The History of Creation

Introduction:

John 1:1–5 KJV 1900

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

Colossians 1:16–20 KJV 1900

For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.

Hebrews 1:1–4 KJV 1900

God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.

I. The First Day of Creation ()

A.

Genesis 1:1 KJV 1900

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

1. The absolute beginning of time (i.e. God Created Time)

Bereshith

2. The Names of God speak of the Character of God in Genesis:

Man inhabits time; God inhabits eternity!

a. Elohim - Majesty & Power (Gen. 1:1)

b. Jehovah - Unchanging Faithfulness ()

Genesis 4:1 KJV 1900

And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord.

Genesis 4:2 KJV 1900

And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

c. El Elyon - The Most High God ()

Genesis 14:22 KJV 1900

And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the Lord, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,

d. El Shaddai - All-powerful Supply ()

Genesis 17:1 KJV 1900

And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.

3. “created” (bara) & “made” (asa) imply no pre-existing material:

a. Creation ex nihilo - (“out of nothing”)

b. See this kind of creation in:

Hebrews 11:3 KJV 1900

Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Psalm 33:6–9 KJV 1900

By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; And all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: He layeth up the depth in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord: Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. For he spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.

Ps.

2 Peter 3:5–7 KJV 1900

For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

Colossians 1:16–17 KJV 1900

For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

4. “heaven” & “earth” speak of the entire universe

a. Lit. - the upper and the lower regions.

b. “heavens” (v. 9) refers to the firmament above the earth

c. “heaven” can refer to:

i. air

ii. space

iii. God’s Throneroom ()

B.

1. “without form and void” = formless & empty

Tohu va Bohu

2. Two Major Interpretations:

a. Gap Theory (or Ruin/Reconstruction)

believes that was a previous creation of the heavens and the earth and that Satan and his angels fell between and .

1) Satan’s fall brought some sort of cataclysmic judgment to the earth

2) God began a “re-creation” in , AFTER the “gap” of time

3) In this view, “formless and void” must always mean “evil”

Isaiah 45:18 KJV 1900

For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, He created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else.

Jeremiah 4:23–26 KJV 1900

I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; And the heavens, and they had no light. I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, And all the hills moved lightly. I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, And all the birds of the heavens were fled. I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, And all the cities thereof were broken down At the presence of the Lord, and by his fierce anger.

a

Ver. 23. I beheld the earth, &c.]

a

The land of Judea, not the whole world; and this the prophet says, either in spirit, as Jerom; or in prophecy, as Kimchi; or in a visionary way; for these are not the words of God continued, as Cocceius, but of the prophet; who, by a prophetic spirit, describes the dreadful destruction of the Jewish nation, as follows: and, lo, it was without form, and void; as the first earth or chaos was, before it was brought into form and order; the same words, tohu and bohu, are used here, as in the land of Judea now was, in the prophet’s view of it, like the first earth, when darkness covered it; no grass sprung out of it, not a tree to be seen in it, and neither man nor beast as yet upon it, but all an indigested mass, and in the utmost wild disorder and confusion; and this may denote not only the natural, but the political, and ecclesiastical, disorder of the Jewish nation and state: and the heavens, and they had no light; that were over the land of Judea; “their lights did not shine,” as the Targum paraphrases it; that is, the sun, moon, and stars, which were darkened by the smoke of the burning of Jerusalem; or which withdrew their light, as blushing at, and being ashamed of, the iniquities of his people, and who were unworthy of enjoying the light of them; and which this phrase may denote. [John Gill, An Exposition of the Old Testament, vol. 5, The Baptist Commentary Series (London: Mathews and Leigh, 1810), 426.]

C̵HA´OS, n. [L. chaos; Gr. χαος.] That confusion, or confused mass, in which matter is supposed to have existed, before it was separated into its different kinds and reduced to order, by the creating power of God. “Rudis, indigestaque moles.” Ovid.

