The creative DAYS in the Bible- 24 hours each??

Some fundamentalists claim that creationism rather than evolution explains pre-human history. They assert that all physical creation was produced in just six days of 24 hours each sometime between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago. But in doing so, they promote an unscriptural teaching that has caused many to ridicule the Bible.

Is a day in the Bible always literally 24 hours in length? Genesis 2:4 speaks of "the day that Jehovah God made earth and heaven." This one day encompasses all six of the creative days of Genesis chapter 1. According to Bible usage, a day is a measured period of time and can be a thousand years or many thousands of years. The Bible's creative days allow for thousands of years of time each. Further, the earth was already in existence before the creative days began. (Genesis 1:1) On this point, therefore, the Bible account is compatible with true science.—2 Peter 3:8.

Commenting on claims that the creative days were only 24 literal hours in length, molecular biologist Francis Collins remarks: "Creationism has done more harm to serious notions of belief than anything in modern history."

www.watchtower.org...

Gerald Schroeder, a former professor of nuclear physics, writes: “ The Bible relates in thirty-one verses, in a few hundred words, events spanning sixteen billion years. These are events about which scientists have written literally millions of words. The entire development of animal life is summarized in eight biblical sentences. Considering the brevity of the biblical narrative, the match between the statements and timing in Genesis 1 and the discoveries of modern science is phenomenal, especially when we realize that all biblical interpretation used here was recorded centuries, even millennia, in the past and so was not in any way influenced by the discoveries of modern science. It is modern science that has come to match the biblical account of our genesis.

www.watchtower.org...
—THE SCIENCE OF GOD—THE CONVERGENCE OF SCIENTIFIC AND BIBLICAL WISDOM.

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[edit on 5-11-2008 by GAOTU789]

Thanks. I never thought of it in that way. Flagged.

Exactly right. The hebrew word "yom" means a period of continuous time. In some places, yom is used for years, as when the age of king david is given. At other times, it is used to express a point in history..... sort of like "in Moses' day" as a construction in English.

Plus, think of this:

Why to literalists say that "a day is 24 hours"? Isn't it because that is the timespan from one sunrise to the next? Well, Genesis doesn't describe the creation of the sun until "day 4," so how is there a way to measure whether or not the first three days consisted of 24 hours???

And besides, no two days are of exactly the same length, due to the ellipsoidal nature of the earth's orbit. So, no two days are alike.....

6 periods of 24 hours is an artificial concept, the product of living in an industrialized society, being back-applied to a 5000 year old account.

all the best.

On this point, therefore, the Bible account is compatible with true science.

I suppose in that context, but not entirely. The Earth is what -4.6 or 4.7 billion years old? Regardless of the exact time, the Bible directly disagrees by saying the Earth is 6,000-10,000 years old. It's an interesting perspective on the 'days' reference in the Bible, but saying it's compatible with Science is a bit of a stretch in my honest opinion.

greek, aramaic, cuneiform oh my!

which is which and who is who?

Originally posted by dr_strangecraft
Why to literalists say that "a day is 24 hours"?

To be fair to the creationists, a day = 24hours, the fact that the time from sunrise to sunrise is that too is unimportant, to them the 24hour period was decided on and used as a constant by the time creation began and the track of the sun was just set to it.

So to them, the the sun was made is unimportant.


However, in reality the sun is far far far older than the earth, the earth couldn't even form with out the sun being present first, so that part of the creation story is wrong (earth before sun, timespan irrelevant).

Originally posted by Good Wolf
[To be fair to the creationists, a day = 24hours,

In English, not in Hebrew. that was my point. The word translated "day" is also used for other periods of time, and points of time. Varying from 24 hours, to a week, to years, to a continuous stretch of time (eternity).

To be fair to the creationists, they are reading content INTO the text, not deriving their theology from it.

