God's Plan for the Ages
There seems to be a pattern in the ages.
II Peter 3:8 tells us, "be not ignorant of one thing, that one day
is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day." And in Genesis 2:17, the Lord tells
Adam, "... of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not
eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt
surly die." And in Genesis 5:5 we read, "And all the days that Adam
lived were nine hundred and thirty years". Indeed, "one day is with the Lord
as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day." In Psalm 90:4, Moses tells us that, "For a thousand
years in thy sight are as yesterday."
Thus we have Moses in Genesis and Psalms, and Peter in his second
epistle, telling us that for God, "one day is with the Lord as a thousand
years and a thousand years as one day."
It should be no surprise, therefore, that there are parallels between
events during the days of creation and events in subsequent millennial periods. That this is a literal fact and a
general principle for understanding the ages as described in Scripture, will
become clear from what follows. But
this does not mean that the days of the creation week each lasted
a thousand years! God created the
grass and trees on the third day and the Sun on the forth day. The grass and trees could not live
without sunlight for a thousand years, waiting for the creation of the Sun. The days of creation were indeed days!
If the flood was approximately 4000 years before the birth of Christ,
then there are apparent parallels and common themes in the events during the
days of creation and the events in the millennial periods after the flood. For example, on the first day God
created heaven and earth (Gen. 1:1), and later in the flood, God created a new
heaven and a new earth. Also on the first day, God created light and separated light
from darkness; and using the flood, God separated the one righteous man Noah,
and his family (a symbol of light), from an evil generation (a symbol of
darkness). On the third day God
gathered the waters into a single ocean and the dry land appeared (Gen. 1:9). In Scripture the waters are often a
symbol of the gentiles, the unbelieving masses1; while the land,
earth or clay is often a symbol of God's people2. Also on the third day of creation, the
dry land brought forth grass, trees and herbs bearing fruit. Paralleling the third day of creation,
the third millennium after the flood was the time of Israel's great increase,
the time of the Exodus, and the glory days of David and Solomon. During this time God for the first time
truly had a nation of believers. On
the forth day of creation God set lights in the heavens for signs and seasons
and to give light. In the fourth
millennium after the flood Israel went into apostasy worshiping the lights and
the host of heaven. On the fifth
day of creation the waters (the symbol of the unbelieving masses) brought forth
abundantly. The fifth millennium
after the flood was the time when Jesus walked the earth, and the time when the
gentiles first received salvation. That
is, the unbelieving masses received faith and brought forth life.
Whereas, in Scripture the post-flood epoch is described in detail, there
is no detailed account of the time from the birth of Seth to the flood. Instead the Scriptures give us a list of
the pre-flood patriarchs. This
paper presents a chronology suggesting that creation occurred approximately 6000
years before the flood. Using this
chronology and examining the meaning of the names of the pre-flood patriarchs,
we find parallels with the events in the post-flood millennia, and parallels
with the days of creation. Consider
the patriarch Mahalaleel, for example. He
probably lived from about 2000 to 3000 years after creation, in the third
millennium. His name means to
celebrate God, praise of God, or fame of God; which parallels the third
millennium after the flood, when Israel became a mighty nation, truly serving
God; and it parallels the third day of creation when the dry land appears (dry
land being symbolic of the believing people).
The patriarch of the forth millennium was Jared. His name means to go down, to cast down,
to sink, which parallels the forth millennium after the flood when Israel went
into apostasy worshiping the lights of heaven, fell from grace, and was judged
by God; and it parallels the forth day of creation when God created the lights
of heaven which Israel worshiped in the fourth millennium. The patriarch of the fifth millennium
was Methuselah. His name means man with a sword, man - branch, which
parallels the fifth millennium after the flood, the time of Christ, who came
with a sword, the word of God; and who is the branch; and it parallels the fifth
day of creation, when the waters bring forth life (waters being symbolic of the
unbelieving masses). Methuselah,
the patriarch who parallels Christ, lived longer than any other man on record. These parallels show that name of each
pre-flood patriarch was God ordained, and that the patriarch's name gave a
prophecy of what would happen during the patriarch's life. It is clear that the millennial periods
before and after the flood were periods where events followed the pattern given
by the creation account.
