Is the concept of Lucifer’s Flood biblical?

Answer

There have been attempts by Christians to harmonize the Genesis account of creation with the theories of modern geology and evolution. Three popular attempts include theistic evolution, progressive creation, and the gap theory. The concept of “Lucifer’s flood,” also known as the Luciferian flood, originates from the gap theory.

Essentially, the gap theory, which some associate with Lucifer’s flood, suggests that God created a perfect heaven and earth many millions of years ago “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.”, (Genesis 1:1). During that time, Satan ruled the earth, which was inhabited by soulless beings. Satan rebelled, leading to sin entering the universe after his fall from heaven. This rebellion resulted in God’s judgment in the form of a flood named after Satan: Lucifer’s flood. The fossils of plants, animals, and humans found on earth today are attributed to this flood and are considered unrelated genetically to current living beings. This Luciferian flood is believed to have taken place between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2, explaining the “waters” and the transformation of the world into a “without form and void” state in Genesis 1:2 (KJV).

According to the gap theory, the earth is considered ancient, possibly millions of years old, based on the slow formation of rock layers observed today. While most gap theorists support a six-day creation and reject evolution, they suggest that God recreated all life in six literal days after a Luciferian flood that generated the fossils visible today by reshaping the earth entirely.

However, this interpretation of Scripture raises significant concerns. FirstFirst of all, the gap theory inserts millions of years into the “gap” between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2 while aiming to uphold a literal Genesis. This raises the question of the term literal (“word-for-word accuracy”). Since there are no words between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2, the gap theory and the Luciferian flood cannot truly be part of a “literal” interpretation of Genesis.

If God created a perfect heaven and earth, then all life on Earth must also be perfect. If this “perfect life” was the source of the fossils buried by Lucifer’s flood, and sin entered this world through Satan’s rebellion, why do these same fossils exhibit abundant evidence of disease and deformities? The presence of disease and deformities in fossils indicates that all things could not have been perfect and that sin was already present before the flood that entombed them. If sin existed before God’s judgment of Satan, then either the Bible is incorrect or the gap theory is flawed.

If Lucifer’s flood was God’s judgment against Satan, and the earth was devastated to be “without form and void,” then why did this flood not obliterate the fossil record as well? What about Noah’s flood? Noah’s flood was also a judgment on the earth and is cited throughout the Bible as an illustration of God’s judgment on humanity. Lucifer’s flood is never mentioned. How can one believe that Noah’s flood was somehow less significant, geologically speaking, than an unmentioned flood, while asserting a literal interpretation of Genesis?

Does it truly matter whether we embrace a “literal” interpretation of the Creation? The answer is “yes!” For instance, most gap theorists, by using the concept of the Luciferian flood, argue that there was human death before Adam, which poses significant theological challenges. Romans 5:12 affirms that “sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin,” so embracing the idea of death before Adam undermines the fundamental message of the cross: “For just as through thIn the disobedience of the one man [Adam], many were made sinners. Similarly, through the obedience of the one man [Jesus Christ], many will be made righteous. “For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.” (Romans 5:19).

Genesis recounts a catastrophe that destroyed everything with the “breath of life,” except for those preserved in the ark. Christ mentions the global flood in Noah’s time in Matthew 24:37–39, and Peter writes that just as there was a worldwide judgment by water, there will be another by fire (2 Peter 3). However, this passage does not support the theory of Lucifer’s flood. Therefore, for various reasons, the theory should be rejected.