for in six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day; therefore Yahweh blessed the Sabbath day, and made it holy.
The universe formed in six 24-hour days.
Astronomy
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The cited passage
What current science says
Scientists can measure the age of the universe using multiple methods. The cosmic microwave background — heat left over from the Big Bang — tells us the universe is 13.8 billion years old. Light from distant galaxies took over 13 billion years to reach us. On Earth, radiometric dating of rocks and meteorites consistently shows our planet is 4.54 billion years old. These independent methods all agree: the universe is far older than what six days would produce.
What the text says
"In six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them." Believers often say that the "days" of creation should be taken allegorically, but this verse is quite clear. God created the universe in six 24 hour days.
Three honest ways to read this passage
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As history
The text records how its authors understood the world with the knowledge they had. Read this way, a difference from modern science is a window into the ancient mind, not a failure.
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As accommodation
The text speaks to its first audience in their own terms, to make a point that isn't mainly about physics or biology. Read this way, the scientific detail is the vehicle, not the cargo.
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As contradiction
The text makes a claim about the physical world that modern findings dispute. Read this way, the difference is a genuine factual disagreement worth naming.
GEBible doesn't pick one of these for you. Each entry shows the passage, what it says, and what current science says — nothing more.