God created man in his own image. In God’s image he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them. God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” God said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food.
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Genesis 1:27-29 sits inside this longer paragraph.
God said, “Let’s make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” God created man in his own image. In God’s image he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them. God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” God said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food. To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food;” and it was so.
Parallel Translations
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God created man in his own image. In God’s image he created him; male and female he created them.
God blessed them. God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
God said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food.
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So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Show all 3 translations
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And God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.
And God blessed them; and God said unto them: 'Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that creepeth upon the earth.'
And God said: 'Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed — to you it shall be for food;
Examined in Scripture Analysis
Science (2)
Historical claims about the natural world, weighed against the scientific record.
Contradictions (8)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
- Were humans created before or after the other animals?
- Are the two creation accounts contradictory?
- Were plants created before or after humans?
Show all 8
Commandments (1)
The laws of the Torah, each cited and shown as a primary source.
Cross-references (55)
- Matthew 19:4 (v27) He answered, “Haven’t you read that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female,
- Genesis 9:1 (v28) God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, and replenish the earth.
- Genesis 5:1-2 (v27) This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, he made him in God’s likeness. He created them male and…
- Ephesians 2:10 (v27) For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before that we would walk in them.
- Mark 10:6 (v27) But from the beginning of the creation, God made them male and female.
Show all 55 cross-references
- Genesis 2:21-25 (v27) Yahweh God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep. As the man slept, he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place.…
- Genesis 9:7 (v28) Be fruitful and multiply. Increase abundantly in the earth, and multiply in it.”
- Ephesians 4:24 (v27) and put on the new man, who in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of truth.
- Psalms 139:14 (v27) I will give thanks to you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful. My soul knows that very well.
- Leviticus 26:9 (v28) “ ‘I will have respect for you, make you fruitful, multiply you, and will establish my covenant with you.
- Isaiah 43:7 (v27) everyone who is called by my name, and whom I have created for my glory, whom I have formed, yes, whom I have made.’ ”
- Colossians 1:15 (v27) He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
- Psalms 128:3-4 (v28) Your wife will be as a fruitful vine in the innermost parts of your house, your children like olive plants around your table. Behold, thus…
- Genesis 2:18 (v27) Yahweh God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to him.”
- Genesis 22:17-18 (v28) that I will bless you greatly, and I will multiply your offspring greatly like the stars of the heavens, and like the sand which is on the…
- 1 Corinthians 11:7-9 (v27) For a man indeed ought not to have his head covered, because he is the image and glory of God, but the woman is the glory of the man. For…
- Genesis 1:22 (v28) God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”
- Genesis 9:3 (v29) Every moving thing that lives will be food for you. As I gave you the green herb, I have given everything to you.
- Malachi 2:15 (v27) Did he not make you one, although he had the residue of the Spirit? Why one? He sought godly offspring. Therefore take heed to your spirit,…
- Genesis 17:20 (v28) As for Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly. He will become…
- Psalms 127:1-5 (v28) Unless Yahweh builds the house, they who build it labor in vain. Unless Yahweh watches over the city, the watchman guards it in vain. It is…
- Isaiah 45:18 (v28) For Yahweh who created the heavens, the God who formed the earth and made it, who established it and didn’t create it a waste, who formed…
- Genesis 8:17 (v28) Bring out with you every living thing that is with you of all flesh, including birds, livestock, and every creeping thing that creeps on…
- Psalms 104:14-15 (v29) He causes the grass to grow for the livestock, and plants for man to cultivate, that he may produce food out of the earth: wine that makes…
- Psalms 107:38 (v28) He blesses them also, so that they are multiplied greatly. He doesn’t allow their livestock to decrease.
- Genesis 26:3-4 (v28) Live in this land, and I will be with you, and will bless you. For I will give to you, and to your offspring, all these lands, and I will…
- 1 Chronicles 4:10 (v28) Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, “Oh that you would bless me indeed, and enlarge my border! May your hand be with me, and may you…
- Psalms 145:15-16 (v29) The eyes of all wait for you. You give them their food in due season. You open your hand, and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
- Psalms 104:27-28 (v29) These all wait for you, that you may give them their food in due season. You give to them; they gather. You open your hand; they are…
- Genesis 26:24 (v28) Yahweh appeared to him the same night, and said, “I am the God of Abraham your father. Don’t be afraid, for I am with you, and will bless…
- Genesis 49:25 (v28) even by the God of your father, who will help you, by the Almighty, who will bless you, with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the…
- Genesis 17:16 (v28) I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her. Yes, I will bless her, and she will be a mother of nations. Kings of peoples…
- Psalms 147:9 (v29) He provides food for the livestock, and for the young ravens when they call.
