It Is Not Written

What About the Bible’s Silence on Aliens?

Do aliens exist? And if they do, would this undermine the credibility of the Bible?

For some, the possible existence of extraterrestrial life raises theological questions: Why is the Bible silent on the subject? Are aliens capable of relationship with God? Are they fallen? If so, did Christ die for them? If Christ’s death on our planet does not apply to them, does God have a plan of salvation specific to them? While these are all interesting questions, I will focus on the first.

The Silent Scriptures

Some suppose that the Bible’s silence on the issue is problematic. Unbelievers might suppose that if aliens do exist and the Bible doesn’t talk about them, this would somehow invalidate the Scriptures. Believers might suppose that since the Bible doesn’t talk about aliens, they don’t exist. Both viewpoints are problematic in that they place a burden on the Bible that it doesn’t place on itself: that of being exhaustive. Assuming that the Bible’s silence on aliens means they don’t exist is an appeal to ignorance. This fallacy occurs when someone concludes either that a statement is true if it hasn’t been shown to be false, or false if it hasn’t been shown to be true.

Sometimes it’s not a fallacy to draw a conclusion based on an absence of evidence, such as when it is rational to expect evidence for something, but the evidence isn’t there. Suppose your roommate asks you to get the milk out of the fridge. You open the fridge and take a good look around, but you see no milk. In this case, you have good reason to conclude that the milk isn’t there. After all, if it were there, you would see it. But there are many cases when it’s not rational to expect that you would see evidence for something if it exists. In committing an appeal to ignorance, a person makes the mistake of assuming that an absence of evidence equals evidence of absence.

The Sufficient Scriptures

While the Bible presents itself to us as a sufficient guide and authority for our lives, it does not address every issue. How many species of shark are there? Will Russia prevail in its war with Ukraine? Where is the remote? Are there other inhabited planets? Is there a multiverse? And there are some things that the Bible cannot reveal, such as the aspects of God that are beyond human ken.

The Bible was written for a particular purpose with a particular audience in mind. God has revealed to us what he chose to reveal for his own purposes, including his purposes for us. What God does in other regions of the universe, or even outside of the universe, is not our prerogative to know. In fact, the Bible says as much. In the throes of his suffering, Job demands an audience with God so he can argue his case with him. When God shows up, things don’t go as Job envisioned. Instead, God enumerates a vast number of things, some of which are unknown to us, some of which are unknowable to us.

The Providential Creator

But in a way, the Bible does reveal something about aliens, if in fact any exist. We are told that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth—the whole cosmos. And aliens, if they exist, are part of the cosmos—created by God, part of his plan, and under his care. That is something we can know. And apparently, in the providence of God, it is enough for us to know—at least for now.