2. Any mixed mass, without due form or order; as a chaos of materials.

3. Confusion; disorder; a state in which the parts are undistinguished. [Noah Webster, Noah Webster’s First Edition of An American Dictionary of the English Language. (Anaheim, CA: Foundation for American Christian Education, 2006).]

a

n name or noun.

John Gill, An Exposition of the Old Testament, vol. 5, The Baptist Commentary Series (London: Mathews and Leigh, 1810), 426.

In 4:23–26 Jeremiah visualizes the earth in chaos and disorder.

. name or noun.

As noted above, the imagery reflects and the chaotic conditions of the cosmos before God spoke order into existence. “I looked, and there were no people” (), exclaims the prophet. Creation is the theater of God’s glory, and people made in God’s image are the crowned stewards of the land (; ). Moral and spiritual failure in Judah prompt prophetic eyes to see the land and people as turned back to chaos and disorder. One wonders if this vision is something like moral entropy,7 where the disintegration of communal life is the inevitable outworking of moral and spiritual failure.

L. Latin.

In the modern West (the part of God’s creation that I know best), there is great concern in some quarters about the decline in order and civility. Among many Western churches there is correspondingly concern over the diminished morality of members and declining spiritual vitality. Are these factors related, and is a visionary depiction of coming chaos an accurate assessment of trends? Jeremiah’s vision of chaos emerges spiritually from his deep involvement with a people who are heedless of divine standards and skeptical that God will actually judge them. Does this not sound familiar to Western ears? Is it not the case that Western society has essentially capitulated to the demands of secular pluralism that moral and values-based judgments be restricted to the private realm, where they will not intrude on public policy decisions? And does the rising perception that society is spinning out of moral control because of its spiritual bankruptcy not point to a future chaos?

7 Perhaps the modern reader will recall that the second law of thermodynamics or entropy holds that matter tends to a state of progressive disorder without the influence of mitigating factors. For example, a plant that no longer translates sunlight and water into usable energy will die; when dead, the plant will decompose. [J. Andrew Dearman, Jeremiah and Lamentations, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 2002), 92–93.]

Gr. Greek.[Noah Webster, Noah Webster’s First Edition of An American Dictionary of the English Language. (Anaheim, CA: Foundation for American Christian Education, 2006).]

a

Noah Webster, Noah Webster’s First Edition of An American Dictionary of the English Language. (Anaheim, CA: Foundation for American Christian Education, 2006).]

23. So devastating is the judgment upon Judah (23–28) that Jeremiah instinctively thinks of the state of primeval chaos (), except that what then became ‘good’ will now be turned to desolation at the divine presence. This description is one of the most dramatic of its kind in the entire Old Testament. The heedless destruction consequent upon apostasy has brought ruin upon the land, and the skies are darkened in mourning (cf. ; ). The imagery is that of the judgment day (cf. ; ; ; , etc.) which had now arrived in all its terror, eclipsing the celestial luminaries and making the earth return to its primitive barrenness before the creative word emerged (cf. ). [R. K. Harrison, Jeremiah and Lamentations: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 21, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973), 76.]

J. Andrew Dearman, Jeremiah and Lamentations, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 2002), 92–93.]

R. K. Harrison, Jeremiah and Lamentations: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 21, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973), 76.]

4) This view attempts to reconcile the billions of years demanded by science (falsely so-called) and the young earth demanded by the Bible

b. Literal Creation View

believes that is the first day of creation.

1) Nothing inherently evil or sinful in the words “without form and void” or “darkness”

a) Empty Space

Job 26:7 KJV 1900

He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, And hangeth the earth upon nothing.

b) Darkness (i.e. the absence of light)

Isaiah 45:7 KJV 1900

I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things.

2) God did not intend that the world remain “formless” ()

3) Many other Scriptures affirm that God created everything in the six days of the creation week of .

Genesis 1:31 KJV 1900

And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Genesis 2:1 KJV 1900

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.

Exodus 20:11 KJV 1900

For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

Nehemiah 9:6 KJV 1900

Thou, even thou, art Lord alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.

Ex.

