IN THE BEGINNING PART 6

Introduction

On day 1, the Lord created light. On Day 4, He filled the sky with light givers. On day 2, He created the seas and heavens. On day 5, He filled the seas and heavens. On day 3, He created dry land and plants. On day 6, He created man and animals to fill the earth and eat from the plants.

Let the Waters Swarm

Psalm 104:24-25 “O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. Here is the sea, great and wide, which teems with creatures innumerable, living things both small and great.”

An estimated 50-80% of all life on earth is found under the ocean surface and the oceans contain 99% of the living space on the planet. Less than 10% of that space has been explored by humans. 85% of the area and 90% of the volume constitute the dark, cold environment we call the deep sea. The average depth of the ocean is 12,450 feet. The average height of the land is 2755 feet.

According to World Register of Marine Species there are currently at least 236,878 named marine species (1/25/2021), but there are most likely at least 750,000 marine species and possibly as many as 25 million marine species.

Matthew 17:27 “However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for me and for yourself.””

Some deep water fish experience pressure that is 8,000 pounds per square inch. That would be like having 1600 elephants standing on you head. We have about 14.7 pounds per square inch.

Swordfish and marlin are the fastest fish in the ocean reaching speeds up to 75 mph in quick bursts; bluefin tuna may reach sustained speeds up to 55 mph.

The Great Sea Creatures

In the North Atlantic and North Pacific, blue whales can grow up to about 90 feet and are over 100,000 pounds, but in the Antarctic, they can reach up to about 110 feet and weigh more than 330,000 pounds.

Jonah 1:17 “And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.”

Jonah 2:10 “And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.”

Job 41:1-5 ““Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook or press down his tongue with a cord? Can you put a rope in his nose or pierce his jaw with a hook? Will he make many pleas to you? Will he speak to you soft words? Will he make a covenant with you to take him for your servant forever? Will you play with him as with a bird, or will you put him on a leash for your girls?”

Let Birds Fly Across the Expanse

Psalm 50:10-11 “For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine.”

It is estimated that there are between 9,000 and 18,000 different species of birds. Research from 2021 estimates there are between 50 billion and 430 billion birds on Earth.

The Peregrine Falcon can reach speeds up to 240 miles per hour. The Saker Falcon and the Golden Eagle can both reach 200 miles per hour. While several other birds can exceed their speed over short bursts, the gyrfalcon can average about 50 to 68 mph over remarkably long distances without slowing or stopping, which few other species can do.

Harpy Eagles typically weigh between 8-20 pounds. They have been known to be able to lift 40 pounds, which would include sloths and monkeys. The African Crowned Eagle has talons that are so strong they are able to crush the skulls of monkeys.

Golden eagles sometimes attack large mammals; deer and pronghorns of all ages have been observed being attacked or killed by eagles. Records also exist of bighorn sheep, coyotes, bobcats, and foxes being killed. Occasionally, golden eagles kill calves, sheep, or goats. However, attacks on animals that weigh more than 30 to 40 pounds are uncommon. Where golden eagles prey on domestic animals, they usually take lambs and kids, but some become persistent predators of domestic livestock as large as 500 pounds.

Job 38:41 “Who provides for the raven its prey, when its young ones cry to God for help, and wander about for lack of food?”

Birds have a remarkable homing instinct, allowing them to return to the same area year after year, even when their migration takes them halfway around the world. How this remarkable feat is accomplished has been the topic of many studies.

Research indicates that young birds that do not migrate with their parents have an innate knowledge of the direction and distance they should travel, but lack a specific goal. After it arrives at its wintering grounds, the young bird will select a winter range to which it imprints during that winter. After the first year the bird has the ability to return to the same area, even if blown off course during migration.

Adults seem to have even more homing skills. Two classic experiments illustrate this point.

Manx Shearwaters were flown by plane from their nesting island off the coast of Great Britain to two different locations. One group was released near Boston, MA, and another near Venice, Italy. Shearwaters do not fly over land so both groups must have taken an over water route, which would be especially convoluted from Venice. Both groups of birds returned to their nesting burrows within 14 days, covering approximately 250 miles per day. How they were able to achieve this remarkable return is not fully understood.

In another experiment, several hundred White-crowned Sparrows were captured in their winter grounds near San Jose, California. One group was flown to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and released, while a second group was flown to Laurel, Maryland, and released. The following winter thirty-four of the birds were recaptured in the same 1/4 acre plot in California they had been captured in originally, presumably after having visited their northern breeding grounds during the summer.

Homing pigeons have been used extensively as test subjects in order to develop a better understanding of migration and homing abilities. They have exhibited almost unbelievable navigation skills.

In one noted experiment, German scientist Hans Wallraff transported homing pigeons to a very distant location. To ensure that the birds did not receive any external navigational information, they were transferred under stringent conditions. The pigeons were transported in closed, airtight cylinders and provided bottled air. Light was turned on and off at random times and loud white noise was played. The cylinders were enclosed in magnetic coils that provided a changing magnetic field. Finally, the cylinders were mounted on a tilting turntable connected to a computer that varied both the rotation and tilt of the cylinders. After release at the distant and completely unknown area, the birds were able to fly home to their roost, apparently without trouble (other than an initial case of nausea).

1 Kings 17:4 “You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.””

1 Kings 17:6 “And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.”

Isaiah 46:8-11 ““Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it.”

Be Fruitful and Multiply

The mola, or ocean sunfish, releases over 330 million eggs over a spawning season. An adult female cod lays between 4 and 6 million eggs at a single spawning.

Salmon are born in rivers or streams. They end up migrating to the ocean and stay there for several years until they travel back to their home rivers or streams. Salmon travel an average of 150 miles from the sea to reach their spawning grounds, and each trip contains its own set of obstacles: waterfalls, man-made dams, and hungry predators.

Matthew 10:28-31 “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”

Matthew 6:25-26 ““Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”