Scripture Based Flat Earth Proposition

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Jun 2, 2022
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Hi @WayneNSO

Oh, I see, so you said you wrote it wrong and then reposted it as you wrote it wrong. Got it! Sorry that I misunderstood.

So, is the moon within the firmament? What about Mars? I mean we've sent men and machines to both of them and if they're not within the confines of the firmament, then we can get past it. If they are, then how far does the firmament extend beyond the sky of clouds that we see? And why can't we get past the firmament? We have telescopes that can peer far into the universe. Is all of that within the firmament?
The Sun and Moon are under the firmament, stars and planets are within it, which means to believe this, you have to believe that the moon and mars landings are fakes etc. At least that is the flat Earth position as I understand it, others might disagree and say I have misrepresented it.
 

GaryA

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And since Psalm 148:4 refers to "ye waters that be above the heavens" (plural = 2 or more), then there's water above the "universe full of stars", assuming you expect the "place where God resides" is above all else?
Well, that wouldn't be my understanding of the supplied passage.
What is your understanding of the supplied passage?

And, why would only the space under clouds be called/considered 'heaven'? What about the space above clouds?
 

GaryA

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Hi all,

I do, however, have two questions for those who believe that the Scriptures confirm a flat earth.

1. How thick is the flat earth? I mean, it can't be the thickness of a grain of sand or we couldn't build buildings on it, right? Is it a mile thick? 10 miles? 100 miles? But really, how thick is the flat earth?

2. No matter the thickness, what's on the other side? What does the bottom side of the earth look like? Do we have pictures of it? I mean, we have this flat earth that is obviously many, many thousands of miles around that many of us fly to and fro across the face of this flat earth. But if it's flat, doesn't there have to be a bottom side? Can we just go to the edge and drop down the 50, 100 or however many miles thick the flat earth is and see another flat side that covers the same expanse as the top part that we're walking on?

Is anyone who supports the flat earth understanding able to answer those questions? Or does anyone have some argument for a flat earth that would not have another side to it? If anyone is standing on the earth, and it is flat, then isn't it true that however, thick that flat earth is, there's going to be a like size bottom under the dirt under my feet?

God bless,
Ted
The simple and honest answer is - we do not know - and, are not able to do much of anything to find out...

We have drilled holes as deep as ~8 miles. No doubt it is a lot deeper than that.

I have no doubt that it has a 'bottom' - I just do not think we know a whole lot about it.

The underside of the earth could be flat - or it could be cone-shaped - or some other shape.

From what the Bible tells us, I think it is reasonable to believe/consider that:

1) Hades/Hell is down deep in the earth.
2) The shape of the earth is very possibly in the form of a footstool. (with 'pillars' as legs)

I do not think we can determine much more than what the Bible may suggest.
 

GaryA

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Since God calls it His footstool, I personally tend to think of it as being square at the outer edges - having four corners - some specific thickness top-to-bottom - having pillars as legs underneath it - and, the whole thing being "hung upon nothing"...

I believe that 'circle of the earth' very highly likely refers to either the ice ring or where the dome rests upon the earth.
 

GaryA

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So, is the moon within the firmament? What about Mars? I mean we've sent men and machines to both of them and if they're not within the confines of the firmament, then we can get past it. If they are, then how far does the firmament extend beyond the sky of clouds that we see? And why can't we get past the firmament? We have telescopes that can peer far into the universe. Is all of that within the firmament?
Start with Genesis 1 to obtain a good-and-proper understanding of the manner and order of creation. And, the OP has done his best, I think, to help you with that... ;)
 

GaryA

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I believe that 'circle of the earth' very highly likely refers to either the ice ring or where the dome rests upon the earth.
I believe that the 'tent' in that same verse is referring to the dome.
 

tedincarolina

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Jul 25, 2024
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The Sun and Moon are under the firmament, stars and planets are within it, which means to believe this, you have to believe that the moon and mars landings are fakes etc.
HI @WayneNSO

Well, I'm sorry my friend, but no, our space explorations are not faked. I mean people from other nations have been to the moon. You do know that, right? I just can't believe that someone who is a believer, thinks that the whole world is putting on some kind of show about space exploration and it's all some cinematic show. That's about as preposterous an idea as the moon being made of green cheese.
 