1
Exod.
15:23-25, Psalm 77:15-16, 144:7, Isa. 8:7, 17:12-13, 48:1, 57:20, Jer. 46:7-8,
47:2-3, 51:13, Ezek. 26:19, 31:3-5, Dan.
7:2-3,Matt. 13:47, Rev 10:2, 12:15-16, 13:1, 17:15.
2 Psalm 10:18, 16:3, 40:2, 96:1, 97:1, Isa. 1:2, 4:2, 10:14, 14:7, 45:9, 64:8, Jer. 18:6, Dan. 2:42-43, Zech. 1:11, John 9:6, Rev. 10:2, 12:15-16.
God's Plan for the Ages
The Creation Days |
Millennia After Creation |
Millennia After the Flood |
1) God creates heaven and earth.
The earth is formless. God
creates light & divides light from darkness. The earth takes on form. (The light is an organizing force because gravity is a form of
electro-magnetism.) |
1) Age of Adam, year 1 - 931, means flush, ruddy, man,
individual human. Lines of Seth and Cain separated. Age of Seth, means substitute, year 131 - 1043, Age of Enos, means
mortal man, year 236 - 1141, |
Noah is separated. A
new heaven and a new earth. The
ice age. The Tower of Babel
& disbursing of tribes. Arphaxad
6026 - 6464, means to spread out. The single continent divides at time
of Peleg. Peleg means to
split, earthquake. Peleg
lives 6931 - 7170. |
2) God creates the firmament, divides the waters above form the
waters below. (The same
word is used for waters above and below, the Hebrew mah'- yim, which
suggests liquid water.) |
2) Age of Cainan = Kenan = Cain, year 1141 - 2051. Cainan means first child, zealous, to erect, to purchase, to occupy, fixed, a room or dwelling. |
2) 7025 - 8024 or, 2976 - 1975 B.C. Tribes become nations. Reu
= to associate with. Serug
= to entwine. Abraham separated to God and from Lot. A homeland for God's people. |
3) God gathers waters into one ocean, and the dry land appears. God creates grass and herbs bearing seeds and fruit. |
3) Age of Mahalaleel. year 2051 - 2946. Mahalaleel means to shine of God, Godly, strength, to celebrate God, praise of God or fame of God. |
3) 8025 - 9024 or, 1976 - 975 B.C. The great multiplication of Israel, the Exodus, the giving of
the law, the time of the judges & the glory days of David and
Solomon. |
4) God sets lights in the firmament to divide the day from the
night, for signs and seasons, to mark days and years, and to give light. |
4) Age of Jared. year 2946 - 3908. Jared means to go down, fall, cast down, sink, subdue. Age of Enoch, means to discipline, narrow, initiate, dedicate,
train up. year 3908 - 4273. |
4) 9025 - 10,024 or, 976 B.C -
24 A.D. (Jesus' Baptism) Israel goes into apostasy, worships of the lights and host of
heaven. Israel is judged! Israel
is overrun. (There is no year zero.) |
5) God says let the waters bring forth abundantly fish, and
moving creatures. Let there
be fowl in the air. (They swim in water and air.) |
5) Age of Methuselah. year 4273 - 5242. Methuselah means man - branch, man with sword, man or war. |
5) 10,025 - 11,024 or, 25 - 1024 A.D. Jesus ministers on earth.
Salvation comes to believing gentiles. The Heathen - Jewish War begins.
AD 70. The gap between
Daniel's 69th to 70th week starts. |
6) God says let the earth bring forth living creatures, cattle
and beasts. God makes man in His image.
