And finally, in Genesis Chapter one, we read that God called the daylight portion together with the nighttime portion “one-day”. In the narratives about the Passion of Christ, we see a different scheme used for defining a day, where the number of days from crucifixion to Resurrection is referred to as “three-days”, where Jesus reportedly died on Friday around the setting of the sun, which means give or take, between five and six o’clock Friday to between five and six o’clock Saturday morning is “one-day”, then Saturday between five and six o’clock morning to between five and six o’clock evening is “one-day”, and finally Saturday between five and six o’clock evening to Sunday between five and six o’clock morning is “one-day”.
With regard to the word “week”, where many scholars prefer to call 7, meaning any 7 units of time; it confers, including but limited to the literal and calendrical 7 days week, a connotation of years and/or Sabbatical cycles (7x7=49 years). Daniel’s seventy “sevens” reference is the base for the application, while the text speaks of a literal 70 weeks, the unanimous consensus among scholars that it speaks of a symbolic 70 times seven, which will translate into years. Dan. 9:24-27
Another biblical connotation worth exploring is the repeated use of “time, times, and half a time” as in “a year”, “two years” and “half a year” as expanded in Dan. 4:16,23,25 & 32, Dan. 7:25; Dan 12:7, 11 and in Rev. 11:3, 12:6 & 14. The consensus among Judeo-Christian scholars is that the "1290" is derived from two numbers: one is the addition of one year + two years + half a year to equal “1260” and the other by adding 30 for leap months to give a total of “1290”:
The following passages intimate us with another kind of complex computation known only to God Himself: “And I said: this (is) my infirmity, (but I will remember) the years of the right hand of the most High.” (Psa. 77:10) And: “To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn” (Isa. 61:2), seconded by “To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.” Luk 4:19:
“And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters: And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.” Gen. 5:4-5
In the light of this brief exposé, we have to conclude that whether or not believing that the 6 days creation story is literal or metaphorical does neither earn anyone salvation, nor a guaranteed place in heaven. Science is no more than building on what we already acquired and knew from the Bible, the scientific and literal dissertations and discoveries and advancement. Science is not the enemy of God, but the tool to his love and knowledge. God and not man created science, where God endowed humans with intelligence; God exhorted us to earn our keep by exploring, discovering and improving, when he said: “In the sweat of your face shall you eat bread till you return unto the ground” Gen. 3:19. Nothing in us is good to produce any good except by the Grace of God, the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and by building on what we so far know.
If we acknowledge, admit and aver that God is timeless, ageless and limitless, then his creation days could be also regarded as part of his divine nature, purpose and activity, with no limitations or restrictions.
Just because elevators in
America
and the West do not show the “bad luck” number 13, and in Far East
China
,
Taiwan
and
Hong Kong
do not have the “bad luck” number 4, that in itself does not mean that these numbers do not exist, have a value or other connotations. Humans suffer from an actual and factual incomprehension, lack the ideal and ultimate intelligence, live in a couched reverie of God’s mysteries, and speculate on anything and everything, especially about things, which are beyond their grasp, and for all these, they shout “hurray: we solved God’s mysteries and we know better”. Before we second guess and limit God in looking for a needle in the haystack of our biblical and scientific myopia:
Christ, hallowed be His Name, said:
“If I have told you earthly things, and you believe not, how shall you believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?” John 3:12
