Creation in Question (part 1/2: Six Days)

The problem posed by modern science to defenders of the “literal” interpretation of Genesis 1 asserts that six literal days of creation is incompatible with scientific evidence and reason. The argument can be summed up as follows: Most scientific evidence sets the age of the world at billions of years. The age of the universe is based on the speed of light and the distance of the stars as well as the rate of expansion of the universe. Early rocks have been dated in terms of radioactivity and set at billions of years old. Simply given the rate that salt runs into the sea and the amount of salt there would suggest multimillions of years.

First and foremost, the arguments in favor of an old aged universe all possess presuppositions that cannot be proven. For example, in radioactive dating, there are lead isotopes which can be measured at a known rate and then calculated to form the conclusion that many rocks in the earth’s crust are billions of years old. Though plausible, this simply cannot be proven. For one must assume at least two things to come to the conclusion that the world is billions of years old. First, it must be assumed that there were no lead deposits at the beginning. Second, one must assume that the rate of decay has been unchanged throughout its entire history. Neither can be proven; hence, there is no way to prove by radioactive dating that the world is billions of years old. Likewise, dating Earth based on salt and minerals is also plausible yet unable to be proven. Though the calculations might seem absolute, one must first assume that there were no salts and minerals in the ocean at the beginning and that the rate has not changed. In addition, a worldwide flood, such as the Bible describes, would certainly have changed the rate of deposits during that period. All of this is not to say that the universe is not billions of years old. It may be. However, the arguments in favor of great age all possess presuppositions that cannot be proven.

In favor of an old aged universe, a six-day creation would certainly be extremely difficult to believe if we accept that creation was completed in six successive, 24-hour periods of time. The usual meaning of the Hebrew word yom (“day”) is 24 hours; however, yom can also mean a span of time. The meaning in Genesis needs to be determined by context. In Genesis 1:5, a day means a short time period when there is light; however, day is also used at the end of the same verse to state that day means the entire duration which includes light and darkness. So which is it? In the examination of Genesis 1-2, yom is used of the whole of creation as is evident in Genesis 2:4: “This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day [yom] that the Lord God made earth and heaven.” So are we to now interpret that God made earth and heaven in just one single day? Or is it more reasonable to believe that this “day” is a span of time? Further, if one is going to take everything in Genesis 1 in a strictly literal way, then the phrase, “evening and morning” does not encompass a 24-hour day but only the late afternoon and early morning. This is considerably less than 24 hours.

It is also evident that the Old Testament has made unit-for-unit comparisons rather than minute-for-minute comparisons. In Numbers 14:34, GOD appointed 40 years of wandering for 40 days of disobedience. In Daniel 9:24-27, 490 days equal 490 years. The Hebrew word for day also appears elsewhere for long periods, as in Psalms 90:4 (cited in 2 Peter 3:8) when it is written that a thousand years in GOD’s view is like a single day.

In addition, an examination of each day of creation reveals a span of time. On the third “day,” not only did GOD create vegetation, but it also grew to maturity. However, to grow from seeds to maturity and produce more seeds is a process that takes a span of time. Further, an examination of the sixth day makes it clear that a span of time would be necessary to conclude all events within the sixth “day.” Consider all that took place on the sixth day: GOD created thousands of land animals (Genesis 1:24-25), Adam observed and named thousands of animals while searching for a suitable companion amongst the creations (Genesis 2:19-20), GOD put Adam to sleep for a span of time in order to take his rib and heal his flesh (Genesis 2:21), and then GOD created Eve and introduced her to Adam (Genesis 2:22). And the final examination of a “day” would be the seventh “day” on which GOD rested. However, the phrase “evening and morning” was not used in reference to the seventh day. GOD rested, but for how long? Some contend that Hebrews 4 asserts that GOD is still in the “day” of rest. However, some contend that GOD is not still in rest due to the expansion of the universe; if the universe is expanding, the expansion is evidence that GOD resumed creation/work at some point. But even if GOD completed His allotted time of rest and resumed creation at some point, it is evident, by examining context of all Scriptures, that Genesis speaks from GOD’s perspective and that a “day” is a span of time. And if the six days of Genesis are long periods of time, then there is no conflict with modern science in regards to creation or the age of Earth.

The real conflict is not between GOD’s revelation in the Bible and scientific fact; it is between some Christian interpretations of the Bible and many scientists’ theories about the age of the world. The Bible does not make known the age of the universe, it simply states that GOD created it “in the beginning.”