Claim. The six days of creation in Genesis 1 are not literal twenty-four-hour periods but symbolize six ordered stages in a creation process that took billions of years. The biblical order roughly matches modern scientific theories of the origin and formation of the universe, which DP reads as confirmation that Genesis is genuine revelation.
Elaboration. Per 5.1. The Process of the Creation of the Universe: “The process of creation recorded in the Bible bears some resemblance to the theory of the origin and formation of the universe as described by modern science… the universe began as expanding plasma… heavenly bodies formed and gave light… the molten earth cooled… the lower plants and animals came into being. Then came fish, birds, mammals, and finally humankind, in that order.”
DP’s reading is concordist-apologetic: “Considering that the account… nearly coincides with the findings of modern scientific research, we are reassured that this biblical record must be a revelation from God.” The age of the earth is conceded to be “several billion years.”
The hermeneutical move: “the biblical period of six days for the completion of the universe is not to be reckoned by the number of literal sunrises and sunsets. It symbolizes six ordered periods of time in the creation process.”
This places DP outside young-earth creationism while still treating Genesis as revealed truth. It also sets up DP’s broader doctrine that all beings — not just the universe — require ordered time periods to reach completion (formation-growth-completion-stages).
See also. dp-formation-growth-completion-as-universal-three-stages