If one believes that our world is billions of years old, i.e. accepting the idea of each day in Sheshis Imei Berieshit (the Six Days of Creation) as eras and not literal days, then how does one understand keeping Shabbat as the seventh day, thus taking that 'day' literally?
Asked
Active
Viewed 329 times
7
-
1Simple answer: Because the Torah says to. – Scimonster Oct 22 '14 at 09:55
-
One doesn't necessarily accept that. Related http://judaism.stackexchange.com/questions/29741/what-is-meant-by-the-974-worlds-that-were-created-and-destroyed – rosends Oct 22 '14 at 10:45
-
1You answered it yourself - it's a great reason to believe the text literally. Or else, Shabbat-the-7th-day commemorates the 7 eras. But then I always wonder at what point does one start to take Breishith literally? – Danny Schoemann Oct 22 '14 at 11:48
-
1I don't understand the question. Why does keeping Shabbat on the seventh day imply a completely literal reading of the creation story? – Daniel Oct 22 '14 at 12:12
-
3I like the fact that the two comments above this one both more or less assume the answer's trivial, but in opposite directions. DS - The explicit context of the question is those who don't take "yom" in the text to mean what we mean now by that word. Daniel - We clearly use "yom" to mean 24-hour day in the context of Shabbat, and we declare Shabbat as a testimony to the "yamim" of Creation, so I think its fair to wonder how that could be consistent with assuming that these two yoms mean different things. – Isaac Moses Oct 22 '14 at 13:08
-
MUST READ! Age of the Universe (by Dr. Gerald Schroeder) http://www.aish.com/ci/sam/48951136.html Amazing article. I had never understood the relationship either between old earth/young earth, and how created time affects this whole dynamic. If I had read this years ago it would have saved me a lot of questioning! – Oct 22 '14 at 17:01
-
Armoose, would you care to resolve this dispute about the intent of your question? – Y e z Oct 22 '14 at 20:07
-
Genesis 1:1, the creation of the universe, could have happened billions of years ago. Genesis 1:2 could have happened 6000 years ago. Supporting this, in 1:2, the Earth was tohu and bohu (תֹהוּ וָבֹהוּ), but Isaiah 45:1 says that the world was created not "tohu". And note that the "was" in 1:2 is an explicit used of "to be", which is usually omitted unless it means "became". – Ray Butterworth Feb 17 '20 at 15:26
4 Answers
3
"And it was evening, and it was morning, *one* day"?
Also, one can consider that "time started" in the way we know it only at the end of creation with the creation of Shabbat. Thus, only Shabbat has to be considered a 24 hour day. For example the sun moon and stars were created on the fourth "day" so that "before" then could not have been days as we know them. Before Yom HaShishi, each day was turned on and off explicitly. It is only at the very end (Vayechulu) do we have the actual time being significant.
Also consider that only man has an appreciation of time. This could imply that "time started" only with the creation of Adam. This could lead to a hashkafa article, but that is too long and philosophical to go into now.
sabbahillel
- 43,108
- 7
- 47
- 88
-
-
1@DoubleAA As I say it is too long to go into now, but I have seen references (in secular sources) that only man is a "time binding" being. I do not have the sources at home, but that is what I remember having read. – sabbahillel Oct 22 '14 at 23:30
1
Rabbi Dovid Gottlieb suggests that in the original six days of creation time moved faster than today. just like in the embryonic stage one does not need to breathe through his nostrils or eat through his mouth, etc.
so you can have a 24 hour day spanning billions of years the rules were different in those embryonic days
(we also find for example Kain and Abel born and grown up in the sixth day according to the midrash)
see
ray
- 21,206
- 2
- 45
- 103
-
-
it is six 24 hour days spanning billions of years. rules of time were different then. thats what he says. – ray Oct 22 '14 at 17:23
-
Right. So why isn't our commemorative day also a 24 hour day which spans billions of years? – Double AA Oct 22 '14 at 17:23
-
2because time moves differently now. our 24 hours is equivalent to billions of years back then – ray Oct 22 '14 at 17:24
1
Shemos 17:25-26:
ויאמר משה אכלוהו היום, כי-שבת היום ליהוה: היום, לא תמצאוהו בשדה. ששת ימים, תלקטוהו; וביום השביעי שבת, לא יהיה-בו
And Moses said "eat [the Manna] today, as today is a Sabbath for G-d. Today, you will not find it in the field. 6 days collect it, and on the seventh rest, for it will not be there.
This verse cannot be interpreted to refer to an era. It is clear from this verse that the Sabbath is one day. So when we are told to rest on the seventh day, it is clear that it is one day.
A clearer verse (which happens to be in Shabbos Day kiddush according to many customs) - Shemos 20:7-9 (the aseres hadibros):
זכור את-יום השבת, לקדשו. ששת ימים תעבוד, ועשית כל-מלאכתך. ויום, השביעי--שבת, ליהוה אלוהיך:
Remember the Sabbath to sanctify it. 6 days work, and do all your activities, and on the seventh day, rest for Hashem your G-d.
Again, here clearly this is not referring to eras, and this is the injunction to keep the Sabbath. It also refers to the Sabbath as the seventh day.
