How should we read the days of Creation in Genesis?

03/22/2025 • View profile

How should we read the days of Creation in Genesis?

One of the things I've been meaning to discuss, is how literally we should take the days in the Book of Genesis. I'm NOT discussing whether or not Adam and Eve were real people (they were, and I won't debate this), or young earth creationism (which I don't believe), or evolution (I hold to theistic evolution), but, more specifically, whether or not the days of creation are literal 24 hour days.
Because I don't want to waste your time, and time is precious, I won't be giving an entire verse by verse summary of creation.
So, I went to focus on these verses, specifically.

Before we get started, be sure to read my previous article Psalm 120 and current events and check out my latest on Locals; Coffee and Christianity: Episode 77: Mercy
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters.
And God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light, Day, and the darkness, he called Night.
(Genesis 1:1-5).
Okay, so, we've established in these verses that God as created darkness and light.
But, let's go down a little further.
“And God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, and let them be lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light upon the earth”. And it was so. And God made the two great lights, the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night; he made the stars also”. (Genesis 1:14-16)
So, you may think, “See, that's a Bible contradiction”. Well, no it isn't.
God making light before he made the sun and the moon actually makes sense.
But, it also works against an overly literal interpretation of Genesis.
Why? Because how do we determine the time of day? By the position of the sun.
So, how could the days be literal 24 hour days if the very way of measuring a day that way wasn't created until the fourth day? (I didn't type it, but Genesis 1:19, if you're curious).
I understand wanting to take the Bible seriously, and getting frustrated with people who seem to dismiss every thing in the Bible as a fable, but, we can (and sometimes do), read the Bible overly literalistic.
Here are some practical tips for reading scripture; One Text, Four Senses