th day. I heard a Christian artist sing a song (talking about the creation) and they made the mistake by saying that God created everything in seven days; But that is simply not true.

Anyways, the words "evening and the morning" lets us know that these are 24 hour days being spoken of within the six day creation and not long periods of time. You have to do gymnastic twists with the words "evening and morning" all because you favor outside worldy ideas over what the Bible actually says plainly.
...

Hello Jason,
If the Sun had not been created till the fourth day of creation, how do you know that the first four days of creation were, our present day, 24 hours? Without the sun yet created in the first four days of creation, what do you think the 'Let There Be Light', light source was? I think what scientists see as the 'big bang' is God saying 'Let There Be Light'. I think the earth was rotating night and day in front of the big bang. What speed the earth was rotating, with out the gravetational pull of our sun, is still open for interpetation.

What do you think of Time Dilation? Do you understand that, scientifically, the earth can only be days old while billions of years of star formation come into existence. As long as earth is crusing near the speed of light, billions of years can be going by at lower velocities. Stars need time to cool and light needs time to travel from the stars. God using time dilation during creation could aline science with Genisis. What do you think?

 

[StevenMerten]

You are aware that the person who postulated the Big Bang theory was a devout Catholic monk, right?

Hello Armoured,
Yes, I am aware of that. I think we discussed this. I am on board with the 'big bang' as being God saying, 'Let There Be Light'. Earth was created before, and then along side the big bang. Do you understand Time Dilation. Depending on velocity, Earth can be only thousands of years created in a universe with stars which have had billions of years of elapsing time. Do you understand how Time Dilation works?

 

[Armoured]

Hello Armoured,
Yes, I am aware of that. I think we discussed this. I am on board with the 'big bang' as being God saying, 'Let There Be Light'. Earth was created before, and then along side the big bang. Do you understand Time Dilation. Depending on velocity, Earth can be only thousands of years created in a universe with stars which have had billions of years of elapsing time. Do you understand how Time Dilation works?

I understand enough. I'm the one who pointed out to you that shining a flashlight away from you doesn't stop time and that there's no static universal background other day.

 

[dqhall]

I sat in a college classroom and learned the earth is billions of years old. I saw evidence of an earth that was much older than one could determine by counting the generations in the OT. This evidence does not negate the existence of a creator God. It only makes me understand Genesis was written by man and man is not perfect.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

Hello Jason,
If the Sun had not been created till the fourth day of creation, how do you know that the first four days of creation were, our present day, 24 hours? Without the sun yet created in the first four days of creation, what do you think the 'Let There Be Light', light source was? I think what scientists see as the 'big bang' is God saying 'Let There Be Light'. I think the earth was rotating night and day in front of the big bang. What speed the earth was rotating, with out the gravetational pull of our sun, is still open for interpetation.

What do you think of Time Dilation? Do you understand that, scientifically, the earth can only be days old while billions of years of star formation come into existence. As long as earth is crusing near the speed of light, billions of years can be going by at lower velocities. Stars need time to cool and light needs time to travel from the stars. God using time dilation during creation could aline science with Genisis. What do you think?

Alaska can still have darkness for many days and yet they still have an evening and a morning. When we say evening and morning to a person, we know that it is a 24 hour period of time. Nowhere in the history of writing was an evening and morning in reference to a day not in reference to a small set amount of hours. To interpret the text some other way means we can start to look at other parts of the Bible that refer to a 24 hours as not being 24 hours. For example: Do we interpret that Jesus was resurrected in 3 literal 24 hours or do we struggle with the text to think that it might have been longer? No. You just accept that it was 24 hours because that is what it says. But because you favor worldly science over what is written in Scripture, you are struggling to accept what the text plainly says. I would suggest that you ask God about it and ask Him what He really meant. Ask Him to lead you to the truth on this within His Word.


...

 

[Angelfire70]

Does it really matter?

