Genesis 1:20

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 over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. 19And the evening and the morning were the fourth day. 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. 21And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his 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 in the earth.

Genesis 1:20 word by word

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱלֹהִ֔ים יִשְׁרְצ֣וּ הַמַּ֔יִם שֶׁ֖רֶץ נֶ֣פֶשׁ חַיָּ֑ה וְעוֹף֙ יְעוֹפֵ֣ף עַל־הָאָ֔רֶץ עַל־פְּנֵ֖י רְקִ֥יעַ הַשָּׁמָֽיִם׃Read the interlinear

• And Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Let the watersמַיmayim · waterH4325
• bring forth abundantlyשָׁרַץshârats · to swarmH8317
• the moving creatureשֶׁ֫רֶץsherets · swarmH8318
• that hathנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: animalH5315
• lifeחַיchay · aliveH2416
• and fowlעוֹף‛ôph · birdH5775
• may flyעוּף‛ûph · to flyH5774
• aboveעַל‛al · uponH5921
• the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• in the openפָּנֶהpânîym · face: surfaceH6440
• firmamentרָקִיעַrâqîya‛ · expanseH7549
• of heavenשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064

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 in the earth.
• Genesis 2:19And out of the ground Yhwh God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.
• Genesis 8:17Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with thee, of all flesh, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth.
• Psalms 104:24O Yhwh, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.
• Psalms 148:10Beasts, and all cattle; creeping things, and flying fowl:
• Acts 17:25Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;
• 1 Kings 4:33And he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall: he spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes.
• Genesis 1:30And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
• Ecclesiastes 2:21For there is a man whose labour is in wisdom, and in knowledge, and in equity; yet to a man that hath not laboured therein shall he leave it for his portion. This also is vanity and a great evil.
• Genesis 1:7And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: 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

• Birds
• Firmament
• Fish
• God

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Above
• Appear
• Beginning
• Call
• Create
• Darkness
• Divide
• Earth

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