EasyEnglish Bible 2018
Genesis 1:22
22God blessed the animals and the birds. He said to them, ‘Give birth to many young ones, so that you grow in number. Fill all the water in the seas. The birds also should become very many, all across the earth.’
Genesis 1:22 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.
- New International Version (NIV)God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And God blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth."
- New King James Version (NKJV)And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”
Context of Genesis 1:22
20God said, ‘The waters will become full with many living things. Birds will appear and fly above the earth, all across the sky.’ 21God made big animals to live in the sea. He made every different kind of living thing that filled the sea. He made every different kind of bird to fly in the sky. God looked at what he had made. He saw that it was good. God blessed the animals and the birds. He said to them, ‘Give birth to many young ones, so that you grow in number. Fill all the water in the seas. The birds also should become very many, all across the earth.’ 23Evening passed and then it was morning. That was the fifth day. 24God said, ‘Different kinds of animals will now appear on the land. There will be farm animals and wild animals. There will also be other small animals that move along the ground. There will be many kinds of animals and each kind will be different.’ And what God said happened.
Read all of Genesis 1Genesis 1:22 word by word
וַיְבָ֧רֶךְ אֹתָ֛ם אֱלֹהִ֖ים לֵאמֹ֑ר פְּר֣וּ וּרְב֗וּ וּמִלְא֤וּ אֶת־הַמַּ֙יִם֙ בַּיַּמִּ֔ים וְהָע֖וֹף יִ֥רֶב בָּאָֽרֶץ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- blessedבָּרַךְbârak · to blessH1288
- them, sayingאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Be fruitfulפָּרָהpârâh · be fruitfulH6509
- and multiplyרָבָהrâbâh · to multiplyH7235
- and fillמָלֵאmâlê' mâlâ' · to fillH4390
- the watersמַיmayim · waterH4325
- in the seasיָםyâm · seaH3220
- and let fowlעוֹף‛ôph · birdH5775
- in the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
Cross-references for Genesis 1:22
- Genesis 1:28God blessed them. He said to them, ‘Give birth to children. Grow in number. Fill the earth and rule over it. Rule over the fish in the sea. Rule over the birds in the sky. Rule over every different kind of living animal that moves along the ground.’
- Genesis 8:17Bring every different kind of living animal out of the ship. Bring out the birds, the animals, and the living things that move across the ground. Now they may give birth to young ones again. They can grow in number all over the earth.’
- Genesis 9:1God blessed Noah and his sons. He said to them, ‘Give birth to many children so that you become very many people. Your descendants will live all over the earth.
- Genesis 30:27Laban said to Jacob, ‘If you are happy with me then please stay here. I know that the Lord has blessed me because you are here with me. I have used magic to know that.’
- Genesis 35:11Then God said to him, ‘I am Almighty God. Give birth to many children so that your descendants become very many. They will become many nations and some of them will be kings.
- Leviticus 26:9I will do good things for your people and I will give many children to them. Their number will grow. I will do everything that I have promised to do for them.
- Job 40:15Listen! I created the monsters called Behemoth. I made you and I made them too. They eat grass, as cows do.
- Job 42:12After this, the Lord blessed Job more than in the beginning of his life. All these animals belonged to Job: 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 pairs of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys.
- Psalms 107:31So they should thank the Lord because of his faithful love. They should thank him for the great things that he does for people.
- Psalms 128:3Your wife will be like a vine that grows in your home, and it gives many grapes. Your children will sit around your table, like the branches of an olive tree that are around you.
- Psalms 144:13May our homes have plenty of different kinds of food. May our sheep have thousands of lambs, so that there is no space in our fields.
- Proverbs 10:22If the Lord blesses you, you are really rich. Hard work will not make you any richer.
Commentaries on Genesis 1:22
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 22Let 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…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. 22God blessed them: This blessing orders and enables them to do what God has said (see “Blessing” Theme Note). fill the waters of the seas … let the birds multiply on the earth: These instructions explain the blessing. The fish and birds can reproduce because of God's command. It is not through pagan ceremonies, as some of Israel’s neighbors believed.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 1:22
In the dictionaries
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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