Do Christians accept that the earth is older than the sun like the Bible says?

[Valery]

Genesis 1

9 "And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so."

10 "God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good."

11 "Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so"

12 "The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good"

13 "And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day."

14 "And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years"

15 "and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so."

16 "God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars."

17 "God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth"

18 "to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good."

19 "And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day."

 

[Elora]

Genesis 1

9 "And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so."

10 "God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good."

11 "Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so"

12 "The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good"

13 "And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day."

14 "And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years"

15 "and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so."

16 "God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars."

17 "God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth"

18 "to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good."

19 "And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day."

Of course...the earth was created in the beginning, just as all the other heavenly bodies were...

 

[swing_voter]

Some do, some don't.

I'm a fan of science, personally. And it doesn't get in the way of my faith.

 

[Jean-s]

The Bible is wrong of course. But given that it was written before advances in cosmology, the authors can be forgiven.

 

[Elora]

The Bible is wrong of course. But given that it was written before advances in cosmology, the authors can be forgiven.

Wrong about what?

 

[Patriotic Voter]

Wrong about what?

The concept that there was one Creation Week (six 24-hour days) instead of constant creation, evolution, and destruction for eons obviously is wrong.

There actually is no proof Earth is older than its sun, Sol. I read in a science magazine Sol and Earth were both created 4.5 billion years ago. If this is true, they probably were created at the same time.

 

[Jean-s]

The concept that there was one Creation Week (six 24-hour days) instead of constant creation, evolution, and destruction for eons obviously is wrong.

There actually is no proof Earth is older than its sun, Sol. I read in a science magazine Sol and Earth were both created 4.5 billion years ago. If this is true, they probably were created at the same time.

I agree with your first sentence and I will let it be my answer to Elvira also.

 

[Elora]

The concept that there was one Creation Week (six 24-hour days) instead of constant creation, evolution, and destruction for eons obviously is wrong.

There actually is no proof Earth is older than its sun, Sol. I read in a science magazine Sol and Earth were both created 4.5 billion years ago, which supports the Big Bang theory (for those who believe in it).

That is not what the Bible says...the word "day" can refer to a certain period of time, not only a literal 24 hour day, as Genesis 2:4 goes on to point out, where it speaks of the collective 6 days of creation as being one day...

"This is a history of the heavens and the earth in the time they were created, in the day that Jehovah God made earth and heaven. "

 

[Jean-s]

That is not what the Bible says...the word "day" can refer to a certain period of time, not only a literal 24 hour day, as Genesis 2:4 goes on to point out, where it speaks of the collective 6 days of creation as being one day...

"This is a history of the heavens and the earth in the time they were created, in the day that Jehovah God made earth and heaven. "

The Bible is therefore ungrammatical as well.

 

[Elora]

The Bible is therefore ungrammatical as well.

No, it is not...have no never spoken of "in my father's day" or "back in the day"? That is not a literal 24 hour day...

 

[Patriotic Voter]

The Bible is therefore ungrammatical as well.

The Bible was originally written in ancient Hebrew. The language at that time did not have a huge vocabulary with separate words for day, week, month, year, etc. That is what people on a Christian message board who know Hebrew say anyway.

 

[Jean-s]

The Bible was originally written in ancient Hebrew. The language at that time did not have a huge vocabulary with separate words for day, week, month, year, etc. That is what people on a Christian message board who know Hebrew say anyway.

I am not an expert but I reckon Hebrew had a plural word for days. Then again, to give a proper reply I suppose it would be better for me to research the original text for a proper exegesis.

 

[Patriotic Voter]

I am not an expert but I reckon Hebrew had a plural word for days. Then again, to give a proper reply I suppose it would be better for me to research the original text for a proper exegesis.

You can read the Hebrew text here:

www.biblehub.com

 

[Jean-s]

You can read the Hebrew text here:

www.biblehub.com

I never learned Hebrew so I would have to rely on a translation with specific references to the meaning of the Hebrew text from a scholar and not some kid who just had his Bar Mitzvah after smoking weed in the men's room at Temple.

 

[tosca1]

Genesis 1

9 "And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so."

10 "God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good."

11 "Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so"

12 "The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good"

13 "And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day."

14 "And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years"

15 "and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so."

16 "God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars."

17 "God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth"

18 "to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good."

19 "And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day."

Where does it exactly says in the Bible that the earth is older than the sun?

 

[Valery]

Where does it exactly says in the Bible that the earth is older than the sun?

In the verses you quoted.

 

[tosca1]

In the verses you quoted.

No, those verses don't actually say that the earth is older than the sun.


Genesis 1
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.



HEAVENS (with an "s" plural form), means the sky or universe as seen from the earth.
Heavens is not the same as heaven.

