The age of the Earth has been a subject of much debate and exploration throughout human history. While scientific evidence overwhelmingly supports an Earth that is approximately 4.5 billion years old, there are some individuals, known as Earth creationists, who assert that the planet is only 6000 years old. In this article, we will delve into the claim made by these creationists and examine it through the lens of the Tanakh, or the Old Testament, in order to gain a deeper understanding of their reasoning and explore alternative interpretations.

According to Earth Creationists…
https://answersingenesis.org/age-of-the-earth/how-old-is-the-earth/
“Genesis 1 says that the earth was created on the first day of creation. The age of the earth can be estimated by taking the first five days of creation (from earth’s creation to Adam), then following the genealogies from Adam to Abraham in Genesis 5 and 11, then adding in the time from Abraham to today.

Adam was created on day 6, so there were five days before him. If we add up the dates from Adam to Abraham, we get about 2,000 years, using the Masoretic Hebrew text of Genesis 5 and 11.
Whether Christian or secular, most scholars would agree that Abraham lived about 2,000 B.C. (4,000 years ago).

So a simple calculation is:
5 days
+ 2,000 years
+ 4,000 years
=6,000 years
At this point, the first five days are negligible”


Let’s not forget that this dating will also apply to Heaven as they were created at the same time and on the “first day” according to Young creationists, thus, Heaven is also 6000 years old, the “heaven” here is plural, The Hebrew word שָׁמַיִם (shamayim), translated as "heaven," is often associated with the visible sky, it describe the expanse above the earth where clouds, stars, and other celestial bodies are observed.

Investigating the claim.
Genesis 1:1 States that the heavens and the earth were created in the Beginning. Subsequent verses explain the further work done on the earth and heavens.
In Genesis 1:5, it says that "there was evening and there was morning, the First Day."
The separation of Light from Darkness marked the first day, with the evening and morning constituting the First Day.
This indicates that the creation of the heavens and earth predates the first day, with the establishment of light and darkness, which can be considered as the concept of time, occurring on the first day.

What makes a Day?

To define a day and night, we look at the rotation of a planet on its axis. On Earth, a day is approximately 24 hours.
However, different planets have varying day lengths. For example, Mercury takes 58 days and 15 hours, Venus takes 243 days, Mars takes 24 hours, 39 minutes, and 35 seconds, Jupiter takes 9.9 hours, Saturn takes 10 hours, 45 minutes, and 45 seconds (approximated due to atmospheric density), and Uranus takes 17 hours, 14 minutes, and 24 seconds.

While some may argue that a Day in the Creation story is only defined based on Earth's 24-hour cycle, the creation account in Genesis includes the creation of the “heavens”, which encompasses other planets with varying day lengths.
Furthermore, evidence suggests that Earth has not always had a 24-hour day throughout its history.
According to planetary scientist Takanori Sasaki from Kyoto University, a day has not always been 24 hours long. The formation of the Earth and the Moon, 4.5 billion years ago, along with the Moon's influence on the planet, have caused significant variations in the length of a day and a month throughout Earth's history.
http://www.iea.usp.br/en/news/when-a-day-lasted-only-four-hours
https://www.inverse.com/science/70-million-yo-clam-reveals-how-dinosaurs-days-unfolded-by-hour/amp


In our quest to unravel the intricacies of language, we often encounter words that share similar meanings. One such pair is "beginning" and "first." While they may seem interchangeable at first glance, a closer examination reveals subtle nuances that set them apart.
The term "Beginning" encapsulates the concept of initiation or commencement. It refers to the start or origin of something, emphasizing the initial stage or point in time when an event, process, or journey sets forth. The beginning represents the foundational moment from which subsequent developments arise.
In contrast, "First" refers to being the earliest or foremost in a sequence or order. It designates the initial item or occurrence within a series or timeline. While the "beginning" signifies the starting point, "First" denotes the earliest position or event that emerges from the Beginning.
It signifies a sense of priority or primacy, highlighting the significance of the initial element within a progression.
“Beginning" denotes the start or origin, "first" signifies the earliest or foremost within a series or order.

The creation days in Genesis 1 are more understandable if they are interpreted as a series or order of a process, rather than literal 24-hour days.


Conclusion: Attempting to calculate the Earth's age based on the genealogies in the Bible is not a reliable method.
The genealogies in the Bible are not meant to be a chronological history of the Earth. They are more likely a way of showing how different people are related to each other.

It is also important to remember that the word "day" in the Tanakh can have different meanings. It can refer to a literal 24-hour day, but it can also refer to a longer period of time.
For example, in Genesis 1:5, it says that "there was evening and there was morning, the first day."
This does not mean that the earth's day is 24 hours.
It simply means that there was a period of time when it was light and a period of time when it was dark.