Darby Bible
Genesis 1:20
20And 1God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living souls, and let fowl fly above the earth in the expanse of the heavens.
Genesis 1:20 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)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.
- New International Version (NIV)And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And God said, "Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens."
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then God said, “Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the face of the firmament of the heavens.”
Context of Genesis 1:20
18and to rule during the day and during the night, and to divide between the light and the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19And there was evening, and there was morning — a fourth day. And God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living souls, and let fowl fly above the earth in the expanse of the heavens. 21And God created the great sea monsters, and every living soul that moves with which the waters swarm, after their kind, and every winged fowl after its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply on the earth.
Read all of Genesis 1Genesis 1:20 word by word
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱלֹהִ֔ים יִשְׁרְצ֣וּ הַמַּ֔יִם שֶׁ֖רֶץ נֶ֣פֶשׁ חַיָּ֑ה וְעוֹף֙ יְעוֹפֵ֣ף עַל־הָאָ֔רֶץ עַל־פְּנֵ֖י רְקִ֥יעַ הַשָּׁמָֽיִם׃Read the interlinear
Cross-references for Genesis 1:20
- Genesis 1:22And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply on the earth.
- Genesis 2:19And out of the ground Jehovah Elohim had formed every animal of the field and all fowl of the heavens, and brought [them] to Man, to see what he would call them; and whatever Man called each living soul, that was its name.
- Genesis 8:17Bring forth with thee every animal which is with thee, of all flesh, fowl as well as cattle, and all the creeping things which creep on the earth, that they may swarm on the earth, and may be fruitful and multiply on the earth.
- Psalms 104:24How manifold are thy works, O Jehovah! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.
- Psalms 148:10Beasts and all cattle, creeping things and winged fowl;
- Acts 17:25nor is served by men's hands as needing something, himself giving to all life and breath and all things;
- 1 Kings 4:33And he spoke of the trees, from the cedar-tree that is on Lebanon even to the hyssop that springs out of the wall; he spoke also of cattle, and of fowls, and of creeping things, and of fishes.
- Genesis 1:30and to every animal of the earth, and to every fowl of the heavens, and to everything that creepeth on the earth, in which is a living soul, every green herb for food. And it was so.
- Ecclesiastes 2:21For there is a man whose labour hath been with wisdom, and with knowledge, and with skill, and who leaveth it to a man that hath not laboured therein, to be his portion. This also is vanity and a great evil.
- Genesis 1:7And God made the expanse, and divided between the waters that are under the expanse and the waters that are above the expanse; and it was so.
Commentaries on Genesis 1:20
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20Let 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…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20-23Verses 20-23 - VII. The Fifth Day 20. 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…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 20-25Verses 20-25 God commanded the fish and fowl to be produced. This command he himself executed. Insects, which are more numerous than the birds and beasts, and as curious, seem to have been part of this day's work. The Creator's wisdom and power are to be admired as much in an ant as in an elephant. The power of God's providence preserves all things, and fruitfulness is the effect of his blessing.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14-31On days four through six, God filled the domains that had been formed during days one through three (1:3–13).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 20-2320. moving creature--all oviparous animals, both among the finny and the feathery tribes--remarkable for their rapid and prodigious increase. fowl--means every flying thing: The word rendered "whales," includes also sharks, crocodiles, &c.; so that from the countless shoals of small fish to the great sea monsters, from the tiny insect to the king of birds, the waters and the air were suddenly made to swarm with creatures formed to live and sport in their…Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 1:20
In the dictionaries
Notes
- 1. Genesis 1:20 1.20 Elohim ↩
Commentaries on Genesis 1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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Commentaries