Carbon dating, also known as radiocarbon dating, is a scientific method used to date materials that contain organic carbon. It is based on the decay rate of the radioactive carbon-14 isotope. Carbon-14 is naturally formed in the atmosphere and absorbed by plants through photosynthesis. When an organism dies, it stops absorbing carbon-14, and the isotope begins to decay at a known rate. By measuring the amount of carbon-14 left in a sample, the age of the material can be determined.
The Bible does not directly address the validity of carbon dating. However, there are some principles from Scripture that provide insight into this topic:
The earth is young according to the Bible
The Bible provides a short timescale for earth history. Genesis 1 states that God created the heavens, earth and all life in six days. From the genealogies listed in Genesis, it appears the earth is only thousands of years old, not millions or billions. This conflicts with the extremely old dates achieved by carbon dating methods on organic samples (Genesis 1:1-31).
Effects of the Fall and the Flood
Two major events recorded in Genesis may have impacted systems like carbon dating. The first is the Curse or Fall of creation due to Adam and Eve’s sin. This introduced decay and death into the world (Genesis 3:14-19; Romans 5:12). The global Flood in Noah’s day was also catastrophic and enveloped the entire planet (Genesis 6-9). Both events could have radically altered physical processes like carbon-14 production, atmospheric conditions, even the dynamics between living things and atmospheric carbon (Genesis 3:17-19, 7:11-24).
Assumptions of carbon dating
For carbon dating to be accurate, certain assumptions must be made. The ratio of carbon-14 to carbon-12 in the atmosphere must have remained constant for tens of thousands of years. Also, the production rate of carbon-14 in the atmosphere must be in equilibrium. However, measurements have shown variations in the past. Environmental factors like climate change, volcanoes, ocean circulation, etc. can cause fluctuations. This makes the method unreliable beyond just a few thousand years (1 Peter 3:3-7).
Naturalism and uniformitarianism
Carbon dating relies on naturalistic assumptions. This is the belief that nature or matter is all that exists, without God or spiritual forces. It assumes processes like radioactive decay have been uniform over billions of years. However, the Bible tells of a supernatural Creator who has acted in human history. Catastrophic events like the Fall and Flood would violate the uniformitarian principle. Therefore, carbon dating interprets the evidence according to unproven assumptions that ignore the reality of God and unique history recorded in Scripture (Genesis 1:1, 6:5-8, John 1:1-3).
Other dating methods
Other radiometric dating methods like potassium-argon dating are often used along with carbon dating to establish ages in the millions or billions of years. However, studies have shown discrepancies between the different techniques on the same rock samples. This calls into question the accuracy and validity of radioactive dating when it contradicts the Bible’s historical account and timeline (1 Corinthians 15:3-8).
God’s revelation over man’s wisdom
In the end, carbon dating relies on the wisdom and reasoning of fallen mankind rather than God’s revealed Word. But human wisdom is flawed and finite. The carbon dating model depends on unproven assumptions about the past. Meanwhile, the Bible provides an accurate account of historical events from the beginning. When properly interpreted, the Scriptures offer a framework for understanding the evidence that is consistent with God’s truth. So God’s revelation should be trusted over the speculations and changing theories of human science (1 Corinthians 1:19-25, 3:19-20).
In summary, carbon dating relies on unproven assumptions that contradict what Genesis reveals about the earth’s young age and unique history. While the technique has value for dating items within the last few thousand years, the Bible warns against relying on man’s faulty wisdom over God’s revelation. When properly understood, the Scriptures provide a framework for wisely interpreting the evidence and carbon dating results.
This article explained the carbon dating technique and highlighted principles from Genesis and other Bible passages that give insight into the topic. Though carbon dating is a useful method for dating organic materials less than 70,000 years old, the technique rests on naturalistic assumptions that conflict with the Biblical account of earth history. The Bible should be trusted over man’s wisdom when interpreting carbon dating results that contradict the Scriptures’ clear teaching of a young earth and unique events like the Creation, Fall and Flood that could impact systems like carbon dating. While carbon dating has value within its proper scope, God’s revelation is the supreme authority and should be deferred to when assessing the accuracy and validity of this or any scientific dating method.
Key points:
- Carbon dating contradicts the Biblical timescale and young earth
- Events like the Fall and Flood could have affected carbon dating reliability
- Carbon dating relies on unproven assumptions
- Naturalism and uniformitarianism contradict the supernatural events recorded in Scripture
- Other dating methods show inconsistencies compared to carbon dating results
- God’s revelation is supreme over man’s faulty wisdom and science
- Carbon dating has value within limitations but can be misinterpreted
- Scripture provides framework for properly understanding carbon dating evidence