Exactly here we are at the root of the problem: In this meanwhile
worldwide debate about "Creation and Evolution" even Christians deal almost
only with the question: "What does natural science teach?" The chief
witness, the Bible itself, can hardly "say a word"! It is seldomly quoted,
and then often in an inadequate way, taking words out of their context or
using outdated translations. Isn't that a disgrace? This is the crucial flaw
in the previous debate, because not only natural scientists make mistakes,
but above all the "scribes" - says the Bible!
That's why it is absolutely necessary for us to investigate what the Bible
itself says about "Creation and Evolution". Doing this, we will find out
that atheists, critical theologians and Blitz-Creationists have one more
thing in common: They are wrong! Their interpretation of the Bible is
anything else but "literal" but, on the contrary, extremely superficial and
heavily loaded with human traditions ...
The creation days must have been long periods of time!
The Bible nowhere names a number of years for the age of the eart, but
measures it in socalled "eternities", Greek "aion", meaning unimaginably
long periods of time. Modern geology now uses it for the longest categories
of time.
Apart from that, nobody denies that the Hebrew word "jom" can stand for long
periods of time, especially when it refers to God. And when not only read
superficially, the creation report leaves no doubt that it's days never were
earthly or human days but days of God, unimaginably long periods of time:
a.) Within one "day" the whole mainland emerged, plants colonized the
earth and even produced fruit - this can never have happened within a
24-hour-day.
On day five water animals filled the sea to such a degree that
they were teeming of them - expressly by fertility and reproduction!
On the sixth day mankind multiplied and populated the entire
earth - also by natural reproduction, because the text states: "And it was
so", Genesis 1:30. This must have been a long period of time!
b.) Already the first "day" cannot have been an earthly day, because the
Bible says:
"God called the darkness night. Then it became evening, then it became
morning." Genesis 1:5.
How can an evening follow upon the night? And how can a morning
follow immediately upon the evening, without any night in between? This is
never fitting earthly days! But interpreted as "days of God" it makes sense:
God called the day-side of the earth "day", the dark side "night". Then God'
s first day ended (Hebrew ereb = evening literally means "change"), and a
new day of God began immediately afterwards: Hebrew "boqer" literally means
"breakthrough", "new beginning". And as God does not sleep, we naturally don
't have any night in between!
c.) With each of the first six days it is stressed that the day ended.
As this is not the case with the seventh day, we have to conclude that the
seventh day is continuing untill today! And this is what the New Testament
confirms:
God rested on the seventh day from all his works ... let us labour therefore
to enter into that rest! Hebrews 4:4-11
The sabbath for humans lasts one day, Exodus 20:9, the sabbath for
arable land lasts one year, Leviticus 25:4, and the Sabbath of God continues
until now. However, to "rest" does not mean "to do nothing at all", but "to
rest from one's works". God "ceased" from his six-days-work, but he is
acting until now, even though his sabbath is continuing. With this fact
Jesus justified his own behavior:
The Jews persecuted Jesus, because he did these things on the sabbath. But
Jesus answered them: My Father works even until now, and I work. John
5:16-17.
d.) In the last sentence of the creation report, the entire six days are
referred to as one single day: "The day when the LORD, God, made heaven and
earth", Genesis 2:4.
Here also, it would be absurd to cling to the
24-hour-day-interpretation, as Exodus 20:11 stresses that God "made heaven
and earth in six days".
e.) So, all the days of Genesis 1 were days of God - humans did not even
exist during the first days! And as the Bible warns us not to equate our
human days with those of God - let's not do it!
Beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as
a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 2.Peter 3:8
From:
http://www.urzeitundendzeit.de/creation_and_evolution.htm#at_its_word
Armin
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