- Acts 14:17 (v29) Yet he didn’t leave himself without witness, in that he did good and gave you rains from the sky and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts…
- Job 36:31 (v29) For by these he judges the people. He gives food in abundance.
- Psalms 24:1 (v29) The earth is Yahweh’s, with its fullness; the world, and those who dwell in it.
- Matthew 6:11 (v29) Give us today our daily bread.
- Matthew 6:25-26 (v29) Therefore I tell you, don’t be anxious for your life: what you will eat, or what you will drink; nor yet for your body, what you will wear.…
- Genesis 2:16 (v29) Yahweh God commanded the man, saying, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden;
- Genesis 24:60 (v28) They blessed Rebekah, and said to her, “Our sister, may you be the mother of thousands of ten thousands, and let your offspring possess the…
- Job 42:12 (v28) So Yahweh blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of…
- Psalms 115:16 (v29) The heavens are Yahweh’s heavens, but he has given the earth to the children of men.
- Acts 17:28 (v29) ‘For in him we live, move, and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also his offspring.’
- Psalms 111:5 (v29) He has given food to those who fear him. He always remembers his covenant.
- Psalms 136:25 (v29) who gives food to every creature; for his loving kindness endures forever.
- Psalms 146:7 (v29) who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry. Yahweh frees the prisoners.
- Isaiah 33:16 (v29) he will dwell on high. His place of defense will be the fortress of rocks. His bread will be supplied. His waters will be sure.
- Hosea 2:8 (v29) For she didn’t know that I gave her the grain, the new wine, and the oil, and multiplied to her silver and gold, which they used for Baal.
- Colossians 1:26 (v27) the mystery which has been hidden for ages and generations. But now it has been revealed to his saints,
- 1 Timothy 6:17 (v29) Charge those who are rich in this present world that they not be arrogant, nor have their hope set on the uncertainty of riches, but on the…
- Genesis 33:5 (v28) He lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children; and said, “Who are these with you?” He said, “The children whom God has…
- 1 Chronicles 26:5 (v28) Ammiel the sixth, Issachar the seventh, and Peullethai the eighth; for God blessed him.
- Psalms 69:34 (v28) Let heaven and earth praise him; the seas, and everything that moves therein!
- Acts 17:24-25 (v29) The God who made the world and all things in it, he, being Lord of heaven and earth, doesn’t dwell in temples made with hands. He isn’t…
- 1 Timothy 4:3 (v28) forbidding marriage and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know…
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (19 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv27–28 27. So God created man The reiterated mention of…
27. So God created man The reiterated mention of the image of God is not a vain repetition. For it is a remarkable instance of the Divine goodness which can never be sufficiently proclaimed. And, at the same time, he admonishes us from what excellence we have fallen, that he may excite in us the desire of its recovery. When he soon afterwards adds, that God created them male and female, he commends to us that conjugal bond by which the society of mankind is cherished. For this form of speaking, God created man, male and female created he them, is of the same force as if he had said, that the man himself was incomplete. Under these circumstances, the woman was added to him as a companion that they both might be one, as he more clearly expresses it in the second chapter. Malachi also means the same thing when he relates, (Genesis 2:15,) that one man was created by God, whilst, nevertheless, he possessed the fullness of the Spirit. For he there treats of conjugal fidelity, which the Jews were violating by their polygamy. For the purpose of correcting this fault, he calls that pair, consisting of man and woman, which God in the beginning had joined together, one man, in order that every one might learn to be content with his own wife.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv28–29 The propagation of man is the blessing of God,…
The propagation of man is the blessing of God, Ps. 128.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv27–29 Gen 1:27 So God created man in his [own]…
Gen 1:27 So God created man in his [own] image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
Ver. 27. So God created man in his own image.] There is a double image of God in the soul. One in the substance of it, whereof I have spoken in the former verse. The other in the qualities and supernatural graces, of knowledge in the understanding, rightness or straitness in the will, and holiness in the affections. In all these, man, when he came first out of God’s mint, shone most gloriously. {O! quantum haec Niobe, &c.} But now, Oh, think of this burnt temple, and mourn, as they in Ezra {Ezr 3:12} {Ebur candidissimum, adhibito igne, nigrescit.}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv27–29 Not both together, as some of the Jews have…
Not both together, as some of the Jews have fabled, but successively, the woman after and out of the man, as is more particularly related, Gen 2:21, &c., which is here mentioned by anticipation. Albeit the woman also seems to have been made upon the sixth day, as is here related, and as the following blessing showeth, which is common to both of them, though the particular history of it is brought in afterwards, Gen 2:1-25, by way of recapitulation or repetition.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v29 We have here the third part of the sixth…
We have here the third part of the sixth day's work, which was not any new creation, but a gracious provision of food for all flesh, Psa 136:25. He that made man and beast thus took care to preserve both, Psa 36:6. Here is,
