1. Creation required few, if any, miracles. Science can now explain how everything evolved.

Creation was a miracle. Evolution, if true, would require many miracles. [See pages 7–108.] A miracle is a departure from physical laws.

2. Genesis 1–11 is either allegory, poetry, or myth. It is not literally true.

Genesis 1–11 is accurate history involving real people and major events. Jesus Christ and every New Testament writer cited these foundational events that shaped human culture. [See the 68 references beginning on page 571.]

3. Genesis contains two conflicting creation accounts, Genesis 1:1–2:3 and Genesis 2:4–2:25. Obviously, both cannot be correct—or taken literally.

Genesis contains two descriptions of creation. The first is chronological, while the second is from man’s perspective. A close study of the Hebrew words shows no conflict. Christ, who in a single sentence mentioned both descriptions, knew they referred to the same creation event. (Mt 19:4–5) [Endnote 1 on page 488 contains additional information.]

4. Natural processes (or “Mother Nature”) can explain the formation of the heavenly bodies, earth, and life. Matter preceded mind.

The Creator, with purpose and supernatural power, brought forth the heavenly bodies, earth, and life.  Mind preceded matter. (Gen 1–2, Ps 19:1, Ps 33:6)

5. Space, time, and matter are eternal. Time existed before things were created.

God who is eternal, created space, time, and matter. The creation came out of nothing. There was a beginning.⁷  Time began at the creation. (Gen 1:1, Mt 24:21, Mk 13:19, Jn 1:1, Col 1:16, Heb 11:3)

6. The universe began with a big bang and blinding light. Then the universe expanded trillions of billions of times faster than the speed of light. Ten-billion years later, the earth slowly formed in the presence of sunlight.

On Day 1, the earth was formed in darkness. (Gen 1:2) Soon afterward, but before the Sun and stars were made, blinding light appeared.  (Gen 1:3) To appreciate how exceptionally bright the light was, see page 451. [See also "If the Sun and Stars Were Made on Day 4, What Was the Light of Day 1?" on pages 467–469.]

7. The big bang was the basic creation event. It occurred during a fraction of a second.

A series of creative acts occurred during the creation week. (Gen 1) God stretched out the heavens. [See "Why Is the Universe Expanding?" on pages 447–462.]

8. Hydrogen, helium, and some lithium formed millions of years before all the other 100⁺ chemical elements.

Almost all chemical elements came into existence during the creation week. (Gen 2:2, Ex 20:11)

9. Since the big bang, the average temperature of the universe has continually decreased. Eventually, the Sun will exhaust its fuel and the earth will lose its heat and freeze solid.

The earth began in a relatively cool state (see #12 below). Eventually, intense heat will destroy the heavens and the earth. (II Peter 3:7,10,12)

10. The Sun and most stars formed billions of years before earth.  Stars are still forming.

Earth was created three days before the Sun and stars. Today, stars are dying, not being created.  (Gen 1:2, 1:16; Ex 20:11) [See page 37.]

11. During the fourth creation period (not the fourth day), the Sun, Moon, and stars were “made to appear”⁸ on a previously cloud-covered earth.

On the fourth creation day, the Sun, Moon, and stars were made. (Gen 1:14–19) If the word “day” in Genesis 1:14 means a long period, what do the words “year” or “night” mean in those verses?

12. The earth initially had a hot, molten surface. Millions of years later, water oozed out of earth’s interior.

On the first day, the earth had a liquid water surface.⁹ Therefore, the earth was relatively cool at the beginning. (Gen 1:2)

13. The earth slowly coalesced from meteoritic impacts that melted the earth’s surface and vaporized all surface water.

The earth formed quickly. After the second day, its solid surface —earth’s crust—was spread out above the liquid subterranean waters. (Ps 24:2, 104:3, 136:6)

14. Land formed before oceans.

A global ocean existed before the surface waters were gathered into one place and dry land first appeared. (Gen 1:2, 1:9)

15. Evolution occurred over billions of years, not in six literal days. The word “day” in the Bible can, in rare cases, mean an indefinite period of time. The six creation “days” may have been six ages, so each creation age had millions of evenings and mornings. Another possibility is that God created in six literal days, but each day was separated by millions of years.

