7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so.
8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
On this day, God made the firmament. This word is H7549 רקיע (râqîya‛ raw-kee'-ah. From H7554; properly an expanse, that is, the firmament or (apparently) visible arch of the sky: - firmament.) according to Strong's Concordance.
Remember that the entire earth was covered with water at this point and God calls it the deep (v2). God here divided the waters in such a way that there is a firmament or an expanse of a sky in between the waters.
I tend to believe that the firmament as described here is the creation of the atmosphere. The waters above the atmosphere could be a canopy of sorts whether thick clouds or even a layer of ice. This is commonly called the Canopy Theory. Again, this is a theory to show that God was protecting the earth with a Green House effect where it can be a tropical climate from pole to pole. The canopy may also be used to deflect harmful radiation away from the earth so that the eventual life that He creates are protected and live long. This can be a type of hyperbaric biosphere.
Certainly, there are many detractors of this theory too and it cannot be proven. We can see canopy-like atmosphere in Saturn, Saturn's moon called Titan, Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune. Each has a different composition and effect on their surfaces from extreme cold to extreme hot. Only our earth is the right temperature.
An alternative view of the firmament refers to the crust of the earth. Proponents argue that the descriptor "of heaven" only refers the last 4 references in Genesis 1 to mean the outer space but in the first 4, it refers to the crust separating water above and below it and not the atmosphere separating clouds or canopy to the waters of the sea.
Dr. Walt Brown's Hydroplate Theory helps to understand the global flood, geology and the relevant scriptures. On Day Two of creation, God formed the crust of the earth, called the firmament, which was miles above a worldwide subterranean ocean, and the crust of course also held waters upon its surface. If this is true, we would expect to read in the Bible that initially, the surface of the earth was covered only with water, and that then God made the earth's crust above the water. (read here)Recent discoveries point to the fact that ancient earth had a higher composition of Oxygen as well as a higher atmospheric pressure which is needed for larger insect and animal life. A creationist, Dr Carl Baugh, claims that his experiments with poisonous snakes shows an alteration of the structure of venom to be non-toxic under the original conditions of the earth.
There are many people who have tried to argue that the Canopy Theory is wrong and unscientific and that it will be too hot for life on Earth. Alas, this can neither be proven nor dis-proven because it was a historic act and cannot be reproduced for scientific observation.
Interestingly, there will be no mention of stars observed from the Earth until God tells Abraham that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars in the sky. Perhaps, prior to the flood, there were no clear skies to observe because of the canopy? And neither did it rain until the time of the Flood. Still, this is a speculation indeed.
2 Pet 3:5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:
There is another part of the separation of water where the earth was described as standing out of the water and in the water as written by Peter. It has been discovered that there is actually a lot of water beneath the earth's surface but above the mantle. This water is called subterranean water.
This is the water that is called the fountains of the deep in Genesis 7 when the crust broke and the pressure of the subterranean water gushed powerfully upwards. This additional amount of water added to the Seas that is already there caused the water level to raise significantly.
Just how much water is there under the crust today? A recent report by LiveScience posted that scientists have found evidence of a vast water reservoir beneath eastern Asia that is at least the volume of the Arctic Ocean. This incredible discovery of such a vast body of water beneath China presents new challenges to this country particularly the fear of it breaking apart during a future violent earthquake. One cannot imagine the pressure of the subterranean water suddenly released and the damage the amount of water can do to China. It can wipe it out and flood the most part of China in very short time.
And THE SECOND DAY is just that. An evening and a morning made it the second day.
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