Genesis 1-2 What You See God Created! Session 1: Day 1
By Ron Jones ©Titus Institute 2018
Scripture quotations are from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), ©2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved."
Introduction:
We are beginning a four-week series on Genesis and Creation. We are going to be looking at God's revelation concerning the origins of everything that we see in our universe.
God was very concerned that we understand exactly how the world began, civilization began, our whole human society began and his central role in creating it and setting up its structure as a loving God for the blessing of the human beings he created out of his love.
<Day 6 The Creation of Animals and Man to Inhabit the Earth Genesis 1:24-31
This final day of the creation week is the most significant of the six days. Moses gives it more space and detail than the previous five. As on the third day, there are two creative acts on the final day of the second grouping: land animals (vv. 24-25) and human life (vv. 26-28). The habitat of dry ground and vegetation were created on the third day, and this sixth day God creates the inhabitants, animals and man.
Genesis 1:24-25 24 And God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds - livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds." And it was so. 25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind.
v. 24 And God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures."
As God does when he creates vegetation, God commands the earth to bring forth the land creatures. God uses the same defining phrase, "living creatures" for the animals he creates as for the sea creatures. Thus, he separates them along with the sea creatures from plants.
v. 24 living creatures according to their kinds - livestock...and beasts of the earth
The "living creatures according to their kinds" is a general statement. Then Moses describes three categories of these "living creatures." The Hebrew word (behemah) translated "livestock" in v.24 and the Hebrew word (chayah) translated "beasts" can be used as general words for animals when they occur alone without the other. However, when the two words are used together, one (behemah) means livestock, cattle (cows and oxen in particular) and the other (chayah) means animals other than livestock.
v.24 creeping things The Hebrew word (remes) means "moving animal," i.e. ones that crawl on the ground.
v. 24 according to their kinds
Again, God sets parameters on the reproduction of these living creatures.
v.25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind.
Why does God emphasize this division of plants and now animals into kinds? He does so because this is what we see in plants and animals even today. It is evidence of God at work in creation. It is vidence of his wisdom and power. Notice, too, as in the other days, God commands and then creates repeating what he is creating. This is for emphasis of God's ability to create by his word and power.
v.25 And God saw that it was good.
God saw that his creation of the animal kingdom was good and beneficial for all his creation and especially for man.