Therefore, Genesis 1:1 declares that the universe - along with the solar system, sun, moon etc..., were already created BEFORE the earth.

Look what preceeded the creation of the earth in the order of creation on that verse : the HEAVENS!

 

[Valery]

No, those verses don't actually say that the earth is older than the sun.


Genesis 1
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.



HEAVENS (with an "s" plural form), means the sky or universe as seen from the earth.
Heavens is not the same as heaven.

Therefore, Genesis 1:1 declares that the universe - along with the solar system, sun, moon etc..., were already created BEFORE the earth.

Look what preceeded the creation of the earth in the order of creation on that verse : the HEAVENS!

And how do you explain verse 16, among others?

 

[tosca1]

Genesis 1

9 "And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so."

10 "God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good."

The Day-Age theory given by some scientists says that verse refers to the formation of continent/continental crust.
ONE LAND and ONE OCEAN!
It could refer to PANGAEA and PANTHALASSA.

Pangea, also spelled Pangaea, in early geologic time, a supercontinent that incorporated almost all the landmasses on Earth.

Pangea | Definition, Map, History, & Facts

Pangea, also spelled Pangaea, in early geologic time, a supercontinent that incorporated almost all the landmasses on Earth. Pangea was surrounded by a global ocean called Panthalassa, and it was fully assembled by the Early Permian Epoch (some 299 million to about 273 million years ago). The...

www.britannica.com

Prior to the breakup of Pangea, one enormous ocean, Panthalassa, existed on Earth.

Paleoceanography

Paleoceanography, scientific study of Earth’s oceanographic history involving the analysis of the ocean’s sedimentary record, the history of tectonic plate motions, glacial changes, and established relationships between present sedimentation patterns and environmental factors. Prior to the breakup

www.britannica.com

 

[tosca1]

Genesis 1

11 "Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so"

12 "The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good"

Why would God create seed-bearing vegetation of all sorts if the sun isn't already created?

 

[Valery]

Why would God create seed-bearing vegetation of all sorts if the sun isn't already created?

Now you've hit the nail on the head.

 

[tosca1]

Genesis 1

13 "And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day."

14 "And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years"

15 "and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so."

16 "God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars."

17 "God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth"

18 "to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good."

19 "And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day."

Well - there was evening and there was morning on the third and foruth day! Lol - how is it that God created them twice (on the third and fourth day),
if the verses meant the creation of the sun and the moon?

According to the day-age theory of some scientists, those verses refer to the layers of translucent clouds being removed to enable the light coming from the sun, moon and stars to shine through.



Another interpretation by a scientist says the verse refers to vision.

On the fourth day, Genesis famously becomes confusing. On the first day, remember, God has already created light, and made Day and Night. But it isn't until day four that he makes the lights in heaven, the greater light to rule the day and the lesser the night.

Hang on - so he made 'Day' three days before he made the Sun? Houston, I think we have a problem.

Yet the writers of Genesis were just as well aware as us, surely, that the sunrise causes the day. You don't need a degree in astronomy to work that one out. What on earth did they mean?

Here, The Genesis Enigma comes up with a stunningly ingenious answer. For Parker argues that day four refers to the evolution of vision.

Until the first creatures on earth evolved eyes, in a sense, the sun and moon didn't exist. There was no creature on earth to see them, nor the light they cast.

When Genesis says: 'Let there be lights... To divide the day from the night,' it is talking about eyes.

The Genesis enigma: How DID the Bible describe the evolution of life 3,000 years before Darwin?

A jaw-dropping new book seeks to prove that the ancient Hebrew writers of the Book of Genesis knew all about evolution.

www.dailymail.co.uk

What I find remarkable is that it seems some scientists can relate to the order of creation depending on their field of expertise!

 

[tosca1]

Now you've hit the nail on the head.

Creation of the sun and moon twice, let alone twice in a row?

....that's why, LOGICALLY - it couldn't have been referring to the sun and moon!

 

[Valery]

Creation of the sun and moon twice, let alone twice in a row?

....that's why, LOGICALLY - it couldn't have been referring to the sun and moon!

What was it referring to then?

 

[longview]

I am willing to be lenient with a story that existed as an oral record, for likely several thousand years,
and was finally written down, perhaps 3300 years ago, and has been, rewritten and translated many times.
Even if we consider that the omnipotent deity, creator of all things, communicated with a person,
from the neolithic era, what portion of such communication, would the person understand?
I had an English teacher in college, who was in New Guinea in WWII. He said one of the guys built a
freezer, so they could make ice. The local tribes, thought ice was a miracle.
Soon word spread, an a few weeks later a man from a very remote tribe, traveled for 2 days to see the miracle.
He was so impressed, that he wanted some of this ice, to take back and show his tribe,
but could not understand why he could not.
Knowledge, is a matter of perspective!