Sculpt

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Apr 18, 2021
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I believe that the 'tent' in that same verse is referring to the dome.
Agreed, regarding "the circle of the earth" and tent; the author is most likely referring to the arc of the dome. As always, that may have been how he imagined it, but the chapter is clearly praising God's greatness, and also reads, "his understanding no one can fathom", and that he strengthens the weary and "They will soar on wings like eagles". It's not a physical sciences lesson.
 

Sculpt

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Gen 1:7 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.

There is no doubt, if we are honest, and not trying to fit the Bible into Modern scientific thinking, that the Bible is a flat Earth with a dome (firmament) book, so we either believe it is so - or alternately we say it was talking down to ignorant people, using language they would understand with their lack of knowledge
"Talking down to ignorant people" isn't quite the way I would characterize the other alternative. God told many people what He wanted them to know. That may never have included a detailed cosmology to anyone. And it certainly wasn't written about as a standalone physical science lesson. Many portions of the Bible are mysterious, and as one writer put it, "his understanding no one can fathom." We are fine with those uncertainties. If God decided that wasn't a necessary lesson, that's His decision.

Some ancients may have believed one thing, and others something different. What some writers generally imagined about cosmology bleeds into the background of the real scripture messages. Lots of general background understandings and cultural norms are in the Bible. It's been gleamed, theorized and backward constructed in different ways. It's very interesting in an archeological sense. In any case, it's never presented as a quote of God to be obeyed.

It's not a physical science book. The messages are given to specific people so that they get and understand the message. Sometimes it can be applied in many ways to some or all people, sometimes not. Psalm 137:9 reads, "Happy is the one who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks." I hope you don't read the Bible like everything is literal or that everything pertains to you today. That would be insane. Everything in the Bible has context and a perspective. We aren't to read it like robots or simpletons. The Bible itself reads, "How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity?"

And so, another way to read this issue is, some writers may have imagined a certain cosmology, and they reference it while giving other scriptural messages. But we don't go around dashing babies on rocks, or saying bats are birds, and a plethora of other things. God's creation speaks for itself. It's there for us to discover, be in awe of and give Him glory for it.
 

Romans34

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Oct 28, 2023
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The firmament (Hebrew: רָקִ֫יעַ‎ rāqīaʿ) is the vast solid dome created by God . . .
The Sun and Moon are under the firmament, stars and planets are within it, which means to believe this, you have to believe that the moon and mars landings are fakes etc. At least that is the flat Earth position as I understand it, others might disagree and say I have misrepresented it.
Forgive my insistence on correcting you on this, but the firmament is not a solid dome. There may be a solid dome above the firmament, but the firmament (Hebrew: רָקִ֫יעַ‎ rāqīaʿ) is the EXPANSE between the water above and the water below. Sun, Moon, and Stars (planets ARE wandering stars) are all withIN the firmament, according to Genesis 1.
 

posthuman

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Jul 31, 2013
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The Sun and Moon are under the firmament, stars and planets are within it, which means to believe this, you have to believe that the moon and mars landings are fakes etc. At least that is the flat Earth position as I understand it, others might disagree and say I have misrepresented it.

Genesis 1:7 says the firmament divided the waters above (clouds) from the waters beneath (seas)

so the sun, moon, planets and stars are all below the clouds.

a vast worldwide satanic conspiracy clearly is at play when it appears these are behind the clouds.
 

posthuman

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Jul 31, 2013
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Genesis 1:7 says the firmament divided the waters above (clouds) from the waters beneath (seas)

so the sun, moon, planets and stars are all below the clouds.
or...

this isn't being interpreted correctly

=p
 

posthuman

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Jul 31, 2013
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I Agree. The Waters Above The Firmament CANNOT Be The Clouds.
what if there is more than one thing called a firmament - as we see from other scripture there is more than one place called 'heaven'
 

posthuman

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Jul 31, 2013
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The Waters Above The Firmament CANNOT Be The Clouds.
The text says waters above were separated from waters below by the firmament:

Genesis 1:7-8​
Thus 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. And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day.

So there is water above the firmament and the sea is below it. Clouds are made of water, 100%.

Genesis 7:11​
In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.

The windows of heaven were opened. That's where the rain came from.
Does rain come from clouds?
Did the flood water come from outer space? The text calls it rain.
What are we calling "heaven" here?
It's the space between the clouds and the ground.