I. Food provided for man, Gen 1:29. Herbs and fruits must be his meat, including corn and all the products of the earth; these were allowed him, but (it should seem) not flesh, till after the flood, Gen 9:3. And before the earth was deluged, much more before it was cursed for man's sake, its fruits, no doubt, were more pleasing to the taste and more strengthening and nourishing to the body than marrow and fatness, and all the portion of the king's meat, are now. See here, 1. That which should make us humble. As we were made out of the earth, so we are maintained out of it. Once indeed men did eat angels' food, bread from heaven; but they died (Joh 6:49); it was to them but as food out of the earth, Psa 104:14. There is meat that endures to everlasting life; the Lord evermore give us this. 2. That which should make us thankful. The Lord is for the body; from him we receive all the supports and comforts of this life, and to him we must give thanks. He gives us all things richly to enjoy, not only for necessity, but plenty, plenty, dainties, and varieties, for ornament and delight. How much are we indebted! How careful should we be, as we live upon God's bounty, to live to his glory! 3. That which should make us temperate and content with our lot. Though Adam had dominion given him over fish and fowl, yet God confined him, in his food, to herbs and fruits; and he never complained of it. Though afterwards he coveted forbidden fruit, for the sake of the wisdom and knowledge he promised himself from it, yet we never read that he coveted forbidden flesh. If God give us food for our lives, let us not, with murmuring Israel, ask food for our lusts, Psa 78:18; see Dan 1:15.
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II. Food provided for the beasts, Gen 1:30. Doth God take care for oxen? Yes, certainly, he provides food convenient for them, and not for oxen only, which were used in his sacrifices and man's service, but even the young lions and the young ravens are the care of his providence; they ask and have their meat from God. Let us give to God the glory of his bounty to the inferior creatures, that all are fed, as it were, at his table, every day. He is a great housekeeper, a very rich and bountiful one, that satisfies the desire of every living thing. Let this encourage God's people to cast their care upon him, and not to be solicitous respecting what they shall eat and what they shall drink. He that provided for Adam without his care, and still provides for all the creatures without their care, will not let those that trust him want any good thing, Mat 6:26. He that feeds his birds will not starve his babes.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv27–29 So God created man in his own image,.... Which…
So God created man in his own image,.... Which consisted both in the form of his body, and the erect stature of it, different from all other creatures; in agreement with the idea of that body, prepared in covenant for the Son of God, and which it was therein agreed he should assume in the fulness of time; and in the immortality of his soul, and in his intellectual powers, and in that purity, holiness, and righteousness in which he was created; as well as in his dominion, power, and authority over the creatures, in which he was as God's viceregent, and resembled him. The Jerusalem Targum is,
the Word of the Lord created man in his likeness; even that Word that was in the beginning with God, and was God, and in time became incarnate, by whom all things were made, Joh 1:1.
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in the image of God created he him; which is repeated for the certainty of it, and that it might be taken notice of, as showing man's superior glory and dignity to the rest of the creatures, Co1 11:7.
male and female created he them; not that man was created an hermaphrodite, or with two bodies, back to back united together, and afterwards cleaved asunder, as the Jews fabulously say; but first God made man, or the male, out of the dust of the earth, and infused a rational soul into him; and then out of one of his ribs made a female, or woman, who was presented to him as his wife, that so their species might be propagated; and only one male and one female were created, to show that hereafter a man was to have at a time no more wives than one; see Mal 2:15 for all that is said in the following chapter, concerning the formation of man out of the dust of the earth, and the making of woman out of his rib, and presenting her to him, and his taking her to be his wife, were all done on this sixth day, and at this time. It is a tradition among the Heathens, that man was made last of all the creatures; so says Plato (k); and this notion the Chinese also have (l). The Jews give these reasons why man was made on the evening of the sabbath, to show that he did not assist in the work of creation; and that if he was elated in his mind, it might be told him that a fly was created before him, and that he might immediately enter on the command, i.e. of the sabbath (m).
(k) Protagor. p. 320, 321. (l) Martin. Sinic. Hist. l. 1. p. 4. (m) T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 38. 1.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On v29 We have here the third part of the sixth…
We have here the third part of the sixth day's work, which was not any new creation, but a gracious provision of food for all flesh, Psalm 1xxxvi, 25.-Here is,
1. Food provided for man, ver. 29. herbs and fruits must be his meat, including corn, and all the products of the earth. And before the earth was deluged, much more before it was cursed for man's sake, its fruits no doubt, were more pleasing to the taste, and more strengthening and nourishing to the body.
