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As I point out in my four-part series called "The Salvation of Animals: Fact or Fiction?", the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden not only affected the future of the entire human race, it also affected the animal kingdom, as well as the plant kingdom. In the case of the latter, this was due to the sad fact that the Lord also cursed the ground, and caused thorns and thistles to grow, as we can determine by the following two verses:

"And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;"


I find a hint of something very interesting in the previous two verses. While I am not absolutely certain of this point, these two verses may possibly be evidence of something new being created at some point AFTER the Six Days of Creation had already been completed. After all, we don't really know at what point in their lives Adam and Eve rebelled against the Lord. As such, we likewise don't know with any degree of certainty exactly when God cursed the ground and caused the thorns and thistles to appear. The only thing we do know is that it obviously did not occur during those first Six Days of Creation. It had to have happened sometime later, after Adam had given names to all of the animals, and after Eve had been created. Exactly how much later is really an open-ended question.

Now I am going to say something which may possibly surprise some of my readers. As I point out in a few other articles, we don't want to make the mistake of putting God in a box. In other words, we don't want to make the mistake of saying that God created everything during the Six Days of Creation, and then that was it. He stopped and has never created anything new since that time. He has been as bored as can be, and has been sitting on a cloud doing absolutely nothing. Does such a picture really make any sense to you? Well, not to me! In my view, while God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, truly did create everything that is described for us in the opening chapters of the Book of Genesis during those Six Days, that does NOT necessarily mean that they stopped creating anything new altogether after that. What?!

Now before you start throwing your darts at me, and accusing me of being some misguided, false teacher, or whatever comes into your mind, allow me to share my reasoning with you. If you are not convinced of my view after reading the following paragraphs, then so be it. It is not a big deal. After all, it is just my personal belief, and not a Salvation issue. My friends, please stop and think about this for a moment. The Book of Genesis informs us that following the Six Days of Creation, God -- meaning God the Father and His Son, Jesus, as per Ephesians 3:9 -- rested on the seventh day, as we can read in the following two verses:

"And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made."


In the previous verses, the word "ended" is derived from the Hebrew word "kalah" which means to end, finish, complete or accomplish. The word "rested" is translated from the Hebrew word "shabath" which means to cease, desist from labor or to rest. It is from this latter Hebrew word that we derive our English word "sabbath". But the big question we need to ask ourselves is this: Does this mean that God stopped creating new things entirely following the Six Days of Creation? Are we to believe that the Creator God has been resting for the past six millennia? Has God PERMANENTLY stopped creating any new things? Or does Genesis 2:2-3 simply mean that He took a break and rested on the seventh day, and then He went back to work creating more new things? Before you answer the previous questions, let us consider how God instituted the Sabbath with the ancient Israelites. Consider the following group of verses:

"And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you."


"And he [Moses] said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning. And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein. And Moses said, Eat that to day; for to day is a sabbath unto the LORD: to day ye shall not find it in the field. Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none . . . See, for that the LORD hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. So the people rested on the seventh day."


"Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it."


"Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed."


"And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you. Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed."


"Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest: in earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest."


"Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the LORD: whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to death. Ye shall kindle no fire throughout your habitations upon the sabbath day."


Now let me ask you a simple question. Exactly what was the purpose of the seventh day Sabbath -- or day of rest -- when God ceased from His labors, and when the Israelites were also instructed to do the same? Well, the previous verses provide us with a very clear answer. In Exodus 23:12 we are told that it was so that people "may be refreshed". Likewise, in Exodus chapter thirty-one we are informed that on the seventh day, God "rested, and was refreshed". It may interest you to know that the original Hebrew word that is used in both of those verses is "naphash". This ancient word literally means to take a breath, or to refresh oneself.

This leads us to our next question. Does refreshing oneself, resting on the Sabbath and catching our breath mean that we do it permanently? Do we simply stop working, rest, catch our breath, get refreshed, and then never go back to work again? Obviously not. You try doing that in today's work environment and you will be out of a job right quick! I am sure that the Israelites understood the Sabbath in the very same way. They knew that observing the Sabbath simply meant to take a day off from their labors to rest and to catch their breath, and then to return to work again for another six days. Don't you agree?