God gives man dominion over all the earth and its creatures. All is good. |
6) Age of Lamech. year 5242 - 6019. Lamech, meaning unknown. Noah is born in 5424. |
6) 11,025 - 12,024 or, 1025- 2024
A.D. Man multiplies greatly. Man
takes dominion over the Earth. The
anti-Christ comes to power and with technology rules the Earth. |
7) The day of rest. The first sabbath, type of the jubilee. |
7) Age of Noah, year 5424 - 6374. Noah means to sift, to be promoted, to let alone, to remain. The world wide flood! Noah is 600. year 6024 -6025. The earth rests from man's sin. |
7) 12,025 - 13,024, or 2025 - 3024
A.D. The day of the Lord, Daniel's 70th week, the jubilee and the
millennial reign of Jesus. All
nations come to Jerusalem to worship the one true King. |
Apparently the account of creation given in Genesis not only gives an
accurate historical record of events during the creation week, the creation
account is also a prophecy of the events which occur in the following millennia. That is, the six millennia after
creation, a week of millennia; parallel the days of the creation week. But at the end of the week, instead of a
millennium of rest for man, there followed the world wide totally devastating
flood, as the Lord caused the earth to rest from man's sin. The Lord then began a second week of
millennia, starting with Noah and his family.
Which brings us to the present, the end of the sixth millennium after the
flood. We stand on the brink of the
Lord's return, the long awaited jubilee, His millennial kingdom, and the
thirteenth and final millennium. It
is notable that in Hebrew tradition a boy becomes accountable as a man at age
twelve. And at the end of the
twelfth millennium man as a race will be held accountable; when God, as a loving
father, has dealt with man for twelve millennia.
This plan of the ages has a total of thirteen millennia, the same number
as the number of apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ, (twelve original apostles
take away Judas, add Matthias and Paul). If
all of time lasts just thirteen thousand years, then indeed the Lord is doing
"a short work" (Romans 9:28). It
is my sincere hope that this chronology will show that the Scriptures give a
coherent view of history, which will help demonstrate the absolute accuracy of
Scripture.
The Genesis record is here taken as a revelation of God to Moses, not a
set of historical records kept by men. As
such, it gives God's view of history, a record of events as He has known them
since before the beginning of time. Apparently
the events of the creation week were so ordered as to be a prophecy of
subsequent ages. God gave this
revelation to Moses knowing that men would have to keep it, interpret it, and
preserve it. In His wisdom God kept
the record brief and simple, He included numerical checks, and He used a
parallel poetic form as a memory aid. (We
have reason to believe that this record was both an oral and a written record1). As part of God's word, the Genesis
record should be seen in the light of other Scriptures, not in terms of human
traditions or human record keeping.
There are other Scriptures which support the validity of this concept of
God's plan of the ages. Matthew
1:17, states that there were two weeks of generations (fourteen generations)
from Abraham to David, that there were two weeks of generations (fourteen
generations) from David to the carrying away into Babylon, and that there were
two weeks of generations (fourteen generations) from the carrying away into
Babylon until the appearance of Christ. That
is, a total of six weeks of generations from Abraham to Christ. Note that the carrying away into Babylon
was in the forth week of generations after Abraham, and in the forth millennium
after the flood in the present chronology.
From the baptism of Christ (in about 27 A.D.) to the present end of the
age is approximately 1960 years; and 1960 years is seven weeks of generations,
49 generations of 40 years each. Thus,
in Matthew, the ages are divided into six weeks of generations, from Abraham to
Christ; and seven weeks of generations, from Christ to the return; just as all
time is divided into six millennia before the flood, and seven millennia after
the flood in the present chronology. In
the book of Joshua ch. 6, we read of the fall of Jericho (a type of the
rebellious world). We read that the
children of Israel compassed the city once each day for six days, and then on
the seventh day, they compassed it seven times, a total of 13 times. They blew the trumpets, the walls fell flat, and God's people
overran the city. This is a type of
God's overall plan. In the end the
rebellious race of man is overcome by God's people.