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2. Food provided for the beasts, ver. 30. Doth God take care of oxen? Yes, certainly, he provides food convenient for them; and not for oxen only that were used in his sacrifices, and man's service, but even the young lions and the young ravens are the care of his providence, they ask and have their meat from God. See note at "ver. 29"
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv28–29 Verse 28. And God blessed them] Marked them as…
Verse 28. And God blessed them] Marked them as being under his especial protection, and gave them power to propagate and multiply their own kind on the earth. A large volume would be insufficient to contain what we know of the excellence and perfection of man, even in his present degraded fallen state. Both his body and soul are adapted with astonishing wisdom to their residence and occupations; and also the place of their residence, as well as the surrounding objects, in their diversity, colour, and mutual relations, to the mind and body of this lord of the creation. The contrivance, arrangement, action, and re-action of the different parts of the body, show the admirable skill of the wondrous Creator; while the various powers and faculties of the mind, acting on and by the different organs of this body, proclaim the soul's Divine origin, and demonstrate that he who was made in the image and likeness of God, was a transcript of his own excellency, destined to know, love, and dwell with his Maker throughout eternity.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv27–29 Gen 1:27. So God created man in his own…
Gen 1:27. So God created man in his own image — In his natural, but especially in his moral image, with an habitual conformity of all his powers to the will of God, his understanding clearly discerning, his judgment entirely approving, his will readily choosing, and his affections cordially embracing his chief good; without error in his knowledge, disorder in his passions, or irregularity or inordinancy in his appetites; his senses also being all inlets to wisdom and enjoyment, and all his faculties of body and mind subservient to the glory of God and his own felicity! But man being in honour did not abide, but became like the beasts that perish! What cause we have for thankfulness that this image of God may be restored to our souls, and how earnestly ought we to pray for, and how diligently to seek this most important of all attainments! Male and female created he them — Not at once, or both together, as some have unscripturally taught, but first the man out of the earth, and then the woman out of the man.
They seem both, however, to have been made on the sixth day, as is here related, and as the following words, promising they should be fruitful, manifest: but the particular history of the woman’s creation is brought in afterward by way of further elucidation, and to introduce the account of the institution of marriage. God formed the woman from the man, and caused the whole race of mankind to descend from one original pair, that all the families and nations of men, being made of one blood, and proceeding from one common stock, might know themselves to be brethren, and might love and assist one another to the uttermost of their power: but, alas! what a sad reverse of this do we daily see exemplified before our eyes!
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv27–29 Male and female. Eve was taken from Adam’s side…
Male and female. Eve was taken from Adam’s side on this same day, though it be related in the following chapter. Adam was not an hermaphrodite as some have foolishly asserted. (Calmet) --- Adam means the likeness, or red earth, that in one word we may behold our nobility and meanness. (Haydock)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On v28 Be fruitful, &c.--The human race in every country and…
Be fruitful, &c.--The human race in every country and age has been the offspring of the first pair. Amid all the varieties found among men, some black, some copper-colored, others white, the researches of modern science lead to a conclusion, fully accordant with the sacred history, that they are all of one species and of one family (Act 17:26). What power in the word of God! "He spake and it was done. He commanded and all things stood fast" [Psa 33:9]. "Great and manifold are thy works, Lord God Almighty! in wisdom hast thou made them all" [Psa 104:24]. We admire that wisdom, not only in the regular progress of creation, but in its perfect adaptation to the end. God is represented as pausing at every stage to look at His work. No wonder He contemplated it with complacency. Every object was in its right place, every vegetable process going on in season, every animal in its structure and instincts suited to its mode of life and its use in the economy of the world. He saw everything that He had made answering the plan which His eternal wisdom had conceived; and, "Behold it was very good" [Gen 1:31].
Next: Genesis Chapter 2
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv27–29 27. The reiteration of the principal words in the…
27. The reiteration of the principal words in the clauses of this verse has something of the rhythm of poetry. Repetition and love of detail are characteristics of the Priestly Code. “Created,” cf. Gen_1:1; Gen_1:21 (see notes).
male and female] The distinction of the sexes, which is here given, has been omitted, probably for brevity’s sake, in the mention of the animals.
