How old is the earth?

from the old testament

• The Bible includes genealogies (e.g., Genesis 5; 11; 1 Chronicles 1; see also Luke 3:23–38), which many, specifically proponents of Young Earth Creationism, use to estimate the age of the earth. Using this method determines that the earth is between six and ten thousand years old.
• Young earth creationists see the days of creation as literal. For example, the "second day" refers to a 24-hour period after which the "third day" began. A supporting argument is the fact that in Genesis 1 verses 5, 8, 13, 19, 23, and 31, the writer uses the phrase "there was evening and there was morning," suggesting literal days.
• Exodus 20:11 tells us God made heaven, earth, the sea, and everything that is in them in six days.
• Some Christians attempt to reconcile the biblical account with an older age of the earth in a few ways, such as by understanding the word "day" in the creation account of Genesis 1 as an undefined span of time instead of a literal day as we know.
• God told Adam that if he ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, he would die. Adam ate, and God not only promised him death in Genesis 3:19, He ensured Adam would die by guarding the Tree of Life so he could not eat of it and live forever in a condemned state (Genesis 3:22–24). Sin came through Adam and brought death. Generally an older view of the earth assumes death occurred for billions of years before humans were created, which would not align with the biblical account of the fall and interpretations in the New Testament. Many old earth creationists interpret the death introduced by Adam's sin as primarily spiritual rather than physical.
• The Noahic flood (Genesis 7:11–24) may explain many of the geological anomalies we find, instead of millions of years of gradual processes, again supporting a young view model. The rapid burial of fossils, the formation of geological features, the presence of marine fossils on mountains, and the creation of coal and oil deposits are evidence consistent with a global flood model. Young earth creationists attribute much of the earth's current geological state to the effects of the flood, showing that the earth is much younger than the billions of years suggested by mainstream science.
• Others say that God created the earth with the appearance of age (Genesis 1:1; Exodus 20:11). They see no need to reconcile the biblical account with an older age of the earth (Isaiah 40:28).

from the new testament

• The New Testament does not explicitly discuss the age of the earth but focuses on the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, as well as the early church. Topics such as the age of the earth or the specifics of creation are not addressed in the New Testament.
• Romans 5:12 clearly says, "sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin." Old earth creationists often interpret this passage as referring specifically to human death as a result of sin, rather than to all biological death. This interpretation allows for the existence of animal death before Adam's sin; however, we believe it is not just talking about spiritual death but also literal, physical death.

implications for today

In modern science, facts about the natural world are best discovered using the scientific method, wherein a hypothesis is tested until it can be proven or disproven. Events that are too small, too far away, or too long ago can only be surmised by analyzing the data at hand. The creation of the earth is, of course, too long past for experimentation. If its development is related to the formation of other planets, stars, etc., distance is added to the mix, making analysis all but impossible. Nevertheless, attempts are made. Generally, modern scientists begin with an assumption that the earth is billions of years old. There are many godly Christians who believe the earth is only thousands of years old and many who believe it is billions of years old.

In the light of the differences of opinion, we must remember that the age of the earth is not a salvation issue nor is it completely conclusive. Therefore, while we must have convictions on this matter, we must also provide grace for those who have differing convictions than us in areas that are not salvific or major. The ways we seek to understand God’s Word and the ways we seek to understand the clues that nature gives us regarding the age of the earth are important.

Regardless of our conviction on the age of the earth, it is evident from the Bible that God is the Creator, that He literally created everything out of nothing, that He created all things good, and that He created a literal Adam and Eve, the firstborn of all humanity. God is intimately involved with His creation and humanity (Psalm 139:13–16; Acts 17:24–28), and one day the age of the earth will not matter, as He will create a new heavens and a new earth, restoring all that sin has destroyed (Isaiah 65:17; Revelation 21:1–5).