Psalm 148:1–5 KJV 1900

Praise ye the Lord. Praise ye the Lord from the heavens: Praise him in the heights. Praise ye him, all his angels: Praise ye him, all his hosts. Praise ye him, sun and moon: Praise him, all ye stars of light. Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, And ye waters that be above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord: For he commanded, and they were created.

C.

1. Days were literal solar days

(e.g. “evening and morning” = 24 hour periods; literal days)

2. No reconciliation with Evolution necessary

each (Creation or Evolution) must be trusted in by faith; you either believe one or the other

Three Things Necessary for Evolution:

Time

Chance

Survival

3. God’s Creation had the appearance of age

when it was spoken into existence by His word (i.e. Adam was created as a mature adult male human being)

4. God called the light “Day”

Not from our Sun, it was not yet in existence

5. He called the darkness “Night”

D. Synopsis of Day One:

Infographic

The narrative of is structured around the idea of first forming and then filling, with two groups of three days corresponding to one another. In the first triad, God creates a space or environment; in the second triad, He creates the living things that fill that space.

Environment:

1 - Light Formed

2 - Sky & Sea

3 - Dry Land

Occupants:

4 - Sun & Moon

5 - Fowl & Fish

6 - Living Creatures

II. The Second Day of Creation ()

Genesis 1:6–8 KJV 1900

And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 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. And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

A. God Created an Expanse

a firmament (i.e. “to stretch out”) between the waters above and the waters below

B. Canopy of Moisture

The appearance was that of a canopy of moisture overhead

Infographic

III. The Third Day of Creation ().

Genesis 1:9–13 KJV 1900

And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. 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. 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. And the evening and the morning were the third day.

A. Dry Land “Appeared” and Plants Created

B. Plant Reproduction “after his kind”

Plants reproduced by means of seeds in the plants themselves (i.e. they did not “evolve”)

C. God called this dry land “Earth”

Infographic

IV. The Fourth Day of Creation ().

Genesis 1:14–19 KJV 1900

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: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. 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. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, 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. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

A. The Sun, Moon & Stars Created

B. Light Bearers

Replaces the temporary light of Day One

Will become a calendar

Serve as a guides

Infographic

V. The Fifth Day of Creation ().

Genesis 1:20–23 KJV 1900

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. 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. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

A. God Created Fish & Fowl

B. God Created Great Whales

tannin - lit. “large sea creature”

1. sea monster † ; , sea-dragon + 6 ×;—2. serpent † , ; ; . [William Lee Holladay and Ludwig Köhler, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Leiden: Brill, 2000), 392.]

a תַּנִּין, תַּנִּים Ez 29:3; 32:2; pl. תַּנִּינִ(י)ם:—1. sea monster † ; , sea-dragon + 6 ×;—2. serpent † , ; ; . [William Lee Holladay and Ludwig Köhler, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Leiden: Brill, 2000), 392.]

1. sea monster † ; , sea-dragon + 6 ×;—2. serpent † , ; ; . [William Lee Holladay and Ludwig Köhler, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Leiden: Brill, 2000), 392.]

† all undisputed instances have been cited (see Introduction)

Job 40:15 KJV 1900

Behold now behemoth, Which I made with thee; He eateth grass as an ox.

תַּנִּין, תַּנִּים Ez 29:3; 32:2; pl. תַּנִּינִ(י)ם:—1. sea monster † ; , sea-dragon + 6 ×;—2. serpent † , ; ; . [William Lee Holladay and Ludwig Köhler, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Leiden: Brill, 2000), 392.]

+ plus

× number (of occurrences)

pl. plural

† all undisputed instances have been cited (see Introduction)[William Lee Holladay and Ludwig Köhler, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Leiden: Brill, 2000), 392.]

William Lee Holladay and Ludwig Köhler, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Leiden: Brill, 2000), 392.

[William Lee Holladay and Ludwig Köhler, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Leiden: Brill, 2000), 392.]

Infographic

+ plus

× number (of occurrences)

† all undisputed instances have been cited (see Introduction)[William Lee Holladay and Ludwig Köhler, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Leiden: Brill, 2000), 392.]