Wolfe, it might if you develop an interest in sharing God's word with the non believer ... Big Bang and evolution are commonly assumed by the non believer and still being taught in school as fact, not theory. It's amazing how many Aethiests will swear on evolution when it was debunked in the 1800's and even Darwin wasn't sure! If you do have further interest, Lee Strobel is a highly respected and sought after aethiest turned Christian speaker/ journalist. His "Case For A Creator" book published in 2004 is one of the tried and trusted resources on the subject. God Bless!

 

[expos4ever]

Depending on velocity, Earth can be only thousands of years created in a universe with stars which have had billions of years of elapsing time. Do you understand how Time Dilation works?

Perhaps you did not say exactly what you wanted to say but I would be stunned if what you say here is correct.

Let's all be honest with each other: no one here is qualified as an authority on quantum physics, general relativity, or other relevant disciplines.

But there are people who are. And it is wildly implausible to imagine that you - or anyone else here including me for that matter - has discovered some sort of "loophole" that makes a 6000 or 10000 year old plausible when the clear consensus of the experts is that the earth is billions of years old.

 

[mark kennedy]

Hi Mark, as I said in my original post, If we take the Hebrew calendar as Gods calendar the evening and the morning one day, one day means one day, any doubts we only need go to Exodus 20:8 and 11 "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. In order for the Universe to be millions or billions of years old, it would have had to be in existence before the earth, Genesis 1:16 says otherwise, God made two great lights--the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. And there was evening, and there was morning--the fourth day. So the Sun, Moon and stars which make up the Universe were not around until the 4th day, that also knocks out the big bang theory. Blessings

I sat in a college classroom and learned the earth is billions of years old. I saw evidence of an earth that was much older than one could determine by counting the generations in the OT. This evidence does not negate the existence of a creator God. It only makes me understand Genesis was written by man and man is not perfect.

I understand that day means a regular 24 hour day but the passage doesn't say God created the sun, moon and stars on day four. What it says is that they were formed and set. The word being translated 'created' is constructed in a form where it is used only of God, only God can create in the sense of bara. The second word used, translated 'made', is used on an existing creation that God, still performing a miracle, is crafting and forming. What is going on here is God is working on the atmosphere so that the sun moon and stars are regularly visible from the surface of the earth.

The phrase, 'heaven and the earth', is a Hebrew expression meaning the universe. All we really get from this passage is that the cosmos and earth were created, 'in the beginning'. The perspective of creation week is from the surface of the earth, starting with the Spirit of God hovering over the deep (Gen. 1:2). In the chapter there are three words used for God's work in creation. The first is 'created' ('bara' H1254) a very precise term used only of God.

Create ‘bara’ (H1254 בָּרָא bârâ) - 'This verb has profound theological significance, since it has only God as it’s subject. Only God can create in the sense implied by bara. The verb expresses the idea of creation out of nothing...(Vines Expository Dictionary)
​

It is used once to describe the creation of the universe (Gen 1:1), then again to describe the creation of life (Gen 1:21). Finally, in the closing verses, it is used three times for the creation of Adam and Eve (Gen. 1:27). The word translated, 'made' (asah 6213), has a much broader range of meaning and is used to speak of the creation of the 'firmament' (Gen 1:7), the sun, moon and stars (Gen 1:16), procreation where offspring are made 'after his/their kind' (Gen 1:25) and as a general reference to creation in it's vast array (Gen 1:31).

Made ‘asah’(H6213) "A primitive root; to do or make, in the broadest sense and widest application" (Gen 1:7, Gen 1:16, Gen 1:25, Gen 1:31, Isa. 41:20, 43:7, 45:7, 12, Amos 4:13). (Strong’s Dictionary). "The verb, which occurs over 2600 times in the Old Testament, is used as a synonym for “create” only about 60 times…only when asah is parallel to bara…can we be sure that it implies creation." (Vine 52).​

Then there is a third term when God 'set' (nathan H2414), the lights of the sun, moon and stars so that their light is reqularly visible from the surface of the earth. In this way the narrative shifts from the very precise word for 'created' to the more general 'made', and then the much broader use of 'set'.

