Genesis 1:26

Genesis 1:26

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

a. NLT: Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” [Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.]

 b. ASV: And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. [Thomas Nelson & Sons first published the American Standard Version in 1901. This translation of the Bible is in the public domain.]

c. YLT: And God saith, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness, and let them rule over fish of the sea, and over fowl of the heavens, and over cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that is creeping on the earth.' [The Young's Literal Translation was translated by Robert Young, who believed in a strictly literal translation of God's word. This version of the Bible is in the public domain.]

d. Amplified Bible: God said, Let Us [Father, Son, and Holy Spirit] make mankind in Our image, after Our likeness, and let them have complete authority over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the [tame] beasts, and over all of the earth, and over everything that creeps upon the earth. [Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC) Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation]

e. Septuagint: And God said, Let us make man according to our image and likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the flying creatures of heaven, and over the cattle and all the earth, and over all the reptiles that creep on the earth.

f. Stone Edition Torah/Writings/Prophets: And God said, “Let us make man In Our image, after our likness. They shall rule over the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and over the animal, the whole earth, and every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth. [The Artscroll Series/Stone Edition, THE TANACH--STUDENT SIZE EDITION Copyright 1996, 1998 by Mesorah Publications, Ldt.]

1. “And God said, Let us make man in our image…”

a. [And] God [Strong: 430 'elohiym el-o-heem' plural of 433; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative:--angels, X exceeding, God (gods)(-dess, -ly), X (very) great, judges, X mighty.]

b. said [Strong: 559 'amar aw-mar' a primitive root; to say (used with great latitude):--answer, appoint, avouch, bid, boast self, call, certify, challenge, charge, + (at the, give) command(-ment), commune, consider, declare, demand, X desire, determine, X expressly, X indeed, X intend, name, X plainly, promise, publish, report, require, say, speak (against, of), X still, X suppose, talk, tell, term, X that is, X think, use (speech), utter, X verily, X yet.]

c. [Let us] make [Strong: 6213 `asah aw-saw' a primitive root; to do or make, in the broadest sense and widest application (as follows):--accomplish, advance, appoint, apt, be at, become, bear, bestow, bring forth, bruise, be busy, X certainly, have the charge of, commit, deal (with), deck, + displease, do, (ready) dress(-ed), (put in) execute(-ion), exercise, fashion, + feast, (fight-)ing man, + finish, fit, fly, follow, fulfill, furnish, gather, get, go about, govern, grant, great, + hinder, hold ((a feast)), X indeed, + be industrious, + journey, keep, labour, maintain, make, be meet, observe, be occupied, offer, + officer, pare, bring (come) to pass, perform, pracise, prepare, procure, provide, put, requite, X sacrifice, serve, set, shew, X sin, spend, X surely, take, X thoroughly, trim, X very, + vex, be (warr-)ior, work(-man), yield, use.]

d. man [Strong: 120 'adam aw-dawm' from 119; ruddy i.e. a human being (an individual or the species, mankind, etc.):--X another, + hypocrite, + common sort, X low, man (mean, of low degree), person.]

1). Man was created in the likeness and image of God. God is a spirit.

a). John 4:24 God is a spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

2). Since God is a spirit and man was created in the image and likeness of God, then man must be a spirit. Man as a total whole is a triune being.

a). Thessalonians 5:23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

(1) The spirit is the real man: 1 Corinthians 14:14.

(2) The soul includes the intellect, the personality and the seat of our emotions.

(3) The body is the house we live in: 2 Corinthians 5:1.

3). Man was created from the dust of the ground.

a). Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

b). Amplified Bible Genesis 2:7 Note: The same essential chemical elements are found in man and animal life that are in the soil. This scientific fact was not known until recent times, but God was displaying it here.

4). Man was created with an intellect that would enable him to name all the animal creation: and to rule the universe.

a). Genesis 2:19, 20  And out of the ground the LORD 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.

2:20 And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.

b). Genesis 1:28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

c). Psalm 8:3-9 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;

8:4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that thou visitest him?

8:5 For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.

8:6 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:

8:7 All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;

8:8 The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.

8:9 O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

5). Man was created with a free will with the power of choice.

a). Genesis 2:16, 17 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:

2:17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest therof thou shalt surely die.

e. [in our] image [Strong: 6754 tselem tseh'-lem from an unused root meaning to shade; a phantom, i.e. (figuratively) illusion, resemblance; hence, a representative figure, especially an idol:--image, vain shew.]

