We see that also in
Hebrews 1:10-12 tells us,
“Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old (
palaioo)
as doth a garment; And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed (
allasso)
: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail."
The "heaven and earth" written about here (and in a lot of NT passages) is referring to the covenant God made with Israel.
This quote in Hebrews is from:
Psalms 102:25-27 ~ Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. 26 They will perish, but You will endure; Yes, they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will change them, And they will be changed. 27 But You are the same, And Your years will have no end.
This quotation from Psalms speaks of the permanence and unchangeableness of the Messiah.
This section is dealing with Jesus' superiority over angels. The word for "
beginning" in Hebrews 1:10 is
arche, which simply means: "a commencement." It does not have to mean the beginning of time, but simply means the beginning of the thing under discussion, in this case the heaven and earth.
We're supposed to get our understanding of "heaven and earth" from the Old Testament. I've found these passages:
Deuteronomy 31:30 (NKJV) Then Moses spoke in the hearing of all the assembly of Israel the words of this song until they were ended.
Deuteronomy 32:1 (NKJV) "Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; And hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
In the song of Moses, God is speaking to
Israel. He calls them, "O heavens," and, "O earth." He is clearly not speaking to the physical heavens and earth, but to Israel.
In biblical apocalyptic language, "
heavens" can refer to governments and rulers, and "
earth" can refer to the nation of people. This can be seen in the book of Isaiah.
Isaiah 1:1-2 (NKJV) The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. 2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth! For the LORD has spoken: "I have nourished and brought up children, And they have rebelled against Me;
Here again, God is speaking to Judah and Jerusalem and he calls them, "O heavens" and "O earth."
Isaiah 1:10 (NKJV) Hear the word of the LORD, You rulers of Sodom; Give ear to the law of our God, You people of Gomorrah:
God is still talking to Israel and He calls them, "Sodom and Gomorrah." The literal Sodom and Gomorrah had been destroyed for some time. Here we see "rulers" used for "heavens" in verse 2, and "people" used for "earth."
So the terms "heaven and earth" can be used to speak of rulers and people of a nation. I don't believe the old testament was referring to a literal physical heaven and earth in these passages. Look at:
Isaiah 51:12-13 (NKJV) "I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you should be afraid Of a man who will die, And of the son of a man who will be made like grass? 13 And you forget the LORD your Maker, Who stretched out the heavens And laid the foundations of the earth; You have feared continually every day Because of the fury of the oppressor, When he has prepared to destroy. And where is the fury of the oppressor?
God is talking to Israel here. Is he talking to them about the creation of the physical world? Verse 13
sounds like the creation of the physical planet. But notice how
Youngs Literal Translation puts verse 13:
Isaiah 51:13 (YLT) And thou dost forget Jehovah thy maker, Who is stretching out the heavens, and founding earth, And thou dost fear continually all the day, Because of the fury of the oppressor, As he hath prepared to destroy. And where is the fury of the oppressor?
Notice that it is in the present tense. God is saying to Israel that He "is" stretching out the heavens and founding the earth. Was God still creating the physical creation? I don't think so.
Isaiah 51:14-16 (NKJV) The captive exile hastens, that he may be loosed, That he should not die in the pit, And that his bread should not fail. 15 But I am the LORD your God, Who divided the sea whose waves roared; The LORD of hosts is His name. 16 And I have put My words in your mouth; I have covered you with the shadow of My hand, That I may plant the heavens, Lay the foundations of the earth, And say to Zion, 'You are My people.'"
Do you see that the time of planting the heavens and laying the foundation of the earth that is referred to here, was performed by God when He
divided the sea (ver. 15),
and gave the law (ver. 16),
and said to Zion, "Thou art my people". What do those terms speak of?
God did this when He took the children of Israel out of Egypt, and formed them in the wilderness into a covenant nation. He planted the heavens and laid the foundation of the earth; that is, brought forth order, and government.
So, the term "heaven and earth" is used in Scripture for something other than the physical creation, it is used to speak of the nation Israel (in my belief).