Category Archives: Book Studies

Land Animals – The Sixth Day – Part 1

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God begins the sixth day by creating land animals.

Genesis 1:24-25  And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.  25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

The Hebrew word translated “creature” is nephesh.  It was first used in verse 20 in reference to animals living in the water.  Its basic meaning is “soul” or “life”.  It should be understood as a “living being”.  It is used of Adam in Genesis 2:7 after God breathed into him and brought him to life.  Continue reading →

Water Creatures and Flying Animals

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On the fifth day, God creates all those things which live in the water and all birds.

Genesis 1:20-23  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.  21 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.  22 And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.  23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

Notice that God does not say “fish” or “crustaceans” or anything specific.  He simply commands that the waters “bring forth abundantly the moving creature”.  The Hebrew verb translated “bring forth abundantly” is a cognate of the Hebrew word translated “moving creature”.  They both have to do with teeming or swarming.  Continue reading →

Sun, Moon, and Stars

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After creating light on day one, God now makes permanent sources of light for the Earth.

Genesis 1:14-19  And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:  15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.  16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.  17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,  18 And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.  19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

The main purpose of the lights would be to “divide the day from the night” (vs. 14).  This describes what our sun and moon do.  These are the “two great lights” in verse 15—one for the day and the other for the night.  We understand that the moon does not produce its own light but merely reflects the sun.  This does not affect the accuracy of the biblical text.  The moon still provides light at night regardless. Reflected light is still light.  No doubt our ancestors understood that the moon was reflecting light given the observable changes in it over the lunar cycle. Continue reading →

Grass, Herbs, and Plants

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Plant life is critical for the Earth, providing a source of energy for other lifeforms.  This was all part of God’s plan during the creation week.

Genesis 1:11-13  And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.  12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.  13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.

Continue reading →

Let There Be a Firmament

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After creating light on the first day, God focuses His attention on completing the Earth.

Genesis 1:6-8  And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.  7 And 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.  8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

The Hebrew word translated “firmament” means “expanse” or “spreading out”.  It refers to the space above the surface of the Earth, which is why it is also called “heaven” in this verse.  The Hebrews thought of it as being where the birds fly or the “first heaven”.  We would call it our atmosphere or sky.   Continue reading →