ABSTRACT
Although we might nd it straightforward to distinguish scientic from theological talk in our culture, it is not so straightforward when we come to the Bible, since much of the scientic framework of ancient Hebrew thinking was couched in theological terms, and vice versa. Take the categories natural and supernatural, our standard vocabulary for speaking of the material world against the idea of a spiritual world; of the ordinary scheme of things (“natural”) as against miracles (“supernatural”). ere is a degree of ambiguity in these terms, just as there is ambiguity in the term “nature” (McGrath [2002] 2006a: 81-133). Does “nature” refer to the world of wildlife – the ora and fauna of the earth which exist apart from humankind – or is it a technical term for all that comes under the remit of science? Or is it a theological term meaning all of creation which stands apart from God?