Set (nathan H5414) A primitive root; to give, used with greatest latitude of application (Gen 1:17, Gen 9:13, Gen 18:8, Gen 30:40, Gen 41:41). Elsewhere translated ‘put’, ‘make’, ‘cause’, etc.
​

I mean think about it, does it make any sense that God creates the 'heavens and earth' on day one and waits until day four to get around to putting anything in it except an unformed earth? It makes a lot more sense and the language suggests that God didn't need to change the actual sun, moon and stars on day four. The actual work of creation 'made' and 'set' them by adjusting the atmosphere to make them regularly visible.

The passage doesn't say God created the sun, moon and stars, God says to let the light shine on the earth:

And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. (Gen. 1:14:15)
​

So how does God accomplish this? God 'forms' and 'set' things in the atmosphere to make it possible:

And God made (asah’H6213) two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made (asah’H6213) the stars also. And God set (nathan H5414) them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, (Gen. 1:16,17)
​

That's taken directly from how the text literally reads. While this may seem a little technical it is helpful to learn some of the literary features because there is a subtle progression here. The language is actually very precise and a lot more consistent with natural science then we have been led to believe.

Perhaps you did not say exactly what you wanted to say but I would be stunned if what you say here is correct.

Let's all be honest with each other: no one here is qualified as an authority on quantum physics, general relativity, or other relevant disciplines.

But there are people who are. And it is wildly implausible to imagine that you - or anyone else here including me for that matter - has discovered some sort of "loophole" that makes a 6000 or 10000 year old plausible when the clear consensus of the experts is that the earth is billions of years old.

The universe may well be billions of years old along with the sphere we inhabit and life was created 6,000 years ago. As far as life evolving over billions of years science has not been able to explain how this is even possible. The most popular scenario is called the RNA World scenario and it is riddled with major problems

The RNA World scenario is critiqued in a peer reviewed journal it says of it: The RNA world hypothesis: the worst theory of the early evolution of life except for all the others. That's not just a quote, it's the actual title. It quotes another serious review of the theory that calls it a 'popular fantasy' :

“I, for one, have never subscribed to this view of the origin of life, and I am by no means alone. The RNA world hypothesis is driven almost entirely by the flow of data from very high technology combinatorial libraries, whose relationship to the prebiotic world is anything but worthy of “unanimous support”. There are several serious problems associated with it, and I view it as little more than a popular fantasy” (Primordial soup or vinaigrette: did the RNA world evolve at acidic pH? Biol Direct. 2012)​

From a biosynthetic – as well as, arguably, evolutionary – perspective, DNA is a modified RNA, and so the chicken-and-egg dilemma of “which came first?” boils down to a choice between RNA and protein. (The RNA world hypothesis: the worst theory of the early evolution of life except for all the others. Biol Direct. 2012)
​

Well of course there are major objections from a scientific perspective:

RNA is too complex a molecule to have arisen prebiotically
RNA is inherently unstable
Catalysis is a relatively rare property of long RNA sequences only
The catalytic repertoire of RNA is too limited
​

(See Discussion: The RNA world hypothesis: the worst theory of the early evolution of life except for all the others. Biol Direct. 2012)​

Which sets up my favorite line from the paper:

Take, for example, Charles Kurland in his 2010 piece in Bioessays, which is utterly scathing of the RNA world hypothesis and its fellow travelers: “The RNA world hypothesis has been reduced by ritual abuse to something like a creationist mantra”. (Biol Direct. 2012)
​

But of course it is, it's a slam dunk and you don't have to cite a single creationist to make the argument. An old earth and old universe is irrelevant the doctrine of creation and science has no explanation for the origin of life apart from God doing what Genesis one says he did. God created the universe, 'in the beginning', it could have been thousands it could have been billions of years ago. Then God created life in general and man in particular about 6000 years ago which explains how everything looks so old and the radiometric dating is so unreliable. The living systems are being fossilized, literally mineralized in an earth that has been here for billions of years.

