Book Review: Seven Days that Divide the World by John Lennox
Seven Days that Divide the World: The Beginning According to Genesis and Science
by John C. Lennox addresses that controversial subject of the age of the earth. However, Lennox’s gracious manner goes a long way to avoid stirring the pot of controversy. Instead, Lennox writes five chapters to explain the controversy, apply principles of biblical interpretation, interpret the Genesis days, discuss the origin of humans, and explore the relevance of Genesis. It should be noted that the author emphasizes that this book is not meant to be exhaustive, but a response to the many questions he has received over the years.
But now we need to face an important question: why do Christians accept this “new” interpretation, and not still insist on a “literal” understanding of the “pillars of the earth”? Why are we not still split up into fixed-earthers and moving-earthers? Is it really because we have all compromised, and made Scripture subservience to science? (163)
It is Scripture that has the final authority, not our understanding of it. It is a sad spectacle, and one that brings discredit on the Christian message, when those who profess to believe that message belie their profession by fighting amongst themselves or caricaturing others, rather than engaging in respectful discussion through which all sides might just learn something. (342)
However, there is another possibility: that the writer did not intend us to think of the first six days as days of a single earth week, but rather as a sequence of six creation days; that is, days of normal length (with evenings and mornings as the text says) in which God acted to create something new, but days that might well have been separated by long periods of time. (642)
All citations taken from the Kindle version.