Under the Dome

Young earth creationists are believers in biblical literalism; that is, interpreting the Bible according to a literal meaning of its words, not allowing for a figurative or metaphorical understanding. To know what the scripture text says is to know what it means. So when Genesis 1 says that God created the heavens and the earth in six days, that’s exactly how long it took. When they add up the dates from genealogies and other biblical chronological references, they come up with a date of 4000 BCE for the creation of the world, so the world must therefore be no older than 6000 years. Since for them the Bible is also inerrant, when science or history are in conflict with the Bible, science or history must conform to what the Bible says. Any facts have to be interpreted in light of the Bible’s clear meaning.

With this in mind, what are the implications of a literal interpretation of Genesis 1? When God set about creating the cosmos, there was nothing but chaos: “the earth was a formless waste and darkness covered the abyss and a mighty wind swept over the waters” (v. 2). One pictures a vast, wind-tossed sea covering the earth in utter darkness. It doesn’t say God created the primeval sea. It was already there. God’s first order of business is to create light (v. 3) to separate day from night.

God’s second creative act is to make a dome to separate “the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome” (v. 7). The Hebrew word raqiya (translated as “dome” or “firmament”) derives from a verb meaning to flatten or stamp down, suggesting a metal sheet that physically separates the upper waters from the lower waters. Later on (Gen 7:11), the Flood will be partially brought about by opening the “windows of the heavens”. In other words, openings in the solid firmament will allow the waters above the dome to flood the earth.

God’s third order of business is to gather the lower waters together in one place, allowing dry land to appear (v. 9). With this completed, the chaotic conditions present at the start of the first day have been reversed. The earth now has a form. It is bound by the sea, but the sea no longer covers it. Darkness is tamed by light and the chaotic waters of the abyss have been separated by a dome to prevent them from overcoming the earth.

With dry land in place, God can now bring forth vegetation (vv. 11-12). God will then go on to create the sun, moon and stars and place them in the dome of sky (vv. 14-18), as well as creating sea creatures and birds (vv. 20-22), land animals (vv. 24-25), and finally humans (vv. 26-27). In case you noticed, yes, light is created three days before the sun. And, yes, the sun and moon and stars are placed in, not above the dome. We’ll have to address those topics another time.




The heavens and earth according to the Bible



The ancient Near Eastern concept of the earth is not that of a sphere revolving around the sun, but more like a snow globe, except the water is above the dome and not contained within it. The land is a flat expanse surrounded by the primeval sea (Job 26:10; Prov 8:27) and is held up by pillars (1 Sam 2:8) to keep it from sinking into the waters. The dome of heaven is set upon the earth (Amos 9:6;), held up by mighty mountains, and the sun, moon and stars were placed within the dome. Together, the heavens above the dome and the earth below comprise the entire universe.

A literal reading of Genesis 1 is consistent with this view. However, I don’t think even the hardest-core young earth creationist would attempt to argue this literal reading of the text. Why is that? Because only the most deluded of people would try to argue that the earth is really flat with a metal dome for a sky. That might have worked for someone living in the Bronze Age, but anyone who has seen weather satellite photos taken from orbit knows that is absurd.

So the creationist will have to insist the true meaning of the text in Genesis 1 is something other than the obvious, literal meaning. They will insist that nothing in Genesis 1 is inconsistent with a spherical earth. The firmament is not a solid dome or, if it was at one time, that was before the Flood when it was destroyed, allowing the waters above it to drown the earth. Or maybe it was a vapor canopy or made of ice. If they get really desperate, they will claim that the words of the text are undefined or figurative in nature, even though we need to believe the universe was created in six 24-hour days, because that part has to be taken literally. How’s that for cognitive dissonance?

There is plenty of scriptural support for the ANE concept of a flat, immovable earth with a solid dome and waters above the dome. (This brief article sums up the biblical evidence for a flat earth.) It is every bit as “scientific” as a 6000-year old earth and creation of the universe in six days. But creationists deny the Bible describes the former and affirms it describes the latter. Furthermore, they will insist that we must believe this to be true because to deny any single part of the Bible is to deny all of the Bible. But aren't they denying a part of the Bible when they deny the scriptural view of a flat, immovable earth?