Quote Originally Posted by gluadys
1. What do you mean when you say the earth was created perfect?
Without being stained by sin.

2. Why can the earth of vs. 1 not be a perfect seed or embryo of the completed earth of vs. 31?
Because, of the sin of the inhabitants of earth's earliest ages. Therefore, v.1 was created perfect, sin entered, God made desolate in v.2, and restored in the 6 summary days of restoration, fulfilling v.31.

3. You lay a lot of stress on "waste" as the translation of "tohu" in vs. 2. I won't dispute that "waste" and "desolation" are legitimate translations of the Hebrew here. (I don't know Hebrew well enough for that.) But I note that most biblical translations of vs. 2 translate it as "without form, formless".
Often the most popular or palatable will be accepted.

This translation suggests to me that vs. 1-2 are speaking of an embryonic earth just newly come into existence which is yet to be formed and filled. And this seems consistent with a perfect creation. For a seed or embryo is perfect as the initial stage of what will become a mature adult.
This is the common teaching, but the truth of this mistsaken assumption is Lucifer fell with the fallen angels to rule over demons between Gen. 1.1 and v.2 which required God in His righteousness to made desolate. Some call this the gap theory. It is interesting to note that day 2 was the only day not called a good day because when the firmaments were split, the water above and below, up came some of those demons that were cast down into the deep in Gen. 1.2. One of those demons went into the serpent.

Do you reject "formless" as a legitimate translation of "tohu" in this context? If so, why?
I just consider it a less accurate word, which we can be more precise.