-
1
-
1@IsaacMoses that's the first ! I've ever gotten! While that's true, I'm not sure why that detracts from it's validity as an indication of when Shabbos is. But I just thought of a better verse to add. – Y e z Oct 22 '14 at 19:31
-
2@YEZ I don't think he was disputing that Shabbat is 24 Earth hours. The question as I understood it was Hashkafic: how does a 24 hour period commemorate a billion year period? – Double AA Oct 22 '14 at 19:33
-
-
@DoubleAA I don't see that question being asked. The question asked is "how do we justify taking that day literally and not the rest?" which I answered by saying we know it from other sources. – Y e z Oct 22 '14 at 19:39
-
@DoubleAA question says "how does one understand keeping Shabbat as the seventh day, thus taking that 'day' literally" - bothered by taking the day literally, not by our lack of a billion year long Sabbath. – Y e z Oct 22 '14 at 19:40
-
I didn't downvote, but as your latter quote shows clearly the question is one of understanding a discrepancy, not justifying a particular practice. I maintain that this doesn't address the question (unless you are claiming "God said so and don't ask questions"). – Double AA Oct 22 '14 at 19:59
-
@DoubleAA Can you please point to how you see that from the text I quoted? He asked "how can we take this literally while not taking that literally?" He did not ask "how come we do this if we should do that?" I don't understand how you read that sentence. – Y e z Oct 22 '14 at 20:05
-
-
@DoubleAA My answer is explaining a "how do we understand"! It is answering "how do we understand interpreting this part of the story differently than that one" which is what is being asked. I am not justifying a "particular practice" as you would say I am. I am justifying a way of understanding the verses, which is what was asked. – Y e z Oct 22 '14 at 20:08
-
@DoubleAA Your understanding of the question is ignoring the last clause. "[T]hus taking that 'day' literally" is qualifying what is bothering the OP, as opposed to "thus not properly commemorating the original Shabbat" which would be what you would like the question to be, but it isn't. – Y e z Oct 22 '14 at 20:11
-
@YEZ you seem to understand the intent of my question. How does one come to accept 'day' as metaphorical then take it literally straight after. – TreeKing Oct 23 '14 at 06:50
-
-1
Many people think that the Torah tells us in Genesis 1:1-1:3 about the creation of the world. Obviously, the Torah story certainly contradicts what science teaches. It is strange because the story seems to say that G-d created the world in six days. Is an all-powerful G-d incapable of creating the world instantaneously? It also implies that G-d rested on the seventh day. Does an all-powerful G-d tire? Perhaps the Torah is not telling us about G-d at all, but about humanity. In fact, an argument could be made that there weren't "days" at all but eons. The universe was formed over the course of billions of years.
Some insist that G-d rested on the seventh day, Shabbat. But this is not so. We should ask ourselves, does G-d need a rest? Actually, "rest" means "did not continue to create." Some scholars feel that Maimonides' view is that G-d formed the world out of pre-existing matter, there can be no “first day” per se if we understand Scripture in this fashion, further demonstrating that there were no concept of “days” in the Genesis account. In any event, the Shabbat is to recall that there is a G-d and that G-d created the world. Thus, it seems that the Bible isn't saying that G-d took a rest at all, nor does it imply that G-d created the world in six literal days. This is a parable to teach us about humanity.
Since Shabbat is people-oriented, Exodus 20:10, states that Shabbat was instituted to recall that there is a G-d, that G-d created the world, and that G-d gave the laws of the Torah. Leviticus 25:1 explains that keeping Shabbat is not optional. People need a rest. People also should stop working and think about G-d, understand what G-d wants from them, and enjoy the day with good clothes and food. This is not optional; it is "G-d's day" and this is what G-d wants.
Turk Hill
- 1,348
- 7
- 16
-
1An all-powerful god shouldn't need six days so instead he needed billions of years? – Alex Feb 17 '20 at 02:49
-
-
@Alex the Rambam felt that G-d created the world instantaneously. Yet others felt that G-d did it in billions of years (ie six days meaning eons). All agree that G-d works through nature, meaning that G-d does not interfere with nature and allows the universe (ie through laws of nature in what the Bible calls “good” things) to take shape. I think this explanation is perfect since it is in harmony with science and the Bible. In this view, I think we keep Shabbat because it recalls that there is a G-d who created the world. – Turk Hill Feb 17 '20 at 03:03
-
I also think the creation story is more human-orientated than G-d-orientated and that it teaches us to have a day of rest. But it does not mean that G-d rested. The creation story is a parable; it certainly does not teach real science. For example, Maimonides felt that the creation of humans in the “image of God” to mean that people are like God in the sense that they can think. It does not mean that Adam was literally created from the dirt or Eve from his rib. – Turk Hill Feb 17 '20 at 03:03
-
But why do we observe Shabbat for one day if Shabbat in the creation story was not one day? I think that is the question being asked here (though phrased in the reverse). – Alex Feb 17 '20 at 03:07
-
I added some of this in my answer above. I think that there weren't actual "days" at all. I think that the Torah does not try to teach people about history or real science but instills proper behavior and correct ideas about G-d. The creation story teaches us that we should keep Shabbat because G-d does so, even though G-d does not actually keep anything. – Turk Hill Feb 17 '20 at 03:10
-
You still haven’t addressed why Shabbat has to be one literal day, which is the thrust of the question. – Alex Feb 17 '20 at 04:44
-
Maimonides’ view is that that G-d formed the world out of pre-existing matter As I’ve noted on previous occasions (e.g. here) if you claim that Maimonides’s view is the opposite of the straightforward meaning of what he says, you should provide evidence to support your claim. At the very least you can say something like “Rabbi Micah Goodman understands Maimonides to be saying...” – Alex Feb 17 '20 at 04:55
-