How do you square this with Genesis and John, hosepipe? Don't forget, John speaks of the Logos "in the beginning," "Who was God, and was with God."
IOW, God is eternal. But that doesn't make His creation eternal.
Easy question.. The bible is written for and by/thru created beings.. For created beings to understand i.e. US.... About Genesis some scholars translate the Hebrew word "created" in that book in some places to be the re-creation.. or therefore re-modeling and not creation.. implying that there could have been something "here" before.. i.e. dinosaurs, like that.. Before WHAT?.. I don't know, it don't say.. Maybe the "devil" destroyed the place as he seems to be willing to do even these days..
About Revelation.. much of revelation is metaphor.. There is much to learn of and about in this life.. Where the earth came from don't be high on the list of essentials.. I'm not saying there was a "society of creatures" before revelation chapter one.. but there could easily have been..
The Universe "always was" is indeed possible and should in my estimation should be on the list of possibilities.. Whats strange is that it is not..