Sunday, October 21, 2012

MORE SCIENCE IN THE BIBLE



Good morning everyone! For those of us in the northern hemisphere, aren’t these autumn colors are just fabulous! And I am sure it is the same with all the spring flowers and green shoots coming up in the southern hemisphere. God sure knew what he was doing when he created the seasons!
And God not only created and told us of the seasons in his written word (Genesis 1:14), He tells us of many other natural and scientific occurrences as well. Some only in very recent history have we the people even discovered! Yet God saw fit to have such science written in the most accurate historical and scientific book-the bible-though it was recorded thousands of years before modern science has brought the understanding of such mechanisms.
This blog has covered quite a few examples in the past, but I keep finding more and more and wanted to share them with you!
Job 28:25 says “To make weight for the winds; and he weigheth the waters by measure.” What an interesting statement! “The fact that air has weight was revealed through Job, but was proven scientifically only about 300 years ago. The relative weights of air and water were carefully placed by God in the precise amounts needed for the most efficient functioning of the world’s hydrologic cycle [the rain cycle], which in turn sustains life on the earth.”[i]
The very next verse in Job (28:26), speaks of lighting and thunder; “When he made decree for the rain, and a way for the lightening of the thunder”. Just within the last 150 years have we discovered that lightening is a manifestation of electrical energy. “When it [lightening] suddenly arcs across the sky, it heats up the air along its path, making a partial vacuum along its way. This vacuum must quickly be filled by air rushing in, resulting in a loud thunderclap as it comes together.”[ii] Interesting that thousands of years ago it was recorded that there was a “way” or path for lightening and thunder!
Here’s another one, Job 31:26. “If I beheld the sun when it shined, or the moon walking in brightness…” Notice the difference in which the sun and the moon are depicted here. It is apparent Job understands the difference, stating that the sun shines (in other words emits its own light), and the moon “walks in brightness”, in other words reflects light. Job is saying the moon walks in the suns brightness.
Another one in Job is Job 36:27-29.  Verse 27) “For he maketh small the drops of water; they pour down rain according to the vapour thereof; 28) Which the clouds do drop and distil upon man abundantly. 29)Also can any understand the spreading of the clouds, or the noise of his tabernacle?” Wow! Who would think these three little verses are profound scientific statements! Listen to what Henry Morris, founder of Institute for Creation Science writes; “Here is remarkable scientific insight. The drops of water which eventually pour down as rain are, indeed ‘made small’, first being molecules in the vapor state, then condensing to tiny liquid water droplets in the clouds. These finally coalesce into drops large enough to overcome the updrafts and fall as rain when ‘by watering He wearieth the thick cloud’ (37:11). Just how a cloud spreads out from a small cloudlet to become a cloud-covered sky is still not fully understood by meteorologists even today.”[iii] Also just to clarify, the normal word for “noise and tabernacle” in Hebrew are not used in this verse. The word used for “noise” is instead one used for a sudden loud crash. This fits perfect with thunder, and the word used for “tabernacle” is one that refers to a den or lair that is built specifically from which to launch an attack. Now doesn’t that sound like were lightening comes from in a cloud (the arch of energy), which would then launch the thunder?
Many, many scientific as well as spiritual teachings are found throughout the bible. The science is often written in olden terminology and we have the tendency to read right over them. The above are just a few examples of how we can miss so many very significant scientific references. It does not help when we are taught in church sermons and Sunday schools that the bible is stories and the people are characters. For example, “Today we are going to look at a story in the Old Testament. The main character in this story is Job.” How many times have we heard the colossal Noachian flood referred to as the “story of Noah”? Or the book of Job as poetic?
Do you see how couching the bible in such terminology devalues its teachings? The next time you hear someone refer to the great writings of scripture in such a way, ask the Lord to give you the guidance to humbly and gently correct this subtle belittling of God’s great works. Words are important…after all, He created the universe with words in just six ordinary days!
Until next time!
Willow Dressel  
In the night sky:  The annual Orionid meteor shower got under way in the hours before dawn Saturday morning, and should continue in the early-morning hours through Tuesday or Wednesday. You still have time to view this if you forgot from last week to look. You may see up to twenty Orionids per hour. The origination of the shower is at the top of Orion's Club, (which doesn't rise high until after well midnight).
References:


[i-iii]  Notes for Job, Morris, H. M. 2006. The New Defender's Study Bible. Nashville, TN: World Publishing, Inc..


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