Feedback for the week of November 28, 2005

Does scripture allow for the gap theory?

Wanted to make sure you knew that Genesis 1:2 says, “2  And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.”

The first word for “was” is the word for “BECAME.”  (The second word for was is not in the text.)

Just wanted to make you you knew this as it allows for all the prior life forms.

Thanks.

So, in Genesis 1:1 the dinasaurs would have existed and then by the time Genesis 1:2 they would have been destroyed along with other life forms such as the cave man.

When God created man in His own image that would have been Homo Sapiens with unique dna.

S.C.
USA

Wanted to make sure you knew that Genesis 1:2 says, “2  And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.”

The first word for “was” is the word for “BECAME.”  (The second word for was is not in the text.)

Actually, recognized grammarians, lexicographers, and linguists have almost uniformly rejected the translations “became” and “had become.” It is a basic exegetical fallacy to claim that because Strong’s Concordance lists “became” as one of the meanings of haya, it is legitimate to translate it this way in the particular context of Genesis 1:2. It is simply grammatically impossible when the verb haya is combined with a waw disjunctive—in the rest of the Old Testament, Waw + a noun + haya (qal perfect, 3rd person) is always translated, “was” or “came,” but never “became.”

Additionally, the gap theory has many other problems. Please see

• Get Answers: Gap Theory, and specifically
• What about the “gap” and “ruin-reconstruction” theories?
• The gap theory—an idea with holes?

Just wanted to make you you knew this as it allows for all the prior life forms.

Actually, it doesn’t, because the Hebrew words that Moses (guided by the Holy Spirit) used in Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2 make it very clear that there was no extended (“millions of years”) gap of time that happened between the events described on these verses. Further, Moses also makes it very clear (e.g., Exodus 20:11) that all things were created in six actual days. Additionally, the idea that there were life forms that lived and died prior to the creation of Adam and the subsequent entrance of sin into the world undermines the gospel and denigrates the character of God.

You see, when He was finished creating, God looked at His completed creation and called it “very good” (Genesis 1:31). Accepting “millions of years” of prior life forms living and dying (and suffering from terrible diseases such as cancer or brain tumors) means that God labeled this process good. But can we honestly think death (and disease, pain and suffering) is good? Paul calls it an enemy (1 Corinthians 15:26), and John tells us that it has no place in the new heavens and earth (Revelation 21:4). In fact, death was Adam’s punishment for disobeying God (Genesis 2:17, Genesis 3:19, Romans 5:12). If Adam’s punishment was very good, then why didn’t he eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil right away? And why would Jesus Christ come and die in our place to save us from death if death were a “very good” process that had been occuring for billions of years? Please see

• Death Before Sin?
• Two histories of death

Thanks.

So, in Genesis 1:1 the dinasaurs would have existed

That would mean dinosaurs weren’t land animals. It seems pretty clear to me they were (with the exception of those sea and flying dinosaur-like creatures which were created on Day 5); and God said He created land animals on Day 6, not Day 1. Even Job described one.

and then by the time Genesis 1:2 they would have been destroyed along with other life forms such as the cave man.

Did you know that “cave men” have shown evidence of burying their dead, making and using elegant tools, and knowing how to manage fire (indicating they were human)? Accepting that cave men lived hundreds of thousands of years before Adam entered the scene means that Paul (and thus God, since Paul was being guided by the Holy Spirit to record the things that he did) was being deceitful in saying that Adam was the first man:

So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. (1 Corinthians 15:45)

Please see Get Answers: Anthropology.

When God created man in His own image that would have been Homo Sapiens with unique dna.

S.C.
USA

All animals and plants have unique DNA. Being made in the image of God is what sets us apart from the plants and animals. Please see

• The non-transitions in ‘human evolution’—on evolutionists’ terms

I also recall Jesus’ words in Mark 10:6 when asked about marriage and divorce. Jesus responded:

But at the beginning of creation God made them male and female.

If the world really were billions of years old and man just showed up recently, then Jesus would be wrong—He should have said “near the end of creation.” But since the world was only about 4,000 years old when Jesus said this, and He had created man and woman on Day 6 (only five days after “the beginning”), then Jesus was correct. Jesus believed in a young earth and not the “gap theory,” so there is no reason for us to accept this unbiblical idea. 

Here is a great book that demolishes gap theory, both theologically and scientifically: Unformed and Unfilled.

I encourage you to read these.

Kind regards,
Bodie Hodge, AiG–USA

Recommended resources

Unformed and Unfilled This is the best and most detailed critique of the Gap theory available. The author looks at the inconsistencies of this position and shows that the Hebrew language in Genesis does not allow for such a gap.	Genesis Record (The) A verse-by-verse scientific and devotional commentary on the book of Genesis.	Thousands … Not Billions Evolutionists seek to undermine faith in Genesis as the true history of the universe by stating “facts” that don’t square with the biblical record. This presentation demonstrates that Christians no longer have to puzzle over these glaring contradictions.	Six Days or Millions of Years? “Every word of God proves true …” (Prov. 30:5) Explore solid, biblical reasons to believe and defend that Genesis 1 speaks of six literal, 24-hour days.
Did God Use Evolution? Critically analyzes and rejects the assumptions and consequences of the doctrine of theistic evolution.	Six Days of Creation (The) In this challenging video, Ken Ham clears up some common misunderstandings about the debate over Genesis 1 and “six days” of creation.

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