William Lee Holladay and Ludwig Köhler, A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (Leiden: Brill, 2000), 392.]

Infographic

VI. The Sixth Day of Creation ().

A. All Animals Created

1. “cattle” - domestic

2. “beasts” - undomesticated

B. Man & Woman Created in the “image of God”

Genesis 1:26–27 KJV 1900

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. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

2. “beasts” - undomesticated

1. “man” - sentient, self-aware, spiritual

a

SENTIENT, a. sen´shent. [L. sentiens, sentio.]

That perceives; having the faculty of perception. Man is a sentient being; he possesses a sentient principle.

SEN´TIENT, n. A being or person that has the faculty of perception.

2. He that perceives. [Webster]

a adjective.

. adjective.

L. Latin.

2. There is a progression in Creation from simple to complex

n name or noun.

. name or noun.[Webster]

Plants = Cells

Noah Webster]

Animals = Cells + Soul (Animating Soul)

Mankind = Cells + Soul + Spirit (Living Soul)

3. Man has no animal ancestry

4. will be an exposition of this introduction of chapter one, and the sixth day of Creation.

a

"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness" (). The creation of man is the last and highest stage in the production of organic life. Every step in creation so far is a prophecy of his coming and a preparation fee it. This wonderful world is purposed for a higher being than fish or fowl or beast. Not for them were accumulated the inexhaustible treasures of mineral and vegetable stores. What use have they for lignite, stone, coal, peat, iron, copper, oil, gas, gold, silver, pearls, and diamonds? They have no capacity to enjoy the beauty of the landscape, the glorious colorings of sea and sky. They cannot measure the distances to the stars nor read the signs of the sky. They cannot perceive the wisdom nor adore the goodness of the Creator. The earth as constituted and stored prophesied man, demanded man, and God said, "Let us make man." When he wanted vegetable life, he said, "Let the earth put forth shoots." When he wanted sea animals, he said, "Let the sea swarm." When he wanted land animals, he said, "Let the earth bring forth." But when the earth was prepared for its true lord and master, he said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." "Thou hast made him but little lower than God" (). (The Hebrew word here is Elohim, the same as in .)

When we contrast the language which introduces the being of man with that which introduces the beast, and consider the import of "image and likeness," and the dominion conferred on man, we are forced to the conviction than between man and the highest order of the beast there is an infinite and impassable chasm. And this view in confirmed by the divine demonstration that no beast could be man's consort (); and the divine law ().

THE IMAGE OF GOD

"God is a spirit." (). "The father of spirits" (). "The Lord formeth the spirit of man within him" (). "The spirit of a man is the candle of the Lord" (). "And Jehovah God breathed into man's nostrils the breath of life: and man became a living soul" (Gen. 22:27). "The spirit retumeth to God who gave it" (). We may say, then, in one word that the spirituality of man's nature is the image of God. Man is a rational, moral, spiritual being.

But this image of God involves and implies much more:

(a) Intuitive knowledge and reason. ; .

(b) Uprightness and holiness. ; .

(c) Conscience. .

(d) Will, or determinate choice, free moral agency.

(e) Worship of and communion with God.

(f) Dignity of presence. ; .

(g) Immortality of soul, and provision for immortality of body by access to the tree of life. .

(h) Capacity for marriage, not like the consorting of beasts.

(i) Capacity for labor apart from the necessary struggle for existence.

(j) Speech, itself an infinite chasm between man and beast.

The dual nature of man will be considered in the next chapter on the second chapter of Genesis, which supplies details of man’s creation not given in this general statement.

UNITY OF THE RACE

"Male and female made he them." Multiply and fill the earth. There is one, and only one human race. The earth's population came from one pair. There was no pre-Adamite man. There has been no post- Adamite man, unless we except Jesus of Nazareth. The unity of the race is a vital and fundamental Bible doctrine. Its witness on this point is manifold, explicit, and unambiguous. (; ; .) The whole scheme of redemption is based on the unity of the race (). When we speak of the Caucasian, Mongolian, Malay, African, and North American Indian as different races, we employ both unscientific and unbiblical terms if we mean to imply different origins. There was no need for another race. This one pair could fill the earth by multiplication. There was no room for another race, for all authority of rule was vested in this one.