Creation occurred in six literal, consecutive days. (Gen 1, Ex 20:11)  The Hebrew word for day, yom, always means literal, consecutive days when modified by a plural number. Yom was defined as a literal day when it was first used. (Gen 1:4,5)  Each creation day had only one “evening and morning.”

To survive, plants need the Sun and animals—especially insects. All were created within three literal days of each other. (Gen 1:11–23) Had it taken much longer, plants could not have survived.¹⁰ (Gen 1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31)

16. In the Bible, a day can be a long time. For example, Psalm 90:4 and II Peter 3:8 say that “a day is like a thousand years.”

Those verses do not refer specifically to the six creation days. Instead, they say that God is outside of time; He sees the intimate details and the big picture. Besides, no evolutionist believes creation took 6,000 years.

17. Since the earth began, natural disasters have occurred: earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, lightning strikes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, droughts, blizzards, and impacts by meteorites, asteroids, and comets.

These calamities were not part of God’s “very good” creation. Later, man’s sin destroyed that tranquility. Man’s wickedness became so bad that God chose to destroy almost all men and air breathing land animals in a global flood. (Gen 1:31, 6:5–7)  Part II of this book explains why most natural disasters, including radiation damage, are a consequence of the global flood. [See pages 110–441.]

18. The present is the key to the past; that is, presently observable natural processes explain all past events. (This principle, called uniformitarianism, underlies much of geology.)

The present is not always the key to the past. God sometimes works suddenly, as He did during the creation, the fall, and the flood. (Gen 1–3, 6–8)  No natural process on earth approaches the flood in its power, destructiveness, or extent. (II Peter 3:3–6) [See pages 110–441.]

19. There have been no worldwide floods—only brief, local floods. “Noah’s flood,” if it happened, was only a local, or regional, flood. God’s promise, in Genesis 9:11, not to again flood the earth cannot be taken literally.

A catastrophic, worldwide flood covered all¹¹ the earth’s preflood mountains after 150 days. (Gen 7:19–20, 7:24; Ps 104:6–9) This year-long flood (Gen 7:11, 8:14) destroyed almost all humans and air-breathing land animals. (Gen 6:13, 6:17, 7:4, 7:21–23, 8:21, 9:11; Lk 17:27; I Pet 3:20; II Pet 2:5, 3:6)

20. The first sea life was a small blob of complex chemicals. It took a billion years for other sea life to form.

On the fifth day, sea life was created, and the waters swarmed with all the various kinds of sea creatures. (Gen 1:20 – 22)

21. The original atmosphere consisted of methane, ammonia, and other poisonous gases. Over billions of years, the atmosphere evolved into what it is today.

The atmosphere was created quickly and has since supported all living things. (Gen 1:6–8)

22. Rain began as the earth’s atmosphere evolved.

Rain did not occur before the flood. [See pages 483–490.]

23. Plant life helped our atmosphere evolve.

The atmosphere was created before plant life. (Gen 1:6–12)

24. Plants evolved over a long period of time. Flowering plants evolved 220-million years after all other plants.

All major categories of plants, including their seeds and fruit, were created on the third day. (Gen 1:11–12)

25. The Sun evolved several billion years before plant life.

The Sun was made one day after plant life. (Gen 1:12–16)

26. Various forms of plant and animal life evolved during each of four sequential, geological eras: Precambrian, Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic. These eras were of unequal length.

Life was created during only three of the six creation days—3rd day: plant life, 5th day: sea life and birds, and the 6th day: other land animals and man. (Gen 1)

27. Since the earth began, new forms of life have continued to evolve within each of the major categories: plants, sea creatures, birds, and land animals.