The Scriptures also show parallels between days and ages for the numbers
two, six, seven, eight, ten, and twelve. In
John 4:40, we read that Jesus ministered to the Samaritans two days, just as the
glorified Jesus has dealt with the gentiles for the last two thousand years. And in Hosea 6:2, we read that,
"After two days will He revive us...", "us" being Israel. So after dealing with the gentiles for
two millennia, between Daniel's 69th and 70th week, He will again deal with
Israel. We read in Matthew 17:1,
that "after six days" (from His baptism2) the glory of God was manifest at the
transfiguration. And six millennia
after the flood God's glory will fully manifest at the return of the Lord. Noah was six hundred years old when the
flood came ending the sixth millennium. Lamech
died at age 777 (Gen. 5:31) at the start of the seventh millennium. The purification of a woman after child
birth takes seven days (Lev. 12:2-3). Similarly, when the altar in the Temple was cleansed in
Ezekiel 43:26, we read "Seven days shall they purge the altar and purify it
...." So each cycle of
purification takes seven days. In
God's plan for the ages purification is completed at the start of the seventh
(day) millennium. In Genesis 17:12,
circumcision is prescribed for the 8th day after birth, and Abraham receives the
covenant of circumcision at the end of the 8th millennium. The Holy Spirit falls at Pentecost, ten
days after Jesus' ascension; and the Lord walks the earth the second time ten
thousand years after He left the Garden of Eden (John 16:28). In I Kings 19:19, we read that Elisha
was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen when he was called; and Israel will begin
to rule the earth in God's power after twelve thousand years.
1
Job 13:26, 19:23-24, Gen. 4:15, 18:19, Exod. 17:14, 24:7, 24:12, 28:11, 32:16,
34:1, 34:27, 39:30, Lev. 10:11,
Num. 5:23, Deut. 4:5, 17:18-19, 31:22.
2
As
in John 1:43, "the day following," and in John 2:1, "the third
day, " which count days from His baptism.
by Daniel H. Harris,
December, 1992.
The pivotal question in interpreting the Geneses chronologies is, how we
can know if a direct father-son relation is indicated? In the Scriptures Jesus is called the
"son of David." Yet we
know that Jesus was not the immediate son of David. And in the book of Daniel we read that
Daniel referred to Nebuchadnezzar as the father of Belshazzar (Dan.5:18), when
we know from contemporary inscriptions that in fact Belshazzar was the grandson
of Nebuchadnezzar. These passages
show that it was common practice for the Hebrews in ancient times to speak of a
father-son relationship when there was in fact one or more generations between
father and son. This calls into
question the conventional interpretation of the Genesis genealogies, which
assumed an immediate father-son relationship in each case. Then how can we recognize an immediate
father-son relationship in the Biblical genealogies?
The chronology presented here, with its parallels, is markedly different
from the chronologies given by most scholars (such as those in the marginal
notes of many Bibles). Such
chronologies rely on the straight forward addition of time intervals from
Scripture, without an underlying concept, or an expected result. By contrast, the present chronology is
based on three distinctive principles of interpretation. The first principle of interpretation
used here assumes the reality of the parallels between the days of creation and
the subsequent millennial periods; and uses these parallels to test the validity
of the chronology. The second principle of interpretation holds that the
early dates in the Bible are given relative to the patriarchs, the men of God in
the line of descent leading to Jesus. In
Genesis 7:6, we read that, "... Noah was six hundred years old when the
flood of waters was upon the earth." We can think of this as dating the flood as "the year of
Noah 600." Similarly modern
dates, such as the first landing on the moon in 1969 A.D., are dated in
reference to the birth of Jesus the Christ, our living reference patriarch.
Dating events by referring to the year of the reference patriarch
requires that there be a living reference patriarch at all times. That is, in the year of the death of the
old patriarch, a new patriarch must be born in the line of descent leading to
Jesus to take the place of the old patriarch.
If the new patriarch were born before the death of the old patriarch,
then there would be two dates for a notable event, one relative to the old
patriarch, and another date relative to the new patriarch. That could cause confusion for readers
of the record. On the other hand,
if the new patriarch were born several years after the death of the old
patriarch, then there would be a gap with no living reference patriarch. Thus, a clear chronology needs to have
the new reference patriarch born in the same year as the death of the old
patriarch. This is the second
principle of interpretation. This
is in marked contrast to the usual understanding of the Genesis record, where
the lifetimes of the patriarchs overlap. It
is remarkable that, of the many descendants of the patriarch, a child born in
the year of the patriarch's death should be the next in line of descent leading
to Jesus.
