The details of how God created this universe, I will never understand. He Did. To some the answer to that question is a life long pursuit, one I enjoy watching and reading about. Keep it up. To me however, the more important question is why. While I am curious about, and amazed by His work, why? The brilliant and dismissive may seek no deeper meaning, the how is profoundly engaging. Fair enough, let’s leave them to it. Why, and for what purpose is the realm of philosophers.
Yet, we can’t get something from nothing. We may focus on what we see, and search for the answer in the material itself, but it came from somewhere, something, some It. With only the naked eye, the grandeur of the heavens, the plants, the sea, the plethora of life., evokes a sense of wonder. Some desire to reverse engineer, others desire to see beyond visible and cogent creation for, “All of creation speaks of a creator.” And there, beyond physics, is faith. Not opposed to knowledge, rather giving credit to the energy, the source which precedes the energy, mass and matter occupying our space, The visible and dark.
It is believed that time, or the measurement of events in the physical universe began some 15 billion years ago with an advent referred to as the “Big Bang”. Since science is the study of creation, it cannot address what existed prior to the natural universe. Stephen Hawking states in his lecture, “The beginning of time”, that the solar system can be extrapolated far beyond the four thousand and four years BC, suggested in the book of Genesis.
The book of Genesis does not state that creation began 4004 BC.
Genesis 1 is as follows:
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 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. 3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day
6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 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. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. 11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. 12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.
14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: 15 and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. 16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. 17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, 18 and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. 19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.
If we look at verses 14 – 18, we see that the sun/stars and earths moon were created on the 4th day. This would have the first 24 hour solar day occurring on day five. Prior to this events were in pre-solar/earth time not our current 24 hour days. We also find the function of the sun; “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years.”
Day: yôwm, yome; from an unused root meaning to be hot; a day (as the warm hours), whether literal (from sunrise to sunset, or from one sunset to the next), or figurative (a space of time defined by an associated term), (often used adverb):—age, always, chronicals, continually(-ance), daily, ((birth-), each, to) day, (now a, two) days (agone), elder, × end, evening, (for) ever(-lasting, -more), × full, life, as (so) long as (… live), (even) now, old, outlived, perpetually, presently, remaineth, × required, season, × since, space, then, (process of) time, as at other times, in trouble, weather, (as) when, (a, the, within a) while (that), × whole ( age), (full) year(-ly), younger.
“On the day you eat from tree of knowledge, you will surely die. While they did not die then, death of our flesh became a part of human life in that moment, at that time, on that day. something came between man and God. Or, did it? perhaps man’s existence changed, God didn’t. men’s understanding changes over time. God’s does not. Man’s knowledge may increase, God’s knowledge is complete. Science studies creation, the natural world. Our bodies were created, inanimate until God breathed life into him. Man is more than chemistry and particles, he is a soul, given life by the Spirit of God. We get nothing from nothing. Therefore the study of life begins after creation. Natural time is a construct of this physical world. God is eternal.
At the North and South Poles during the winter, a single night can last up to six months, which is known as a “polar night”. During the summer, the poles will experience what is called a “midnight sun”, where a day lasts a full 24 hours. So really, days are not as simple as we like to imagine. But compared to the other planets in the Solar System, time management is still easier here on Earth.
Mercury — 84.450 minutes / 807,5 hours / 58,67 days — 87,97 days
- Venus — 349.920 minutes / 5832 hours / 243 days — 224,65 days
- Earth — 1440 minutes / 24 hours — 365,26 days
- Mars — 1480 minutes / 24,67 hours — 687 days / 1,88 years
- Jupiter — 596 minutes / 9,93 hours — 4300 days / 11,86 years
- Saturn — 642 minutes / 10,7 hours — 10.832 days / 29,68 years
- Uranus — 1034 minutes / 17,23 hours — 31.000 days / 84,93 years
- Neptune — 966 minutes / 16,1 hours — 60.200 days / 164,9 years
Notice in this time frame, Genesis 1:16-19 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day. He made the stars also, not just our star. They were made for what? “for seasons, and for days, and years.
If we look at chapter 2:17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof thou shalt surely die. Same word. Yet they lived for centuries after this.
The KJV translates Strong’s H3117 in the following manner: day (2,008x), time (64x), chronicles (with H1697) (37x), daily (44x), ever (18x), year (14x), continually (10x), when (10x), as (10x), while (8x), full (8x), always (4x), whole (4x), alway (4x), miscellaneous (44x).
This word seems to mean a period of time, an age since 24 hour days did not yet exist.
Light: ôwr, ore; from H215; illumination or (concrete) luminary (in every sense, including lightning, happiness, etc.):—bright, clear, day, light (-ning), morning, sun.
This word explains itself. Things were made clear, illuminated.
Waters: mayim, mah’-yim; dual of a primitive noun (but used in a singular sense); water; figuratively, juice; by euphemism, urine, semen:— piss, wasting, water(-ing, (-course, -flood, -spring)).
This word could describe liquid gas…
Firmament: râqîyaʻ, raw-kee’-ah; from H7554; properly, an expanse, i.e. the firmament or (apparently) visible arch of the sky:—firmament.
This word seems to describe space…
A day on Mercury is approx 58 Earth days. 176 days from one sunrise to the next.
Venus about 117 days.
Earth 24 depending where you are. At the North and South Poles during the winter, a single night can last up to six months, which is known as a “polar night”. During the summer, the poles will experience what is called a “midnight sun”, where a day lasts a full 24 hours. So really, days are not as simple as we like to imagine. But compared to the other planets in the Solar System, time management is still easier here on Earth. Days are relative to your location. (See; https://www.universetoday.com/37481/days-of-the-planets/
The difficulty in understanding the Genesis creation account lies in the multi usages of some of the words. The writer is not so concerned with how God did it, simply that He did. It is a brief preamble for the introduction of Gods relationship with man, past, present and future. The light before the creation of stars may be explained as follows:
1 John 1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
John 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
I am not concerned with how God did it, leave that for scientists to speculate, analyze, theorize and reverse engineer if they can.
Given limitless “Time”, men may understand the principles and formula God applied during the process of creation, that would be interesting, it is not essential however for our purpose of having a relationship with our Creator.
Genesis 11:9 And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is patient and tolerant to us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
Time, Creation and the big Bang
The rich man and Lazarus a parable?