Grace and peace,
Mark

 

[mark kennedy]

Alaska can still have darkness for many days and yet they still have an evening and a morning. When we say evening and morning to a person, we know that it is a 24 hour period of time. Nowhere in the history of writing was an evening and morning in reference to a day not in reference to a small set amount of hours. To interpret the text some other way means we can start to look at other parts of the Bible that refer to a 24 hours as not being 24 hours.

In the Old Testament day simply means day that vast majority of the time:

The KJV translates Strong's H3117 in the following manner: day (2,008x), time (64x), chronicles (with H1697) (37x), daily (44x), ever (18x), year (14x), continually (10x), when (10x), as (10x), while (8x), full 8 always (4x), whole (4x), alway (4x), miscellaneous (44x). (Strong’s BLB)​

There is special emphasis on the expression 'evening and morning', an even stronger indication that what is meant here is a normal 24 hour day:

H3117 - yowm: Day (as opposed to night). day (24 hour period). as defined by evening and morning in Genesis 1 (Outline of Biblical Usage)​

It is used 2,287 times, 2008 times it's just a normal day and translated accordingly for good reason, that's what it means. In Genesis 1 when it refers to the six days of creation it clearly indicate by saying, 'there was evening and morning' that it's a normal 24 hour day. That is clear from the text.

Something considered an exception is the 'Day of the Lord', The Book of Zechariah describes a single day that apparently goes on forever, no morning or evening, no seasons. It's describing the eternal state, but it's accomplished on a single day:

And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark: But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light. And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be. (Zech. 14:7-8)​

It literally says, ‘it shall be 'one' (‘echad ʼechâd אֶחָד H259) day’. That’s from the normal Hebrew number 1 indicating a single day.

For example: Do we interpret that Jesus was resurrected in 3 literal 24 hours or do we struggle with the text to think that it might have been longer? No. You just accept that it was 24 hours because that is what it says. But because you favor worldly science over what is written in Scripture, you are struggling to accept what the text plainly says. I would suggest that you ask God about it and ask Him what He really meant. Ask Him to lead you to the truth on this within His Word.

That's kind of a tricky one but the usual explanation is that any part of a day is considered a day. So Jesus dies later Friday just before dusk, he is in the tomb all day Saturday, then Sunday he is resurrected. There is another possibility that simply says that Jesus ate Passover early but that one is a little bit awkward to work with. Very often the context is important, day can mean different things and in some cases might just be an expression or maybe not even a whole day. That would be an exception not the rule.

Grace and peace,
Mark

 

[JacksBratt]

Earth verses the big bang is the epic, David and Goliath battle, of God’s Creation story. God created Earth first, then the ‘Big Bang’, ‘Let There Be Light!’.

This would assume that God needed light to cause the "big bang" or whatever you would describe it as, when He "created the heavens and the earth". Which was the very first thing we are told that He did.

God ‘s ‘Let There Be Light!’ is the ‘Big Bang’ going off.

Who says?... Who says that "Let there be light" is the Big Bang going off?

I say.... "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth".... BANG.

If there ever was an event that could be called the "Big Bang", that was it.

 

[mark kennedy]

This would assume that God needed light to cause the "big bang" or whatever you would describe it as, when He "created the heavens and the earth". Which was the very first thing we are told that He did.

Who says?... Who says that "Let there be light" is the Big Bang going off?

I say.... "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth".... BANG.

If there ever was an event that could be called the "Big Bang", that was it.

The Big Bang is exactly what you would expect from a spontaneous act of creation, God spoke and BANG there it is. Creation week is separate from the Big Bang, the creation of the universe or the 'heavens and the earth' were previous, perhaps minutes, perhaps billions of years previous. The doctrine of creation isn't effected in any way. So, I agree with regards to the Big Bang but the 'let there be light' was the first day of creation.:

Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day. (Gen. 1:4-5)
​

At the time when creation week started the earth was covered in water and thick clouds:

“Or who shut in the sea with doors,
When it burst forth and issued from the womb;
When I made the clouds its garment,
And thick darkness its swaddling band; (Job 38:8,9)
​

Before day one of creation week there was no evening or morning because the earth was in utter darkness. I think God just parted the clouds enough so light could get in, he would continue to work on the atmosphere, 'firmament' through day four.