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When, in view of the discoveries of the science of Anthropology, the question is asked whether there was one original pair of human beings, or whether each of the different races, Caucasian, Mongolian, Negro, Red Indian, Australian, &c., originated from one pair, or from groups of pairs, we must answer that such questions do not come within the horizon of thought in our passage. They are to be solved not by Revelation in Holy Scripture, but by the exercise of the gifts of patient enquiry, accurate observation, and sound reasoning. The Hebrew writer has in view a population drawn from a single stock. His account of the origin of Man, applicable to one race, is symbolical of all, if a plurality of origin is to be assumed.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv27, 29 (27) Created.—This significant verb is thrice repeated with reference…
(27) Created.—This significant verb is thrice repeated with reference to man. It indicates, first, that man has that in him which was not a development or evolution, but something new. He is, in fact, the most perfect work of the creative energy, and differs from the animals not only in degree, but in kind, though possessing, in common with them, an organised body. And next, it indicates the rejoicing of the Deity at the completion of His purpose.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv27–29 So (or and) God created (bars, as in vers.…
So (or and) God created (bars, as in vers. 1, 21, q.v.) man (literally; the Adam referred to in ver. 26) in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. The threefold repetition of the term "created" should be observed as a significant negation of modern evolution theories as to the descent of man, and an emphatic proclamation of his Divine original. The threefold parallelism of the members of this verse is likewise suggestive, as Umbreit, Ewald, and Delitzsch remark, of the jubilation with which the writer contemplates the crowning work of Elohim"s creative word. Murphy notices two stages in man s creation, the general fact being stated in the first clause of this triumphal song, and the two particulars first his relation to his Maker, and second his sexual distinction in its other members. In the third clause Luther sees an intimation "that the woman also was created by God, and made a partaker of the Divine image, and of dominion over all.
Ver. 27.
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The greatness of man.
I THE TIME OF HIS APPEARANCE. The latest of God s works, he was produced towards the close of the era that witnessed the introduction upon our globe of the higher animals. Taking either view of the length of the creative day, it may be supposed that in the evening the animals went forth "to roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God," and that in the morning man arose upon the variegated scene, "going forth to his work and to his labor until the evening". (Psa_104:20-23) In thin there was a special fitness, each being created at the time most appropriate to its nature. Man"s works are often mistimed; God"s never. Likewise in man"s being ushered last upon the scene there was peculiar significance; it was a virtual proclamation of his greatness.
II THE SOLEMNITY OF HIS MAKING, which was preceded by a Divine consultation: "Let us make man," &c. The language of;
1. Resolution. As if, in the production of the other creatures, the all-wise Artificer had been scarcely conscious of an effort, but must now bestir himself to the performance of his last and greatest work.
2. Forethought. As if his previous makings had been, in comparison with this, of so subordinate importance that they might be executed instantaneously and, as it were, without premeditation, whereas this required intelligent arrangement and wise consideration beforehand.
3. Solicitude. As if the insignificance of these other labors made no special call upon his personal, care and attention, whereas the vastness of the present undertaking demanded the utmost possible watchfulness and caution.
4. Delight. As if the fashioning and beautifying of the globe and its replenishing with sentient beings, unspeakably glorious as these achievements were afforded him no satisfaction in comparison with this which he contemplated, the creating of man in his own image. (cf. Pro_8:31)
III THE DIGNITY OF HIS NATURE. "Created after God"s image and likeness," suggesting ideas of
1. Affinity, or kinship. The resplendent universe, with its suns and systems, its aerial canopy and green-mantled ground, its Alps and Himalayas, its oceans, rivers, streams, was only as plastic clay in the hands of a skilful potter. Even the innumerable tribes of living creatures that had been let loose to swarm the deep, to cleave the sky, to roam the earth, were animated by a principle of being that had no closer connection with the Deity than that which effect has with cause; but the life which inspired man was a veritable outcome from the personality of God. (Gen_2:7) Hence man was something higher than a creature. As imago Dei he was God"s son (Mal_2:10; Act_17:28)
2. Resemblance. A distinct advance upon the previous thought, although implied in it. This likeness or similitude consisted in
(1) Personality. Light, air, land, sea, sun, moon, stars were "things." Plants, fishes, fowls, animals were "lives," although the first are never so characterized in Scripture. Man was a "person.
(2) Purity. The image of absolute holiness must itself be immaculate. In this sense Christ was "the express image of God"s person"; (Heb_1:3) and though man is not now a complete likeness of his Maker in the moral purity of his nature, when he came from the Creator"s hand he was. It is the object of Christ"s work to renew in man the image of his Maker. (Eph_4:24)
(3) Power. That man"s Creator was a God of power was implied in his name, ELOHIM, and demonstrated by his works. Even fallen man we can perceive to be possessed of many elements of power that are the shadows of that which resided in Elohim the power of self-government, and of lordship over the creatures, of language and of thought, of volition and of action, of originating, at least in a secondary sense, and of combining and arranging. In the first man they resided in perfection.
