Skip to content
  • Explore
    • Explore All
    • Multimedia
    • Read
  • Get Involved
    • Ways to get Involved
    • Events
    • Reasons Institute
    • Scholar Community
  • About
    • About Us
    • Team
    • Contact Us
    • FAQ
  • Store
  • Library
  • DONATE
  • Explore
    • Explore All
    • Multimedia
    • Read
  • Get Involved
    • Ways to get Involved
    • Events
    • Reasons Institute
    • Scholar Community
  • About
    • About Us
    • Team
    • Contact Us
    • FAQ
  • Store
  • Library
donate
  • Explore
  • Publication
  • Did God Or Evolution Create Plants on Creation Day 3?
Did God Or Evolution Create Plants on Creation Day 3?
Publication

Did God Or Evolution Create Plants on Creation Day 3?

by Hugh Ross
July 31, 2020

Question of the week: In Genesis 1:11 when God brought forth the grass, herbs yielding seed, and the fruit trees, etc., why is the biblical Hebrew word for create, “bara,” not used here? I had thought God literally created these things, so why would “bara” not be used? Or does this leave it open that God may have used natural means to bring them about?

My answer: The Hebrew nouns used in Genesis 1:11 are much more generic than the English nouns found in English translations. These more generic meanings should come as no surprise since, if one does not count the names of people, cities, and towns, modern English has thousands of more nouns than biblical Hebrew.

Genesis 1:11 begins with “Let the land produce vegetation.” The biblical Hebrew word for vegetation, deshe, encompasses all photosynthetic life. Genesis 1:11 follows with four examples of the vegetation: zera, eseb, es, and peri. The definitions of these four Hebrew nouns are semen or the embryos of any vegetation species; photosynthetic plants; plants with stalks, cellulose, or wood; and fruit, that is, nourishment for the embryos or seeds. These four examples are not intended to be a complete list and they are not intended to be in any order of appearance.

The Hebrew verb for produce in Genesis 1:11 is dasha. It means to sprout, shoot, or become green. The verb is sufficiently generic to include both natural and supernatural means of coming into existence. This breadth of definition is consistent with scientific evidence for the history of photosynthetic life on Earth. Natural process changes in Earth’s vegetation allow for a much broader range of adaptation than what is possible for animals. Nevertheless, natural process changes cannot explain the entire history of Earth’s photosynthetic life. Some supernatural interventions are required.

Readers who want a more thorough answer to this question of the week with documentation and citations will find it in my book, Navigating Genesis.1 A free chapter is available at reasons.org/ross.

Featured image: Artistic Rendition of the Devonian Period (public domain)

Endnotes
  1. Hugh Ross, Navigating Genesis (Covina, CA: RTB Press, 2014), 49–52, https://support.reasons.org/purchase/navigating-genesis.

Coronavirus Pandemic & the Problem of Evil
Coronavirus Pandemic & the Problem of Evil
Before the current pandemic, I only really thought of viruses when I got my yearly flu shot. But in light of the significant suffering...
Biology
Are Buddhism and Christianity Compatible with Science?
Are you awed by the compatibility of science and Christianity? Have you thought about the compatibility of science and other religions? What about Buddhism? I...
Worldviews
Default publications post thumbnail
Questioning Evolutionary Presuppositions about Endogenous Retroviruses
In a 2006 lecture at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, Dr. Graeme Finlay, an immunologist, cancer biologist, and Christian, made some remarkable observations about the genetic...
Biology
  • Explore
  • Get Involved
  • About
  • Store
  • Library
  • Translations
  • Search
  • Login

Support Our Mission

Your support helps more people find Christ through sharing how the latest scientific discoveries affirm our faith in the God of the Bible.

Donate Now

facebook twitter instagram youtube tiktok
  • Contact Us
  • Careers
  • FAQ
  • Privacy Policy