By Harold Kemp, Compass Distributors
It is not possible to be exact, but there is enough information in the Old Testament to make us absolutely certain that the number of years from creation until the birth of`Jesus Christ was somewhere between 4000 and 5000 years.
Since we know that Jesus was born approximately 2000 years ago, we can be certain that the earth is somewhere between 6000 and 7000 years old.
Many scientists, who do not believe that the Biblical record is true, claim that they have proof that the earth is actually millions of years old.
The Biblical record is true, however, and this article is written to show why the "scientific" theory is wrong.
In order to make the explanation clear to as many readers as possible, I will present the information as simply as possible. To those who are familiar with the scientific details of this theory, I ask you to bear with my simplifications.
If you are interested in more technical information, please contact our web site.
The main "proof" that the scientists give for believing that the earth is millions of years old is based on calculating the age of rocks by a method called "radioactive dating".
To understand this method of calculating the age of something it is necessary to understand two things:
(1) The "atomic theory" states that all materials are composed of tiny "building blocks" called atoms.
(2) Certain materials such as uranium, for example, are said to be "radioactive". This is because some of their atoms are heavier than normal; and this extra weight makes them unstable. So they tend to give off streams of tiny particles called "radiation", losing radioactivity in the process.
Since scientists can observe how fast a certain mineral sample is losing its radioactivity, they can estimate how old the mineral must be by comparing the quantity of "radioactive" atoms with the quantity of normal atoms. This is what is known as "radioactive dating".
There are two main problems with this method of calculating age:
(1) Scientists must assume how much radioactivity was in the sample in the first place.
(2) Scientists must assume that the rate of losing radiation was always the same as it is at the present time.
A common method that scientists use for estimating the age of dead plants and animals is "carbon dating".
Carbon is a material that is found in many places. Two places that it is found are in the tissues of plants and animals, and in the air, in the form of carbon dioxide.
Any sample of carbon will contain a certain quantity of normal carbon atoms (called carbon 12, due to its atomic weight) and a lesser quantity of radioactive carbon atoms (called carbon 14).
Scientists believe that the "carbon 14" atoms are created by radiation (streams of particles) from outer space which bombards the carbon dioxide in the air and turns some of the normal carbon atoms into carbon-14.
They have observed that carbon dioxide contains a certain ratio of carbon-14 to carbon-12. Since it is radioactive, carbon-14 is continually breaking down but it is also being replenished by the radiation from outer space, so that the ratio remains fairly constant.
They have also observed that, during its lifetime, a plant will take in a certain amount of carbon dioxide and use the carbon in building its tissues so that, when it dies, it will contain a certain ratio of carbon-12 to carbon-14.
Animals eat plants and so each animal, in its lifetime, will take in a certain amount of carbon. When the animal dies, it will contain a certain ratio of carbon-12 to carbon-14 but as time goes by the amount of carbon-14 will decrease due to radioactivity.
So scientists estimate the age of the plant or animal by measuring the ratio of carbon-12 to carbon-14.
I mentioned earlier that one of the assumptions that scientists must make in order to use this method is the amount of radioactivity was in the sample in the first place.
They assume that this was the same as the amount of radioactivity that is found in a plant or animal that dies today.
The record of earth's earliest days that is in the book of Genesis clearly shows that this assumption is not sensible. In Genesis 1:6,7 we read "Then God said, 'Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.' Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so."
Thus the earth was surrounded by a shield of water from the second day of creation until the time of the great flood recorded in Genesis 7. This would undoubtedly shield the earth from any radiation attempting to enter the atmosphere from space and thus the amount of carbon-14 would be considerably less than it is today.
This would make any plant or animal remains (fossils) from this era appear much older than they actually are.
Another "proof" that the scientists give for believing that the earth is millions of years old is the existence of rocks that could only be formed by being compressed by the rocks on top of them over a long period of time.
Again let's turn to the book of Genesis to see how this could have happened by some other means. The seventh chapter of Genesis talks about an event where water that had been held in reservoirs under the earth spilled out over the earth as the "fountains of the great deep were broken up" (Genesis 7:11). Also, the water that had been lifted above the firmament on the second day of creation descended on the earth as forty days of rain (Genesis 7:12). After one hundred and fifty days of this deluge, all the mountains were covered. (Genesis 7:20,24).
The pressure at the bottom of water that is twenty five thousand feet deep is something like one and a half million pounds per square foot. This is certainly enough pressure to create the types of rocks that are seen today, especially considering the fact that the waters remained on the earth for another two hundred and fifteen days. (Genesis 8:13)
Some years ago I read a book called "The Genesis Flood", by Whitcomb and Morris, in which the Biblical record of the earth's age is defended. The book also presents evidence that the so-called proofs that there was an "ice age" could also be explained by the effects of the great flood of Genesis. I got this book at the local library so, if your library does not have it, ask them if they can order it. The book contains greatly detailed information about the topics I have just covered and more.
How Old Is The Earth? Copyright © 1998 by Compass Distributors
All Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible: New King James Version (Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson Inc.), 1982