The beginning

THE BEGINNING - AOJ Hadean Eon (4600-3950 Ma) 

1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. (Genesis 1:1-2, ESV)

Premise: Genesis 1:1-2:4 records a divinely-revealed history of the Earth describing some of God's miraculous interventions by which He transformed an uninhabitable and uninhabited world into a habitat in which human beings could thrive. God creates each human being as His image bearers and uniquely endows them with an eternal, morally-obligated spirit.

Chronology

The ICS informally defines the Hadean Eon as spanning ~4600-4000 Ma.

4600-3950 Ma: current best fit for what could be called the Tohu-Wabohu (The Beginning).

Critical Transformations: formation of the Moon, formation of the oceans, brightening of the faint, young Sun, bombardment of Earth with comets and astroids delivering materials

Termination: AOJ uses the origin of life as the transition point between the formless and void Hadean and the life-bearing Archean; therefore the exact start date will change as scientific information on the timing of the first life improves.  It is not expected that the scientific community will utilize this thinking to adjust the start date of the Archean.

 

Biblical Sequence of Events	What Happened	Age
22 “The Lord possessed me [wisdom] at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of old. 23 Ages ago I [wisdom] was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth. (Prov 8)	God is wise in all His actions.  All creation is formed wisely under His direction.  Proverbs 8:22-31 describes how God worked wisely for ages before Earth was inhabited by man, and with that purpose daily in His mind as a joyful anticipation.	The first act
In the beginning, God created (Gen 1:1a)	The beginning of all matter, space, time, and energy as God's creative act; possibly as modeled by Big Bang Cosmology	Pre-geology
the heavens and the earth. (Gen 1:1b)	Heavens (the abode of the stars) and heavens of earth (the abode of the clouds) exist; the earth has been formed from the dust of the stellar nebula	Pre-geology
By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host. (Ps 33:6)	The creation of the heavens are described as the product of God speaking, God breathing, and (below) God working with His hands.  This demonstrates God's full involvement. Host assumed to be stars.	Pre-geology
Ignition of stellar radiation, formation of Earth, and moon-forming impact occurred at this time.
Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, (Ps 102:25a) and the heavens are the work of your hands. (Ps 102:25b)	The primordial earth and atmosphere are the work of God's hands.  "Of old" translated from Hebrew paw-neem' having the meaning "beforetime" as in primeval or primordial.	Hadean
8 “Or who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb, 9 when I made clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling band, 10 and prescribed limits for it and set bars and doors, 11 and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stayed’? (Job 38)	Volcanoes supplied most of Earth's water, spewing forth water-vapor and other gases. Earth's first atmosphere was mostly steam, H2, and CO. Steam coalesced into thick clouds, plunging the Earth into darkness.  Over time, the clouds rained out, filling the ocean basins. Early pieces of continental crust and towering volcanic mountains jutted up above the waters, against which the writhing surf would pound. Proud indeed, the waves of the first oceans were driven by thousand miles an hour winds as the early Earth spun rapidly in just six hours per rotation.	Hadean
He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap; he puts the deeps in storehouses. (Ps 33:7)	God causes the sea swells and the clouds, which are figuratively described as storehouses and literally function as such.	Hadean
The brief episode of the Late heavy bombardment ensues, forming most of the visible craters on the moon, melting the Earth's crust, and plunging the Earth into darkness caused by clouds of steam and increased volcanism.  All that may have existed before is rendered a "formless and void" wasteland.
The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. (Gen 1:2)	After the chaotic and dramatic beginning, Earth is pictured in a relatively benign state, formless, dark and brooded over by God's Spirit.	Archean

Scripture For Reference

Psalm 33:6-7 English Standard Version (ESV)
6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap; he puts the deeps in storehouses.


Psalm 68:32-34 English Standard Version (ESV)
32 O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God; sing praises to the Lord, Selah
33 to him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens; behold, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.
34 Ascribe power to God, whose majesty is over Israel, and whose power is in the skies.

Psalm 102:25
ESV	Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.
TLB	In ages past you laid the foundations of the earth and made the heavens with your hands!
YLT	Beforetime the earth Thou didst found, And the work of Thy hands [are] the heavens.

Job 38:1-11 English Standard Version (ESV)

1 Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:
2 “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?
3 Dress for action[a] like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me.
4 “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.
5 Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it?
6 On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone,
7 when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
8 “Or who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb,
9 when I made clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling band,
10 and prescribed limits for it and set bars and doors,
11 and said, ‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stayed’?

Proverbs 8:22-23 English Standard Version (ESV)
 22 “The Lord possessed[a] me at the beginning of his work,[b] the first of his acts of old.
23 Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth.

Notes:

Bombardment of the early Solar System