DOES SCRIPTURE ALLOW A GAP?
by John D. Morris, Ph.D.

The so-called Gap Theory, proposed early in the 
1800's, but which became popular around the 
turn of the century, has very few scholarly 
advocates these days.

However, many Christians  do still
hold to it, mostly by tradition, having 
never examined it closely. There have always 
been many scientific and theological problems 
with the idea of a long gap of time between 
Genesis 1:1 and 1:2, but perhaps the "death" of 
the Gap Theory came with the 1978 publication 
of Dr. Weston W. Fields' fine book, Unformed and
Unfilled. In it, Fields specified the many Biblical 
problems inherent in the concept, and with only 
a few exceptions, Bible scholars have now 
abandoned it. Some of his main arguments are 
briefly summerized below.

Gap advocates hold that only the surface of the 
earth was "created" during the six-day series of 
events detailed in Genesis 1:2 through 2:25. This 
creation followed a global holocaust brought on 
by the fall of Satan which destroyed a supposed 
pre-Adamic world. But the all-inclusive summary
statements of Genesis 2:1-3 and Exodus 20:11, 
and elsewhere, argue otherwise; "the heavens 
and the earth . . . all the host of them . . . all that 
is in them . . . all His work which God created and 
made," seem better to refer to all of creation, not 
just the earth's surface.

Some have claimed that in Exodus 20:11 the verb 
"to make" is used instead of "to create," and, that, 
therefore, the summation is referring only to the 
earth's surface, leaving the rock strata and the 
earth's interior untouched. But in reality, while 
there is an important distinction between the 
words in Genesis 1, both are used
in Genesis 2:2,3 and Nehemiah 9:6 to refer to all 
of creation; and are even used in synonymous 
parallelism in Genesis 2:4, Exodus 34:10, Isaiah 
41:20 and 43:7.

Another oft-repeated claim is that Genesis 1:2 
should read, "the earth became without form
and void," as opposed to the traditional 
understanding that when God first created the 
earth in verse 3, it "was without form (i.e., not 
yet in completed form) and void (i.e., not yet 
inhabited)." The verb's normal meaning, 
however, is simply "was," and while it may be 
translated "become," the context does not 
warrant it, and all accepted versions of the Bible
use "was."

Each verse in Genesis 1, except verse 1, begins 
with the conjunction "and," thereby connecting
each verse sequentially to those before and after. 
There is no hint of the passing of millions or 
billions of years of time between verses 1 and 2.
Gap advocates frequently turn to other portions 
of Scripture for support, particularly those which 
use the words "without form" and "void" 
(Jeremiah 4:23, Isaiah 24:1, and 45:18 are most 
important).

In each case, the prophet refers to a wasted
state due to the judgment of sin, thereby 
implying that Genesis 1:2 likewise implies a 
condition brought about by judgment. But in each 
case, the context regards the land of Israel, not 
the original earth. There is no justification for 
postulating long ages present in a supposed gap 
in Genesis.

The Gap Theory, as with all efforts to harmonize 
Genesis with the geologic ages, faces 
insurmountable problems on several fronts. How 
much better to take God at His Word 
and simply believe what He says.

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