B. H. Carroll, An Interpretation of the English Bible - Genesis, vol. 1, An Interpretation of the English Bible (Baker Book House, 1948), 78–80.

Infographic

VII. Creation Pronounced by God as “Very Good” ().

Genesis 2:1–3 KJV 1900

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

...this wonderful Creator deserves our worship, praise, and obedience. When God surveyed His creation, He saw that it was “very good” ()...we must be good stewards of creation. This means we should respect our fellow human beings who are also made in the image of God (). It means appreciating the gifts we have in creation and not wasting or exploiting them...we can’t honor the God of creation if we dishonor His creation. We must accept creation as a gift, guard it as a precious treasure, and invest it for the glory of God. Isaac Watts said it beautifully:

a

we must be good stewards of creation. This means we should respect our fellow human beings who are also made in the image of God (). It means appreciating the gifts we have in creation and not wasting or exploiting them. We’ll look into these matters in greater detail in further studies, but it’s worth noting that we can’t honor the God of creation if we dishonor His creation. We must accept creation as a gift, guard it as a precious treasure, and invest it for the glory of God. Isaac Watts said it beautifully:

I sing the goodness of the Lord, that filled the earth with food;

[...this wonderful Creator deserves our worship, praise, and obedience. When God surveyed His creation, He saw that it was “very good” ().

He formed the creatures with His word, and then pronounced them good.

Lord, how Thy wonders are displayed, where e’er I turn my eye;

If I survey the ground I tread, or gaze upon the sky.

Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Basic, “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Chariot Victor Pub., 1998), 31.]

“The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works” ().

[Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Basic, “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Chariot Victor Pub., 1998), 31–32.]

Conclusion:

Post-flood = meat

Creation reveals God’s nature, as the picture the artist. His eternal Power and Godhead are visible in his works. See . And all things and beings were made through Jesus Christ. Consider , . The hands of the Son of God wove the blue curtains above us and filled them with luminaries. The seas are his and he made them, and filled them with living creatures. The woodlands are the outcome of his mind, and he filled them with flowers and birds. He taught them to live without care. He filled the tiny heart of the mother-bird with love to her young and blessed her. His are the cattle on a thousand hills. He moulded the red earth into his own likeness and made Man. We were made to have dominion. See . Ask him to put all things, especially all the evil things of your heart, under your feet. The world is good, and if you were good, you would find it so. [F. B. Meyer, Through the Bible Day by Day: A Devotional Commentary, vol. 1 (Philadelphia: American Sunday-School Union, 1914–1918), 14.]

F. B. Meyer, Through the Bible Day by Day: A Devotional Commentary, vol. 1 (Philadelphia: American Sunday-School Union, 1914–1918), 14.

When Jesus Christ, the last Adam (), came to earth, He exercised the dominion that the first Adam had lost. He demonstrated that He had authority over the fish (; ; ), the fowl (26:69–75), and the animals (; ). When He died on the cross, He conquered sin and death, so that now grace can reign () and God’s people can “reign in life” through Jesus Christ (v. 17). One day, when He returns, Jesus will restore to His own the dominion that was lost because of Adam (). [Wiersbe, 30–31.]

When Jesus Christ, the last Adam (), came to earth, He exercised the dominion that the first Adam had lost. He demonstrated that He had authority over the fish (; ; ), the fowl (26:69–75), and the animals (; ). When He died on the cross, He conquered sin and death, so that now grace can reign () and God’s people can “reign in life” through Jesus Christ (v. 17). One day, when He returns, Jesus will restore to His own the dominion that was lost because of Adam (). [Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Basic, “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Chariot Victor Pub., 1998), 30–31.]

Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Basic, “Be” Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Chariot Victor Pub., 1998), 30–31.