Majestic Medley in the Heavens

 

Dr. James J.S. Johnson

There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.  There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory.   (1st Corinthians 15:40-41)

The cosmos is filled with heavenly bodies that display wonderful variety.

What variety (sun, moon, stars, planets, comets, etc.) is in our universe?  Variety in the heavens actually exists on an enormous scale.

God likes variety—more variety than we can fully appreciate, even if we had multiple lifetimes to investigate His creation!

Here are two proofs:

(1) Scripture shows that variety matches God’s divine nature (i.e., God is simultaneously plural and one, being triune: Father, Son, & Holy Spirit) and how He made mankind in His own image; and

(2) God’s physical non-human creation (including animals, plants, rocks, stars, bacteria, protozoa, etc.) shows that God supernaturally selected and favors variety.

Nature displays differences in details of diverse animals, plants, microörganisms, earth’s geophysical environment, and even the innumerable galaxies of outer space – including each and every star that is out there, regardless of whether any human ever sees it or not! So, how do the heavens show God’s love for variety?

There are at least 100 billion stars in the heavens (that’s 100,000,000,000 different stars!) – that we are of (and maybe there are many more!), yet Psalm 147:4 says that God not only can count exactly how many there are, He has even given a specific name to each of those many stars!

Also, 1^st Corinthians 15:40-41 says that God gives a different “glory” to each star – and that should remind us that God gives a unique dignity to each human. In other words, each of us is valuable to God in a way that no one else is – what a wonderful fact! Since God treats each of the stars as unique, with its own name, that proves that God loves variety. In other words, God has demonstrated His love for variety in the many differences (including differences in “glories”) that He has designed into the heavenly bodies, including the uniqueness of the stars and of the planets. As humans we cannot actually count stars, one at a time, and know their individual names – to do so would take trillions of years – and during our earthly lives we cannot live that long.

Although heavenly bodies have individual uniqueness, they simultaneously have interactive relationships with one another on huge scales – for example, our solar system is a working system, within the Milky Way Galaxy (which is a working system), and there even exists groupings of galaxies.

God values variety, so the cosmos is filled with heavenly bodies that display wonderful variety.   God has demonstrated His love for variety in the many differences (including differences in “glories”) that He has artistically designed variety into the heavenly bodies, including the uniqueness of the stars and of the planets.  Consequently, stars, groups of stars, and other heavenly bodies show variety and artistic uniqueness.   (See 1^st Corinthians 15:40-41; Psalm 147:4; Job 26:13.)

For more information on this topic you might want to see these online articles:

Henry M. Morris: http://www.icr.org/article/9944

Henry M. Morris: http://www.icr.org/article/2292

Henry M. Morris: http://www.icr.org/article/1342

Henry M. Morris: http://www.icr.org/article/21014

Henry M. Morris: http://www.icr.org/article/20964

JJSJ: http://www.icr.org/article/created-sun-and-moon

JJSJ: http://www.icr.org/article/valuing-gods-variety/

JJSJ: http://www.icr.org/article/grackles-gratitude

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God Stretched Out the Heavens, Like Tent Curtains.

Dr. James J. S. Johnson

It is He Who sits upon the circle [i.e., choreographed circuit] of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers;  —  He Who stretches out the heavens as a curtain, and spreads them out as a tent to dwell in.   (Isaiah 40:22)

God spread out the heavens, stretching them out like a curtain. (See, e.g., Job 9:8; Psalm 104:2; Isaiah 40:22 & 42:5 & 45:12.)  The Bible teaches that God made (and organized) the cosmos in an orderly and logical way (including how He organized the cosmos to be ruled by the laws of mathematics), so the created cosmos is neither chaotic nor produced by “accidents” — such as is imagined by the “big bang” myth-makers.  (See Genesis 1:14; Judges 5:20; Psalm 19:6 & 93:1 & 104:19.)