A record of this kind serves well if there is a child born in the line of
descent of the patriarch in the year of the patriarch's death. And this was the case during most of the
pre-flood and post-flood periods. But
in the first few generations after Adam, and in the first few generations after
the flood, there were not enough children being born in the line of descent of
the patriarch for a birth to occur in the year of the patriarch's death. And later, when the population was
divided at the tower of Babel there also was a disruption of normal life
activities, as the various tongues and nations spread across the then single
continent1. Consequently,
there was no child born in the line of Eber during the year that Eber died. During such times a record can't just
relative to the reference patriarch, instead more detail must be given.
To recognize which are instances of immediate father-son relationships we
need an understanding of the terms used in the Biblical genealogies. In the Genesis genealogies the most
frequently used term is "begat" (Hebrew yawlad), to "bear
young," or "son of." This
same term is used in Deuteronomy 32:18 where we read, "Of the Rock that begat
thee thou art unmindful ...," the Rock being the Lord, who was not the
immediate father of the children of Israel.
Thus the term "begat", or "son of" in this
passage means "born a descendant of."
An immediate father-son relation is not indicated. As we've seen, there are other
Scriptures which call into doubt the conventional interpretation of the Genesis
genealogies. If the term "begat"
does not necessarily indicate an immediate father-son relationship, then we are
justified in tentatively adopting the second principle of interpretation,
that the new reference patriarch is not the immediate son, but is born in the
year of the death of the old reference patriarch. In that case, when the Scripture says that Jared begat
Enoch, (Gen. 5:18) we can be confident that Enoch was born a descendant of
Jared. But the number of
generations between Jared and Enoch is not specified. We can look at the Biblical genealogies as lists of
patriarchs, each born in the year of the death of the previous patriarch.
(However, in describing the periods when there were few children being born in
the line of the reference patriarch, the Genesis record avoids confusion by
giving more details.)
1
We can surmise from Genesis 1:9 that there was a single continent and a single
ocean at creation. We read nothing
more of this until Genesis 10:25 which reveals that after the flood the
continent divided, during the time of Peleg the son of Eber (Peleg means to
split, earthquake.) by
Daniel H. Harris, December, 1992.
The third principle of interpretation used here is based on
recognition that, when describing the generations, Scripture uses two distinct
phrases, one which only indicates descent, and another phrase which clearly
shows an immediate father-son relationship.
This third principle of interpretation was pointed out by Harold
Camping in his pamphlet The Biblical Calendar of History and his book Adam
When?1. Camping
recognized the important difference in meaning between the two phrases begat,
and called his name. Camping
found that when the Scripture uses the phrase called his name, we can be
assured of an immediate father-son relation, because the father must be present
to give the child his name. Whereas,
the term begat indicates descent only, with and unknown number of
generations between. This
distinction gives us the third principle of interpretation.
Specifically, in describing the creation of Adam, Genesis 5:1-2 states
that, "God created man" ... male and female ..." and called
their name Adam in the day that He made them," showing an immediate
father-son relationship. In Genesis
4:25, we read regarding the birth of Seth, "And Adam ... called his name
Seth." In describing the birth
of Enosh, Genesis 4:26 states that, "Seth called his name Enosh"
(Gen. 4:26). And in Genesis 5:28-29
we read that, "Lamech ... begat a son and called his name
Noah...." The use of the
phrase called his name or called their name clearly shows that as
creator God gave Adam his name at the time of creation, that Adam was the
immediate father of Seth, that Seth was the immediate father of Enosh, and
Lamech was the immediate father of Noah.