If we understand the purpose of the Sabbath in this fashion -- which is a very Scripturally sound understanding -- then it also stands to reason that when the Book of Genesis says that God rested on the seventh day so that He could refresh Himself, in my view, it simply means that He took a day off from His labors of creation, and then He went right back to work again creating new things. In short, I do not believe that our Creator God is static when it comes to the process of creation. Yes, God's Word is indeed eternal, immutable, static and unchangeable. This point is clearly confirmed by verses such as the following:

"LAMED. For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven."


"The counsel of the LORD standeth for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations."


"Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:"


"God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?"


"I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him. That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past."


"God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged."


"In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;"


"Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed ‭it‭ by an oath:‭ That by two immutable things, in which ‭it was‭ impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:"


"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning."


"We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:"


While God's Word is indeed immutable, unchangeable and will endure forever, in my view, it does not mean that God Himself has remained totally inactive insofar as creating new things is concerned. If there is one thing I know from reading the Scriptures, it is that God's Holy Spirit is alive, active, constantly moving, and yes, creating new things. In Genesis we read that God's Spirit hovered over the waters, and then the Earth brought forth an amazing abundance of life, both human, plant and animal. Throughout both the Old and the New Testaments, we see holy Prophets prophesying. We see people being brought back to life. We see people being healed of all manner of sickness. We see a babe being created in the womb of Mary. We see food being multiplied. We see people speaking in other unknown languages. We see people having a multitude of heavenly visions. These were all the result of God's Spirit moving and acting in their lives.

Thus, by its very nature, we see that God's Spirit is in fact a very active and creative Spirit. So are we to truly believe that all creation came to a dead stop once the original Six Days of Creation had come to an end? I don't think so. Let me share an interesting statistic with you. Are you aware of the fact that according to a variety of online sources, despite our modern technology in the twenty-first century, somewhere between 80%-95% of the world's oceans has never been mapped, explored, or even seen by human beings. I find that amazing.

Now consider our vast Universe. It is just so extremely huge, that our human minds cannot even begin to comprehend its true size. Even with our current technology, we certainly cannot observe the end of it. That is, assuming that there really is an end to it. It just goes on and on. If you have a personal interest in astronomy, then you may already know that some of the latest images from the HTS -- Hubble Space Telescope -- and the JWST -- James Webb Space Telescope -- give us a hint of exactly how large the Universe is. It has been estimated that there could be as many as two trillion galaxies in the observable Universe alone. I can't even fathom that. Can you? In thinking about the vastness of Outer Space, I am reminded of the following verses:

"[To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.] The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof."


"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth . . . And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good."


"They fought from heaven; the stars in their courses fought against Sisera."


"Which commandeth the sun, and it riseth not; and sealeth up the stars. Which alone spreadeth out the heavens, and treadeth upon the waves of the sea. Which maketh Arcturus, Orion, and Pleiades, and the chambers of the south."


"Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb? When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddlingband for it, And brake up for it my decreed place, and set bars and doors, And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed? . . . Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion? Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season? or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons? Knowest thou the ordinances of heaven? canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth?"


"When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;"


"To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endureth for ever. To him that stretched out the earth above the waters: for his mercy endureth for ever. To him that made great lights: for his mercy endureth for ever: The sun to rule by day: for his mercy endureth for ever: The moon and stars to rule by night: for his mercy endureth for ever."


"He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names."


"Praise ye the LORD. Praise ye the LORD from the heavens: praise him in the heights. Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye him, all his hosts. Praise ye him, sun and moon: praise him, all ye stars of light. Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the LORD: for he commanded, and they were created."


"Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:"


"Thus saith the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself;"


"Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name:"


"Seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night: that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD is his name:"


In light of the previous verses, let me ask you yet another question. Considering the vast size of the Universe, do you believe that God created all of it during the Six Days of Creation? Or is it possible that after resting and refreshing Himself on the seventh day, God went back to work, and He has continued to create new things ever since then? While we may never really know exactly how large the Universe is, thanks to modern technology, there's now photographic evidence which seems to suggest that new stars are constantly being formed in interstellar gas and dust clouds known as nebulas.

Located in the constellation of Serpens, the Eagle Nebula is believed to be approximately 6,500-7,000 light years from the Earth. Please note that a light year is not actually a unit of time. It is really a unit of distance which describes how far light travels in a vacuum in one Julian year. That is to say, in 365.25 days. Thus, one light year equals approximately 5.88 trillion miles, or about 9,460,730,472,580.8 kilometers. However, we are talking about 6,500-7,000 light years to reach the Eagle Nebula. Perhaps these figures will help you to much better grasp how huge the Universe is. Or perhaps not.