All plants were created first, then all sea creatures and birds, then all land animals. Finally, man was created—Adam first, then Eve. (Gen 1, 2:21–22)

28. There is continuity among all forms of life. All organisms have a common ancestor. Therefore, there were continuous transitions among all plants and among all animals. The millions of species are not fixed and not distinct.

There are permanent discontinuities between the many different “kinds” of life. In fact, the Bible states 10 times that each “kind” will reproduce after itself. (Gen 1) The kinds are fixed and distinct. (I Cor 15:39)

29. Sea life preceded land life by hundreds of millions of years.

Sea life was created two days after the first land life. (Gen 1:11–13, 1:20 – 23)

30. Adam could not have named all the animals in one day, because there were too many. Besides, most animals and plants became extinct before man evolved.

The Bible does not say that Adam named all the animals. On Day 6, he named “all the cattle,” “the birds of the sky,” and “every beast of the field” (domesticated animals). Adam did not name, for example, sea creatures, creeping things (insects), and the beasts of the earth (wild animals). (Gen 2:20)  All animal kinds have lived contemporaneously with man—even dinosaurs. (Gen 1:20 – 30)

31. Insects evolved millions of years before birds and flowering plants. We don’t know the origin of insects.

All birds and plants were created before “creeping things.”  (Gen 1:20 – 24)

32. Either reptiles or dinosaurs evolved into birds. More than 100-million years later, 60-million years after the dinosaurs became extinct, man evolved.

Birds were created before dinosaurs, reptiles, and other beasts of the earth. (Gen 1:20 – 25)  Man saw and wrote about dinosaurs and giant marine reptiles. (Job 40:15–41:34)

33. Fish evolved hundreds of millions of years before birds and fruit trees.  The first fish and birds came from eggs.

Fruit trees were created before fish. Fish and birds were created on the same day. Fish were created swimming, and birds were created flying. (Gen 1:11, 21–22)

34. It is uncertain which came first, the chicken or the egg.

Eggs were within the first chickens, so both came together. All animals were created fully formed and functional.¹²

35. The first animals were microscopic sea creatures. Much later, fish evolved, then amphibians, and finally mammals. The last mammals to evolve included whales.

The first animals created included highly developed mammals, such as the great whales. The next day, many other creatures, including so-called “lower forms” were created. (Gen 1:20 – 21, 1:24)

36. For hundreds of millions of years before man evolved, many animals were carnivores (meat eaters).

Early animals were herbivores (plant eaters). After either the fall or the flood, some became carnivores. (Gen 1:30)

37. Macroevolution continues today, so creation is a long process.

Creation was a distinct event. (Ps 148:5) God finished “all His work” in six days. (Gen 2:1–3; Ex 20:11, 31:17; Heb 4:1–11)

38. Everything in nature, from protons to planets to people, evolved by slow, continuous processes.

Everything in nature was created in discrete steps. (Ps 33:6–9) Five times Genesis states that “God said ... and it was so.” (Gen 1:6–7, 1:9, 1:11, 1:14–15, 1:24) All the Bible’s miracles occurred quickly, including the biggest and first miracle—creation.

39. Evolution works, in part, through a process called “survival of the fittest.” Violence, pain, and death were necessary for animals to become more complex. Suffering, cruelty, and death are natural results of the evolutionary process. In this sense, death produced man.

God is all-powerful and does not need to use violence, pain, or death to create. God did not author evil, suffering, disease, or calamity. Several attributes of our Creator are love, peace, and joy. Right after the creation, everything was “very good.” (Gen 1:31) Suffering and cruelty entered the world when Adam sinned. (Gen 3)In this sense, man produced death.  (Gen 2:17, Rom 5:12, I Cor 15:21)

40. Females evolved before males.

Males and females within a “kind” were created on the same day. (Gen 1:20 – 25) The first human male came before the first human female. (Gen 2:22)

41. Man evolved from a lower animal.

Adam was formed from dust. (Gen 2:7)

42. Man is a product of nature. Man is controlled and shaped by his environment. In fact, the environment largely determined how man evolved.

