Within the Christian community, there are many differing theories concerning the origin of man and the age of the earth. One such theory is the Day/Age Theory. George Stanley Faber, an Anglican theologian first promoted the Day/Age view. Here is a brief description of the beliefs behind this theory:
- Each of the Creation days was a long period of indefinite time.
- God created certain animals millions of years ago and then they died out.
- Thereafter, God created more animals and eventually He decided to create humans.
- Acceptance of millions of years of death, disease, and suffering before Adam and Eve’s sin and the subsequent curse on the earth.
Some problems with this theory are as follows:
- The Hebrew word for day is yom. In order for yom to be a 24 hour period it must have qualifiers with it. These qualifiers include: morning, evening, number and/or day. The Creation account documented in Genesis 1 specifically lists each day as follows: And there was evening, and there was morning, the first day…second day… and so forth. All qualifiers are included…almost redundantly.
- Another point that must be considered is the death and decay prior to Adam and Eve’s sin that would have cast judgment on the earth.
- This would not have been the “very good” creation that God declared it to be in Genesis 1 and 2. (See also Romans 8:20-22)
Often Day/Age proponents will refer to the verse in 2 Peter 3:8:
One day is with the Lord as a thousand years.
First, we must consider the context the verse is located within. The third chapter of 2 Peter is specifically speaking about the second coming of Christ. Peter is conveying the patience of the Lord in Christ’s second coming so that more people will be led to repentance and salvation. Next, Peter is conveying that the Lord is outside of time. He specifically uses a comparative article—as or like—which is not found in Genesis 1. This verse reiterates that God is outside of time or that time is nothing to God. It is not referring to the creation of time, space, and matter as Genesis 1 and 2 are.
On Friday we will take a look at the theories of Theistic Evolution and the Gap Theory.