Many secular astronomers tell us that the universe is “receding” from us, i.e., moving away from Earth, as if the cosmos itself was (and is) “expanding”, growing larger in volume, every day!  There are many problems with that speculative notion, most of which are beyond the scope of this philological study.  However, to understand the underlying controversy, consider this quick quote from creation astrophysicist Jake Hebert, which helps to set the stage for examining this cosmological question:

“Light from distant galaxies contains clues that most astronomers interpret to mean that the galaxies are receding away from us. Furthermore, most astronomers interpret this to mean, not that the galaxies are moving through space away from us, but that space itself is expanding, carrying these galaxies ‘along for the ride.’  But what about creation astronomers?  What do they think? Some have suggested that the numerous references to “stretching out” the heavens in Scripture (Job 9:8, Psalm 104:2, Isaiah 40:22, 42:5, and 45:12) refer to this ongoing expansion of space itself —  as if the universe is continuing to expand, every moment, consistent with the idea of a ‘big bang’ explosion eons ago, long before any scientific observations were possible.”  [Quoting Jake Hebert, with James J. S. Johnson, “God Spread out the Heavens, Stretching them out like a Curtain”, ICR-DC Universe Room, TS-A-2/Q-3 (AD2018-08-16).]

However, this appeal to Scripture – to promote Big bang “expanding universe” notions — is not only a “stretch”, it is flat-out wrong, because the usual Hebrew word for “stretch” (naṭaḥ) does not denote elasticity (much less ongoing/unlimited elasticity!), as one would expect if these verses were referring to some kind of ongoing and unlimited “stretching out” of space itself, as Big Bang advocates imagine. Rather, these passages are simply referring to God’s initial structuring of the stars, in their respective (and choreographed) circuit arrangements.

In fact, the qualifying phrase “like a [tent] curtain” really refutes the idea of unlimited elasticity, because when Old Testament Hebrews constructed a tent (as Bedouin Arabs frequently do, to this day), they arranged the structural positioning of the tent curtains, upon the rod-assembly scaffolding – but the curtains did not stretch and stretch and stretch forever! Rather, once the curtain is positioned into the desired structure it is maintained by the pole-assembly scaffolding.

Furthermore, the same Hebrew verb (naṭaḥ) used for “stretching out” the heavens [in the 1^st paragraph above] is repeatedly used of Moses “stretching out” his arm to hold his staff up in the air (e.g., Exodus 7:19; 8:5; 8:6; 8:16; 9:22; 9:23; etc.), such as when Moses did so at the miraculous parting of the Red Sea. That word “stretched” did not mean that Moses’ arm (or hand, in some contexts) got longer and longer and longer, like a huge anaconda or an unbreakable rubber-band! Rather, Moses repositioned (i.e., unfolded) his arm so that it was fully stretched out from his torso.

In short, when God “stretched out the heavens” He was positioning the stars (and their respective galaxy formations) into the structural arrangement that He intended for them – and it takes God’s continuing maintenance for those stars to “stay in place” due to the otherwise-disintegrating influence of cosmic entropy (see Colossians 1:17).   In fact, if God did not maintain the structure of the universe (and its innumerable parts, in their choreographed circuits), the universe’s order would disintegrate due to unrestrained entropy ( Colossians 1:17).

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GOD MADE THE HEAVENS AND EARTH, TO PROVIDE FOR MANKIND AND OTHER CREATURES

Dr. James J. S. Johnson

For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God Himself Who formed the earth and made it; He hath established it, He created it not in vain, He formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.   (Isaiah 45:18)

How has God made Earth to serve as “home” to mankind and to animals, providing them with what they need to live?

God intentionally designed and made the heavens and the earth to provide for the needs and benefits of humans, with earth to serve as the home of mankind and other creatures. (See, e.g., Isaiah 45:18; Psalm 115:16.  See also “Why We Want to Go Home”, ACTS & FACTS, 44(4):20 (April 2015), posted at  at http://www.icr.org/article/why-we-want-go-home/ .)

The universal habit of using a personal shelter, a home that belongs to us, is nothing new. Longing for home is not limited to humans. The Lord Jesus said, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests” (Matthew 8:20). Eagles, swallows, sparrows, storks, doves, owls, and other birds use nests (Job 39:27; Psalm 84:3 & 104:17; Deuteronomy 22:6-7 & 32:11; Isaiah 34:15; Jeremiah 48:28 & 49:16; Obadiah 1:4). Spiders make web-silk homes (Isaiah 59:5). Worms and other creepy creatures live underground (Micah 7:17; Job 21:26 & 20). Lions have dens (Job 38:39-40; Song of Solomon 4:8; Nahum 2:12).  Salmon routinely return “home” to spawn.  Polar bear mothers sometimes live in dens, sheltered from colder weather outside.  The list could go on and on.

But what explains the origin of homing habits? Scripture does provide the key for understanding this universal habit—the Genesis mandate. God commanded humans and animals to be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth. Because God designed His creatures to do more than just populate, He programmed diverse creatures to fill living spaces all over the globe—on land, in water, and to some even the air is a home of sorts.

