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Genesis 1

Genesis 1 presents God as the sovereign Creator who makes a good world and appoints humans to rule under him.

God creates the heavens and the earth, beginning with an earth described as formless and empty, with darkness over the deep. Across six days, God speaks, separates, and fills the world with life. Light and sky appear; land produces plants; the waters and earth receive living creatures. God then creates humans, male and female, in his image, blesses them, and addresses them with commands concerning the earth. The account closes with God declaring everything he has made very good.

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1In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
2The earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep and God’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.
3God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
4God saw the light, and saw that it was good. God divided the light from the darkness.
5God called the light “day”, and the darkness he called “night”. There was evening and there was morning, the first day.
6God said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”
7God made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so.
8God called the expanse “sky”. There was evening and there was morning, a second day.
9God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear;” and it was so.
10God called the dry land “earth”, and the gathering together of the waters he called “seas”. God saw that it was good.
11God said, “Let the earth yield grass, herbs yielding seeds, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with their seeds in it, on the earth;” and it was so.
12The earth yielded grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with their seeds in it, after their kind; and God saw that it was good.
13There was evening and there was morning, a third day.
14God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs to mark seasons, days, and years;
16God made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars.
17God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light to the earth,
18and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. God saw that it was good.
19There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
20God said, “Let the waters abound with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the sky.”
21God created the large sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. God saw that it was good.
22God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”
23There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.
24God said, “Let the earth produce living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind;” and it was so.
25God made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. God saw that it was good.
26God said, “Let’s make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27God created man in his own image. In God’s image he created him; male and female he created them.
28God blessed them. God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
30To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food;” and it was so.
31God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
Genesis 1:1The opening sentence identifies God as the Creator of the whole realm that the following days describe.
Genesis 1:26God distinguishes humans as bearers of his image and links their identity to authority over other creatures.
Genesis 1:28God’s blessing accompanies the human task of multiplying, filling the earth, and exercising dominion over its living creatures.
Where this chapter reaches

Psalm, Job, and Isaiah share Genesis 1’s portrayal of God as Creator, with authority over the heavens, seas, and living creatures. John and Colossians connect creation with the divine Word and the Son, identifying him as the one through whom all things came into being.

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Notice

After reading the whole chapter

What do you notice about the world God calls good before humans appear?

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How might bearing God’s image shape the way you understand your responsibility toward other creatures?

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Questions people ask about Genesis 1

Why does God use plural language in Genesis 1:26?

God speaks in the plural when announcing the creation of humankind, while verse 27 describes God creating in the singular. Interpretations include speech within the Trinity or an address to a heavenly court. Christians affirm the triune Creator, though Genesis 1 does not explain the plural or identify an audience for it.

What does being made in God’s image mean in Genesis 1?

Genesis 1 connects God’s image with humanity’s place and task within creation. Both male and female bear that image, and God grants them dominion over other creatures. The chapter does not define every aspect of the image; it establishes a shared human identity and an authority received from God.

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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).