Genesis 1:9

Translations

Modern

And God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered into one place, so that the dry land may appear.” And it was so.

Traditional

And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.

Literal

And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land be seen.” And it was so.

Latin

Dixit vero Deus: Congregentur aquæ, quæ sub cælo sunt, in locum unum: et appareat arida. Et factum est ita.

Original

Hebrew

English

And God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered into one place, so that the dry land may appear.” And it was so.

Notes

Genesis 1:9–10

Let the waters … be gathered into one place: Other ancient cultures considered the sea to be a hostile force. Genesis shows God further controlling chaos by setting specific boundaries for the sea (see study note on 1:2). The flood was an act of God’s judgment (6:7). It removed these boundaries and returned the earth to chaos (7:1–24).

Genesis 1:3–13

In the first three days, God shaped the formless world into a place where people and animals could live.

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

2 Peter 3:5
But they deliberately overlook the fact that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water,
Jonah 1:9
“I am a Hebrew,” replied Jonah. “I worship the LORD, the God of the heavens, who made the sea and the dry land.”
Jeremiah 5:22
Do you not fear Me?” declares the LORD. “Do you not tremble before Me, the One who set the sand as the boundary for the sea, an enduring barrier it cannot cross? The waves surge, but they cannot prevail. They roar but cannot cross it.
Psalm 95:5
The sea is His, for He made it, and His hands formed the dry land.
Ecclesiastes 1:7
All the rivers flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full; to the place from which the streams come, there again they flow.
Psalm 33:7
He piles up the waters of the sea; He puts the depths into storehouses.
Proverbs 8:28–29
…when He established the clouds above, when the fountains of the deep gushed forth,
Psalm 104:5–9
He set the earth on its foundations, never to be moved.
Job 26:10
He has inscribed a horizon on the face of the waters at the boundary between light and darkness.
Job 38:8–11
Who enclosed the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb,
Psalm 24:1–2
A Psalm of David. The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof, the world and all who dwell therein.
Psalm 136:5–6
By His insight He made the heavens. His loving devotion endures forever.

Genesis 1:9

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