What is time according to the Bible?

I do not think we have any knowledge of time as time in itself. I measure from one event to another and so enclose periods, but cannot without facts with intervals. Distance is not exactly the same, because I discern it by a sense which sees an interval at one time. All I know of time is 'I am now.' When I compare this with events, I am conscious it is not 'now,' and there is time. As events only proceed from God, 'I am,' to Him, never changes. He is in Himself always. Events come from His will, and are relative not absolute. When I speak of an event before what happened to-day, I look at it as having happened in a 'now' which is not present. This I extend by invented measures. - 'Infinite' I admit of course we cannot know, though we know it is not 'finite infinite.' But without existence I do not understand time or eternity - but God is. When I begin to count time, I count necessarily from 'now,' for I am now. I then speak of times not finishing in thought. Ante and post make no difference whatever, save by events, and if I look post I must imagine events or I cannot take a step beyond now. The starting point in both is 'now,' and I go on, both ways, from that and cannot finish. Hence when Christ's eternal nature is spoken of it is said "In the beginning," all events and genomena by which time had an existence being supposed - "was the Word." That is existence per se - eternal, i.e., divine. When historical creation is spoken of it is supposed God created, i.e., all genomena egeneto (things made came into being) by One who "was," but it is not stated and this was fitting. Creation being, there must be a Creator. What we wanted to know was Creation. The highest, holiest way of speaking of God was thus saying nothing about Him but that He acted. As to Christ, it was of the utmost importance to know that He was before and eternal.

I do not think we have any knowledge of time as time in itself. We measure from one event to another, but cannot without facts with intervals. Space is not exactly the same, because we dicern it by a sense which sees an interval at one time. All I know of time is, "I am now." When I compare this with events, I am conscious that it is not "now:" there is time. As events only proceed from God, "I am" to Him never changes. He is in Himself always. Events come from His will, and are relative, not absolute. When I speak of an event before what happened today, I look at it as having happened in a "now" which is not present. This I extend by invented measures. "Infinite," I admit, we cannot know, though we know it is not "finite infinite." But without existence I do not understand time or eternity - but God is.

God is called the Father of eternity, and the eternal God. He is said, too, to inhabit eternity. The word must be taken in its full unlimited bearing, as shewing the infinity of Deity in regard to what we call time. We are lost when we attempt to think of eternity. Time, to us, is what comes in between events which our minds can take account of, as space is what we conceive as the distance between bodies. There is no time with Him who is the First and the Last, who is, was, and is to come, nor are there measurements of space with Him who fills heaven and earth. "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever Thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting Thou art God."

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven." (Eccles. 3:1.) Every thing under the sun is measured by "times." There is a time to be born, and a time to die. No matter what the purpose which the sons of men may take in hand under the heaven, each has its time, but only its "time." It is not "for ever," and its time passes on and is gone. Well is it if they who are passing through these varied times are exercised by the travail which they occasion. (Eccles. 1:13; 3:10.) But beneath the exercises of these times there is a "work that God maketh from the beginning to the end;" for there is a path which the vulture's eye hath not seen. It is hid from the eyes of the living, but God understandeth the way thereof (Job 29), and this work, wrought in ways of infinite wisdom, is "for ever." "I know that whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor anything taken from it: and God doeth it that men should fear before Him." It is done to produce holy fear, the beginning of wisdom in man, and becomes the means of the senses being exercised to discern good and evil in those who otherwise would put good for evil, and evil for good. (Isa. 5:20.) Man cannot find out this work, because his vision is bounded by the horizon of time, and he can but take in by his own powers and senses those things which are thus measured. Very different is God's "for ever." He is the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End; and blessed it is to know that as the varied seasons roll round, and a time to weep and a time to laugh succeed each other, that a feeble creature of time, by faith, and through sovereign mercy, can find his dwelling-place in the eternity of God. "Lord, thou hast been our dwelling-place in all generations … from eternity to eternity thou art God."

No creature is eternal. It would not be a creature if it were. Only the true God is eternal: He is from everlasting to everlasting. Man fills his day like the hireling, departs hence and is no more, but God lives for ever. We are creatures of time. There was a moment in which we came into existence, and we can number the days since then. We know that the moment is fast approaching when we must go to our long home, and leave the mourners to go about the streets. We may have reigned as kings, or worn the chains of slavery; we may have been honoured by the world, or despised by the grand and great; but whoever and whatever we may have been or possessed, our tenure of all is but for a moment as far as life on earth is concerned. Everything is subject to the vicissitudes of a changing creation, and of a universe in which it seems everything is subject to decay.

(vv. 2-6) Having stated the ground of his confidence in appealing to God, the psalmist draws a contrast between the eternal God and mortal man. God is the unchangeable God, the same before the world was as now. Creation may pass, yet God remains. The One who is our resource is everlasting and unchanging — “From eternity to eternity thou art God” (JND).

In contrast to God the psalmist sees the mortality of man and the passing of time. God is immortal, but man is mortal and returns to dust (JND). In the sight of God there is no time as men count time. A thousand years in the sight of God are as soon gone as yesterday, or as a watch in the night.

Great and many would be the vicissitudes of the nation. Generation after generation would come and go; but there is One who has been Israel's dwelling-place and their refuge in all generations. That One is here called Adonai — i.e. Lord. Who is He? From all eternity He is the everlasting God. In His hands are all men. And their mortality becomes apparent as they die under His hand. But the race does not become extinct. For the word goes forth from the Everlasting One, "Return, ye children of men." So we understand the third verse, bearing in mind the term used for man. In the first clause it is Enosh, — i.e. mortal man — referring to their dying. In the second clause the Psalmist speaks of them as children of men, Adam — i.e. the race. Men then may pass away, but the Everlasting One remains. Time to Him is nothing. A thousand years (and no man has ever yet lived so long) are in His eyes but as yesterday, when it is past, and as a watch in the night. Such is God — everlasting. Such are men, fleeting mortal creatures.

The very nature of God demands such a thought. Things do not begin with God. Things do not occur to Him like they occur to us. His life is one eternal present, one eternal NOW. Time does not enter into His life. One day is with Him as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. When sin entered He did not have to turn round and enquire what should be done. He did not have to consider plans. And to suppose that He only began to be the Father less than 2000 years ago is not only contrary to all Scripture, but to all reason and to all right thoughts of the being and nature of God.

8 I do not connect omnipresence and eternity as attributes with God, not because they may not, in an ordinary sense, be said to be so; and Scripture itself so speaks practically, and it always speaks practically, because truly; but that in our minds they are connected with time and space, which do not apply to God. There is no time when God is not; no place where His eye and hand, to use human language, are not. "I AM" is the proper expression of His existence. While time rolls on "I am" remains unchanged, and when time has rolled away "I am" subsists the same. It can hardly be called an attribute. This being understood, we may speak of eternal as a natural attribute of God.

"From eternity, from the beginning, or ever the earth was;" long ere "the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy" at the laying of its foundations; before the morning stars themselves, or the sons of God, had begun to be; before ages had commenced to run, or time to be reckoned, God was; and He was "the living God."