Grace and peace,
Mark

 

[Bible Highlighter]

In the Old Testament day simply means day that vast majority of the time:

The KJV translates Strong's H3117 in the following manner: day (2,008x), time (64x), chronicles (with H1697) (37x), daily (44x), ever (18x), year (14x), continually (10x), when (10x), as (10x), while (8x), full 8 always (4x), whole (4x), alway (4x), miscellaneous (44x). (Strong’s BLB)​

There is special emphasis on the expression 'evening and morning', an even stronger indication that what is meant here is a normal 24 hour day:

H3117 - yowm: Day (as opposed to night). day (24 hour period). as defined by evening and morning in Genesis 1 (Outline of Biblical Usage)​

It is used 2,287 times, 2008 times it's just a normal day and translated accordingly for good reason, that's what it means. In Genesis 1 when it refers to the six days of creation it clearly indicate by saying, 'there was evening and morning' that it's a normal 24 hour day. That is clear from the text.

Something considered an exception is the 'Day of the Lord', The Book of Zechariah describes a single day that apparently goes on forever, no morning or evening, no seasons. It's describing the eternal state, but it's accomplished on a single day:

And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark: But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light. And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be. (Zech. 14:7-8)​

It literally says, ‘it shall be 'one' (‘echad ʼechâd אֶחָד H259) day’. That’s from the normal Hebrew number 1 indicating a single day.



That's kind of a tricky one but the usual explanation is that any part of a day is considered a day. So Jesus dies later Friday just before dusk, he is in the tomb all day Saturday, then Sunday he is resurrected. There is another possibility that simply says that Jesus ate Passover early but that one is a little bit awkward to work with. Very often the context is important, day can mean different things and in some cases might just be an expression or maybe not even a whole day. That would be an exception not the rule.

Grace and peace,
Mark

"Evening and morning" is not a stronger indication that the word "day" is 24 hours it simply means that IT IS 24 hours. The only reason somebody would want to make the day in Genesis say something different is if outside ideas were to force their minds into thinking it could not possibly mean that. That is the only reason. For one's decision from outside sources is what is influencing them and it is not some understanding they gained from simply reading God's Word all on it's own. Oh, and there is plenty of evidences that support a Young Earth, as well. Most people simpy do not want to accept that because they want to fit in with the world.


...

 

[mark kennedy]

"Evening and morning" is not a stronger indication that the word "day" is 24 hours it simply means that IT IS 24 hours. The only reason somebody would want to make the day in Genesis say something different is if outside ideas were to force their minds into thinking it could not possibly mean that. That is the only reason. For one's decision from outside sources is what is influencing them and it is not some understanding they gained from simply reading God's Word all on it's own. Oh, and there is plenty of evidences that support a Young Earth, as well. Most people simpy do not want to accept that because they want to fit in with the world.


...

I pretty much agree, the thing about Genesis one is that there is no figurative language, no 'like' or 'as', no literary basis of a comparison thus no figurative interpretation. The phrase, 'evening and morning' is a part of the literary genre, it's actually poetic prose which gives it a rhyme and meter making it easier to speak and memorize. It's also just how the ancient Hebrews wrote and I suspect how they talked and especially how they taught people. The Levites had that sole responsibility of teaching the Law, at least three times a year where the reading of the Law was required and attendance was mandatory they would read it to all the people. There were were six Levitical cities of refuge which were meant to be centers of learning the Law, they didn't inherit land they received those cities and the tithes and burnt offerings. BTW, Moses was a Levite, as well as a prophet.