God told man to control his environment—to care for the earth and have dominion over every living thing that moves on the earth. (Gen 1:26, 1:28–30)

43. Man is an animal that has evolved a little higher than the apes.

Man, who was given dominion over all animals, was created in the image of God. (Gen 1:26–27, 1:30, 5:1)  Man was made “a little lower than God.” (Ps 8:5)

44. Man has existed during only the past 1,000th of the earth’s history—13,000,000,000 years after the universe began and 4,500,000,000 years after the earth evolved.

Man has existed since the creation week. (Mt 19:4; Mk 10:6, 13:19; Lk 11:50–51a; Jn 8:44; Rom 1:20)

45. There really was no one individual we can call “Adam”; the term refers to “mankind” or a race of primitive men. Adam and Eve may be mythical characters in a saga explaining how evil originated—or characters in a timeless myth representing the sinful choices we all make.

Inspired writers of both Testaments spoke of Adam as an individual, not as a race of people. (Gen 5:3; I Chron 1:1; Lk 3:38; Acts 17:26; Rom 5:12; I Cor 15:21–22, 15:45–47) Eve was also a unique person. (I Cor 11:8–9, I Tim 2:13–14) Regardless of skin color or where we live on this planet, we are all descended from Adam and Eve. (Gen 3:20)

46. Almost all fossils formed before man appeared on earth.

Man was created before any fossils formed.

47. Man’s genealogy includes many apelike animals. It spans more than a hundred thousand generations. Adam had millions of years’ worth of ancestors.

Man’s genealogy begins with Adam and Eve and involves only a few hundred generations. The Bible gives the line of descent from Adam to Noah and even up to historical times.  (Gen 5, I Chron 1, Lk 3:23–38)  Christ never mentioned any ancestors of Adam; Adam had none. (Mt 19:4)

48. Although apes, man’s closest relatives, have no difficulty or pain in giving birth, human childbirth is painful and can be dangerous for mother and child. Natural selection should have eliminated women with narrow birth canals.¹³

Humans are a special creation; they did not descend from apes or any ancestor of apes. Pain in human birth greatly increased as a result of the fall. (Gen 3:16)

49. God breathed a spirit into an apelike creature. It became man.

God breathed the breath of life into a lifeless human body. He became man. (Gen 2:7)

50. The earliest people were meat eaters. The first animals that could be considered human were hunters. Hundreds of thousands of years later, man began farming.

The earliest people were vegetarians. (Gen 1:29) The first man, Adam, was a gardener. (Gen 2:15) Later, Adam became a farmer; his son, Abel, was a herdsman. (Gen 4:2) Less than 10 generations later, man began hunting. (Gen 9:3)

51. Because man evolved from the animals, there is very little difference in the psychological makeup and behavior of animals and man.

Man was created distinct from the animals and in the image of God. (Gen 1:26–27, 5:1) Adam did not find any animal that was physically and emotionally compatible with him. Only another human, Eve, was a satisfactory counterpart. (Gen 2:20)

52. The first man came from a woman. Woman, like man, evolved from animals.The story of Eve being formed by “divine surgery” from Adam’s side is nonsense. Eve had a mother.

The first woman came from a man. (Acts 17:26, I Cor 11:8) Eve was specially created—taken from the side of Adam.  (Gen 2:21–23) Eve had no mother.

53. Marriage, a cultural convention, evolved from human experience. Marriage therefore changes as culture evolves.

Marriage is a permanent bond instituted by God. (Gen 2:24)

54. Man slowly developed our basic units of time: a day, a week, a month, and a year.

Genesis 1, not man, explains the origin of our basic units of time.

55. No one established the seven-day week. It was culturally derived. Surprisingly, almost all known cultures throughout history have had a seven-day week.

