Earthquakes and Earth’s History

In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up… Genesis 7:11

One of the most interesting things I’ve learned from creation geologists is how much information they get from this one verse. Yes, the rain comes right after, but the event starting the world-wide Flood in motion was from underground.

What were those “fountains of the great deep”?

How deep were they?

What else was in there besides H2O?

What happened when they were “broken up”?

Some of these things are still puzzled over and discussed among Bible believing scientists, but one thing we are pretty sure about: when the ground broke up, there were earthquakes and more.

We know when God made the world, He said everything was “very good”. Genesis 1 even talks about all the waters being gathered into one place, which means the dry ground would have been in one piece, too. Nowadays, most geologists recognize this as most likely too and even have a name for that massive continent: Pangaea.

But the world doesn’t look like this any more! Something huge rearranged the whole landscape, forcing up mountains, and leaving the whole world under enormous tension.

Every giant piece of earth’s crust is trying to shift positions to get more comfortable. But there are snags holding them back: at least for a time. Whenever there is an earthquake, a little of this tension is released. Nice for the earth, rotten for those of us living nearby!

But it’s not going to always be this way:

[Jesus,] whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago. Acts 3:21 ESV

The Bible even gives us some really cool clues about how Jesus is going to restore all things to a “very good” state again. Have a look at these verses:

     And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; Revelation 6:12 
     And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake. Revelation 8:5 
     And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven. Revelation 11:13 
     And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail. Revelation 11:19 

     And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. Revelation 16:18 

Let’s see, that’s five earthquakes, including one so huge earth has never seen anything like it! I could go back to the Old Testament and find more mentions of earthquakes, like in Ezekiel 38:19, but you get the point.

When I read about these things happening, it looks like God is planning a couple of things. Sure, it’s going to be awful for Jesus’ enemies who refuse to submit to Him, but it’s also going to help the earth finally finish settling down from the Flood. From the time of the last great earthquake on, things will be far safer along the world’s coasts, in California (if it survives), and anywhere else you never know will get a serious shaking today.

Oh, yes, about that lightning. Remember what we’ve discovered about earthquakes and electricity? Cool stuff!

God may not have written the Bible as a “science textbook”, but we can sure learn a lot by comparing what He says and what we’ve discovered. 😀

Check out ICR’s a nice long article about:  Continental Drift, Plate Tectonics, and the Bible