In This Post:
There’s an old story of a missing day. They say NASA’s computers found it.
This marvelous little story about NASA computers began circulating in the late 1960s and early 1970s, during the heyday of the Apollo program (1)
People tie this story to Joshua’s "Long Day" where the moon and sun stood still for an extra 24 hours.
The NASA story was carried in a few newspapers at the time, but enjoyed widespread circulation among Christian audiences in the United States.(2)
However, this kind of explanation dates back to the late 1800s but got some legs after the 1936 book The Harmony of Science and Scripture promoted it.
The story eventually added the advancement of technology, with NASA scientists and computer calculations, etc. This however is not a true account.
Everything is based upon this Scripture.
Sun, stand still over Gibeon;
And Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.”
So the sun stood still, And the moon stopped,
Till the people had revenge Upon their enemies.
Is this not written in the Book of Jasher?
So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven,
and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day.
And there has been no day like that, before it or after it,
that the LORD heeded the voice of a man;
for the LORD fought for Israel. …
Joshua 10:12-14
Two major theories grew out of the attempt to explain the biblical account: the "shining" theory and the "moving" theory.
Each try to explain the biblical verses of Joshua in alignment with either science or scripture, and do not allow the other to come alongside the other.
For example, in the "shining" theory, alternate meanings of the original Hebrew must be employed to arrive at a satisfactory "naturalized" resolution.
However, the biblical account requires faith alone and does not account for any scientific law.
One scientist described it this way:
“If these words are describing a real observation, then a major astronomical event was taking place — the question for us to figure out is what the text actually means,”
said paper co-author Colin Humphreys from the University of Cambridge’s Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy.
“Modern English translations, which follow the King James translation of 1611, usually interpret this text to mean that the sun and moon stopped moving,” Humphreys explained. “But going back to the original Hebrew text, we determined that an alternative meaning could be that the sun and moon just stopped doing what they normally do: they stopped shining.”
The intention of any post on this blog is to point to Jesus Christ, as Lord and Savior, and that science supports the biblical interpretation, regardless of the spin of atheistic science.
There are two main theories about this verse.
It happened or it didn’t.
Either the sun stopped shining or it stopped moving.
The "shining" theory seems to tick a lot of boxes to satisfy the event description. The Hebrew word used for the sun stood still is dāmam, means:
to be dumb; by implication, to be astonished,
to stop; also to perish:
cease, be cut down (off), forbear, hold peace,
quiet self, rest, be silent, keep (put to) silence,
be (stand) still, tarry, wait.
If the sun simply went "dumb," became "silent," or simply "ceased," as in ceasing to shine, it certainly could suggest a Total Solar Eclipse. However, there is another word used as well.
The Hebrew word,ʿāmaḏ, is placed in the verse regarding the moon.
This term means:
to stand, in various relations (literal and figurative, intransitive and transitive):
abide (behind), appoint, arise, cease,
confirm, continue, dwell,
endure, establish, leave,
be (over), place, (be) present (self), raise up,
remain, repair, serve,
stand (by, fast, firm, still, up), (be at a) stay (up),
Tarry
When both words are used together, as they are in the verse, they imply a literal standing still or remaining in place.
There are two other factors that the Total Solar Eclipse explanation for Joshua's account does not satisfy.
The Reason, and
The Conclusion
First, Joshua prayed that the sun and moon would stand still so that they would have additional time and light to defeat their enemies. A Total Solar Eclipse does not give additional time nor does it give additional light.
For time, the Eclipse neither gives nor adds anything, but as for light, it certainly takes that away. less light would be an advantage for Joshua's enemies, and would be opposed ot he purpose of Joshua's request.
he did not pray, "Lord, make it harder for me to kill my enemies."
The other reason is the conclusion statement that Scripture declares about the event. It is recorded that “there was no other day like it.“
We have had Total Solar Eclipses in the past and we will have them in the future. There have been many days like that, but as for Joshua's day, it was special. An eclipse cannot be the explanation for a "day like no other" since there have been many throughout history.
We have had total solar eclipses before, and we will have total solar eclipses again, meaning these are like other days.
Yet, the Bible describes this day as a day like no other for that reason and that reason alone, the “shining“ theory is placed on shakier ground.
This had to be a supernatural event otherwise there were questions on how the moon and the sun stayed in place for 24 hours.
One consideration is that if the earth stops spinning for a day, then the sun and moon stay in view for that duration. However, if the rotation wits that suddenly, there would be other consequences of that action. If the earth “stopped” that quickly, like a car which hits its brakes too fast, one of the effects would be that people would have flown off the planet.
The Bible did not say that this happened. In fact, people were able to continue in the warfare that they were engaged in without interruption.
The only rational explanation is that God performed a miracle as recorded in scripture.
Next Post: The Sign of the Week Days
Other Posts In This Series:
Where Did the Star of Bethlehem Go?
What Does it Mean When the Sun Goes Dark?
The Sign of the Blood Moons
Why Do People Think of the Rapture When There Is a Total Solar Eclipse?
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Series: Signs In the Heavens
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