Lyricaltruth's Blog

2Timothy 1:9

God is the one who saved and called us with a holy calling. This wasn’t based on what we have done, but it was based on his own purpose and grace that he gave us in Christ Jesus before time began. (Common English Bible)

Titus1:2

Their faith and this knowledge are based on the hope of eternal life that God, who doesn’t lie, promised before time began.  (Common English Bible)
All these Scriptures would seem to indicate that there was a point when time itself had an actual beginning. But not all versions of the Bible use this phrase. In fact, most do not.

In most versions “before time” is translated: “before the world began” or “before the foundations of the earth.”

This is a pretty big difference. While it may seem insignificant – our understanding of the nature of the God of eternity hangs on the meaning of this phrase. Confusion about “time” has introduced some pretty silly and strange philosophies about how God can exist in eternity – while we exist in “time.”

So, how do we define time? Is it sequence? Duration? Or the measurement of it?

Before there was a sun and a moon, humans would not have been able to mark days or months. The time it takes the earth to orbit the sun is one year. The time to rotate once on its axis is one day. But what is a day on Jupiter? What is a year? They are not the same as earth, are they? So the measurement of time is relative to where we are and how quickly we are moving, in the solar system.

When was the first day, according to Scripture (Genesis 1)? It was at the beginning of creation. Days and nights were defined at that point. But does this mean there were no events prior to the creation of our universe? Were there no events prior to God speaking –  “Let there be light”?  If we believe the eternal God is the ever-living one, and has always existed, then He would have necessarily had to exist BEFORE the beginning of creation, in order to create it. Not only did the Father exist, but according to Scripture, so did the Son (John chapter 1).

So we do know that at least the Godhead existed prior to “in the beginning” that we refer to as our Genesis. Within that Godhead, was there thought? Creativity? Relationship? If so, there must have been sequence. There must have been duration. If this were not so, then God (who is unchanging in His nature – according to His word), changed from doing nothing, to doing everything.

Where there is action, there is a sequence of events. But God is alive – not like the stone idols of the nations. Time as we measure it came at a certain point for Him, and for us, but not duration. It would be impossible for God to have a beginning, Himself, and still be the Creator of all things.