Originally posted by dr_strangecraft
In English, not in Hebrew. that was my point. The word translated "day" is also used for other periods of time, and points of time. Varying from 24 hours, to a week, to years, to a continuous stretch of time (eternity).

This is true but they don't know that. They believe the english translation is perfect, which is laughable. Even many christians know that.

To be fair to the creationists, they are reading content INTO the text, not deriving their theology from it.

No argument here.

reply to post by panda319


the bible does not say how old the earth is. basically working through the dates of the bible, it shows that humans were created about 6000 years ago. So humans have a 6000 year old history. Now you may disagree with this as scientists say we have been here for millions of years, but I will stick with the bible on this.

in short: bible does not say how old earth is, but that humans have only been around for around 6000 years.

Did everyone forget that the 24 HOUR clock, and current Calender was set in place by the POPE in the late 1800's so the knowledge of the 24 hour day is farce in the Bible days

Quote:

Genesis Chapter 1
Verse 1.

In the beginning God Created the heaven and the earth.

[Easy to understand at this point whether correct or not]

[Note First the Heaven then The Earth]

Verse 2.

And the earth was without form, and void;and darkness was upon the face of the deep, And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the Waters.

[First we must recognise that "the earth was without form, and void." So the Earth being without form relates to the existence of the Earth it's self and Not without creatures, as it was void.]

[darkness was upon the face of the deep meaning that the face of the deep had nothing at all, to do with the seas or waters of earth, because the earth was at this stage without form and void.]

[Note that darkness was upon the face and Not in the deep.]

[In the case of the Spirit of God, at this stage both the meaning of the word Spirit and the word God has Not been defined. but the face of the deep had nothing at all to do with the seas or waters of earth because at this stage the Earth was without form and void.]

Verse 3.

And God said,Let there be Light; and there was light.

[How was Light formed?]

Verse 4.

And God saw the Light, that it was good;and God divided the Light from the Darkness.

[ So the Light was in, or of the Darkness.]

Verse 5.

And God called the Light Day, and the darkness he called Night,And the evening and the morning were the first day.

[Now this is where the bible is not understood and misrepresented by those who read what they preconceive instead of reading what is actually written.]

[OK the Light is Day and the Darkness is Night easy to understand?

Then think again because at this stage Earth was without form and void. So the terms of Day and Night are not relating to the earth but rather the heaven being created first!]

[At this stage the heaven has Not been defined either.]

[The other situation here, is the Day was between the Evening and the Morning, Not the Morning and the Evening?]

Verse 6.

And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters,and let it divide the waters from the waters.

[Here again the waters are Not the seas or waters of earth as at this stage Earth was without form and void.]

[Note the writings are not talking about the Face of the deep or waters, but rather the firmament was in the waters and at this stage the word firmament has not been defined.]

Verse 7.

And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so.

[But at this point the word Firmament has Not been defined]

[at this stage Earth was without form and void]

Verse 8.

And God called the firmament Heaven.And the evening and the morning were the second day.

[At this point it appears that Heaven now exists but the Earth was without form and void.]

[But look at this, the evening and the morning were the second day! The situation here, is the Day was between the Evening and the Morning, Not the Morning and the Evening?

And the earth was still was without form and void.]

[So you can see that the days had nothing at all, to do with the Earth!]

Verse 9.

And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place,and let dry land appear; and it was so.

[Not what you would expect? Humans only read what they want to read into the text and Not see what is written]

[The waters were Not of the earth because at this point the earth was still was without form and void.]

[How can Dry Land Appear if at this point the earth was still was without form and void???]

What is the Face of the Deep????

And what are these "Waters" Not of The Earth then????

Any Comments?

Nice! this thread is apologetics at its best!

Change the meaning of the text to justify your positions!

Originally posted by panda319
the Bible directly disagrees by saying the Earth is 6,000-10,000 years old.

im sorry where does it say that?

Originally posted by nj2day
Nice! this thread is apologetics at its best!

