Gap creationism, also called Restitution creationism or Ruin-Reconstruction, are terms used to describe a particular set of Christian beliefs about the creation of the Universe and the origin of man. The concept of the Gap Theory is widely thought to have been promulgated by William Buckland and Thomas Chalmers in the early 1800s, though some adherents maintain that it can be traced back to biblical times. Certainly it became quite popular when it was promoted by the Scofield Reference Bible in 1909. Universe is a word derived from the Old French univers, which in turn comes from the Latin roots unus (one) and versus (a form of vertere, to turn). Based on observations of the observable universe, physicists attempt to describe the whole of space-time, including all matter and energy and... William Buckland (12 March 1784 - 24 August 1856) was a prominent English geologist and palaeontologist who wrote the first full account of a fossil dinosaur, a proponent of Old Earth creationism and Flood geology who later became convinced by the glaciation theory of Louis Agassiz. ... Thomas Chalmers Thomas Chalmers (March 17, 1780 - May 31, 1847), Scottish divine, was born at Anstruther in Fife. ... The Scofield Reference Bible is a widely circulated annotated study Bible edited and annotated by the American Bible student Cyrus I. Scofield. ...

Rationale

Gap creationists believe that science has proven beyond reasonable doubt that the Earth is in fact far older than can be accounted for by merely adding up the ages of Biblical patriarchs, as given in the Book of Genesis. By using this approach, Young Earth creationists derive the age of the Earth to be approximately 6,000 – 10,000 years. In order to maintain that the Genesis account is inerrant in matters of scientific fact, whilst simultaneously accepting that the Earth is extremely ancient, Gap Creationists suppose that certain facts about both the human past and the age of the Earth have been omitted from the Biblical account rather than mythologized by it. Part of a scientific laboratory at the University of Cologne. ... Adjectives: Terrestrial, Terran, Telluric, Tellurian, Earthly Atmosphere Surface pressure: 101. ... The Bible is the collection of Religious text or books of Judaism and Christianity. ... For other senses, see Patriarch (disambiguation). ... Genesis (Greek: Γένεσις, having the meanings of birth, creation, cause, beginning, source and origin) is the first book of the Torah (five books of Moses) and hence the first book of the Tanakh, part of the Hebrew Bible; it is also the first book of the Christian Old Testament. ... Adam and Eve, the first human beings according to Genesis. ... A color image of Earth as seen from Apollo 17. ... Creation according to Genesis refers to the description of the creation of the heavens and the earth by God, as described in Genesis, the first book of the Bible. ...

One approach to this problem is to state that before the six days of Creation and the Fall of Man, there must have been a "gap" in the Biblical account that lasted perhaps tens of thousands or even millions or billions of years.

Varieties

The most common "gap theory" assumes that a chronological gap occurs between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2, during which vast spans of geologic time are presumed to have elapsed. It is thus postulated that the Earth was initially created in the distant past, and that all geologic events pointing to an old Earth (and perhaps even evolution) transpired before some event that returns the Earth to a state of formlessness or chaos as described in Genesis 1:2. This interpretation requires Genesis 1:1-2 to be translated thus: This article is about evolution in biology. ...

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

--gap occurs here--

Now the earth became formless and void (or waste and ruin)..."

One suggested explanation for the event that throws the Earth into chaos is the fall of Lucifer (Satan). Revelation 12:7-12, Isaiah 14:12, Ezekiel 28, Luke 10:18 Lucifer, as depicted in Collin de Plancys Dictionnaire Infernal (1863). ... For other uses, see Satan (disambiguation). ...

Those who hold this viewpoint on when the gap occurred point out that the "clock" on the "six days of Genesis" could not have started "ticking" until the (re)emergence of light in Genesis 1:3 as that verse indicates that this was the evening and morning that make the first day of Genesis, and light had to be present to initiate an evening.

However, this argument (that the light had to be present to initiate an evening) requires restricting the meaning of the Hebrew word "evening" (עֶרֶב) more narrowly than the Hebrew demands. While the word frequently is equivalent to the English word evening (the period of time just before until just after sunset), at times it is referring to the entire night when no light from the sun is visible. For example, in Job 7:4 the same Hebrew word is used and clearly refers to all of the night (which is how virtually all translations render it). In the passage in question (Genesis 1:5), "evening" and "morning" are said to constitute an entire day. Thus, the context strongly suggests that "evening" was meant to refer to "night" (the period of dark); and "morning", to "day" (the period of light).

The viewpoint that a gap took place between verses 1 and 2 makes the events within the "six days of Genesis" an act of re-creation (restoration of the Earth) rather than initial creation, and is part of the ideas held by some adherents of Dispensationalism as recorded by Rev. Clarence Larkin in his book Dispensational Truth. One of the stronger arguments for support of this viewpoint is found within the wording of Genesis 1:2 which states that the planet earth was already a physical entity covered in waters and existing in space-time before God said "...let there be light" in Genesis 1:3. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Although the Bible gives no specific time for the interval between the initial creation (Genesis 1:1) and the start of the regeneration (Genesis 1:3), some Old Earth creationists see it as being merely thousands of years at the most on the basis that "a day with the Lord is as a thousand years and a thousand years as a day" (see: Day-Age Creationism), while the majority of others feel that it must be considerably longer than that to account for the scientific geological record; this Old Earth Creationist view is at considerable variance with the Young Earth Creationist view, although both doctrinal schools are found within Christian fundamentalism. Day-Age Creationism, a type of Old Earth Creationism, is an effort to reconcile the literal Genesis account of Creation with modern scientific theories on the age of the Universe, the Earth, life, and humans. ... Fundamentalist Christianity is a fundamentalist movement, especially within American Protestantism. ...

