Genesis 1:21

Genesis 1:21 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And 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.
• New International Version (NIV)So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
• English Standard Version (ESV)So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
• New King James Version (NKJV)So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

Context of Genesis 1:21

19And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day. 20And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and let fowl fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. And God created the great sea-monsters, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kinds, 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 in the earth. 23And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.

Genesis 1:21 word by word

וַיִּבְרָ֣א אֱלֹהִ֔ים אֶת־הַתַּנִּינִ֖ם הַגְּדֹלִ֑ים וְאֵ֣ת כָּל־נֶ֣פֶשׁ הַֽחַיָּ֣ה׀ הָֽרֹמֶ֡שֶׂת אֲשֶׁר֩ שָׁרְצ֨וּ הַמַּ֜יִם לְמִֽינֵהֶ֗ם וְאֵ֨ת כָּל־ע֤וֹף כָּנָף֙ לְמִינֵ֔הוּ וַיַּ֥רְא אֱלֹהִ֖ים כִּי־טֽוֹב׃Read the interlinear

• Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• createdבָּרָאbârâ' · to createH1254
• greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
• everyכֹּלkôl kôl · allH3605
• livingחַיchay · aliveH2416
• creatureנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: animalH5315
• whichאֲשֶׁר'ăsher · whichH834
• watersמַיmayim · waterH4325
• abundantlyשָׁרַץshârats · to swarmH8317
• afterכִּיkîy · forH3588
• kindsמִיןmîyn · kindH4327
• wingedכָּנָףkânâph · wingH3671
• fowlעוֹף‛ôph · birdH5775
• sawרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• goodטוֹבţôb · pleasantH2896

Cross-references for Genesis 1:21

• Genesis 6:20Of the fowl after their kind, and of the cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive.
• Genesis 7:14they, and every beast after its kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after its kind, and every fowl after its kind, every bird of every sort.
• Genesis 8:19every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, whatsoever moveth upon the earth, after their families, went forth out of the ark.
• Job 7:12Am I a sea, or a sea-monster, that thou settest a watch over me?
• Job 26:5They that are deceased tremble beneath the waters and the inhabitants thereof.
• Psalms 104:24O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.
• Ezekiel 32:2Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him, Thou wast likened unto a young lion of the nations: yet art thou as a dragon in the seas; and thou brakest forth with thy rivers, and troubledst the waters with thy feet, and fouledst their rivers.
• Jonah 1:17And the LORD prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
• Jonah 2:10And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.
• Matthew 12:40for as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
• Genesis 8:17Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with thee of all flesh, both fowl, and cattle, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth.
• Genesis 9:7And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein.
• Exodus 1:7And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.
• Exodus 8:3and the river shall swarm with frogs, which shall go up and come into thine house, and into thy bedchamber, and upon thy bed, and into the house of thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thine ovens, and into thy kneadingtroughs:
• Genesis 1:18and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.

Commentaries on Genesis 1:21

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21And God created great whales - הגדלים התנינם hattanninim haggedolim . Though this is generally understood by the different versions as signifying whales, yet the original must be understood rather as a general than a particular term, comprising all the great aquatic animals, such as the various species of whales, the porpoise, the dolphin, the monoceros or narwal, and the shark. God delights to show himself in little as well as in great things: hence he…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. 21Unlike pagan beliefs that the great sea creatures existed from the beginning along with God, the Bible teaches that God created them. God has complete power and authority over them. The Hebrew word tanninim (“sea creatures”) can also refer to: crocodiles (Ezekiel 29:3), powerful monsters (Jeremiah 51:34), or the sea creature Leviathan (Isaiah 27:1; compare Job 41:1–34).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 1:21

• Birds
• Dragon
• Fish
• God
• Propagation
• Whale

In the dictionaries

• God
• Living Creature
• Appear
• Beginning
• Call
• Create
• Darkness
• Divide
• Dragon
• 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