Genesis 1:22-23 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 1:22

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

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 1:23

And the evening and the morning were the fifth day. The sun now in the firmament, where it was fixed the day before, having gone round the earth, or the earth about that, in the space of twenty four hours; and according to Capellus this was the twenty second of April; or, as others, the fifth of September; and according to Bishop Usher the twenty seventh of October. 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 1:22

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

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 1:20-22

The mystery of life. I. ITS ORIGIN . 1. Not dead matter . Scripture, equally with science, represents life as having a physical basis; but, unlike modern evolutionists, never confounds vital force with the material mechanism in which it resides, and through which it operates. Advanced biologists account for life by molecular arrangement, chemical combination, spontaneous generation, or some such equally insufficient hypothesis. The rigorous necessities of truth and logic,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 1:20-23

The fifth day. I. LIVE UNDER THE BLESSING OF GOD . 1. Abundance . Swarming waters, swarming air? preparing for the swarming earth. "Be fruitful, and multiply." The absence of all restraint because as yet the absence of sin. God's law is liberty. The law of life is the primary law. If there be in man's world a contradiction between the multiplication of life and the happiness of life, it is a sign of departure from the original order. 2. Growth , improvement,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 1:23

And the evening and the morning were the fifth day. If of the previous creative days geological science has only doubtful traces, of this it bears irrefragable witness. When the first animal life was Introduced upon our globe may be said to be as yet sub judice . Principal Dawson inclines to claim for the gigantic foraminifer, eozoon canadense , of the Laurentian rocks, the honor of being one of the first aquatic creatures that swarmed in terrestrial waters, though Professor Huxley... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Genesis 1:20-23

- VII. The Fifth Day20. שׁרץ shārats, “crawl, teem, swarm, abound.” An intransitive verb, admitting, however, an objective noun of its own or a like signification.נפשׁ nephesh, “breath, soul, self.” This noun is derived from a root signifying to breathe. Its concrete meaning is, therefore, “that which breathes,” and consequently has a body, without which there can be no breathing; hence, “a breathing body,” and even a body that once had breath Numbers 6:6. As breath is the accompaniment and... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Genesis 1:22

Genesis 1:22. God blessed them Behold the cause of the continuance in existence, and of the fruitfulness and multiplication, of the sundry kinds of creatures! It is owing to this word only that, though thousands of years have rolled away since their creation, not one species of them, amid so many, has been lost. Hence the inclination in every creature to propagate its species, and hence the wonderful and tender care they take of their young, till they are able to provide for themselves! So... read more

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

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

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Genesis 1:23

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

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

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 1:20-22

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 1:20-23

The Pulpit Commentary - Genesis 1:23

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Genesis 1:20-23

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Genesis 1:22

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