A similar special term is used in Genesis 10 & 11 where we see
"the children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad...,"
(Gen. 10:22). Here children of, is the Hebrew "ben" which
means "son of," indicating that Arphaxad was born directly to Shem. We may also infer that, although the
Hebrew yawlad is used in Gen. 10:25, (which is translated "were
born"), "And unto Eber were born two sons... Peleg ... and
Joktan"; the usage and context here suggests that Peleg and Joktan were
born directly to Eber. Also Genesis
11:31 makes clear that Abram = Abraham is the immediate son of Terah, (even
though Genesis 11:26 states that, "Terah lived seventy years and begat
(yawlad) Abram....") Therefore,
if Arphaxad is born directly to Shem, Peleg is born directly to Eber, and Abram
= Abraham is born directly to Terah, but all the other patriarchs in the post
flood list are born in the year of the death of the previous patriarch, then in
the resulting chronology the flood is dated at about 4000 B.C. This suggests that the careful and
judicious application of the second principle of interpretation and the third
principle of interpretation produces a chronology which is consistent with
the first principle of interpretation2.
It is clear that the list of patriarchs is not a list of the first born
in each generation. For example,
Seth is the third born, Jacob is second, etc.
In the instances where we can be sure of an immediate father-son
relationship there is no clear pattern in the birth order of the next succeeding
patriarch leading to Jesus. The
first born or the third born or the seventh born may be the next in line of
descent leading to Jesus. We know
that today similarity of personality and gifts often skip a generation and then
reappear in the grandchildren or even great grandchildren. Similarly in ancient times the righteous
men of the family of the patriarch looked for a special child born in his line
with the calling of the patriarch, and born in the year of the patriarch's
death, that child became the new reference patriarch.
Agreeing with, but not directly supporting, the chronology is the fact
that at the end of time, in the Millennium, when the earth is again clean, men
will again live to great ages as they did before the flood (Isa. 65:20).
1
Both book and pamphlet are available from Family Stations, Inc. 290
Hengensberger Road, Oakland, CA 94621,
(415) 568-6200.
2 The dates given here in the "Table of the Patriarchs", and
"God's Plan for the Ages", are consistent with Harold
Patriarch |
Absolute Date of Birth |
Interval |
Begat |
Interval |
Age at Time of Death |
Absolute Date of Death |
Day of God |
Genesis 4 & 5 |
|||||||
Adam |
1 |
130 |
Seth |
800 |
930 |
931 |
1 |
Seth |
131 |
105 |
Enos |
807 |
912 |
1043 |
1 |
Enos |
236 |
90 |
Cainan |
815 |
905 |
1141 |
2 |
Cainan |
1141 |
70 |
Mahalaleel |
840 |
910 |
2051 |
3 |
Mahalaleel |
2051 |
65 |
Jared |
830 |
895 |
2946 |
4 |
Jared |
2946 |
162 |
Enoch |
800 |
962 |
3908 |
5 |
Enoch |
3908 |
65 |
Methuselah |
300 |
365 |
4273 |
5 |
Methuselah |
4273 |
187 |
Lamech |
782 |
969 |
5242 |
6 |
Lamech |
5242 |
182 |
Noah |
595 |
777 |
6019 |
1 |
The Flood is in the year of Noah 600, absolute date 6024-6025 |
|||||||
Patriarch |
Absolute Date of Birth |
Interval |
Begat |
Interval |
Age at Time of Death |
Absolute Date of Death |
Day of God |
Genesis 9, 10 & 11 |
|||||||
Noah |
5424 |
502 |
Shem |
448 |
950 |
6374 |
1 |
Shem |
5926 |
100 |
Arphaxad |
500 |
600 |
6526 |
1 |
Arphaxad |
6026 |
35 |
Salah |
403 |
438 |
6464 |
1 |
Salah |
6464 |
30 |
Eber |
403 |
433 |
6897 |
1 |
Eber |
6897 |
34 |
Peleg |
430 |
464 |
7361 |
1-2 |
Peleg |
6931 |
30 |
Reu |
209 |
239 |
7170 |
2 |
Reu |
7170 |
32 |
Serug |
207 |
239 |
7409 |
2 |
Serug |
7409 |
30 |
Nahor |
200 |
230 |
7639 |
2 |
Nahor |
7639 |
29 |
Terah |
119 |
148 |
7787 |
2 |
Terah |
7787 |
70 |
Abram |
135 |
205 |
7922 |
2 |
Patriarch |
Absolute Date of Birth |
Interval |
Begat |
Interval |
Age at Time of Death |
Absolute Date of Death |
Day of God |
Genesis 21 & 25 |
|||||||
Abraham |
7857 |
100 |
Isaac |
75 |
175 |
8032 |
2-3 |
Genesis 25 & 35
|
|||||||
Isaac |
7957 |
60 |
Jacob |
120 |
180 |
8137 |
3 |
Genesis 48:28 |
|||||||
Jacob |
8017 |
130 |
into Egypt |
17 |
147 |
8164 |
|
Entrance into Egypt |
8147 |
||||||
Exodus |
8577 = 1423 BC. (Accepted date is 8553 = 1447 BC.) |
||||||
I Kings 6:1 |
|||||||
Start of Solomon's Temple |
9057 |
Suggested Test of "God's Plan for the Ages"
To further explore the ideas presented in
"God's Plan for the Ages" I would suggest further readings of the
Scriptures searching for patterns which would confirm or deny these concepts. And in order to limit the time required
I suggest reading a limited section of Scripture such as:
1) The Gospels.
