“Do
not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand
years, and a thousand years are like a day” (2 Peter 3:8).
This
verse is frequently used to teach that the days of creation in the book of
Genesis are no ordinary days—that they could have lasted an infinite amount of
time. And therefore, some Christians try to harmonize the billions of years of
creation that evolutionists hold to with the teaching of the Bible. However,
there are multiple issues with this theory.
First,
the Bible does not say, “With the Lord a day is a
thousand years and a thousand years is a day.” Rather the Bible
says that a day is like a thousand years.
A
second issue with this theory is the context of 2 Peter 3:8. This text is not
referring to the creation of the universe. Rather, the point of this verse is
that God is not bound by time. He is in control of it. He is outside of it, as
He created it. This is the same idea that is conveyed in Psalm 90:4 “For a
thousand years in Your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a
watch in the night.”
And
third, in the creation account of the book of Genesis, the Hebrew word used
there is yom. Typically yom either means a literal 24 hour period
or a portion of the day, as in from sunrise to sunset. On occasion it is used
in idioms to refer to an indefinite period of time just as we do: “in their
day,” or “in my day and age.” Thus, some use this last definition for the
Hebrew word for day (yom) in reference to the creation account.
However,
Biblically there is a problem with this theory. Every time in the Bible when yom
(day) appears in conjunction with a number (day one, second day, etc.), it always
in context refers to a literal 24 hour period.
Therefore, the Bible teaches that God created the universe in 6
(literal) days.
God is an infinite being. He has infinite
power, knowledge, and wisdom. Obviously, God could then make anything He
desired. He could have created the whole universe and all it contains in no
time at all.
Perhaps
the question we should be asking is why did God take as long as 6 days? After
all, He could have done it in the blink of an eye. But the Bible gives us the
answer in the Ten Commandments as to why God chose to make it in 6 days: “For
in 6 days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in
them, but He rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath
day and made it holy” (Ex. 20:11).
The
Lord created it in 6 days as a pattern for mankind (Ken Ham, The Lie:
Evolution, p.169). We are to work, rest, and honor God, for He is
ultimately in control of our days.
In His
service,
Matt
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