God established the seven-day week for man’s benefit. (Mk 2:27) It reminds us of His activity and rest during the creation week.  (Gen 1, Ex 20:8–11)

56. The Garden of Eden is a myth.

Eden was a literal place. (Is 51:3; Ezek 28:13, 36:35; Joel 2:3)

57. People have rarely lived beyond 100 years, especially in the primitive past.

Before the flood, conditions were such that at least the people listed in chapter 5 of Genesis lived to be about 900 years old. [See pages 527–530.]

58. Lunar months may have been mistakenly called “years” by the early Hebrews. Thus, the patriarchal ages (typically 900 “years”) in Genesis 5 could be much younger in true years.

Two patriarchs were 65 years old when their sons were born. (Gen 5:15, 5:21) If those “years” were lunar months, then they had children when they were 5 years old!

59. Language evolved slowly; it began with grunts and signs of emotion. (Most linguists admit they do not know how languages multiplied. Today, languages are rapidly becoming extinct.)

Adam, who was created with a large vocabulary, conducted intelligent conversations from the beginning. He named many, but not all, land animals on the day he was created. (Gen 2:18–24)  Languages multiplied suddenly at Babel. (Gen 11:1–9) [See “Language” and “Speech” beginning on page 10.]

60. Early man was quite primitive and technologically immature.

Within only a few hundred years after the creation, man built musical instruments and refined alloys. (Gen 4:21–22)  Early man also had the technology to build Noah’s Ark (Gen 6:14–16) and the Tower of Babel. (Gen 11:3–6)

61. The genealogies listed from Adam to Joseph contain many gaps.  Each gap may span centuries. The first humans evolved from some apelike animal about 6,000,000 years ago.

The genealogies from Adam to Joseph are tightly linked, because each patriarch’s age is given when the next named patriarch was born. [See page 521.] Therefore, more time cannot be inserted between patriarchs. Besides, placing several centuries between each patriarch would push back Adam’s creation less than 100,000 years.

62. Cain, Adam and Eve’s first son, was banished to a distant land and would not have had a wife, unless he married a subhuman primate or another evolved human.

Adam and Eve had many sons and daughters. (Gen 5:4) Cain probably married a sister or a niece.¹⁴

63. For a billion years, millions of species have slowly improved and become more complex. This is still happening.  New forms of life are always evolving.

God did not need a billion years or a bloody, cruel, inefficient process like evolution (consisting primarily of mistakes) to create. Right after the creation, God saw all that He had made, and it was “very good.” (Gen 1:31)  After the fall, things deteriorated (Gen 3:16–19, Rom 8:18–22) and diversified.  We have never seen a new kind of life evolve. (Ex 20:11)

64. Death entered the world just after the simplest form of life evolved—a billion years before man evolved.

Death entered the world after Adam was created and sinned.  (Rom 5:12)

65. Death preceded the activities that some people call sin.¹⁵

Sin preceded death.  (Gen 2:17, 3:1–24; Rom 5:12, 6:23, I Cor 15:21)

66. Adam’s fall had only spiritual consequences.

Adam’s fall had both spiritual and physical consequences. (Gen 2:17, 3:14–24; Rom 8:18–22; I Cor 15:21–22) [See Table 37 on page 560.]

67. Ever since plants evolved, some have been poisonous. This enhanced their survivability.

Before the fall, every green plant was edible. (Gen 1:29–30)

68. Thorns and thistles evolved along with plants.

Adam’s sin caused thorns and thistles. (Gen 3:17–18)

69. Man’s wickedness is a result of his animal nature.

Since the fall, man’s wickedness is a result of his fallen nature.

70. God gave Adam a spirit, so Adam was the first primate who could be called human. He died physically as did his primate ancestors, but not as a penalty for disobedience. Adam’s penalty for disobedience was only spiritual death—separation from God.