Some Gap Creationists postulate that a gap occurs between the seventh day, the one of rest, and the account of the Fall of Adam and Eve and hence that of Mankind through the agency of the temptation of Satan in the form of a snake. According to this theory, this amount of time would be sufficient for all of the geologic events which have happened to make the appearance of the Earth to be quite old. Michelangelos Creation of Adam, from the Sistine Chapel. ... For other uses, see Satan (disambiguation). ... blue: sea snakes, black: land snakes Superfamilies and Families Henophidia Aniliidae Anomochilidae Boidae Bolyeriidae Cylindrophiidae Loxocemidae Pythonidae Tropidophiidae Uropeltidae Xenopeltidae Typhlopoidea Anomalepididae Leptotyphlopidae Typhlopidae Xenophidia Acrochordidae Atractaspididae Colubridae Elapidae Hydrophiidae Viperidae For other uses, see Snake (disambiguation). ... This article includes a list of works cited but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ...

Supporting scriptures

In contradistinction with other Old Earth creationists, Gap creationisms generally agree with the account of six literal 24-hour days as given in Genesis, and that everything done during this six day period was "very good". However, there are a number of scriptures which adherents contend support the Ruin/Reconstruction theory of an earth existing prior to this six day event. This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

• God is light and cannot create anything in a less than perfect state, so a newly created earth from the hand of God shouldn't have been without form and void, and shrouded in darkness. Deuteronomy 32:4, Isaiah 45:18 1 John 1:5

• The Holy Spirit was "renewing" the face of the earth as he hovered over the face of the waters. Psalms 104:30

• Angels already existed when God "laid the foundations of the Earth", so there had been at least one creative act of God before this. Job 38:4-7

• Satan had fallen from grace "in the beginning". A state of sin in the universe, but not yet in mankind, is demonstrated by the serpent's temptation of Adam and Eve to sin before they were actually corrupted by sin. Ezekiel 28:11-19, John 8:44

• The death that "came to all men" through Adam was spiritual death, not physical death. At least two men in the past (Enoch and Elijah) did not die physically. Furthermore, Jesus is said to bring life to all men, and yet physical death still occurs. In fact, Jesus personally dealt with this very same confusion between physical and spiritual death among the Pharisees. Genesis 5:23-24, 2 Kings 2:11, John 8:51-53, Hebrews 11:5, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17

• Related to all of this is the fact that space, time, water, and the rock and metal which constitutes the main body of the earth existed in Genesis 1:2 before the period of six days began. In fact, the Bible doesn't discuss details on the creation of the body of the earth at all; beginning in verse 3, Genesis 1 only discusses the surface of the planet.

These scriptures are cited by supporters of the gap theory without an appeal to scientific or secular investigations. Gap creationists do not necessarily agree with theories given by science, including the Big Bang and Evolution and others. In fact, a gap creationist may believe that the earth is only 6,000-10,000 years old; ie. that the "gap" was of a very short duration. The contention is simply that Scripture records the Genesis account to be a reconstruction of an existing earth. In Christian religions that trace their roots to belief in the Nicene Creed, the Holy Spirit (Hebrew: Ruah haqodesh; Greek: ; Latin: ; also called the Holy Ghost) is the third consubstantial Person of the Holy Trinity or the Godhead. ... The Annunciation - the Angel Gabriel announces to Mary that she will bear Jesus (El Greco, 1575) An angel is an ethereal being found in many religions, whose duties are to assist and serve God. ... For other uses, see Satan (disambiguation). ... Michelangelos Creation of Adam, from the Sistine Chapel. ... In Christian theology, Spiritual Death, sometimes also referred to as the Second Death, is defined as a spiritual separation from God, usually brought on by sin. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

Criticisms

Ruin-Restoration theorists contend that Genesis 1:2 is correctly translated "became without form and void" instead of "was without form and void". Critics argue that the rendering "became" requires the Hebrew idiom "to be" and the preposition "to" (Hebrew le). They also argue that the waw disjunctive grammar means that it is a parenthetical statement describing the earth as it was first created; the translation "became" would have used the waw consecutive, describing the next event in a sequence. However, many treatises have been written by Hebrew scholars supporting both sides of this translation, which means this issue cannot be clearly resolved.

Gap theorists also contend that the King James Version (KJV) translation of Genesis 1:28 of "replenish the earth" means to "refill". However, when the KJV was translated in 1611, "replenish" meant "to fill completely" (cf. replete), which is what the Hebrew word male meant. [1] On the other hand, the exact same Hebrew word is used in Genesis 9:1 when God commands Noah and his sons to "fill the earth", in which case they were clearly re-populating the Earth after the Flood. The King James or Authorized Version of the Bible is an English translation of the Christian Bible first published in 1611. ...

