Genesis 1: Days or ages? Does it matter?
Introduction
This is the second essay in this series of posting my Systematic 1 short essays. My intention is to continue or begin a dialogue with others who either agree or disagree with what I have written. Hopefully, the word count presents my position fair enough.
The creation of the heavens and the earth is one of the most debated topics. Ken Ham goes so far as to dedicate his research and studies to it, disagreeing with most of modern science today. He dedicates an entire museum to his viewpoint. However, the issue of days, ages, or evolution is a modern take on an ancient scripture that was not concerned with such issues.
First, the author’s purpose in Genesis did not describe the exact manner in which God created. That is, how God created. The author’s background challenged ancient worldview creation accounts, such as ancient Sumerian cultures. The creation account echoed that of those creation accounts, but those creation accounts did not begin with what the scriptures began with: God. So, the orientation of these accounts no longer dealt with gods and goddesses clashing and accidentally creating the world without intention or rivalry. There was intentionality and purpose behind the creation of the world.
Second, the scripture’s subject was not the day; its subject was God. God was the beginning of creation and the reason for the created order. To take eyes off the one who created meant to lose focus on the purpose of creation. The scripture, when read, will flow into this question, “why did God create the world?” Later, the answer will be seen through man who was given the ability to rule over creation and to obey God for their goodness.
Finally, the days or ages issue is focused purely on our ability to know exactly what happened. Scripture does not focus on that. Scripture provides sufficiency to reveal man’s need for salvation, redemption, and where to receive it. Not only that, but the issue in translation becomes apparent amongst different versions. Genesis 2:4 can be translated as either generations, days, or account for the creation of the world.
