Do the “Days” of Genesis 1 Have to Be Literal 24-Hour Days? A Biblical Case for Reading Genesis 1 According to Its Language, Structure, and Genre. Few debates among Bible-believing Christians generate as much discussion as the age of the earth and the meaning of the creation days in Genesis 1. For many believers, the issue has been framed as a choice between accepting a young earth with six literal twenty-four-hour creation days or abandoning biblical authority altogether.