Critics argue that the finished creation was described as "very good", which they claim is incompatible with the Fall of Satan and a destructive "Lucifer Flood" that destroyed the alleged previous creation. Gap Theorists may contend that there is no declaration that all finished creation was described as "very good", but that each of the six individual days ends with God's approval, except for day two (Genesis 1:6-8). Furthermore, a Gap Theorist may point out that the things which were rebuilt during the six days of Genesis were "very good", and that this does not conflict with a Satanic fall before the first day in a Genesis 1:1-2 gap.

The long-age interpretation of the fossil record shows human and animal death before Adam [2]. Scripture teaches that death is "the last enemy" (1 Corinthians 15:26) resulting from Adam's Fall (Genesis 3:17, Romans 5:12-19, 1 Corinthians 15:21-22). A gap theorist may first ask why this supports any particular creation account over another, as death may be the "last enemy" whether it began with Adam and Eve or before. He may also respond that 1 Corinthians 15:26 says that death is the last enemy to be destroyed, not that it is the last enemy in a chronological sense. Finally, he would contend that physical death is not the type of death referred to in the cited New Testament passages, a conclusion demonstrated in the final bullet point of the Supporting Scriptures section. John 21:1 Jesus Appears to His Disciples--Alessandro Mantovani: the Vatican, Rome. ...

See also

• Creation belief
• Biblical cosmology
• Existence
• Timeline of the Big Bang
• Ultimate fate of the Universe
• Creation (theology)
• Creation science
• Creationism
• Creator god
• Dating Creation
• Young Earth Creationism
• Day-Age Creationism
• Old Earth Creationism
• Cosmogony
• Cosmological argument
• Theism
• Intelligent design
• C.I. Scofield
• Finis Jennings Dake

Creation beliefs and stories describe how the universe, the Earth, life, and/or humanity came into being. ... It has been suggested that Biblical astronomy be merged into this article or section. ... There is no universally accepted theory of what the word existence means. ... A graphical timeline is available here: Graphical timeline of the Big Bang This timeline of the Big Bang describes the events that have occurred and will occur according to the scientific theory of the Big Bang, using the cosmological time parameter of comoving coordinates. ... The ultimate fate of the universe is a topic in physical cosmology. ... Creation (theology) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Advocates of Creation science lay claim to the methods and empirical practices of science, that is, the scientific method, to assert that scientific evidence supports a literal interpretation of the Biblical account of creation (see Creation according to Genesis). ... Creationism is the belief that humanity, life, the Earth, and the universe were created in their entirety by a supernatural deity or deities (typically God), whose existence is presupposed. ... God is the divine being that created the omniverse. ... Cultures throughout history have believed the world formed or was formed at some time in the past, so methods of dating Creation have involved analysing scriptures and some physical data. ... Adam and Eve, the first human beings according to Genesis. ... Day-Age Creationism, a type of Old Earth Creationism, is an effort to reconcile the literal Genesis account of Creation with modern scientific theories on the age of the Universe, the Earth, life, and humans. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The cosmological argument is a metaphysical argument for the existence of God, traditionally known as an argument from universal causation, an argument from first cause, and also as an uncaused cause argument. ... Theism is the belief in the existence of one or more gods or deities. ... For other uses, see Intelligent design (disambiguation). ... C.I.Scofield Cyrus Ingerson Scofield (August 19, 1843 - July 24, 1921) was an American theologian, minister and writer. ... The Dake Annotated Study Bible Finis Jennings Dake (1902-1987) was an American Pentecostal minister and evangelist known primarily for his voluminous writings on the subjects of Pentecostal (or Charismatic) Evangelical Christian spirituality and Premillennial Dispensationalism: his most well known work being his Dake Annotated Reference Bible. ...

External links

• Custance, Arthur C. Without Form and Void — Chap. 1 (A Long Held View) (Claimed support for Gap Theory prior to the time of Thomas Chalmers).
• Johnson, Gaines R. 1997. Christian Geology — Rightly-Dividing Geology and the Book of Genesis Beyond the Gap Theory of Christian Creationism (supports KJV-Onlyism)
• Ole Madsen, Denmark. The Gap theory Blog
• Ole Madsen, Denmark. The Gap Theory Page — The Gap theory page
• Ole Madsen, Danish site. Skabelsesberetningen - skrift udlaegger skrift — Gap teorien
• Reagan, David F. 2003. To Gap or Not To Gap

Other creationist views See technical note on viewing the Hebrew characters in this Article. ...

• Fields, W.W., 1976. Unformed and unfilled: A critique of the gap theory ISBN 0-9641659-0-2 (mainly addresses above claims)
• Grigg, R., 1997. From the beginning of Creation: Does Genesis have a gap?, Creation 19(2):35–38 (why YECs reject the gap theory)
• Answers In Creation - Old Earth Creationism
• Answers in Genesis, another creationist page
• Spectrum of Creation Beliefs From Flat Earthism to Atheistic Evolutionism, including Gap Creationism