[asa] Book of Job - A Case Study

I was looking over my notes on science and creation, and found the following
that I might share.

The book of Job presents an interesting case study on the subject of whether
the scriptures should necessarily be taken literally in order for them to be
considered trustworthy. The later chapters in Job are presented as the Lord
himself speaking to Job, and should therefore (taken at face value) be
considered a firsthand revelation from God on the nature of nature. God's
argument to Job is in fact, "I was there at the beginning of creation and
you weren't. Why do you think you know more than I?" This is perhaps not
surprisingly similar to the message that many Creation Scientists claim from
the scriptures in general, and the first chapters of Genesis in particular.
"God was there, so he is a better witness than fallible scientists." Let's
see whether this message can be maintained consistently in the book of Job,
as compared with the recognized cause and effect relationships in nature
that have been established by observation and testing.

            Job 36:27-30 rain, the sea above covered

            Job 37:3-5 thunder is God's voice

            Job 37:6 God makes snow

            Job 37:10 frost is from His breath

            Job 37:18 firmament is a strong (hard) molten looking glass

            Job 38:8-11 sea is shut up, has doors

            Job 38:19-20 light has a dwelling place

            Job 38:22-23 snow and hail are stored in treasure houses

I know that some of these scriptures have been discussed on this list in the
past. I just present it as a line of argument against the assumption that
Genesis 1 must be scientifically accurate in order to be true. And a
question, why don't many Creation Scientists make the same argument from the
book of Job? Or do they? (I realize that some of the above scriptures can
also be taken a different direction, primary and secondary causality, such
as "God makes snow".)

Jon Tandy

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Received on Thu Nov 13 08:34:53 2008