2) Psalms and Proverbs.
3) Two of the Major Prophets.
4) All of the Minor Prophets.
5) Daniel and Revelation.
6) Two of the books of the Pentateuch.
7) The Books of Chronicles and Kings.
8) Joshua through Judges.
9) The Pauline Epistles.
10) Hebrews through Jude.
11) Acts, Romans and Galatians.
12) Ezra through Job.
When reading please be thorough and use Bible helps. If you come upon something relevant use
a comprehensive concordance or other materials if necessary. Keep a detailed log of your activities. Log the date and time of your reading,
the material covered, and any discoveries or explorations along the way. When you have completed your reading and
study, write a summary of your findings and include the log of your activities. If you are alert you may discover more
Scripture relevant to "God's Plan for the Ages."
additional relevant scripture discovered after Dec 7, 1992
Josh 3:4 shows that when Israel crossed the Jordan the Ark was
separated from the people of Israel by 2000 cubits!
Gen 17:24 Abraham receives the covenant of circumcision at the end of
the eight millennium and the start of the nineth
millennium, when he was 99 years old.
Deut. 31:24 "...Moses had made an end of writing the words of the
law in a book,...."
Matt. 4:1-11 The adversary
tempted Jesus in three ways, and the direct witness of Jesus works on the earth
for a total
History of the Development of God's
Plan for the Agesz
Shortly after my salvation experience, in about 1979, during times of
prayer and reading of the Scriptures the Lord would bring to my memory some of
the things which I learned in graduate school in astronomy. At first He reminded me of difficulties
with the theory of the rotation of our Milky Way galaxy, the density wave theory
which was contradicted by computer simulations.
Then He reminded me of the fact that the measured velocities of nearby
stars are not random as one would expect if the stars had been gravitationally
interacting during several rotations of the galaxy. Thirdly He reminded me of the rapid loss
of material from the comets which suggests they are of a young age. Then He reminded me of the fact of
vulcanism on the moon, which I had studied, shows that the moon is still hot
inside, contrary to theory, which says small solar system bodies should have
cooled during within a few hundred million years after the formation of the
solar system. Then He pointed out
that the rings of the outer planets should be rare and short lived phenomena
because they are made of ices which would evaporate into space. Then He reminded me of the neutrino
paradox which casts into doubt the theory that stars generate their energy by
converting hydrogen into helium. Later,
when I was still undecided as to whether to believe a young or an old universe,
I ran into a former colleague from the University of Arizona who described the
confusion at a conference of astronomers brought on by the space satellite
discovery that massive hot stars produce X-rays, a direct contradiction of the
standard theory. At about the same
time I heard a lecture by a local Christian activist and the well read
creationist Stu Slimp, owner of the Ministries for Christ Book Store in north
Austin. His extensive discussion of
the scientific and Scriptural evidence was very persuasive. It was during this time, in 1983, that I
came to realize that the earth could not be billions of years old, but at the
most a few tens of millions of years old. It
was also clear that there was not enough time for evolution to have worked, that
the world must have been created.
In succeeding years study of the Scriptures and reading