2. “…after our likeness…

a. [after our] likeness [Strong: 1823 dmuwth dem-ooth' from 1819; resemblance; concretely, model, shape; adverbially, like:--fashion, like (-ness, as), manner, similitude.]

1). God is a spirit, but he is a triune God, consisting of three persons. The Triune Godhead is shown at least four times in Genesis alone, the above verse and the following three.

a). Genesis 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of US, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:

b). Genesis 11:6, 7 And the LORD said, Behold the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let US go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.

c). Genesis 19:24 Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven;

3. “…and let them have dominion…”

a. [and let them have] dominion [Strong: 7287 radah raw-daw' a primitive root; to tread down, i.e. subjugate; specifically, to crumble off:--(come to, make to) have dominion, prevail against, reign, (bear, make to) rule,(-r, over), take.] [AMG, Complete Word Study Dictionary Old Testament: A verb meaning to rule, to have dominion, to subjugate…Theologically significant is the use of this word to identify people’s God-ordained relationship to the created world around them.] [Gesenius: to rule, have dominion, dominate, tread down, to have dominion, rule, subjugate, to cause to dominate, to scrape out, to scrape, scrape out.]

1). E.W.Kenyon: God conferred upon man the authority to rule the universe. This dominion was the most sacred heritage God could give to man.

2). Answers in Genesis: Within the context of the Creation, and then the subsequent fall, one finds it quite moving at the lexical range of râdâh. Adam had dominion and rule over creation and within this reign and rule he had the ability to sustain the good creation through obedience. But equally so, Adam had the power to make the good creation crumble and suffer if he was disobedient to the command to not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. For those who understand the biblical narrative, and what self-imposed trauma soon followed in Adam’s life, the ability to have a dominion, and then to utterly crumble all under his dominion is a sobering reality. It is also a poignant reminder of the position and power handed to man from the Creator at the very beginning. It is from these exalted beginnings in the good creation that the dominion mandate has been fashioned and formed by theologians to demonstrate the importance and place of man.

3). Don Costello: Included in the dominion were the principles of sovereignty and authority. Although these sacred responsibilities became corrupted at the fall, they did not cease. Which is why when we see in human history and today, wicked men rise up to do the most horrible things to their fellow man and God does not jump in and say “OK Time out! Stop. I’m not going to allow you to do these things.” He allows it because it is part of the dominion mandate. It seems that God, because of the true extent of the dominion takes a, seemingly hands off approach even allowing the fall of man and the horrible suffering that occurs as collateral damage. Yes eventually everyone will answer to God for their deeds, but it will not be until the Great White Throne Judgment until true justice will be fully meted out.    

4). Blue Letter Bible  lists this word 27 times in the Old Testament We only have to look at the uses in Scripture to say with confidence that it includes human government, along with sovereignty and authority.

a). 1 Kings 4:21-24 And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the river unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of Egypt: they brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his life.

4:22 And Solomon's provision for one day was thirty measures of fine flour, and threescore measures of meal,

4:23 Ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pastures, and an hundred sheep, beside harts, and roebucks, and fallow deer, and fatted fowl.

4:24 For he had dominion over all the region on this side the river, from Tiphsah even to Azzah, over all the kings on this side the river: and he had peace on all sides round about him.

5). It included the ability to develop and build cities and rule them.

a). Genesis 4:16, 17 And Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.

4:17 And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.

b). Genesis 10:8-12 And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth.

10:9 He was a mighty hunter before the Lord: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord.

10:10 And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.

10:11 Out of that land went forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah,

10:12 And Resen between Nineveh and Calah: the same is a great city.

6). The Genesis Record, Henry M. Morris, pp.76, 77: “In addition to the command for procreation (and Genesis 2 makes it plain that this was to be within the frame work of monogamous marriage), God instructed man to “subdue” the earth, and to “have dominion over…every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” These are military terms, first to conquer, and then rule. In context, however, there is no actual conflict suggested, since everything God had made was pronounced “good.” The “cultural mandate” as some have called it, is clearly a very expressive figure of speech for, first, intense study of the earth (with all its intricate processes and complex systems) and, then, utilization of this knowledge for the benefit of the earth’s inhabitants, both animal and human. Here is the primeval commission to man authorizing both science and technology as man’s basic enterprises relative to the earth. “Science” is man’s disciplined study and understanding of the phenomena of this world. “Technology” is the implementation of this knowledge in the effective ordering and development of the earth and its resources, for the greater good of all earth’s inhabitants (including such fields of human service as engineering, agriculture, medicine, and a host of other practical technologies). This two fold commission to conquer and rule, embraces all productive human activities. Science and technology, research and development, theory and application, study and practice, and so forth, are various ways of expressing these two concepts.”

