By Josh Peck| Could it be possible that modern string theory agrees with an ancient biblical principal? This was one of the many questions I asked myself in writing my book, Quantum Creation. In trying to find connections between quantum physics and biblical teachings concerning reality as we know it, I was brought to an interesting verse. Hebrews 11:3 states:
“Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” (KJV)
First, to understand what is being discussed, the word “worlds” was translated from the Greek word “aiōn” meaning “for ever, an unbroken age, perpetuity of time, eternity; the worlds, universe; period of time, age” (1). This verse is talking about God’s creation, so it is reasonable that all three of these definitions are acceptable.
The term “word of God” is used many times throughout the Old and New Testaments of the Bible in reference to different things. As I show in Quantum Creation, there are times that the “word of God” is in direct reference to Jesus Himself (such as in the first chapter of the Gospel of John), or even, in a sense, the preincarnate Jesus in the Old Testament. There is much more that can be explored concerning the usage of “word of God” to refer to Jesus, but for our purposes here, we are going to look at a different usage.
In Hebrews 11:3, a different Greek word is used than in John chapter 1 for “word”. In Hebrews 11:3, the Greek word for “word” is “rhēma” meaning “that which is or has been uttered by the living voice, thing spoken, word; subject matter of speech, thing spoken of” (2).
In John 1:1, “word” comes from the Greek “logos”, which as I explain in Quantum Creation, has deeper implications than a spoken word or voice. Hebrews 11:3 is referring to the literal voice of God; it is saying that everything in existence was created by the literal spoken word of God.
String Theory and how it relates to the Bible
Now that we have the first half of the verse defined, we can begin to look at the second half. First, it would be of great value to go over the basic idea of string theory in order to see if it might apply here. String theory conveys the idea that every particle of matter is actually the result of even smaller strings that vibrate.
“In essence, if you look deeply enough into any subatomic particle, you will find a string. Even more, string theory states that the strings within different particles are actually identical in nature but vibrate at different rates and in different patterns. The vibrations of the string is what determines what type of particle it is to be. For example, an electron is less massive than a quark. According to string theory, the electron’s string vibrates less than the quark’s string.” (3)
In other words, the vibrations of the string is what produces the particle. A particle is nothing more than the result of vibrations. As of today, it is not known what exactly causes the string to vibrate. One of the leading theories basically states that whatever it is, it must come from a higher dimension. This brings us to the last half of Hebrews 11:3.
In the English Standard Version, Hebrews 11:3 reads:
“By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.” (ESV)
Notice specifically the text reads “what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.” That is to say, everything in physical existence (what can be seen) was made by something invisible (something outside of what we can perceive from our three-spatial-dimensional perspective). If string theory is an accurate definition of reality, this can help explain what exactly is causing the strings to vibrate.
God is timeless, His spoken word is still in creation
When considering this, we should keep in mind that even time itself is a creation of God. This is important because it shows that God Himself is outside of time. Of course, He can inject Himself into time as He sees fit, but that does not mean He is bound by time like you and I. God is, by His very own nature, outside of time itself.
The reason this is important to realize goes back to the cause of the string’s vibrations. Hebrews 11:3 tells us that everything was created by the spoken word of God. In essence, God spoke everything into existence. We know this from Genesis from when God said “Let there be light”, etc. From our perspective, being bound by time, this initial creative act would have occurred in the past, hence the past tense language used in the verse.
However, God is outside of time, meaning there is no past, present, or future from His perspective (which also helps bring into clearer focus Isaiah 46:10, which says He can call out the end from the beginning and beginning from the end). For God, everything just is. Everything is known and seen just as clearly as everything else, regardless of where it falls on the timeline of our physical existence.
The ultimate conclusion, the truly amazing thing that can be considered by putting all of this together, is that we exist within the spoken word of God. From our perspective, that initial creative word from God is still forever emanating from Him. It is His eternal voice that is causing strings to vibrate, thereby resulting in the production of the physical particles that make up all of matter and energy.
We aren’t only created by God; our existence is maintained by God through His voice. As you read this, you are existing only because the voice of God is currently making it possible. You are a direct result of the timeless, ongoing, and never-ending spoken word of God Himself.
There are many other things that can be examined with this idea in mind. Even more exciting, there are many other ways modern quantum physics may have inadvertently touched on biblical principles. For more explanation of the idea presented here as well as many more, I would highly encourage you to check out my book, Quantum Creation, now available at www.MinistudyMinistry.com.
There are many things taught in the studies of quantum physics that may have a root in the Bible. Of course, there is a difference between observation and interpretation. Many times, the interpretation of the scientific observation will conflict with the Bible. However, if we can learn how to separate the faulty interpretation from the unbiased observation itself, we can use science as an aid to help understand and truly appreciate the majesty of God’s nature and creation.
Thank you for reading, and as always, take care and God bless!
References
“Greek Lexicon :: G165 (KJV).” Blue Letter Bible. Accessed 20 Jul, 2014.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/Lexicon/Lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G165&t=KJV
“Greek Lexicon :: G4487 (KJV).” Blue Letter Bible. Accessed 20 Jul, 2014. http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/Lexicon/Lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G4487&t=KJV