God has providentially equipped creatures with physical bodies (with helpful anatomies and physiologies) and programmed bio-informational instructions (coding and equipping for habitat-interactive behaviors) that are fitted to the ever-changing challenges of physical environments (and animal-and-plant communities) all over the globe.

The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD‘s: but the earth hath He given to the children of men.   (Psalm 115:16)

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God made the cosmos with super-small details.

Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.   (Hebrews 11:3)

God, through Christ, created the physical matter-energy cosmos out of nothing, and then God constructively shaped that physical matter-energy, at the super-small detailed level (i.e., what we today call “particle physics”), using particles and energy so small that we cannot see that level of detail with our human eyesight.   See Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 11:3.)

 

God made the cosmos huge, with stars of huge numbers and at huge distances from Earth.

He telleth the number of the stars; He calleth them all by their names.  (Psalm 147:4)

God, through Christ, created physical matter-energy cosmos out of nothing, and then constructively shaped that physical matter-energy, in the stretched-out expanse, as innumerable stars (and other heavenly bodies), so many and so far away (i.e., the heavens are so huge) that we cannot see that level of detail with human eyesight. (See Genesis 15:5; Deuteronomy 28:62; Isaiah 55:9; Jeremiah 33:22; Hebrews 11:12.)  Even so, God can count the exact number of the universe’s stars (Psalm 147:4a) — and God knows each of His stars, including His name for each one of them (Psalm 147:4b).

God made the heavens for good, yet sinful humans idolatrously misuse the heavens.

I will also stretch out mine hand upon Judah, and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the name of the Chemarims with the priests, and them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops; and them that worship and that swear by the Lord, and that swear by Malcham, and them that are turned back from the Lord; and those that have not sought the Lord, nor enquired for him.  (Zephaniah 1:4-6)

Sinful mankind, on repeated occasions, has idolatrously worshiped the sun and/or moon and/or stars, rather than thanked God for making those heavenly objects for God’s glory and for mankind’s benefit. (See Genesis 11:4; Deuteronomy 4:19 & 17:3; Psalm 19:1 & 148:3; 2^nd Kings 21:3; 2^nd Chronicles 33:3; Jeremiah 19:13; Zephaniah 1:5.)  “The heavens declare the glory of God” (Psalm 19:1a), yet those liars who refuse to give God credit for creating the cosmos, also dishonestly refuse to give God credit for the glory that they see displayed within the heavens.  Consequently, such impious observers (of the heavens) steal credit that is due God, and misapply that credit to the material components of the universe  —  thereby worshiping the creation instead of its Creator (Romans 1:25).  This idolatrous worship of the heavens began early in human history (see, e.g., Genesis 11:4; Job 31:26-27; Deuteronomy 4:19, etc.).

This idolatrous cosmogony continues to this day, especially in the form of the so-called “big bang” theory of cosmogony (a pseudo-science myth illustrating 1st Timothy 6:20, largely hatched as the “cosmic egg” theory by Roman Catholic priest Georges Lemaitre, professor at Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium), a Bible-rejecting myth that pretends that the universe is accidently self-made.  The ultimate result of this modern mythology is that “big bang” proponents (as they reject the perspicuous truth of Genesis) irrationally admire and adore the material universe itself, for (supposedly) “creating” itself, instead of rationally admiring and adoring the great and glorious God Who actually created (and sustains) the vast heavens in all of its component glories (1st Corinthians 15:40-41).  Yet the heavens themselves declare God’s glory!

God made the cosmos about 6000 years ago.

For in 6 days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the 7th day;  therefore, the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.  (Exodus 20:11)

God created and made the heavens and the earth, during Creation Week (1000s of years ago, not billions), just as is reported in Genesis  —  so the cosmos is relatively “young”.  (See Genesis chapters 1-11, especially chapter 1;  see also Exodus 20:11; 1^st Chronicles 16:26; John 5:44-47; Psalm 33:6.)  For an analysis of how many have misunderstood — and underestimated  —  the Genesis chronology, and its relevance to calculating an absolute timeframe range for the age of the earth (and also for the cosmos in general), see my analysis in “How Young Is the Earth:  Applying Simple Math to Data Provided in Genesis”, ACTS & FACTS, 37(10):4-5 (October 2008), posted at http://www.icr.org/article/4124 .