Was there a world before Genesis?<\/p>\n\t
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth<\/i>” (Genesis 1:1). Approximately 4,000 years after this event, Jesus stated, “And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’\u00a0<\/i>” (Matthew 19:4). The word “beginning” is used in both passages. In the beginning the universe and the earth were created; in the beginning man and woman were created. Since both took place at the beginning, then it indicates that nothing existed prior to this point, else this point in time would not be the beginning.<\/p>\n
In addition,\u00a0Genesis 1:1\u00a0uses a special Hebrew word for “created.” It is a word that is only used in connection with God. The word\u00a0bara<\/i>\u00a0means to make something from nothing, to create something that never existed before. It is used sparingly through the Bible. In\u00a0Genesis 1:1\u00a0is used to state that God created time (“in the beginning”), space (“the heavens”), and matter (“the earth”). These things did not exist prior to the beginning. In the making of light, it says that God separated the light from the dark. Since light was made from existing material, the word\u00a0bara<\/i>\u00a0was not used. The word\u00a0bara<\/i>\u00a0is not used again until\u00a0Genesis 1:21\u00a0when God created fish and birds. This was a new creation because life did not exist prior to this. In biblical terms, plants are not living as moving creatures are living. Yet when God made the land animals,\u00a0bara<\/i>\u00a0was not used as this wasn’t something new. Life was created the day before. Land creatures were a continuation of the previous day’s creation. However,\u00a0bara<\/i>\u00a0was used again in\u00a0Genesis 1:27\u00a0in the creation of man. In particular, the verse is discussing that man was created in the image of God. Again this is something brand new, without previous existence.<\/p>\n
The use of\u00a0bara<\/i>\u00a0on a series of brand-new things is evidence that there was no world prior to the one with which we are familiar. The use of the word “beginning” shows that the creation of the world and mankind started as indicated in Genesis 1.<\/p>\n
People searching for a world before Genesis 1 are attempting to merge man’s teaching (evolution) with God’s teaching (the Bible). Evolutionary theory demands incredibly long time periods in order to make the theory feasible. The biblical account of creation does not allow sufficient time for evolution to take place; hence, the search for others means of circumventing what the Scriptures clearly teach. Man’s theories come and go, but what remains is the truth found in God’s Word. It has never changed. “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth<\/i>” (John 17:17).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Question: Was there a world before Genesis? Answer: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). Approximately 4,000 years after this event, Jesus stated, “And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’\u00a0” (Matthew 19:4). The…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[302,80,189],"class_list":["post-1835","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-creation","tag-evolution","tag-genesis"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":28307,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-genesis-11-say-there-was-nothing-except-god-before-the-beginning\/","url_meta":{"origin":1835,"position":0},"title":"Does Genesis 1:1 say there was nothing except God before the beginning?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 3, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Here's another question and it may seem silly but all I want is you to answer it in the best way you can. Genesis 1:1 \"in the beginning there was nothing except God.\" or \"in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth\" (different versions of the Bible)\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":46215,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/did-god-create-the-matter-we-see\/","url_meta":{"origin":1835,"position":1},"title":"Did God create the matter we see?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 1, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hebrews 11:3 says \"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.\" Is this verse an argument that God did not create the matter we see but rather formed it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":60191,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-deity-of-christ-refuting-some-false-arguments\/","url_meta":{"origin":1835,"position":2},"title":"The Deity of Christ: Refuting Some False Arguments","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 5, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"by Osamagbe Lesley Egharevba via\u00a0Unmasking Sophistry, Vol. 3, No. 2 The very idea that Jesus was the first to be created is not only absurd, but it is inconsistent with the teaching of the Bible. Recently I met some preachers in the Lord's church who affirm that Jesus Christ was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":92538,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-did-god-create-our-world\/","url_meta":{"origin":1835,"position":3},"title":"How Did God Create Our World?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 9, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Bob Prichard With just a few words, the first verse of Genesis, which is literally \"the book of beginning,\" introduces the idea of creation: \"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth\" (Genesis 1:1). This tells us clearly that the Creator is God. Scientists recognize five components,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5177,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/was-jesus-created-since-he-is-the-firstborn-of-creation\/","url_meta":{"origin":1835,"position":4},"title":"Was Jesus created since he is the firstborn of creation?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 8, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Throughout the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit and Jesus are mentioned. For clarity, I wanted to know if the Holy Spirit and Jesus were created by God or were they ever in existence. Many people use the analogy that all three are of one body, but the Bible says that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16387,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/where-was-god-before-he-created-the-heavens-and-the-earth\/","url_meta":{"origin":1835,"position":5},"title":"Where was God before He created the heavens and the earth?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 15, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Where was God before He created the heavens and the earth? Answer: \"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth\" (Genesis 1:2). In this simple statement are many implications. Since it was \"in the beginning,\" it is implied that time did not exist before this. 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