3. Representation. Man was created in God"s image that he might be a visible embodiment of the Supreme to surrounding creatures. "The material world, with its objects sublimely great or meanly little, as we judge them; its atoms of dust, its orbs of fire; the rock that stands by the seashore, the water that wears it away; the worm, a birth of yesterday, which we trample underfoot; the sheets of the constellations that gleam perennial overhead; the aspiring palm tree fixed to one spot, and the lions that are sent out free these incarnate and make visible all of God their natures will admit."Man in his nature was intended as the highest representation of God that was possible short of the incarnation of the Word himself.
IV THE GRANDEUR OF HIS DOMINION. Man was designed to be God"s image in respect of royalty and lordship; and as no one can play the monarch without a kingdom and without subjects, God gave him both an empire and a people.
1. An empire.
(1) Of wide extent. In the regal charter reaching to the utmost bounds of this terrestrial sphere (ver. 26).
(2) Of available character. Not a region that was practically unconquerable, but every square inch of it capable of subjugation and occupation.
(3) Of vast resources. Everything in heaven, earthy and sea was placed at his command.
(4) Of incalculable value. Nothing was absolutely useless, and many things were precious beyond compare.
(5) Of perfect security. God had given" it to him. The.. grant, was, absolute, the gift was sure.
2. A people.
(1) Numerous. "Every living thing was subjected to his sway.
(2) Varied. The fishes, fowls, and beasts were his servants
(3) Submissive. As yet they had not broken loose against their master.
(4) Given. They were not acquired by the sword, but donated by their Maker.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv28–29 Have dominion
Gen_1:28
Have dominion
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Mans dominion over the lower animals
I.
THIS DOMINION GOD HAS MADE TO ARISE FROM THAT MENTAL SUPERIORITY WHICH CONSTITUTES MANS DISTINCTION AND GLORY.
1. The power of man is in his mind.
2. The benefit and extent of mans dominion is made to depend on the moral as well as the intellectual nature with which he was originally endowed.
3. As God has thus fitted man, by his superior nature, for dominion; so, on the other hand, He has given to the inferior animals a corresponding disposition to acknowledge mans superiority.
4. Thus the comfort of man is evidently promoted when this dominion is wisely and justly exercised, according to the original design of the Creator.
The hay appeareth, and the tender grass showeth itself, and herbs of the mountains are gathered: the lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are for the price of the field. But the dominion of man when justly exercised, is a mean of comfort also to the animals who are connected with him. Living in our society and neighbourhood, they become the objects of our care. Attached to our persons and homes, they feel pleasure in our service. They thus partake of our provision, and enjoy the advantage of our foresight.
II. THE MANNER IN WHICH OUR DOMINION OVER THE INFERIOR ANIMALS OUGHT TO BE EXERCISES. A right to rule is not a right to tyrannize; and a right to service extends only to such duties as are consistent with the powers of the servants, and with the place which is assigned to them. All power is of God, and can only be lawfully exercised when exercised according to His designs. That likeness to God in which we were originally created, should remind us that justice, and goodness, and mercy, are the chief distinctions after which we should aspire; and that our dominion was designed, like that of Him who designed it, to be exercised with wisdom, rectitude, and compassion. The consideration of our dominion, and the services by which those who are subjected to our power, in such numberless ways, minister to our comforts, only enforces on us more strongly the duty of providing for their comfort, and preserving them from injury. And is it not the very essence of benevolence to desire and to promote the happiness of every being within the sphere of our influence? (S. McGill, D. D.)
The Divine blessing
Every loving father wishes his children well. The Divine Father wishes the first human pair well, for such is the import of the words He blessed them. We can say, too, without any hesitancy, that He wishes every member of the human family well, both for time and eternity. Those who are not blessed, and there are thousands, ought not to ascribe this to God, but to themselves. (A. McAuslane, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v29 MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Gen_1:29-31
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Gen_1:29-31
THE UNIVERSE GOD’S GIFT TO MAN
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I. The Gift.
1. Extensive. The Universe is a Divine gift to man. It was designed for the occupation of man. The home, with all its furniture, was presented to him. Nature, from its highest manifestations to its lowest, was to minister to his happiness and need.
2. Valuable. The smallest things in nature are valuable. Who can tell the value of the tree, of the herb, of the grass of the field? Diamonds are not more valuable than these; yet they are the constant and everyday gift of God to man.
3. Increasing. Every day the gift is increasing in value. It becomes more expansive. It is better known, and more thoroughly appreciated. Scientific research is giving man to see the richness of the Creator’s gift. All the gifts of God are productive; time unfolds their measure, discloses their meaning, and demonstrates their value.
II. The purpose.
1. To evince love. One of the great objects of creation was to manifest the love of God to the human race, which was shortly to be brought into existence. The light, the sun, the stars, and the creation of man; all these were the love-tokens of God. These were designed, not to display His creative power—His wisdom, but His desire for the happiness of man.
