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NASB | Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God (Elohim) created [by forming from nothing] the heavens and the earth. [Heb 11:3] |
Subject: How old is the earth scripturally? |
Bible Note: The question we are working on, at least from my point of view, is not whether God did what He said - of course He did, praise His Name! The question is what did He actually say - not just the surface value of the words in Genesis 1 and 2, but what is He actually communicating to us with these words? My thought, from reading the text carefully, is that God was deliberately silent about the nature/length of the six days. The account is written using words that have multiple meanings. "Day" also means "era", "evening" also means "the end of some time period", "morning" also means "a new beginning". etc. It is specualtion, but I think God chose to do it this way in order to make the account intelligible and easily understandable to the maximum number of people. People of all ages, all education levels, all different cultures, and living in different times can grasp the essential message of God's systematic work in creating the world from nothing. The account is extremely short and simple - this makes it easy for even a child to grasp. If the account detailed long ages then it would not be comprensible to a child. Yet, the account has many unusual features that show that the One who gave us the account is not simple - He is amazing and beyond our understanding. The account can be (and is)interpreted differently by different people. For me, the age-as-a-day reading of the account makes the most sense. It is not a matter of believing or disbelieving the account - it is a matter of understanding the account. God bless you! DaninJapan |