How Old Is The Earth

[o_mlly]

Job predates the first man and woman?

Dating the Book of Job is problematic since there is not a single allusion in Job to any event in Hebrew history. However, the work contains elements suggesting that the faith in Yahweh’s regency over the history of Israel had broken down and been replaced by the anxiety that followed the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC. Scholars also note that the book was known to Ben Sira (Ecclesiasticus 49:9), so it could scarcely be later than 250 BC. Therefore, exegetes range in their opinions dating the work from the sixth to the third century BC.

 

[BNR32FAN]

Exactly, and only God could have authored chapter one of Genesis, because man didn't witness the events. So it is written in accordance with how God perceives time.

Ok so you just abandoned your previous interpretation of Psalms 90 and 2 Peter 3:9?

What’s the purpose of Genesis 1?

 

[BNR32FAN]

Dating the Book of Job is problematic since there is not a single allusion in Job to any event in Hebrew history. However, the work contains elements suggesting that the faith in Yahweh’s regency over the history of Israel had broken down and been replaced by the anxiety that followed the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC. Scholars also note that the book was known to Ben Sira (Ecclesiasticus 49:9), so it could scarcely be later than 250 BC. Therefore, exegetes range in their opinions dating the work from the sixth to the third century BC.

Yeah to say it predates Genesis just doesn’t make any sense at all.

 

[SuperCow]

Ok so you just abandoned your previous interpretation of Psalms 90 and 2 Peter 3:9?

You'll have to be more specific as to how I did that, because I don't understand what you mean.

What’s the purpose of Genesis 1?

To provide early man and children a simplified story about the creation of life, the universe and the origin of man. Its purpose is not to be a scientific thesis. Its purpose is also not to be an itemized historical record.

The Old Testament is a record of the important events in mankind's history which led to the Messiah, Jesus. The New Testament is a record of the ministry of Jesus and the origins of the Christian faith.

The material details beyond Genesis 1 (and all the other events in the Bible that are debated) are not particularly important, which is why it is given one chapter out of 1189 chapters in 66 books.

 

[trophy33]

Why would I do that if I wasn’t confident in what I wrote?

My question was rather a rhetorical question. I understand you feel confident.

 

[trophy33]

I bet you’re not a Bible scholar either, but I’d also be willing to bet that you’d refute lectures given by Ellen White or John Calvin?

True, but it would be based on subjective interpretation - theology. While knowing the Hebrew cultural (or linguistic) context is something more objective and provable.

 

[trophy33]

Well you could read my refutation of the scholar you posted the video from. I gave specific reasons why I disagree with his lecture. Just because someone is a scholar doesn’t mean they’re right. There are seminary schools for every denomination under the sun, obviously just because they’re taught by scholars doesn’t mean that they’re all correct in their theology since they disagree with one another.

Yeah, I would respond similarly like to your post regarding Ellen White or Calvin. Theologians are (in their nature) subjective, while learning about the context and the culture of the biblical authors (or about textual families, translation theory...) is more factual, objective and not based on one's denomination.

 

[trophy33]

Lol He is God, is He not capable of doing these things if He wants to?

When God is described in ancient human terms and ways, is it not rather anthropomorphism than an exact description?

Another example:
"My own hand laid the foundations of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I summon them, they all stand up together."
Isaiah 48:13 (NIV)

Do you literally believe that God stretched the heavens with his right hand? Or that God even has hands like we do? Or that God literally summons them to their constellations?

If not, why do you then believe that He literally took a dust and formed a dusty statue and then breathed life into it? It seems to be the same style of writing to me.

 

[Neogaia777]

What’s the purpose of Genesis 1?

The chapter break of Genesis 1 should have been between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 2:4 as it is a quick summary/overview/quick fly by of any and all creations that are ever made from beginning to end, etc.

Genesis 2:5, and on, jumps right into when creation was already well, well into day 6, which is the day we are still on now, and will be until Jesus comes back, etc.

God Bless.

 

[trophy33]

Your point was how the Israelites would’ve interpreted the scriptures, my point was that it doesn’t matter how they interpreted them it matters what the scriptures say.

How can this work? How do you know what the scriptures say if you do not know what the author meant (and also what is actually the original text or which translation is the right one)?

It would lead to subjective interpretation of everything, i.e. every individual would determine for himself what the scriptures say and nothing could be judged to be objectively right or wrong.

 

[Neogaia777]

The chapter break of Genesis 1 should have been between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 2:4 as it is a quick summary/overview/quick fly by of any and all creations that are ever made from beginning to end, etc.

Genesis 2:5, and on, jumps right into when creation was already well, well into day 6, which is the day we are still on now, and will be until Jesus comes back, etc.

God Bless.

Day 7 begins when Jesus comes back, and will be the time of his kingdom/paradise on earth, and will be the start of God in the OT's rest until the end of day 7 or this entire creations age, etc. When, after that, this entire creation will be at/come to a complete end, and it will be the time of the second resurrection/judgement, when some (from both resurrections/judgements) will go to the Highest Heaven after that to exist with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit (or God in the OT) forever finally, but some will be recycled in a new creation below that of a new lesser heaven (or one still connected again to the new earth) and a new creation/earth (again), etc.

These are all forever, etc. Just as they have already been from forever already, etc. And these judgements were already decided from before the beginning of any of them already, etc, but will just be being revealed to us only in or at the/their proper time, etc.

And these "days" of God are "very, very long" also, in case you haven't caught that already, etc.

God Bless.

 

[Platte]

I said species, not animals. That includes plants, insects and sea life. You're speaking from a 21st century about 21st century hyper-environmentalists. That certainly doesn't cover everyone on the earth. In Asia, they eat dogs BTW.