2. To teach truth. The world is a great school. It is well supplied with teachers. It will teach an attentive student great lessons. All the Divine gifts are instructive.
3. To sustain life. God created man without means, but it was not His will to preserve him without; hence He tells him where he is to seek his food. We must make use of such creatures as God has designed for the preservation of our life. God has provided for the preservation of all life. Let us learn to trust God for the necessities of life in times of adversity. Men who have the greatest possessions in the world must receive their daily food from the hand of God.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES
Gen_1:29-31.
I. Let every one depend upon God for the necessaries of life.
1. Asking them by prayer.
2. Acknowledging our own beggary.
3. Trusting Him by faith.
4. Remembering His promise.
5. Obedient to His will.
II. Let us serve Him faithfully at whose table we are fed.
1. Else we are ungrateful.
2. Else we deserve famine.
All the provisions that God allows man for food are drawn out of the earth.
The homeliness of the provision on which God intended man to feed.
Let no man be discontented with mean fare:—
1. It is as good as the body it nourishes.
2. It is better than we deserve.
3. It is more than we are able to procure of ourselves.
4. It is more profitable for health.
5. It is free from the temptation to excess.
God gives us not all our provisions at once, but a daily supply of them:—
1. To manifest His fatherly care.
2. To make us dependent on Him.
3. To exercise our faith.
4. To teach economy.
God makes provision for all the creatures He hath made.
Man was not only a good creature, but a blessed one.
SUGGESTIVE ILLUSTRATIONS
Man’s Spirit! Gen_1:27. As a missionary in India was catechizing the children of his school, a Brahmin interrupted him by saying that the spirit of man and the spirit of God were one. In order to show him the absurdity of such a declaration, the missionary called upon the boys to refute it by stating the difference between the spirit of man and God. They readily, so Arvine says, gave the following answers:—The spirit of man is created; God is its creator. The spirit of man is full of sin; God is a pure spirit. The spirit of man is subject to grief; God is incapable of suffering. Therefore, they can never be one. And yet the spirit of the one dwells in the spirit of the other. This is a great mystery:—
“And when the dread enigma presseth sore,
Thy patient voice saith: ‘Watch with me one hour;’
As sinks the moaning river in the sea,
In silver peace, so sinks my soul in Thee.”—Howe.
Man! Gen_1:27. As the ancients kept their temples pure and undefiled, so we should preserve our “bodies” free from all unholy words and actions. In some of the heathen temples, the Vestals cherished a flame on their altar perpetually. So should we maintain the flame of truth on the altars of our hearts. Within their temple walls were their helpless deities, and there thronged the myriads of votaries to pay homage and worship. We should worship the Father, and cultivate the companionship of the Holy Ghost in our bodies.
Apex! Gen_1:29. As Agassiz points out, it is evident that there is a manifest progress in the succession of beings on the surface of the earth. This progress consists in an increasing similarity to the living fauna, and among the vertebrates, especially in their increasing resemblance to man. But this connection is not the consequence of a direct lineage between the fauna of different ages. The link by which creation is connected is of a high and immaterial nature; and their connection is to be sought in the view of the Creator Himself, whose aim in forming the earth was to introduce man upon the surface of our globe. Man is the end towards which all the animal creation has tended from the first appearance of the first Palæozoic fishes. When all was complete—
“A creature of a more exalted kind
Was wanting yet, and then was man designed;
Conscious of thought, of more capacious breast,
For empire formed, and fit to rule the rest.”—Ovid.
Divine Gifts! Gen_1:29. As the artist delights in exercising his talent in depicting the landscape—as the poet finds pleasure in creating, out of human experiences and the bright scenes of nature, a new world of beauty and passion, so God—the Great Artist and Poet—delights in the scenes and objects of nature, in the formation of which He has exercised His Divine skill and power; and to this Divine feeling the Son of God gave frequent expression. He revealed to us His own most perfect understanding and enjoyment of the beauty of nature—how God regarded the creation which He had pronounced to be very good. But they were formed for man’s special enjoyment. The great whole world—to use the figure of an eminent writer—is decked with beauty for man’s pleasure. Beautiful is the lily-work that forms the capitals of its stony and massive pillars; rich is the flowerage that adorns its barge-laden streams, which bear up and along the works of life. Everything that is useful to man has some bright and beautiful thing connected with it, which, like the settling of a brilliant butterfly upon the open page of a dreary tome, or the falling of a rosy gleam upon some homely task, seems to speak of the fact that this verse is true—
“Our cup runneth over, our life is so bright,
So brimming with mercy and love,
It seems just a springtime of sunshine and light,
Blest foretastes of better above.”