In 1920, an American astronomer by the name of John Charles Duncan discovered some amazing structures in the Eagle Nebula on a astrophotographic plate which had been made by the Mount Wilson Observatory 60" telescope. Being as these structures are in the process of creating new stars, they were given the name Pillars of Creations. According to Wikipedia, this name is based on a phrase which was used by noted British pastor Charles Spurgeon in his 1857 sermon called "The Condescension of Christ". Below is a quote from the Wikipedia website:

----- Begin Quote -----

In calling the Hubble's spectacular new image of the Eagle Nebula the Pillars of Creation, NASA scientists were tapping a rich symbolic tradition with centuries of meaning, bringing it into the modern age. As much as we associate pillars with the classical temples of Greece and Rome, the concept of the pillars of creation – the very foundations that hold up the world and all that is in it – reverberates significantly in the Christian tradition. When William Jennings Bryan published The World's Famous Orations in 1906, he included an 1857 sermon by London pastor Charles Haddon Spurgeon titled "The Condescension of Christ". In it, Spurgeon uses the phrase to convey not only the physical world but also the force that keeps it all together, emanating from the divine:

"And now wonder, ye angels," Spurgeon says of the birth of Christ, "the Infinite has become an infant; he, upon whose shoulders the universe doth hang, hangs at his mother's breast; He who created all things, and bears up the pillars of creation, hath now become so weak, that He must be carried by a woman!"

----- End Quote -----

Of course, since 1920, significant improvements have been made in the area of astronomical technology and observation. This includes the Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope. In fact, in 2014, the HST captured some new images of the Pillars of Creation. The JWST did the same in 2022. Whether or not you are an astronomy buff, I hope that you will find the images I will be sharing with you below as amazing as I do. Due to their huge dimensions, I had to shrink them down in size in order to better fit them on this web page. If you would like to see the full-blown images, I encourage you to visit your favorite astronomy-related website, or simply go to Wikipedia. To give you a rough idea of how large these images are, below is another quote from the Wikipedia website:

----- Begin Quote -----

The pillars are composed of cool molecular hydrogen and dust that are being eroded by photoevaporation from the ultraviolet light of relatively close and hot stars. The leftmost pillar is about four light-years in length. The finger-like protrusions at the top of the clouds are larger than the Solar System, and are made visible by the shadows of evaporating gaseous globules (EGGs), which shield the gas behind them from intense UV flux. EGGs are themselves incubators of new stars. The stars then emerge from the EGGs, which then are evaporated.

----- End Quote -----

In other words, from top to bottom, that leftmost pillar is over 20,000,000,000,000 miles tall. Is it any wonder that the Eagle Nebula is a stellar nursery? And by the way, according to online information, those red areas you see on the edges of the dust clouds are actually new stars which are in the process of being born. The reason why the images are composed of different colors is because they were made with different cameras on different telescopes using different filters.

Eagle Nebula/Pillars of Creation: Hubble Space Telescope, 2014:



Eagle Nebula/Pillars of Creation: Hubble Space Telescope, 2014:



Eagle Nebula/Pillars of Creation: Hubble Space Telescope, 2014:



Eagle Nebula/Pillars of Creation: James Webb Space Telescope, 2022:



Eagle Nebula/Pillars of Creation: James Webb Space Telescope, 2022:



Continuing our discussion, it absolutely dumbfounds me how some astronomers, astrophysicists -- such as now-deceased theoretical physicist and cosmologist, Stephen Hawking -- and other scientists can look at such images, peer through their telescopes and gaze at all of the mind-boggling and astounding wonders of the Universe, and yet still insist that God does not exist. Sadly, instead, they erroneously claim that the Universe is the result of some mysterious Big Bang, and not the result of Intelligent Design by our loving Creator. Such scientists seem to totally ignore their own dogmatic belief in cause and effect. They already know what the effect is, but they deny the Cause of it all. I honestly don't know what to say regarding such people other than what pride and hard-heartedness is revealed in such an attitude! Tragically, regarding such obstinate people, I am reminded of verses such as the following:

"In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them."


"The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts."


"For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:"


Please go to part two for the conclusion of this article.

⇒ Go To The Next Part . . .

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