Genesis 1:20-22 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Genesis 1:20-23

Each day, hitherto, has produced very noble and excellent beings, which we can never sufficiently admire; but we do not read of the creation of any living creature till the fifth day, of which these verses give us an account. The work of creation not only proceeded gradually from one thing to another, but rose and advanced gradually from that which was less excellent to that which was more so, teaching us to press towards perfection and endeavour that our last works may be our best works. It... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 1:20

And God said, let the waters bring forth abundantly ,.... The waters gathered together in one place, the waters of the ocean, and those in rivers, pools and lakes, and which, before their collection into those places, had been sat on, moved, and impregnated by the Spirit of God; so that they could, as they did, by the divine order accompanied with his power, bring forth abundance of creatures, next mentioned: the moving creature that hath life : an animal life, of which sort of creatures... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 1:21

And God created great whales ,.... Which the Targums of Jonathan and Jarchi interpret of the Leviathan and its mate, concerning which the Jews have many fabulous things: large fishes are undoubtedly meant, and the whale being of the largest sort, the word is so rendered. Aelianus, from various writers, relates many things of the extraordinary size of whales; of one in the Indian sea five times bigger than the largest elephant, one of its ribs being twenty cubits F18 Hist. Animal. l. 16.... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 1:22

And God blessed them ,.... With a power to procreate their kind, and continue their species, as it is interpreted in the next clause, saying, be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas : and these creatures do multiply exceedingly, and vast quantities there are of them in the mighty waters, though the consumption of some sorts of them is very great. Our English word "fish" is derived from the Hebrew word פוש , "fush", which signifies to multiply and increase: and let... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:20

Let the waters bring forth abundantly - There is a meaning in these words which is seldom noticed. Innumerable millions of animalcula are found in water. Eminent naturalists have discovered not less than 30,000 in a single drop! How inconceivably small must each be, and yet each a perfect animal, furnished with the whole apparatus of bones, muscles, nerves, heart, arteries, veins, lungs, viscera in general, animal spirits, etc., etc. What a proof is this of the manifold wisdom of God! But... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:21

And God created great whales - הגדלים התנינם hattanninim haggedolim . Though this is generally understood by the different versions as signifying whales, yet the original must be understood rather as a general than a particular term, comprising all the great aquatic animals, such as the various species of whales, the porpoise, the dolphin, the monoceros or narwal, and the shark. God delights to show himself in little as well as in great things: hence he forms animals so minute that... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:22

Let fowl multiply in the earth - It is truly astonishing with what care, wisdom, and minute skill God has formed the different genera and species of birds, whether intended to live chiefly on land or in water. The structure of a single feather affords a world of wonders; and as God made the fowls that they might fly in the firmament of heaven, Genesis 1:20 , so he has adapted the form of their bodies, and the structure and disposition of their plumage, for that very purpose. The head and... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:20

Verse 20 20.Let the waters bring forth... the moving creature (74) On the fifth day the birds and fishes are created. The blessing of God is added, that they may of themselves produce offspring. Here is a different kind of propagation from that in herbs and trees: for there the power of fructifying is in the plants, and that of germinating is in the seed; but here generation takes place. It seems, however, but little consonant with reason, that he declares birds to have proceeded from the... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:21

Verse 21 21.And God created A question here arises out of the word created. For we have before contended, that because the world was created, it was made out of nothing; but now Moses says that things formed from other matter were created. They who truly and properly assert that the fishes were created because the waters were in no way sufficient or suitable for their production, only resort to a subterfuge: for, in the meantime, the fact would remain that the material of which they were made... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:22

Verse 22 22.And God blessed them What is the force of this benediction he soon declares. For God does not, after the manner of men, pray that we may be blessed; but, by the bare intimation of his purpose, effects what men seek by earnest entreaty. He therefore blesses his creatures when he commands them to increase and grow; that is, he infuses into them fecundity by his word. But it seems futile for God to address fishes and reptiles. I answer, this mode of speaking was no other than that... read more

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Genesis 1:20-23

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 1:20

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 1:21

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 1:22

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:20

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:21

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:22

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:20

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:21

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Genesis 1:22

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