God! Gen_1:31. His works proclaim His being, power, wisdom, goodness. Some years ago there was a German prince, a good christian man, who lived in a fine old castle on the banks of the Rhine. He had a son, who was beloved by all around for his princely virtues; and on one occasion, while he was absent from home, a French gentleman became the nobleman’s guest. This visitor did not believe in God, and never thought of trusting to Him for anything. One day, when the baron and his friend were conversing, he said something which grieved the baron very much, and led him to exclaim: “Are you not afraid to offend God by speaking in such a way?” But the Frenchman replied that he had never seen God, knew nothing of Him, cared nothing for Him. His host remained silent, and resolved to seize the first opportunity afforded him of shewing to his guest the fallacy of his reasoning. So the next morning he conducted the doubter around his castle and grounds to see many beauties. Amongst other things he showed him some very beautiful pictures, which the visitor admired, and of which the prince said: “These are my son’s.” The garden had been chastely and magnificently laid out by his son. The cottages in the village, all neatly and substantially built, had been designed by his son. When the gentleman had seen all, he exclaimed: “What a happy man you must be to have such a son;” but the prince abruptly enquired how he knew that he had so good a son? “By his works,” was the response. “But you have not seen him.” “No; but I know him very well, because I judge of him by his works.” God’s works teach us:
“And every wild and hidden dell,
Where human footsteps never trod,
Is wafting songs of joy which tell
The praises of their Maker—God!
Creation Good! Gen_1:31. Did that goodness which Jehovah saw evidence itself in the joy of universal adoration? For after all, is there not joy in every aspect of Nature? Could Adam not see it; could Jehovah himself not see this joy of goodness in the purity of virgin morning, in the sombre grey of a day of clouds, in the solemn pomp and majesty of night? Was it not visible in the chaste lines of the crystal, the waving outlines of distant hills, the minute petals of the fringed daisy, or the overhanging form of Eden’s mysterious glades? Could Jehovah not say in even deeper grandeur, sense, and force, than Adam,
“What throbbings of deep joy
Pulsate through all I see; from the full bud
Whose unctuous sheath is glittering in the moon,
Up through the system of created things,
Even to the flaming ranks of seraphim.”—Alford.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On v28 A dispensation is a period of time during which…
DISPENSATION
A dispensation is a period of time during which man is tested in respect of obedience to some specific revelation of the will of God. Seven such dispensations are distinguished in Scripture. (See Scofield "Gen 1:28"), note 5.
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And God blessed them
The First Dispensation: Innocency. Man was created in innocency, placed in a perfect environment, subjected to an absolutely simple test, and warned of the consequence of disobedience. The woman fell through pride; the man deliberately. 1Ti 2:14 God restored His sinning creatures, but the dispensation of innocency ended in the judgment of the Expulsion Gen 3:24 See, for the other dispensations;
Conscience (See Scofield "Gen 3:23")
Human Government (See Scofield "Gen 8:21")
Promise (See Scofield "Gen 12:1")
Law (See Scofield "Exo 19:8")
Grace (See Scofield "Joh 1:17")
Kingdom (See Scofield "Eph 1:10")
Be fruitful
The Edenic Covenant, the first of the eight great covenants of Scripture which condition life and salvation, and about which all Scripture crystallizes, has seven elements. The man and woman in Eden were responsible:
(1) To replenish the earth with a new order--man;
(2) to subdue the earth to human uses;
(3) to have dominion over the animal creation;
(4) to eat herbs and fruits;
(5) to till and keep the garden;
(6) to abstain from eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil;
(7) the penalty--death. See, for the other seven covenants:
ADAMIC (See Scofield "Gen 3:14")
NOAHIC (See Scofield "Gen 9:1")
ABRAHAMIC (See Scofield "Gen 15:18")
MOSAIC (See Scofield "Exo 19:25")
PALESTINIAN (See Scofield "Deu 30:3")
DAVIDIC (See Scofield "2Sa 7:16")
NEW (See Scofield "Heb 8:8")
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v28 God blessed them
God blessed them
The word "them" refers to the man and woman God had created.
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Be fruitful, and multiply
God told the man and the woman to produce more people like themselves so that there would be many of them. The word "multiply" explains how they are to be "fruitful." See how you translated this in Genesis 1:22. (See: Doublet and Idiom)
Fill the earth
Fill the earth with people.
translationWords
God
bless
fruit
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv27–29 1:27 The first poetry of Genesis reflectively celebrates God’s…
1:27 The first poetry of Genesis reflectively celebrates God’s climactic feat in creating humankind. • human beings: This term (Hebrew ha-’adam, “the man”) is often used to denote humanity collectively (see 6:1, 5-7; 9:5-6). Though traditionally translated “man,” gender is not at issue here; both male and female are included.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.