Study guide
Creation Answers Book by Dr Don Batten (editor), Dr David Catchpoole, Dr Jonathan Sarfati, and Dr Carl Wieland
Lesson 3
What about the ‘Gap Theory’?
Supplemental material
Unformed and Unfilled (book)
Gap Theory Q&A
Textbook
The Answers Book, Chapter 3
Text
Introduction (p. 57)
Discussion questions
- In general, what is the ‘gap theory’?
- Specifically, what is the ‘ruin-reconstruction’ version of the ‘gap theory’?
Text
Where did the ‘Gap Theory’ come from? (pp. 58-59)
Discussion questions
- How is the ‘gap theory’ similar to and different from the ideas of ‘theistic evolution’ and ‘progressive creation’?
- With whom and when did the ‘gap theory’ originate?
- Borrow copies of the Scofield Reference Bible, Dake’s Annotated Reference Bible, and The Newberry Reference Bible from your local pastor, or local university library. Research for yourself what these books say concerning the ‘gap theory’. Choose one source and write a paper critiquing their view of the ‘gap theory’, based on what you’ve learned from this chapter of the Revised and Expanded Answers Book and this website.
- What is the main reason people adhere to positions such as the ‘gap theory’?
Text
A Testimony of Struggle (pp. 59-62)
Discussion questions
- What was G.H. Pember’s view of Scriptural authority?
- Why did Pember come to accept the ‘gap theory’?
- How did Pember’s acceptance of the ‘gap theory’ actually undermine the authority of God’s Word?
- Research Western Bible commentaries, written before the 18th century (check with your pastor, public or university library). How did the writers of these commentaries view Genesis 1-11 as a whole, and Genesis 1:1-2 in particular?
- When did the fall of Satan occur? When did the fall of man occur (see page 55, footnote 26 for more information)?
Text
Problems with the Gap Theory (pp. 63-66)
Discussion questions
- How does acceptance of the ‘gap theory’ undermine the message of the Gospel?
- List and describe three Biblical reasons that the ‘gap theory’ cannot be true.
- List and describe three non-Biblical reasons in which the ‘gap theory’ is inconsistent.
Text
Conclusion (p. 66)
Discussion question
Define ‘perspicuity.’ What is meant by the phrase ‘perspicuity of Scripture’? How does the ‘gap theory’ (and other compromising positions) affect this doctrine? (See footnote 22 and also page 71.)
*Note: You may want to check with your local church pastor, or elders (i.e. someone knowledgeable in Hebrew) for help with the following sections.
Text
Creating and Making (pp. 67-68)
Discussion question
How are the Hebrew words bara and asah used in the Old Testament? Why should these words be considered interchangeable?
Text
The Grammar of Genesis 1:1-2 (p. 68)
Discussion question
For a more detailed treatment of this point, see Morning has broken…but when?. How does the actual grammatical construction of Genesis 1:1-2 preclude a gap of time being inserted?
Text
‘Was’ or ‘Became’? (pp. 68-69)
Discussion question
Why is it inappropriate to translate the Hebrew word hayetah as ‘became’ in the context of Genesis 1:1-2? (See also Can evolution’s long ages be squeezed into early Genesis? and The Gap Theory: An idea with holes?.)
Text
Tohu and Bohu (pp. 69-70)
Discussion questions
- How and why do those who accept the ‘gap theory’ translate tohu and bohu?
- What is the proper translation of these two words? Why?
Text
‘Replenish’ (p. 70)
Discussion question
If someone said to you, ‘The Lord commanded Adam and Eve to 'replenish' the Earth, so there must have been a race of people before them, since they were to refill the Earth’, how would you respond? (See also What does ‘replenish the Earth’ mean?.)
Text
Warning (pp.71-72)
Discussion questions
- How has the acceptance of the ‘gap theory’ affected the church?
- How did the church’s acceptance of the ‘gap theory’ eventually lead to such views as ‘theistic evolution’ and ‘progressive creation’?
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