The first Adam brought physical and spiritual death into the world for humans. The last Adam (Jesus Christ) brings spiritual life and physical resurrection from the dead.  If Adam’s body evolved from an animal, this profound theological correspondence is broken, along with the “plan of redemption.”¹⁶ Both “Adams” had miraculously created bodies, but both could die as a penalty for human disobedience. (Rom 5:14–15, I Cor 15:45)

71. Struggle and death preceded man’s arrival on earth. This struggle has continued ever since.

The completed creation, which included man, was “very good.” (Gen 1:31) There was no struggle and death. Later, man (by his willful disobedience) fell from this universal paradise, causing struggle and death to enter the world. Someday, this paradise will be restored as a “new heaven and a new earth.” (Is 11:6–9, Rev 22:2–3)

72. Man is continually improving—physically, mentally, socially, morally, and spiritually.

Since early times, man has advanced technologically. (Gen 4:21–22) This was largely inevitable. (Gen 11:6) However, man has regressed physically and spiritually.  (Gen 3, 5, 11)

73. Because man culminates billions of years of upward progress, his well-being and continued improvement must be our greatest concern.¹⁷

Because God created man (and everything else), God should be our greatest concern. Man, who was made in the image of God, was given dominion over all other creatures. (Gen 1:26)  Man must exercise great care and concern for the creation, especially for his fellow man. However, humans are special creatures who have sinned and, therefore, need a Savior.  (Jn 3:16)

74. People living in biblical times did not have the scientific knowledge to understand how the universe, earth, and all life evolved. Therefore, Jesus did not try to clarify the allegorical statements and misleading history presented in the scriptures (especially Genesis 1–11).

All New Testament and many Old Testament writers were equally misinformed. From our scientific vantage point today, we must seek the real intent behind Christ’s words and not take the Bible literally.

Jesus always spoke the truth; in fact, He said He was the truth (Jn 14:6), and scripture is the truth (Jn 17:17). Certainly, Jesus knew the truth, because He was there in the beginning, and all things came into being through Him. (Jn 1:3) To say that Jesus knew the Bible contained false history, but didn’t want to tell people the truth, belies who Jesus was. He didn’t hide false ideas; He exposed them. He called the Old Testament writers, including Moses, who compiled Genesis 1–11, prophets. (Jn 5:46–47) By definition, prophets, when speaking God’s message, always spoke the truth. False prophets were stoned to death.

Jesus was not constrained by culture, tradition, or concern of misunderstandings (Mt 5:1–12, Jn 6:53). Nor did He avoid subjects that were hard for listeners to understand, such as: end-times (Mt 24), the new birth (Jn 3:1–12), His crucifixion (Mt 12:40, Mk 8:31), or what follows death (Mt: 25:32–46, Jn 14:2). As explained in Table 38 on page 572, Jesus specifically referred to accounts in each of the first seven chapters of Genesis, something He would not have done if He knew they were not historical events. If we replace Jesus’ words with our ideas and claim they were “His real intent,” we can seemingly justify almost anything.

Genesis 1:30. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to everything that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food;

18

19

Genesis 1:31a. And God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.

20

20

20

Genesis 2:17. But from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in that day ... you shall surely die.

21

Genesis 3:4. And the serpent said to the woman, “You surely shall not die.”

22

Genesis 3:16–19. [You will now have many physical problems] till you return to the ground [as dust].

23

Genesis 3:22. Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, lest he stretch out his hand, and also take from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever.”

24

24

24

25

Romans 5:12. Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.

26

27

27

27

Romans 8:10. ... the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.

28

Romans 8:20–22. ... For the creation was subjected to futility ... the whole creation groans and suffers ...

29

30

30

30

I Corinthians 15:21–22. For since by man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive.

31

I Corinthians 15:45. [Christ was the second Adam.]

32

Revelation 21:1–4. {There will be a new heaven and a new earth. Things will be restored to the conditions before the Fall.]... there shall no longer be any death; there shall no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain;

33

33

33

34

If evolution happened, then death was widespread before man evolved. But if death preceded man and was not a result of Adam’s sin, then sin is not the cause of death—so we do not need a Savior.