Genesis 1:11-13 (ESV)
11 And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so.
12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.
Genesis 1:29-31 (ESV)
29 And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
Psalm 104:14 (ESV)The first three of these events are listed in relation to the Third day of creation. The fourth event is mentioned in the Psalm in relation to livestock and man and harkens back to the blessing on the sixth day.
14 You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth
| Dictionary | Bible |
|---|---|
| Ocean | The Deep |
| Continents | Dry Land |
| Plants | Plants |
| Birds | Birds |
| Cattle | Livestock |
| Humans | Man |
| basic table of events v1.0 | |
In the table below, events are added to basic table of events (above) introduced in an earlier post.
| Geologic Record | Time (ma) | Biblical Account | Day |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ocean | The Deep | ||
| Continents | Dry Land | ||
| Bryophytes[1] (first plants) | ~470[2] | Vegetation - tender, new deshe' | 3rd |
| Seeds | ~370[3] | Plants yielding seeds | 3rd |
| Woody Angiosperms | 113-100[4] | Trees bearing fruit | 3rd |
| Birds | Birds | ||
| C4 Plants and Grasses | ~30[5] | Grass and cultivated plants[6] | 6th |
| Cattle | 20[7] | Livestock | 6th |
| Humans | Man | 6th | |
| ma = millions of anum (latin for years) before present | July 19, 2018 | v1.1 | |||
Genesis 1 addresses many basic questions, primarily in the context of "Where did that thing come from?" where that thing could be people, trees, the moon, apples, etc.?
It answers those questions by relaying the high-level events that lead to the inhabited world that we experience every day.
Scientists are also interested in seeking and sharing answers to the same questions, because these are timeless questions that most people have at one time or another. They do so by utilizing many techniques. The framework of answers often involves discovering where in the geological column a certain that thing is first found, or trying to predict when in time a certain that thing may have first come into existence.
Interpreting Genesis 1 involves recognizing that it addresses the origin of the things that exist today in the world around us. Therefore, when it lists the origins of vegetation, seed plants, and fruit trees, it is addressing the origins of the kinds that exist today.
The word translated "vegetation" comes from the Hebrew word "deshe'" which refers to new plants, tender plants, and tender herbs. The word is used to describe the first plants that sprout in a barren area. This is applicable to the first plants to colonize land. They were spreading into a barren area. The Hebrew word deshe' includes the meaning "tender". Plants that are tender lack an ingredient called lignin that makes plants stiff. New, immature grass, referred to as deshe' is low in lignin. So too are many of kinds of plants that first invade barren areas. These include a class of plants called bryophytes. Bryophytes are also among the first land plants. Literature searches offer good agreement that Bryophytes have been abundant on earth since the Silurian (444-419 ma) and may have existed much longer, with 470 ma being often sited. It is significant, and relevant, that bryophytes still exist and are common throughout the world today. Rather than applying to an ancient, extinct type of plant, the Bible is referring to the origin of kinds of plants that are still abundant on the earth today, categorized as mosses, liverworts, and hornworts.
After the bryophytes, God created many kinds of seed plants. Evidence exists that seeds, zera', have existed since 370 ma.
The next reference refers to trees that produce fruit with seeds in the fruit. These type of plants are know as woody angiosperms, scientifically. Currently, the best evidence points to fruit trees being created during the Albian period which ranges from ~113 to 100 ma. This included the kinds of trees that continue to exist today: figs, planes, and magnolias.
Ages of Joy takes these events to indicate that the Third Day of creation ranged over the time frame from a point before 470 ma to 100 ma. We will see that looking at the emergence of dry land pushes back the starting point of the Third Day to before 500 ma.
Plants are also featured in Genesis 1 on the Sixth Day. Here they are called out as a blessing to all creatures. We do not see a reference to a new creation of plants, but we do see the blessing. We also find a very specific reference in Psalm 104 stated that God causes grass to grow for livestock and plants for man to cultivate. Psalm 104 uses the Hebrew word hasir for livestock feed which is a word not used in Genesis 1. Psalm 104 also uses the words lechem for food-grain for mankind, also a word not used in Genesis 1. This is interesting because the words used for the kinds of plants created on the Third Day were very specific, not necessarily general words.
When we investigate the scientific record, we find that a very amazing event occurred approximately 30 million years ago. A new type of photosynthesis was introduced to the world that is call C4 photosynthesis. And despite the complexity, C4 photosynthesis evolved more than 62 times independently in flowering plants. C4 plants are very productive and provide most of the food that humans and their livestock rely upon. The following quote indicates the impact of this event.
"Corn is C4, sugarcane is C4," researcher Kevin Uno, a geologist at the University of Utah, told LiveScience. "Although C4 grasses make up less than 1 percent of all plant species in the world, they are responsible for 30 percent of all biomass on Earth. Humansevolved(were created, AOJ) in a world where C4 grasses were available. These are the plants we rely on for food. They made a big impact." [link]
What we learn is that a special creation event occurred on the Sixth Day, referenced in Psalm 104, that was the implementation of the blessing of God mentioned in Genesis 1. By carefully searching the Scriptures, but also looking at scientific discoveries, we can better appreciate the handiwork of God.
Examining the scientific and Biblical data also helps us to root the Ages of Joy creation timeline in the geologic record. We see that the Third Day includes the timeframe from 470 to 100 ma. The Sixth Day includes the timeframe from ~30 ma to the creation of Adam.
Examining the scientific and Biblical data also helps us to root the Ages of Joy creation timeline in the geologic record. We see that the Third Day includes the timeframe from 470 to 100 ma. The Sixth Day includes the timeframe from ~30 ma to the creation of Adam.
No comments:
Post a Comment