# Meredith Kline American Reformed Old Testament scholar (1922-2007). Professor at Westminster Theological Seminary (1948-1977), Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (1977-1993), and Westminster Seminary California (1993-2002). Kline is the originator of the **Framework Hypothesis**, the reading of [Genesis 1](/codex/genesis-1/) as a literary-theological structure (two parallel triads: Days 1-3 forming realms, Days 4-6 filling them) rather than a strict chronological sequence. His foundational article "Because It Had Not Rained" (*Westminster Theological Journal* 20, 1958) launched the Framework position into mainstream Reformed discourse; "Space and Time in the Genesis Cosmogony" (*Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith* 48, 1996) extended the argument. Beyond Genesis hermeneutics, Kline made major contributions to Reformed covenant theology. *Treaty of the Great King* (1963) applied Hittite suzerainty-treaty structure to Deuteronomy, demonstrating that the Torah's covenant form is authentically ancient rather than a late Deuteronomistic composition. *Kingdom Prologue* (2006, based on decades of classroom lectures) is his systematic covenant-theology treatment covering creation through the Mosaic covenant. Kline's work is load-bearing in the codex's origins-and-hermeneutics cluster. The Framework Hypothesis is one of the five orthodox readings of [Genesis 1](/codex/genesis-1/) surveyed in [Genesis Hermeneutics](/codex/genesis-hermeneutics/) and [Genesis Interpretation Spread](/codex/genesis-interpretation-spread/), and the position anchors Premise 2 of the [Six Day Creation Falsified Objection Defeater](/codex/six-day-creation-falsified-objection-defeater/). Within Reformed circles, Kline occupies a distinctive position: confessionally conservative (Westminster Standards), yet non-literal on Genesis days, demonstrating that non-YEC readings have deep roots in the Reformed-confessional tradition, not just in liberal or Catholic theology. ## Key works - "Because It Had Not Rained" (*Westminster Theological Journal* 20, 1958), Framework Hypothesis foundational article - *Treaty of the Great King: The Covenant Structure of Deuteronomy* (Eerdmans, 1963), Hittite suzerainty-treaty parallels - *The Structure of Biblical Authority* (Eerdmans, 1972), canon-formation and covenant-document structure - *Images of the Spirit* (Baker, 1980), Spirit-theology in OT contexts - "Space and Time in the Genesis Cosmogony" (*Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith* 48, 1996), extended Framework defense - *Kingdom Prologue: Genesis Foundations for a Covenantal Worldview* (Two Age Press, 2006), systematic covenant theology ## Theological position - **[Genesis 1](/codex/genesis-1/):** Framework Hypothesis, the six days are a literary scaffolding, not a chronological sequence; the two-triad structure (Days 1-3 forming / Days 4-6 filling) is the hermeneutical key - **Covenant theology:** suzerainty-treaty structure of the biblical covenants; creation-as-covenant; the *covenant of works* and *covenant of grace* framework - **Confessional stance:** Westminster Standards; Reformed Baptist critics (e.g., the OPC's 2004 Genesis report) debated whether the Framework view is compatible with WCF IV.1; Kline maintained it is - **Historical Adam:** affirmed; the Framework position concerns the *literary genre* of [Genesis 1](/codex/genesis-1/), not the historicity of Adam ## Apologetic significance The Framework Hypothesis is a critical piece of the apologetic response to the "Christianity requires Young Earth Creationism" charge. Kline demonstrates that a non-literal reading of the Genesis days arises from *internal-textual* considerations (the Day 4 problem, the two-triad literary structure, the open-ended Day 7) rather than from capitulation to modern science. This makes the Framework position deployable against both (a) atheists who claim Christianity is committed to a 6,000-year-old universe and (b) YEC advocates who claim non-literal readings are motivated by Darwinian accommodation. ## In the codex - [Genesis Hermeneutics](/codex/genesis-hermeneutics/), Framework Hypothesis as one of five orthodox readings - [Genesis Interpretation Spread](/codex/genesis-interpretation-spread/), comparative synthesis including Framework position - [Origins and Cosmology](/codex/origins-and-cosmology/), broader origins-and-faith domain hub - [Old Earth Creationism](/codex/old-earth-creationism/), Framework as a variant within OEC umbrella - [Six Day Creation Falsified Objection Defeater](/codex/six-day-creation-falsified-objection-defeater/), Framework grounds P2 deployment - [Genesis 1.14-19](/codex/genesis-1-14-19/), Day 4 problem rich hub; Framework response - [H1285 - berith](/codex/h1285-berith/), covenant (*berith*) lexicon hub; Kline's treaty-structure work - [Bible Scientific Errors Objection Defeater](/codex/bible-scientific-errors-objection-defeater/), Framework as hermeneutical response ## See also - [Henri Blocher](/codex/henri-blocher/), co-developer of the Framework Hypothesis (*In the Beginning*, 1984) - [Hugh Ross](/codex/hugh-ross/), Day-Age concordist; alternative OEC position - [John Walton](/codex/john-walton/), Cosmic-Temple / Functional Ontology; alternative non-literal reading - [Genesis Hermeneutics](/codex/genesis-hermeneutics/), the five orthodox readings hub - [Genesis Interpretation Spread](/codex/genesis-interpretation-spread/), comparative synthesis - [Hexaemeron Tradition](/codex/hexaemeron-tradition/), patristic-medieval hexaemeral commentary genre - [Henry Morris](/codex/henry-morris/), YEC institutional founder; the position Kline's Framework most directly contrasts - [John Calvin](/codex/john-calvin/), Reformed tradition ancestor; Calvin's own Genesis reading is contested between literal and non-literal interpreters