Showing posts with label systematics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label systematics. Show all posts

Saturday, 17 May 2008

Exact time of the creation of angels

From Berkhof (chapter IV on "Creation of the Spiritual World" in his systematics):

"In distinction from God they are created beings. The creation of the angels has sometimes been denied, but is clearly taught in Scripture...The time of their creation cannot be fixed definitely. The opinion of some, based on Job 38:7, that they were created before all other things, really finds no support in Scripture. As far as we know, no creative work preceded the creation of heaven and earth. The passage in book of Job (38:7) teaches, indeed, in a poetic vein that they were present at the founding of the world just as the stars were, but not that they existed before the primary creation of heaven and earth. The idea that the creation of the heavens was completed on the first day, and that the creation of the angels was simply a part of the day's work, is also an unproved assumption, though the fact that the statement in Gen. 1:2 applies to the earth only would seem to favour it. Possibly the creation of the heavens was not completed in a single moment any more than that of earth. The only safe statement seems to be that they were created before the seventh day. This at least follows from such passages as Gen 2:1; Ex 20:11; Job 38:7; Neh 9:6"

Discuss? I always thought angels were created during day one or day four... and not before. Your views?