Creation Days Duration in Genesis Account
The duration of the "days" in the Genesis creation account (Genesis 1:1-2:3) is a subject of varying interpretation among biblical scholars and theologians. The text itself describes a sequence of six days during which God creates the heavens and the earth and all that is in them, followed by a seventh day of rest [7, 8].
Some interpretations understand these "days" as literal 24-hour periods. John Gill, for instance, in his commentary on Genesis, outlines the work of each of the six days, detailing the creation of light, the firmament, dry land and vegetation, celestial bodies, sea creatures and birds, and land animals and humans, respectively [4]. This view emphasizes the straightforward reading of the Hebrew word yom (day) as a standard day. The structure of Genesis 1, with the recurring phrase "there was evening and there was morning, the [number] day," supports this literal understanding for many [4, 9].
However, the term yom can also refer to an indefinite period of time in other biblical contexts. For example, Genesis 7:4 uses "seven days" to refer to a period leading up to the forty days and nights of rain [1]. Similarly, Genesis 40:18 uses "three days" in a context that could be interpreted as a general period [2]. John Gill also notes that the phrase "in the day that the Lord God made the earth, and the heavens" (Genesis 2:4) refers to the entire six-day period of creation, not just a single 24-hour day [10]. This suggests that "day" can encompass a longer duration.
Other perspectives propose that the creation "days" represent longer, indeterminate periods or epochs. This view often seeks to reconcile the biblical account with scientific understandings of the age of the earth and the universe. Adam Clarke, in his commentary, notes that Noah was in the ark for a "complete solar year, or three hundred and sixty-five days," indicating an understanding of specific, measurable timeframes in other biblical narratives [6]. However, the specific nature of the creation days remains a point of discussion. Charles Hodge, in his Systematic Theology, discusses the Sabbath as being instituted from the beginning, implying a pattern of seven periods, but does not explicitly define the length of these periods in Genesis 1 [5].
The account in Genesis 1 is presented as a historical document intended to convey actual truth regarding creation [7]. The narrative describes the completion of creation, with no new species or laws of nature being added since [8]. The book of Genesis itself covers a vast span of time, from the creation of Adam to the death of Joseph, approximately 2369 years, according to Smith's Bible Dictionary [3]. This broad temporal scope within Genesis highlights the potential for different interpretations of time within its narratives.
Sources
- Genesis “In seven days, I will cause it to rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights. Every living thing that I have made, I will destroy from the surface of the ground.” -- Genesis 7:4”
- Genesis “Joseph answered, “This is its interpretation. The three baskets are three days. -- Genesis 40:18”
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Genesis — (origin), the first book of the law or Pentateuch, so called from its title ia the Septuagint, that is, Creation . Its author was Moses. The date of writing was probably during the forty-years wanderings in the wilderness, B.C. 1491-1451. Time .--The book of Genesis covered 2369 years,--from the creation of Adam, A.M 1, to the death of Joseph, A.M. 2369, or B.C. 1635. Character and purpose .--The book of Genesis (with the first chapters of Exodus) describes the steps which led to the establishment of the theocracy. It is a part of the writer's plan to tell u”
- Genesis (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Genesis 1 (introduction): This chapter contains an account of the creation of the universe, and all things in it; asserts the creation of the heaven and earth in general, and describes the state and condition of the earth in its first production, Gen 1:1 and then proceeds to declare the work of each of the six days of creation, and to give an account of light, its separation from darkness and the names of both, the work of the first day, Gen 1:3 of the firmament, its use and name, the work of the second day, Gen 1:6 of the appearance of the earth, and the production of grass, herb”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 3, section 46: Kiel, 1843, vol. i. p. 29. And Knobel, one of the most pronounced of the rationalistic commentators, says, “That the author of Genesis makes the distinction of the seventh day coeval with the creation, although the carrying out of the purpose thus intimated was deferred to the time of Moses. Nothing is known of any ante-Mosaic celebration of the Sabbath.” 312 312 Die Genesis Erklärt, von August Knobel, Leipzig, 1852. 2. Apart from the fact that the reason for the Sabbath existed from the beginning, there is direct historical evidence that”
- Genesis (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Genesis 8:14: And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day - From this it appears that Noah was in the ark a complete solar year, or three hundred and sixty-five days; for he entered the ark the 17th day of the second month, in the six hundredth year of his life, Gen 7:11, Gen 7:13, and continued in it till the 27th day of the second month, in the six hundredth and first year of his life, as we see above. The months of the ancient Hebrews were lunar; the first six consisted of thirty days each, the latter six of twenty-nine; the whole twelve months making three hundre”
- Genesis (Lutheran) “Keil & Delitzsch on Genesis 1 (introduction): The Creation of the World - Genesis 1:1-2:3 The account of the creation, its commencement, progress, and completion, bears the marks, both in form and substance, of a historical document in which it is intended that we should accept as actual truth, not only the assertion that God created the heavens, and the earth, and all that lives and moves in the world, but also the description of the creation itself in all its several stages. If we look merely at the form of this document, its place at the beginning of the book of Genesis is sufficient to war”
- Genesis (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Genesis 2 (introduction): THE NARRATIVE OF THE SIX DAYS' CREATION CONTINUED. The course of the narrative is improperly broken by the division of the chapter. (Gen 2:1) the heavens--the firmament or atmosphere. host--a multitude, a numerous array, usually connected in Scripture with heaven only, but here with the earth also, meaning all that they contain. were finished--brought to completion. No permanent change has ever since been made in the course of the world, no new species of animals been formed, no law of nature repealed or added to. They could have b”
- Genesis (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Genesis 1 (introduction): First day's work - Creation of the heavens and the earth, Gen 1:1, Gen 1:2. Of the light and its separation from the darkness, Gen 1:3-5. Second day's work - The creation of the firmament, and the separation of the waters above the firmament from those below it, Gen 1:6-8. Third day's work - The waters are separated from the earth and formed into seas, etc., Gen 1:9, Gen 1:10. The earth rendered fruitful, and clothed with trees, herbs, grass, etc., Gen 1:11-13. Fourth day's work - Creation of the celestial luminaries intended for the measurement of time”
- Genesis (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Genesis 2:4: These are the generations of the heavens and the earth, when they were created,.... That is, the above account, delivered in the preceding chapter, is a history of the production of the heavens and earth, and of all things in them; the creation of them being a kind of generation, and the day of their creation a sort of birthday; see Gen 5:1. in the day that the Lord God made the earth, and the heavens; meaning not any particular day, not the first day, in which the heavens and the earth were created; but referring to the whole time of the six days, in which everythi”