“The fear of the LORD is the foundation of true knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7, NLT – New Living Translation).

Recent images transmitted from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to earth are contradicting the “Big Bang” cosmological model for the origin of the universe. The Big Bang became the universally accepted alternative to the Biblical doctrine of creation ex nihilo during the twentieth century. This was mainly due to the observation of the expanding universe in the 1920’s and then the discovery of cosmic microwave background radiation in space during the 1960’s. Physicists claimed that the Big Bang was supported, if not proven, by these discoveries. But now there is doubt about the validity of the Big Bang. The scientific elites of this world may be about to experience a dreaded “Job 38” encounter with the God who created the heavens and the earth.

The Bible tells us that, “the LORD answered Job from the whirlwind” (Job 38:1). Today, the term whirlwind is used as a metaphor for a situation in which a lot of things happen very quickly and are very difficult for someone to control. Such was the experience of Job as he faced a barrage of rhetorical questions from God that extended through chapters 38-41. And such has been the experience of the scientific community as the discoveries of the JSWT continue to undermine the Big Bang model.

It is interesting that God never addressed Job’s concerns about his severe sufferings. The Creator does not have to account to the creature over how He orders His universe. Instead, God pointed out Job’s ignorance of the mechanics of His creation so Job would learn not to question God’s wisdom and providence: “Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you use them to regulate the earth?” (Job 38:33). The findings of the JWST show that these questions are still relevant for today’s scientists.

The JWST is a large, space-based observatory, which is more sensitive than the older Hubble Space Telescope (HST) because it operates in the infrared band of light. Infrared light is invisible to human eyes, but this part of the light spectrum is the only way to see the most distant objects in space because they are moving away from us as the universe expands rapidly. As these celestial bodies move away from us the wavelength of light radiated from them increases and the light eventually becomes invisible. This is a phenomenon known as red shift and it is observed in both light and sound waves.

When astronomer Edwin Hubble presented evidence that the universe was expanding scientists took his discovery as confirmation of the Big Bang, which they estimated to have occurred almost fourteen billion years ago. On the other hand, Biblical scholars have understood this discovery to be supported by several Scriptures that say God “stretched out” the heavens like a fabric (Psa. 104:2; Isa. 42:5; Isa. 45:12; Jer. 10:12; Jer. 51:15). Isaiah 44:24b gives us God’s description of the creation of His universe: “I am the LORD, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by Myself”.

The JSWT was launched into space at the end of 2021 with great anticipation that its advanced infrared technology would allow astronomers to view the universe in its early age after the assumed Big Bang origin. According to this unproven cosmological theory, the JSWT should be able to see evidence of the primeval universe BEFORE the formation of stars and galaxies. However, a major problem has arisen. The JWST has been finding an abundance of massive bright galaxies in the region of what was thought to be the very early universe. The great degree of brightness in these galaxies is an indication that they consist of large masses of stars.  According to current cosmology, such organized galaxies simply should not be where they were found since there would not have been enough time for hot matter from the Big Bang to cool and condense into bulky masses so soon after the event.

The reactions of cosmologists have been curious, even amusing. Many of them are not yet prepared to throw in the towel and they seem sure that the JWST images do not pose a major threat to the Big Bang theory. They believe that in time they will come up with new theories that would better explain what we are seeing. For example, the British Nobel laureate, Sir Roger Penrose, has suggested that the massive galaxies may have been birthed by another universe! When pressed to explain how the parent universe may have gotten its own galaxies Penrose simply stated, “from another universe!” He also thinks there is more to the universe that cannot be fully explained by the basic laws of physics. Penrose suggests that the universe may even have a mind or consciousness of its own that drives its evolution – something like the computer algorithms that help robots to “learn”. This appears to be a sophisticated return to the old philosophy of pantheism.

As scientists struggle with questions over a possible flawed Big Bang theory, we see a similarity of mindset with that of Job and his friends. Recall that Job and his friends had debated how God ordained Job’s great suffering. The friends argued that Job’s suffering was a clear judgement from God because of his grievous sins, while Job defended his innocence and protested why a sovereign God would allow such injustice. All of them argued from the same flawed presupposition that there is a universal law which states the righteous will not suffer. The Bible emphasizes that the opposite is true: “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example that you might follow in His steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in His mouth” (1 Peter 2:21-22). If the righteous do not suffer, then it would not have been possible for the incarnate Son of God to be our Savior by dying on a cross and becoming a curse for our sake.

The difference between Job and today’s scientists is that Job repented of his sin after God rebuked him: “Who is this that questions My wisdom with such ignorant words?” (Job 38:2). Matthew Henry states in his Concise Bible Commentary that, “The Lord, in this discourse, humbles Job, and brings him to repent of his passionate expressions concerning God's providential dealings with him.” By the mercy of God, Job survived the whirlwind and found his voice to humble himself.

Firstly, Job acknowledged God’s sovereignty over His creation: “I know that You can do anything, and no one can stop You” (Job 42:2). Then Job went on to repent of his sin with an interesting interpretation of God’s original question in Job 38:2. Job replied to God, “You asked, ‘Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance?’ It is I – and I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things far too wonderful for me” (Job 42:3).

Job feared God and he learned the truth about creation. Many scientists continue to reject God despite the abundance of evidence before them that He exists as Creator and Savior: “For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see His invisible qualities – His eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God” (Rom. 1:20). This is the condemnation of “wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness” (Rom. 1:18). May it please God to use the information provided by the JWST to turn the hearts of astronomers to believe the truth of His Word and obey the gospel of Jesus Christ. It begins with the fear of Yahweh. He alone is awesome in power and wisdom.

“O LORD, what great works You do! And how deep are Your thoughts” (Psa. 92:5).