The
Bible, however, does not support such a conclusion. If it did, then many
scientific discoveries over the past one hundred years would indeed discredit
the Bible. A careful study of the Bible text reveals no conflict with
established scientific facts. For that reason, Jehovah’s Witnesses disagree
with Christian Fundamentalists and many creationists. The following shows what
the Bible really teaches.
When Was “the
Beginning”?
The Genesis account opens with the simple,
powerful statement: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
(Genesis 1:1) A number of Bible scholars agree that this statement describes an
action separate from the creative days recounted from verse 3 onward. The
implication is profound. According to the Bible’s opening words, the universe,
including our planet, Earth, was in existence for an indefinite time before
the creative days began.
Geologists estimate that the earth is 4 billion
years old, and astronomers calculate that the universe may be as much as 15 billion
years old. Do these findings—or their potential future refinements—contradict
Genesis 1:1? No. The Bible does not specify the actual age of “the heavens and
the earth.” Science is not at odds with the Biblical text.
How Long Were
the Creative Days?
What about the length of the creative days?
Were they literally 24 hours long? Some claim that because Moses—the writer of
Genesis—later referred to the day that followed the six creative days as a
model for the weekly Sabbath, each of the creative days must be literally 24
hours long. (Exodus 20:11) Does the wording of Genesis support this conclusion?
No, it does not. The fact is that the Hebrew
word translated “day” can mean various lengths of time, not just a 24-hour
period. For example, when summarizing God’s creative work, Moses refers to all
six creative days as one day. (Genesis 2:4) In addition, on the first creative
day, “God began calling the light Day, but the darkness he called Night.”
(Genesis 1:5) Here, only a portion of a 24-hour period is defined by the term “day.”
Certainly, there is no basis in Scripture for arbitrarily stating that each
creative day was 24 hours long.
How long, then, were the creative days? The
Bible does not say; however, the wording of Genesis chapters 1 and 2
indicates that considerable lengths of time were involved.
Six Creative Periods
Moses wrote his account in Hebrew, and he
wrote it from the perspective of a person standing on the surface of the earth.
These two facts combined with the knowledge that the universe existed before
the beginning of the creative periods, or days, help to defuse much of the
controversy surrounding the creation account. How so?
A careful consideration of the Genesis
account reveals that events starting during one “day” continued into one or
more of the following “days.” For example, before the first creative “day”
started, light from the already existing sun was somehow prevented from
reaching the earth’s surface, possibly by thick clouds. (Job 38:9) During the
first “day,” this barrier began to clear, allowing diffused light to penetrate
the atmosphere.
On the second “day,” the atmosphere evidently
continued to clear, creating a space between the thick clouds above and the
ocean below. On the fourth “day,” the atmosphere gradually cleared to such an
extent that the sun and the moon were made to appear “in the expanse of the heavens.”
(Genesis 1:14-16) In other words, from the perspective of a person on earth,
the sun and moon began to be discernible. These events happened gradually.
The Genesis account also relates that as the
atmosphere continued to clear, flying creatures—including insects and
membrane-winged creatures—started to appear on the fifth “day.”
The Bible’s narrative allows for the
possibility that some major events during each day, or creative period,
occurred gradually rather than instantly, perhaps some of them even lasting
into the following creative days.
According to Their
Kinds
Does this progressive appearance of plants
and animals imply that God used evolution to produce the vast diversity of
living things? No. The record clearly states that God created all the basic “kinds”
of plant and animal life. (Genesis 1:11, 12, 20-25) Were these original “kinds”
of plants and animals programmed with the ability to adapt to changing
environmental conditions? What defines the boundary of a “kind”? The Bible does
not say. However, it does state that living creatures “swarmed forth according
to their kinds.” (Genesis 1:21) This statement implies that there is a limit to
the amount of variation that can occur within a “kind.” Both the fossil record
and modern research support the idea that the fundamental categories of plants
and animals have changed little over vast periods of time.
Contrary to the claims of some religious
fundamentalists, Genesis does not teach that the universe, including the earth
and all living things on it, was created in a short period of time in the
relatively recent past. Rather, aspects of the description in Genesis of the
creation of the universe and the appearance of life on earth harmonize with
recent scientific discoveries.
Because of their philosophical beliefs, many
scientists reject the Bible’s declaration that God created all things.
Interestingly, however, in the ancient Bible book of Genesis, Moses wrote that
the universe had a beginning and that life appeared in stages, progressively,
over periods of time. How could Moses gain access to such scientifically
accurate information some 3,500 years ago? There is one logical explanation.
The One with the power and wisdom to create the heavens and the earth could
certainly give Moses such advanced knowledge. This gives weight to the Bible’s
claim that it is “inspired of God.”—2 Timothy 3:16.
You may wonder, though, does it really matter
whether you believe the Bible’s account of creation? Consider some compelling
reasons why the answer does matter.
[Footnotes]
In the description of what happened on the
first “day,” the Hebrew word used for light is ’ohr, light in a
general sense, but concerning the fourth “day,” the word used is ma·’ohr′,
which refers to the source of light.
For example, during the sixth creative day,
God decreed that humans “become many and fill the earth.” (Genesis 1:28, 31)
Yet, this event did not even begin to occur until the following “day.”—Genesis
2:2.
For more information on this subject, see the
brochure A Book for All People, published by
Jehovah’s Witnesses at www.jw.org
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