7). Institute Of Creation Research Daily Devotional 9/10/2010, Henry M. Morris III: “The commission to rule over earth was never withdrawn from mankind by the Creator. That "Dominion Mandate" implies authorization for the following human enterprises: Discovery of truth--science, research, exploration.  Application of truth--agriculture, engineering, medicine, technology, etc. Implementation of truth--commerce, transportation, government, etc.  Interpretation of truth--fine arts, literature, theology.

 Transmission of truth--education, communication, homemaking.”

8). Institute Of Creation Research Daily Devotional 9/9/2010 Henry M. Morris III: “Since there were no instructions about the functioning systems of earth, Adam had to first learn about the earth's systems and processes (science) and then organize and utilize the discoveries in productive ways to help others and honor the Creator (technology). The information about those practical inventions and products of technology had to then be accurately disseminated to everyone through business, education, communication, transportation, etc.”

 4. “…over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”

a. [over the] fish [Strong: 1710 dagah daw-gaw' feminine of 1719, and meaning the same:--fish.]

b. [of the] sea [Strong: 3220 yam yawm from an unused root meaning to roar; a sea (as breaking in noisy surf) or large body of water; specifically (with the article), the Mediterranean Sea; sometimes a large river, or an artificial basin; locally, the west, or (rarely) the south:--sea (X -faring man, (-shore)), south, west (-ern, side, -ward).]

c. [and over the] fowl [Strong: 5775 `owph ofe from 5774; a bird (as covered with feathers, or rather as covering with wings), often collectively:--bird, that flieth, flying, fowl.]

d. [of the] air [Strong: 8064 shamayim shaw-mah'-yim dual of an unused singular shameh {shaw-meh'}; from an unused root meaning to be lofty; the sky (as aloft; the dual perhaps alluding to the visible arch in which the clouds move, as well as to the higher ether where the celestial bodies revolve):--air, X astrologer, heaven(-s).]

e. [over the] cattle [Strong: 929 bhemah be-hay-maw' from an unused root (probably meaning to be mute); properly, a dumb beast; especially any large quadruped or animal (often collective):--beast, cattle.]

f. [over] all [Strong:  3605 kol kole or (Jer. 33:8) kowl {kole}; from 3634; properly, the whole; hence, all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a plural sense):--(in) all (manner, (ye)), altogether, any (manner), enough, every (one, place, thing), howsoever, as many as, (no-)thing, ought, whatsoever, (the) whole, whoso(-ever).]

g. [the] earth [Strong: 776 'erets eh'-rets from an unused root probably meaning to be firm; the earth (at large, or partitively a land):--X common, country, earth, field, ground, land, X natins, way, + wilderness, world.]

h. [and over] every [Strong:  3605 kol kole or (Jer. 33:8) kowl {kole}; from 3634; properly, the whole; hence, all, any or every (in the singular only, but often in a plural sense):--(in) all (manner, (ye)), altogether, any (manner), enough, every (one, place, thing), howsoever, as many as, (no-)thing, ought, whatsoever, (the) whole, whoso(-ever).]

i. creeping thing [Strong: 7431 remes reh'-mes from 7430; a reptile or any other rapidly moving animal:--that creepeth, creeping (moving) thing.] 

j. [that] creepeth [Strong: 7430 ramas raw-mas': a primitive root; properly, to glide swiftly, i.e. to crawl or move with short steps; by analogy to swarm:--creep, move.]

h. [upon the] earth  [Strong: 776 'erets eh'-rets from an unused root probably meaning to be firm; the earth (at large, or partitively a land):--X common, country, earth, field, ground, land, X natins, way, + wilderness, world.]

1). Psalm 8 speaks of the dominion given to man that if looked at closely reveals the eventual dominion over the whole universe.

a). ). Psalm 8:3-9 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;

8:4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

8:5 For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.

8:6 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:

8:7 All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;

8:8 The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.

8:9 O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

2). God originally planned for mankind to rule the earth and eventually the universe under God’s loving and merciful rule. Sin caused a temporary delay in that plan. The death and resurrection of Christ put the plan back on schedule. Glory to God, the best is yet to come.