Genesis 1:20

Translations

Modern

And God said, “Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the sky.”

Traditional

And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.

Literal

And God said, “Let the waters swarm with a swarm of living souls, and let the bird fly above the earth, on the face of the firmament of the heavens.”

Latin

Dixit etiam Deus: Producant aquæ reptile animæ viventis, et volatile super terram sub firmamento cæli.

Original

Hebrew

English

And God said, “Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the sky.”

Notes

Genesis 1:14–31

On days four through six, God filled the domains that had been formed during days one through three (1:3–13).

Genesis 1:1–2:3

These verses introduce the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible). They teach Israel that one true God created, ordered, and populated the world, not the gods of nearby nations.
God blessed three specific things:
- animal life (1:22–25),
- human life (1:27), and
- the Sabbath day (2:3).
These three blessings emphasize the Creator's plan. God made humans in his image to rule in his place over earth's creatures and to join in God's Sabbath rest.

Theme notes and profiles

God’s New Covenant God’s Uniqueness God’s Word Symbolic Numbers The Creation The Creator-King The Word The World Women’s Roles in the New Testament Church

Events

Creation of all thingsc. 4004 BC

Related verses

Psalm 104:24–25
How many are Your works, O LORD! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures.
Genesis 2:19
And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and He brought them to the man to see what he would name each one. And whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.
1 Kings 4:33
He spoke of trees, from the cedar in Lebanon to the hyssop growing in the wall, and he taught about animals, birds, reptiles, and fish.
Psalm 148:10
…wild animals and all cattle, crawling creatures and flying birds,
Genesis 1:30
And to every beast of the earth and every bird of the air and every creature that crawls upon the earth—everything that has the breath of life in it—I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so.
Genesis 1:22
Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters of the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”
Genesis 1:7
So God made the expanse and separated the waters beneath it from the waters above. And it was so.
Genesis 8:17
Bring out all the living creatures that are with you—birds, livestock, and everything that crawls upon the ground—so that they can spread out over the earth and be fruitful and multiply upon it.”
Genesis 1:14
And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to distinguish between the day and the night, and let them be signs to mark the seasons and days and years.
Acts 17:25
Nor is He served by human hands, as if He needed anything, because He Himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.

Genesis 1:20

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