Change the meaning of the text to justify your positions!

your response is stubborness at its best

ignore all evidence at all cost.

reply to post by miriam0566


The geneologies are the source for the 6-7000 year olf earth. Of course it's not going to say "6500 years ago". That would be a bit strange.

interesting book on the matter

What Does Genesis Say?

AS WITH other things that are misrepresented or misunderstood, the first chapter of the Bible deserves at least a fair hearing. The need is to investigate and determine whether it harmonizes with known facts, not to mold it to fit some theoretical framework. Also to be remembered, the Genesis account was not written to show the “how” of creation. Rather, it covers major events in a progressive way, describing what things were formed, the order in which they were formed and the time interval, or “day,” in which each first appeared.

2 When examining the Genesis account, it is helpful to keep in mind that it approaches matters from the standpoint of people on earth. So it describes events as they would have been seen by human observers had they been present. This can be noted from its treatment of events on the fourth Genesis “day.” There the sun and moon are described as great luminaries in comparison to the stars. Yet many stars are far greater than our sun, and the moon is insignificant in comparison to them. But not to an earthly observer. So, as seen from the earth, the sun appears to be a ‘greater light that rules the day’ and the moon a ‘lesser light that dominates the night.’—Genesis 1:14-18.

3 The first part of Genesis indicates that the earth could have existed for billions of years before the first Genesis “day,” though it does not say for how long. However, it does describe what earth’s condition was just before that first “day” began: “Now the earth proved to be formless and waste and there was darkness upon the surface of the watery deep; and God’s active force was moving to and fro over the surface of the waters.”—Genesis 1:2.

How Long Is a Genesis “Day”?

4 Many consider the word “day” used in Genesis chapter 1 to mean 24 hours. However, in Genesis 1:5 God himself is said to divide day into a smaller period of time, calling just the light portion “day.” In Genesis 2:4 all the creative periods are called one “day”: “This is a history of the heavens and the earth in the time of their being created, in the day [all six creative periods] that Jehovah God made earth and heaven.”

5 The Hebrew word yohm, translated “day,” can mean different lengths of time. Among the meanings possible, William Wilson’s Old Testament Word Studies includes the following: “A day; it is frequently put for time in general, or for a long time; a whole period under consideration . . . Day is also put for a particular season or time when any extraordinary event happens.”1 This last sentence appears to fit the creative “days,” for certainly they were periods when extraordinary events were described as happening. It also allows for periods much longer than 24 hours.

6 Genesis chapter 1 uses the expressions “evening” and “morning” relative to the creative periods. Does this not indicate that they were 24 hours long? Not necessarily. In some places people often refer to a man’s lifetime as his “day.” They speak of “my father’s day” or “in Shakespeare’s day.” They may divide up that lifetime “day,” saying “in the morning [or dawn] of his life” or “in the evening [or twilight] of his life.” So ‘evening and morning’ in Genesis chapter 1 does not limit the meaning to a literal 24 hours.

7 “Day” as used in the Bible can include summer and winter, the passing of seasons. (Zechariah 14:8) “The day of harvest” involves many days. (Compare Proverbs 25:13 and Genesis 30:14.) A thousand years are likened to a day. (Psalm 90:4; 2 Peter 3:8, 10) “Judgment Day” covers many years. (Matthew 10:15; 11:22-24) It would seem reasonable that the “days” of Genesis could likewise have embraced long periods of time—millenniums. What, then, took place during those creative eras? Is the Bible’s account of them scientific? Following is a review of these “days” as expressed in Genesis.

[edit on 20-11-2008 by miriam0566]

First “Day”

8 “‘Let light come to be.’ Then there came to be light. And God began calling the light Day, but the darkness he called Night. And there came to be evening and there came to be morning, a first day.”—Genesis 1:3, 5.

9 Of course the sun and moon were in outer space long before this first “day,” but their light did not reach the surface of the earth for an earthly observer to see. Now, light evidently came to be visible on earth on this first “day,” and the rotating earth began to have alternating days and nights.

