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A Critique of the Literal Interpretation
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Use of “Day” (yom) in Genesis 2:4:
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Genesis 2:4, refers to the entire creation week as ”day”
Gen 2.4 4These are the generations ^[Or "family records"] of heaven ^[Or "the sky"] and earth ^[Or "the earth"] when they were created, in the day that Yahweh God made earth and heaven ^[Or "sky"]--
- This shows the Genesis account itself uses “day” metaphorically for a longer period.
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Exodus Passages (Exodus 20:8-11, 31:12-17):
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These passages cite Genesis 1 as the basis for the Sabbath command, stating God worked for six days and rested on the seventh.
Exod 20,8-11 8"Remember the day of the Sabbath, to consecrate it. 9Six days you will work, and you will do all your work. 10But the seventh day is a Sabbath for Yahweh your God; you will not do any work--you or your son or your daughter, your male slave or your female slave, or your animal, or your alien who is in your gates-- 11because in six days Yahweh made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and on the seventh day he rested. Therefore Yahweh blessed the seventh day and consecrated it.
Exod 31,12-17 12And Yahweh spoke to Moses and said, 13"And you, speak to the Israelites, ^[Literally "sons/children of Israel"] saying, 'Surely you must keep my Sabbaths, because it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, in order to know that I am Yahweh, who consecrates you. 14And you must keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you; defilers ^[Or "profaners," those who treat it as common] of it will surely be put to death, because anyone who does work on it--that person will be cut off from among his people. 15On six days work can be done, and on the seventh is a Sabbath of complete rest, ^[Literally "a Sabbath of 'Sabbathation.'" "Sabbathation" is not a real word, but devised as an attempt to convey the sounds of the related nouns in the Hebrew phrase] a holy day ^[Literally "holiness"] for Yahweh; anyone doing work on the Sabbath day will surely be put to death. 16The Israelites ^[Literally "sons/children of Israel"] will pay attention to the Sabbath in order to fulfill the Sabbath ^[Or "keep the Sabbath to do/observe the Sabbath"] throughout their generations as a lasting covenant. 17It is a sign between me and the Israelites ^[Literally "sons/children of Israel"] forever, because in six days Yahweh made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh he ceased ^[Or "rested"] and recovered." ^[Or "breathed freely," "got his breath"]
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Literalists see this as proof Genesis 1 refers to literal 24-hour days.
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Critique: The Exodus passages emphasize the pattern of six periods of labor followed by one of rest, which Israel is to follow in their literal workweek. This pattern-based connection does not require the duration of God’s creative days to be the same as human days.
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The Seventh Day Lacks “Evening and Morning”:
- Unlike the first six days, the description of the seventh day (God’s rest) does not end with “and there was evening and there was morning.”
- This suggests the seventh day is ongoing, a continuous state of God’s rest from creating new things.
- If the seventh “day” is not a literal 24-hour period, then the preceding days, which provide the pattern for this rest, need not be either.
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Argument from Ordinal Number + “Yom”:
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Literalists claim “yom” used with an ordinal number (e.g., “second day,” “third day”) always means a 24-hour day in Hebrew.
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Critique:
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There’s no grammatical rule requiring this.
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A lack of examples for the metaphorical use of “yom” that also use ordinal numbers could be accidental due to limited surviving Hebrew literature.
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However, we actually do have examples such as Hosea 6:2 where “day” is used with an ordinal number metaphorically for a period of restoration, not literal days. So the claim that an ordinal number alongside “day” always make it 24 hours, is simply false.
Hos 6.2 2 He will revive us after two days; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live in his presence. ^[Or "before his face"]
- Even if “yom” always refers to a 24-hour unit, the unit itself could be used metaphorically, just as the English word “arm” can literally mean a limb (as opposed to weapons) but the literal limb may be used metaphorically for power (e.g., “arm of the Lord”). Proving “yom” is a 24-hour unit doesn’t preclude its metaphorical use.
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Internal Textual Indications Against Literal Consecutive 24-Hour Days
- Light Before the Sun: God creates light on Day 1, but the sun and moon aren’t created until Day 4. How could the first three “days” have evening and morning cycles without a solar light source? This seems problematic for literal solar days. Attempting to explain this with modern astronomy (Earth’s rotation needing only light, not necessarily the sun) is concordism, reading modern science into the text.
- “Let the Earth Bring Forth” (Day 3):
- God commands the earth to produce vegetation, plants, and fruit trees, and the text states the earth did so (Genesis 1:11-12).
- The process of plants growing, bearing seed, and trees maturing to bear fruit typically takes significant time.
- Imagining this happening in a literal 24 hours seems implausible as the author’s intent, suggesting a non-literal description of the process.
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Adam Naming Animals (Day 6):
- Genesis 2 describes God bringing all the animals to Adam to name them.
- This activity, observing habits, naming potentially thousands of animals, realizing his solitude, falling asleep, and then meeting Eve (“This at last…”) suggests a period much longer than part of a single 24-hour day. The phrase “at last” indicates a prior duration or waiting period.
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Conclusion on the Literal Interpretation
- Based on these internal textual considerations (apart from modern science), approaching Genesis 1-3 with flexibility regarding the duration of days is legitimate.
- The literal interpretation is tenable but not the only legitimate interpretation.
- Labeling non-literal views as unbiblical or heretical is mistaken and overly narrow.
- Historically, there has been a range of interpretations among Jewish rabbis and Church Fathers (e.g., Augustine, Origen), many of whom did not interpret the days as literal 24-hour periods. Literal six-day creation has not been a historical touchstone of orthodoxy.
Discussion
- Q1: Is it problematic to interpret the first six days as literal 24-hour periods? A: While it is a tenable interpretation, it is not the only valid or obligatory interpretation for Bible-believing Christians. There are good textual reasons to be flexible.
- Q2: The account wasn’t from human experience. Isn’t the key the pattern of six days of work and one of rest, like the agricultural/Jubilee cycles in Deuteronomy? A: Yes, the parallel with the six years of farming and the seventh year of rest, and the pattern extended to the 49/50-year Jubilee, strongly supports the idea that the six-plus-one structure in Genesis is about establishing a pattern for Israel’s life and worship, rather than strictly defining the duration of God’s creation days.
- Q3: Doesn’t the repetition of “and there was evening and there was morning” indicate a 24-hour day? A: Yes, that phrase does seem to indicate a 24-hour period unit. However, this unit itself can still be used metaphorically within the narrative, just as other words or phrases can be.
- Q4: Is it unusual in Hebrew to define a day from “evening to morning”? A: Yes, it is curious and not the standard Hebrew reckoning of a day (which was typically evening to evening or morning to morning). This peculiarity could also point to a non-literal aspect of the text.
- Q5: Are there different “literal” meanings for the Hebrew word “yom” besides a 24-hour day (e.g., daytime hours, a period of time)?
A: While “yom” can have different meanings, the context with “evening and morning” strongly suggests a 24-hour unit is being referred to. However, the point is whether that unit is being used literally or figuratively in Genesis 1. - Q6: Is the fact that the seventh day (God’s rest) is ongoing a proof text against the literal interpretation? A: Yes, the continuous nature of the seventh day does argue against interpreting all the days, including the first six, as strict 24-hour periods.