Myth 2 | Genesis Apologetics

Below is a summary of Myth 2. For the full chapter on this topic, download the Seven Myths book here.

Myth number 2 is: “The Bible’s account of Creation is only metaphorical, the six creation days are not ordinary days, and creation really unfolded over millions of years.”

Despite what some would say, the Bible’s Creation account is not so vague that it’s subject to each person’s unique spin. The Bible clearly narrates how God created everything over a six-day period. What else could God have meant when He wrote with His own hands—and in the 10 commandments no less—that He created in six days, and even wanted us to model our lives after the same weekly cycle? Did Jesus or any of the New Testament writers “update” what God said? Certainly not—He wanted us to believe—back then and still today—that He created in six days.

The genealogies in the first 11 chapters of Genesis map straight back to Adam who was created out of the dust on the sixth day of Creation. It also describes that Adam was created out of dust—and Eve from his side—and they were created in the image of God, not in the image of some evolved ape-like creatures. These genealogies list 87 patriarchs by name and their sons, and the birth and lifespan years are given for 33 of them. How could this even possibly not be a historical account? How much more straight-forward could God have been? It’s really a matter of authority, believing God’s Word over Man’s Word.

Yes, there are passages like Psalm 104, Job 38, and Isaiah 40 that provide poetic descriptions of Creation. God is riding on the clouds in a chariot, shutting in the seas with immense doors, or measuring the waters with his hands. We wouldn’t expect these to be read as historical narratives. They are clearly poetic. The multiple uses of the word “like” and the poetic context express Creation in dramatic and vivid language.

However, the genre of the book of Genesis is clearly historical. This is evident for many reasons, but we’ll just consider three. First, Genesis provides an unbroken narrative. From creation to the fall, the Flood, then on to Abraham, Moses, and David, all leading up to Jesus the Savior. There is an unbroken genealogy that goes from Abraham straight back to Adam. Matthew traces the genealogy of Jesus back to Abraham, and Luke back to Adam. Where in this unbroken line would we stop and say we are just working with some poetic imagination? The Flood? The Fall? Adam’s sin? We can’t pick and choose the history we like and dislike.

Second, Genesis 1 through 11 is written in the genre of Hebrew prose—recorded by the writer to include 87 patriarchs and birth and lifespans given for 33 of them. Third, Moses recorded that God wrote with His own hands that He created the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them in six days. This is what the writer—God—intended to convey and it’s been interpreted like this for generations since it was given. If this is not what was meant by God, when did the writers of Scripture or Jesus fix it, setting the record straight?

The great reformer Martin Luther even wrote, “When Moses writes that God created heaven and earth and whatever is in them in six days, then let this period continue to have been six days, and do not venture to devise any comment according to which six days were one day. But if you cannot understand how this could have been done in six days, then grant the Holy Spirit the honor of being more learned than you are. For you are to deal with Scripture in such a way that you bear in mind that God Himself says what is written. But since God is speaking, it is not fitting for you wantonly to turn His Word in the direction you wish to go.”

Myth 2: “The Bible’s account of Creation is only metaphorical, the six creation days are not ordinary days, and creation really unfolded over millions of years.”