Another influential text was the Guide of the Perplexed by the Jewish philosopher Maimonides. After a nuanced and balanced assessment of arguments for and against eternity Maimonides concluded that philosophy cannot decide the issue. The universe might be eternal or it might not. The only way we can know for sure would be if God were to reveal to us whether or not He created the world with a beginning in time, which is exactly what He has done in the Bible.