As far as a young earth I have no problem with a young or an old earth, from a literal reading and as a doctrinal perspective it's irrelevant. The Hebrew Scriptures have no astronomy, no geology and no cosmology apart from original creation. When it comes to the creation of life in general and man in particular there is an unbroken timeline and a profound theological principle that transcends all of Scripture. I think they are running us in circles with this on purpose, they want us at odds with anything scientific or naturalistic and it little more then theatrics. The only serious issue with natural science is biology and genetics as it relates to natural history and Scripture dovetails beautifully with the life sciences. From the RNA World to the three fold expansion of the human brain from that of apes the Darwinian has nothing but unanswered questions, recapitulation scenarios and fallacious rhetoric.

Most importantly and I have every confidence the Scriptures bear this out in no uncertain terms. A sound exposition with exegetical word searches and grammatical construction indicate that God created the universe, life in general and man in particular and everything else was 'made', 'formed' and 'set' from previously existing material. I have neither the motivation nor the slightest compulsion to compromise with worldly academics with regards to the history, historicity or the content of Scripture. I find their arguments to be fallacious, presuppositional, illogical and factitious. What I'm telling you is from a literal reading of the text based on sound exposition, Hermeneutics and the best lexicon and dictionary resources available. I would not compromise with any part of the testimony of Scripture based on anything outside the Scriptures themselves.

What I've learned over the years is that the history of the Biblical narratives have given us our true history and Darwinian evolution is mythography on an epic scale.

Grace and peace,
Mark

Grace and peace,
Mark

 

[DamianWarS]

Earth verses the big bang is the epic, David and Goliath battle, of God’s Creation story. God created Earth first, then the ‘Big Bang’, ‘Let There Be Light!’...

Hebrew is a very concrete language and it doesn't use abstracts like English. The text has been interpreted into an abstract worldview to make it what we would consider more readable. For example the Hebrew word for "create" is more like "fattened". So Go did not create the Earth first he fattened it.

Day 1-3 God spoke things into existence, then day 4-6 he fattened or filled up those things he just spoke. It doesn't fit very well as a science book but I have a feeling it's not suppose to.

 

[D2wing]

I think it is important to realize that there are two types of time. We live in temporal time, time that moves in a measured pace and we are not able to escape it. However God lives in eternal time. Time without beginning or end, without measurement and he is everywhere on the time line at once. I believe he created all temporal time at once. He knew all history from the beginning of our time.
The big bang is when he created temporal time. We can only perceive temporal time. God is not limited by measured time. Time is what he says it is.
according to a book I am reading by a Christian, Hugh Ross, the Earth had to collide with matter from a decayed star to have some of the elements needed for life.
I am a firm believer in the big bang as it explains my idea on time since we know God existed before the beginning. And in the beginning there was no distance, no speed, and no time. Hence everything that was, was in in one small space.
The Mystery of time is not explained. How billions of years could elapse in a day or six days. That God could create the Earth in six days or an instant is beyond question. It is only a question of how he did it. That he could compress time much like an author of a book or a movie jumps around in time should not be hard to understand. That at the edge of the Universe it is still the first day should not be hard to understand. To us time is linear. Even that is not actually true entirely.
At this point, it is still a mystery and I am happy with that. But that there are possible explanations that fit both discoveries and the Bible should not be disregarded out of hand. It says that God doesn't regard days the same as we do. It is possible for him to make billions of days occur in one day our time. Time may not be linear at all. I don't think we should get all hot about it because no of us were there. And likely it will remain a mystery until we see face to face.

 

[Jonathan Mathews]

If you want to find the Truth, which as always, is a marriage of God's Word and true Science, research these topics:

1) "Water Splitting with Light"
2) "Sonal-Luminescence" (just reverse the process)
3) "What are stars made of?"
4) "Where does light come from?"

NOTE: Secular Canadian physicists experimenting with splitting water molecules with light have proven that if the Universe's entire Energy suddenly "exploded" in the form of Light and Sound over a Universal "sea" of water , the entire Universe, close to what we see now , could have come into being in as little as six 24-hour days.

Now re-read Genesis:

"..and Darkness covered the surface of the depths (universal ocean of water). And the Spirit of God hovered over the water (Universal ocean of water) and God said (sound) "Let there be light" (light)......"

Get the picture?