finishing this project. In reality, I had never heard of the non-traditional views of Genesis 1 or
any of its renowned proponents. When I first began researching material on this particular topic,
I found that I had no idea what I was looking for. I just chose what I thought was intriguing as a
topic for this research report. What caught my attention was the impact that a minor time gap
may have on not only the book of Genesis but all of scripture. After investigating the Gap
Theory, one should have a good understanding of what it is and why it exists.
To start, you must grasp what the Gap Theory is. In summary, the Gap Theory asserts that
there is a massive temporal gap. This concept was devised by Christian theologians as a way to
place a chronological scale of world history recorded in Genesis; they incorporated the fact that
the world is extremely ancient. "The gap theory teaches that the fossils found in the earth's crust
are relics of the originally perfect world that God created, which was allegedly destroyed before
the six literal days of creation", according to the article Answers in Genesis: Mind the Gap. This
proves that the great flood occurred between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2 and devastated the Earth. Now
that you know what the Gap Theory is, you should know that it was proposed by Dr. Thomas
Chalmers in 1814. He was a well-known Scottish Presbyterian clergyman who advocated for a
gap between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2. The Hebrew word for day is yom, and the term includes
several translations and interpretations. The term "day" was used 357 times outside of Genesis 1
according to ICR The Meaning of "Day" in Genesis. The combination is used four times, but
each time it must refer to 24-hour periods." This explains the fact that even though there are
several techniques of interpretation, the best-suited interpretation is the twenty-four hour time
frame. Given that God created the Earth in six days and rested on the seventh. This is seen in
Exodus 20:11, "For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is,
and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it"
(NKJV). The passage shows that there are seven days in all or one week. Creation week
consisted of six days of creation and one day of rest, known as the Sabbath. When discussing
historical opinions on the chronology of creation, it does not line up since the belief that the days
of creation in Genesis 1 are not literal is one that many Christians have maintained throughout
history.
Furthermore, there are other non-traditional views on the formation of the young Earth.
Young-earth creationists believe the six literal (24-hour) days of Genesis 1 occurred between
6,000 and 12,000 years ago. They think that Noah's Flood dramatically altered the earth's surface
around 2,300-3,300 years before Christ. There are arguments for the Genesis 1 order of creation
events as advocated by young-Earth creation. Some evidence that supports the young-Earth
theory includes relatively little sediment on the seafloor and soft tissue in fossils. Answers in
Genesis: Evidence for a Young Earth and Creation, for example, states that "if sediments have
been accumulating on the seafloor for three billion years, the seafloor should be choked with
sediments many miles deep." Because there is little sedimentation on the bottom, this statement
shows that after the flood, all of the initially produced ocean lithosphere was devoured. As a
result, it explains why the ocean seabed rocks are so young. "To her amazement, the bone
revealed what appeared to be blood vessels of the type seen in bone and marrow, and these
contained what appeared to be red blood cells with nuclei..." (Genesis Answers: Evidence for a
Young Earth and Creation). Soft tissue, according to young Earth creationists, is proof that
fossils aren't as old as scientists claim. Some fossils are estimated to be 65 million years old by
scientists. Soft tissue should survive just a fraction of that time. There are ramifications for
alterations to actual Biblical chronology such as the age of creation and other events reported in
the first chapters of Genesis. The first implication for alterations to historical Biblical chronology
is that the Bible states that the earth was formed before the sun and stars, which contradicts the
Big Bang hypothesis. According to Answers in Genesis: Young-Earth Creationist Summarized
and Defended, "the Bible says that fruit trees were created before any sea creatures and that birds
were created before dinosaurs, which is exactly the opposite of the evolution story." This is an
example of a shift between history and the Bible since the time frame does not match the biblical
truths. Another example of implication for modifications to actual Biblical dates is Jesus'
miracles, which also corroborate the young-earth theory. From His first miracle of turning water
into wine. This miracle is described in John 2:11, "What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was
the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory and his disciples believed in him"
(NIV). This verse depicts the first miracle Jesus performed for his followers and the people of
Galilee, in which he transformed water into wine. This viewpoint does not necessitate substantial
revisions or reconsideration of fundamental Christian ideas because we should believe the Bible
completely from beginning to end. There would be no need for adjustment or reconsidering if we
did that and did not believe historical realities.
In the end, after finishing this gap theory research paper, I learned numerous things. The
first is what the gap hypothesis is and who came up with it. The Hebrew word "day" is translated
and understood in Genesis 1. What is Creation Week and how does it work? I was also able to
locate historical beliefs concerning the time of creation. After pointing out the non-traditional
view interpretations, evidence supporting the young-Earth idea was discovered, such as minimal
silt on the seabed and soft tissue in fossils. Not only was there evidence for creation events in
Genesis 1 as advocated by young-Earth creation. However, there were implications for
modifications to actual Biblical chronology such as the earth being formed before the sun and
stars and Jesus turning water into wine. The viewpoint does not demand significant adjustments
Dr. Monty White (2005) Mind the Gap (Answers in Genesis).
https://answersingenesis.org/genesis/gap-theory/mind-the-gap/
James Stambaugh (1988) The meaning of “Day” in Genesis
https://www.icr.org/article/meaning-day-genesis
Exodus 20:11 (NKJV)
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%2020%3A11&version=NKJV
Dr. Andrew A. Snelling, Dr. DAvid Menton, Dr. Danny R. Faulkner, and Dr. Georgia
Purdom (2019) Evidence for a Young Earth and Creation
https://answersingenesis.org/creation-vs-evolution/evidence-for-young-earth-creation/
Dr. Terry Mortenson Young Earth Creationsit View Summarized And Defended
https://answersingenesis.org/creationism/young-earth/young-earth-creationist-view-summarized-
and-defended/
John 2:11 (NIV)
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%202%3A11&version=NIV
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