So perhaps you are lucky to be living at a time and place where it isn't polluted. Not everyone is so lucky.

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I don't think anyone living today will ever know. Nobody in the distant past even knew what existed beyond the visible 6000+ stars and planets we can see. (If there was some unrecorded or lost knowledge in the past, it would still be less on balance than what w

You don’t think the purpose of Creation was to create man for God’s purpose of establishing his family with man (those who accept Christ) in the kingdom of Heaven?

But there was no distinguishing of said light into a day or night.

That’s what any said light shining on earth would do as the earth rotates

No, Genesis 1 is very specific in its language tense. God says [let something happen] and then the following phrase is what happened.

"The land produced vegetation..." It does not say "God created the land with vegetation", which is what would be required for it to have happened in one day.

I disagree. It says God said let the land bring forth grass and it was so. (It happened)
It doesn’t say God said let the land bring forth grass and it was later

When God tells the land to bring forth grass - that’s what it does. Immediately.

In my opinion, only the first two days could possibly be interpreted to have happened in 24 hour periods.

The only day I know of is 24 hours. When God says I created everything in 6 days and it’s repeated on multiple occasions in the Bible then one thing I know is God created everything in 6 days.

I don't think anyone living today will ever know. Nobody in the distant past even knew what existed beyond the visible 6000+ stars and planets we can see. (If there was some unrecorded or lost knowledge in the past, it would still be less on balance than what we know of today.)

Regardless, nobody living today will even be able to explore the closest star to us, let alone billions of stars we can't see. That doesn't sound like it's made for me, not that I begrudge God for perhaps having some interest in places outside of our planet. It's the height of arrogance to assume that everything we can see, no matter how large or distant, is for us.

The purpose of Creation was for God to establish his family with Man.

 

[Platte]

How can this work? How do you know what the scriptures say if you do not know what the author meant (and also what is actually the original text or which translation is the right one)?

It would lead to subjective interpretation of everything, i.e. every individual would determine for himself what the scriptures say and nothing could be judged to be objectively right or wrong

Very silly

 

[trophy33]

Very silly

Are you starting with these kinds of reactions, again?

 

[Platte]

Are you starting with your these kinds reactions, again?

Some of the things you say are just ridiculous. I mean come on. How can you read scripture if you don’t know what the author meant?

 

[trophy33]

Some of the things you say are just ridiculous. I mean come on. How can you read scripture if you don’t know what the author meant?

Try to think about what you just said and read my post again.

 

[Platte]

Try to think about what you just said and read my post again.

You have the Bible right in front of you giving you the exact message that God wants you to have and you discard the message over and over again. Maybe you should think about the big picture of what God (why did God create all of this and to what end) is doing and what the purpose of all of this is about before you post again. Ever heard the phrase: God said it, I believe it, and that settles it for me.

Do you think we are the first people to read the Bible? Jesus read the Bible and His words about it take the scriptures for what they say. Not the silliness you invoke.

 

[trophy33]

You have the Bible right in front of you giving you the exact message that God wants you to have and you discard the message over and over again. Maybe you should think about the big picture of what God (why did God create all of this and to what end) is doing and what the purpose of all of this is about before you post again. Ever heard the phrase: God said it, I believe it, and that settles it for me.

Do you think we are the first people to read the Bible? Jesus read the Bible and His words about it take the scriptures for what they say. Not the silliness you invoke.

I do not see much meaning in continuing this conversation with you. What you lack in knowledge, education and reasoning, you supplement with rudeness. Not interested.

 

[Platte]

I do not see much meaning in continuing this conversation with you. What you lack in knowledge, education and reasoning, you supplement with rudeness. Not interested.

The ridicule you have posted to those who take what the Bible says far exceeds my rudeness. But I am serious. Take a few days and think about what this is all about. Why did God create all this. What was his purpose. If you really want to understand what this Bible says then understand the context of its purpose. It does have a purpose - I hope you know that.

 

[Strong in Him]

You have the Bible right in front of you giving you the exact message that God wants you to have

But the Bible wasn't written in English.
And if we read it literally when the author did not intend it to be understood literally, we make it say something different.

I'm thinking of the Bible as a whole, not just Genesis 1.

Ever heard the phrase: God said it, I believe it, and that settles it for me.

First though, we have to find out what God said.

Some of the Bible includes pastoral letters written to churches that had asked specific questions, or had particular problems. Does that mean that Paul's words, to that church in that place, were God's command to all churches for all time? Which verses say that we are bound by the same advice that was given to a church in a different culture?
Some of the Bible is poetry; did the author expect us to take his poetic phrases, metaphors etc. literally?

Do you think we are the first people to read the Bible? Jesus read the Bible and His words about it take the scriptures for what they say.

We read the Bible in English; it was written in Hebrew/Greek; Jesus spoke Aramaic.
All of that was translated into Latin and then English. How do you know that the English words always accurately translate/express what the Hebrew/Greek said? How do you know that, if Paul is now, somehow, reading our English translations, he is not saying, "no, no, no; that is NOT what I meant"?

Not the silliness you invoke.

So you don't understand exegesis then?
You believe that when Paul said that widows under the age of 60 are gossiping busybodies and need no financial assistance from the church - that God has spoken and that settles the matter? (1 Timothy 5:9-14.) Or that Paul contradicted himself - women must be silent in church, but they may prophecy? Or that anyone who teaches circumcision and the law is preaching another Gospel and should emasculate themselves, but that the words of Scripture, which include the Jewish law, should be obeyed?