10 Apparently, the light came in a gradual process, extending over a long period of time, not instantaneously as when you turn on an electric light bulb. The Genesis rendering by translator J. W. Watts reflects this when it says: “And gradually light came into existence.” (A Distinctive Translation of Genesis) This light was from the sun, but the sun itself could not be seen through the overcast. Hence, the light that reached earth was “light diffused,” as indicated by a comment about verse 3 in Rotherham’s Emphasised Bible.—See footnote b for verse 14.

this is pretty much how scientist describe the early earth. the atmosphere being very thick and with little lite. so if you were a human standing on the earth watching a time lapse, this is pretty much exactly what you would see.

[edit on 20-11-2008 by miriam0566]

Second “Day”

11 “‘Let an expanse come to be in between the waters and let a dividing occur between the waters and the waters.’ Then God proceeded to make the expanse and to make a division between the waters that should be beneath the expanse and the waters that should be above the expanse. And it came to be so. And God began to call the expanse Heaven.”—Genesis 1:6-8.

12 Some translations use the word “firmament” instead of “expanse.” From this the argument is made that the Genesis account borrowed from creation myths that represent this “firmament” as a metal dome. But even the King James Version Bible, which uses “firmament,” says in the margin, “expansion.” This is because the Hebrew word ra·qi′a‛, translated “expanse,” means to stretch out or spread out or expand.

13 The Genesis account says that God did it, but it does not say how. In whatever way the described separation occurred, it would look as though the ‘waters above’ had been pushed up from the earth. And birds could later be said to fly in “the expanse of the heavens,” as stated at Genesis 1:20.

[edit on 20-11-2008 by miriam0566]

Third “Day”

14 “‘Let the waters under the heavens be brought together into one place and let the dry land appear.’ And it came to be so. And God began calling the dry land Earth, but the bringing together of the waters he called Seas.” (Genesis 1:9, 10) As usual, the account does not describe how this was done. No doubt, tremendous earth movements would have been involved in the formation of land areas. Geologists would explain such major upheavals as catastrophism. But Genesis indicates direction and control by a Creator.

15 In the Biblical account where God is described as questioning Job about his knowledge of the earth, a variety of developments concerning earth’s history are described: its measurements, its cloud masses, its seas and how their waves were limited by dry land—many things in general about the creation, spanning long periods of time. Among these things, comparing earth to a building, the Bible says that God asked Job: “Into what have its socket pedestals been sunk down, or who laid its cornerstone?”—Job 38:6.

16 Interestingly, like “socket pedestals,” earth’s crust is much thicker under continents and even more so under mountain ranges, pushing deep into the underlying mantle, like tree roots into soil. “The idea that mountains and continents had roots has been tested over and over again, and shown to be valid,” says Putnam’s Geology.2 Oceanic crust is only about 5 miles thick, but continental roots go down about 20 miles and mountain roots penetrate about twice that far. And all earth’s layers press inward upon earth’s core from all directions, making it like a great “cornerstone” of support.

17 Whatever means were used to accomplish the raising up of dry land, the important point is: Both the Bible and science recognize it as one of the stages in the forming of the earth.

[edit on 20-11-2008 by miriam0566]

Land Plants on Third “Day”

18 The Bible account adds: “‘Let the earth cause grass to shoot forth, vegetation bearing seed, fruit trees yielding fruit according to their kinds, the seed of which is in it, upon the earth.’ And it came to be so.”—Genesis 1:11.

19 Thus by the close of this third creative period, three broad categories of land plants had been created. The diffused light would have become quite strong by then, ample for the process of photosynthesis so vital to green plants. Incidentally, the account here does not mention every “kind” of plant that came on the scene. Microscopic organisms, water plants and others are not specifically named, but likely were created on this “day.”

[edit on 20-11-2008 by miriam0566]