Days of creation
From CreationWiki, the encyclopedia of creation science
The Bible describes the days of creation involving the heavens and the earth as well as animals and mankind in Genesis chapters 1 and 2 as occurring over the course of seven days, which includes a day of rest. In fact our calendar week is based exclusively on this sequence of creation events.
The account in Genesis 1 meticulously describes the creation including what was specifically made on each day. Although many people argue that the days of the creation week should not be taken literally, the events are described in terms that are correlated with definitions of time. Since God created time and language, it is reasonable to assume that the most straightforward reading of these passages should take place.
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Variable Meanings
The word "day" can hold one of several meanings. The exact definition in any case is derived from the context in which it is used.
- A general or vague concept of time.
- A period of a year.
- A period of light in a day/night cycle.
- A period of 24 hours.
- A specific point in time.
In an attempt to merge the Bible with the theory of evolution, progressive creationists argue for nonliteral interpretations of the word "Day" in Genesis 1, and instead hold to these descriptions as representing vast periods of time. However, the author of Genesis has described the events in details that make it clear the lengths of time involved were ordinary 24-hour periods of time. The specificity of the period of time in question is made clear and reinforced in each case with the phrase "And there was evening, and there was morning". This added notation makes it clear to all who read these passages that the author intended to convey to the reader the meaning that each day of the creation week was equivalent to a normal solar day.
Uses Outside of Genesis
Further support lies with how the word "Day" is used elsewhere in scripture. In every instance where a day is described in the Bible using this terminology outside of Genesis, it always means an ordinary day.
- Day, plus a Number is used 410 times (in plural or singular), and always means an ordinary day.
- Evening and Morning, together without Day, is used 28 times, and always means an ordinary day.
- Evening, or Morning, with Day, is used 23 times, and always means an ordinary day.
- Night, with Day, is used 52 times and always means an ordinary day.
God Defined the Week
The majority of our calendar is based on astronomical events. The day is the length of time it takes for the Earth to revolve once on its axis. The month is the length of time required for the moon to orbit the Earth. And the years is based on the how long it takes for the Earth to orbit the Sun. In contrast, the week is not based on any astronomical event, but rather the creation as described in the Bible.
God states that the creation took place during seven ordinary days. In Exodus 20:11: when God inscribes the 10 Commandments on tablets of stone for Moses He says: "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."
It is from the creation week and the day of rest that God proclaimed, that we get our 7-day work week. God defined the creation time periods as "days", and likewise instructed us to rest after 6 days as He did.
Comparison of Events
Progressive creationism, also known as day-age creationism, holds that the account of Genesis is true, but argue that the Creation "days" were not 24-hour days. Instead it is believed they lasted for long periods of time -- or as the theory's name implies: the "days" each lasted an age. However, a close examination of the things created on these days illustrates that these events are incompatible with the sequences in either Big Bang Cosmology or the Theory of Evolution.
| Evolution Sequence | Creation Sequence |
|---|---|
| Sun/stars existed before Earth | Earth created before sun/stars |
| Sun is Earth's first light | Light on Earth before sun |
| First life was marine organisms | First life was land plants |
| Reptiles predate birds | Birds predate land reptiles |
| Land mammals predate whales | Whales predate land mammals |
| Humans lived and died before Adam | Adam was first man, and death followed his sin. |
Creation Sequence
Day 1 - God created Earth, space, time and light.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day. Genesis 1:1-5
Day 2 - God created the atmosphere.
And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water." So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so. God called the expanse "sky." And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day. Genesis 1:6-8
Day 3 - God created dry land and plants.
And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear." And it was so. God called the dry ground "land," and the gathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good. Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day. Genesis 1:9-13
Day 4 - God created the sun, moon, and stars.
And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so. 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. God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day. Genesis 1:14-19
Day 5 - God created sea creatures and birds.
And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky." So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth." And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day. Genesis 1:20-23
Day 6 - God created land animals and man.
And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind." And it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:24-27
References
- Sarfati, J., 2004, Refuting Compromise
- Steinmann, A., 2002. אחד (Echad) as an Ordinal Number and the Meaning of Genesis 1:5 (PDF), Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society (JETS) 45(4):577–584 (argues that the numbering and definite article patterns of Genesis 1 indicate 24-hour days)
- Hasel, G.F., 1994. The ‘days’ of creation in Genesis 1: Literal ‘days’ or figurative ‘periods/epochs’ of time?, Origins 21(1):5–38 (defends literal days).
- McCabe, R.V., 2000. A Defense of Literal Days in the Creation Week (PDF), Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal 5:97–123, 2000
- Stambaugh, 1991. Days of Creation: A semantic approach Journal of Creation 5(1):70–78 (analyses the meaning of Hebrew yôm ("day") in different context and long-age words, concludes that creation days were 24 hours)
- Sarfati, J., 2003. Biblical chronogenealogies, Journal of Creation 17(3):14–18 (defends Masoretic chronology of Gen. 5 & 11, and rejects gaps)
- A Biblical Case for Literal Creation Days: So How Long Were They? by Laura Adele Price
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See Also
- Creationism
- Young Earth Creationism
- Old Earth Creationism
- Intelligent Design
- Anthropic Principle
- Creation magazine by Creation Ministries International
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