Chú giải Kinh Thánh

He gave them power of procreation and fruitfulness, which is justly mentioned as a great blessing, Psa 128:3-4.

Fill the waters in the seas; and consequently in the rivers, which come from the sea, and return into it.

Let fowl multiply in the earth, where they shall commonly have their habitation, though they had their original from the waters; of which see Poole on "Gen 1:20".

1. Those living creatures hereafter mentioned, whose original is from the earth, and whose habitation is in it.

2. Those tame beasts which are most familiar with and useful to men for food, clothing, or other service.

3. Creeping thing; to wit, of the earth, of a differing kind from those creeping things of the water, Genesis 1:20.

4. The wild beast, as the Hebrew word commonly signifies, and as appears further, because they are distinguished from the tame beasts, here called cattle.

God had now prepared all things necessary for man’s use and comfort. The plurals us and our afford an evident proof of a plurality of persons in the Godhead. It is plain from many other texts, as well as from the nature and reason of the thing, that God alone is man’s Creator: the angels rejoiced at the work of creation, but only God wrought it, Job 38:4-7. And it is no less plain from this text, and from divers other places, that man had more Creators than one person: see Job 35:10 John 1:2-3, &c.; Hebrews 1:3. And as other texts assure us that there is but one God, so this shows that there are more persons in the Godhead; nor can that seeming contradiction of one and more being in the Godhead be otherwise reconciled, than by acknowledging a plurality of persons in the unity of essence. It is pretended that God here speaks after the manner of princes, in the plural number, who use to say: We will

and require, or, It is our pleasure. But this is only the invention and practice of latter times, and no way agreeable to the simplicity, either of the first ages of the world, or of the Hebrew style. The kings of Israel used to speak of themselves in the singular number, 2 Samuel 3:28, 1 Chronicles 21:17, 1 Chronicles 29:14, 2 Chronicles 2:6. And so did the eastern monarchs too, yea, even in their decrees and orders, which now run in the plural number, as Ezra 6:8, I (Darius) make a decree; Ezra 7:21, I, even I Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree. Nor do I remember one example in Scripture to the contrary. It is therefore a rash and presumptuous attempt, without any warrant, to thrust the usages of modern style into the sacred Scripture. Besides, the Lord doth generally speak of himself in the singular number, some few places excepted, wherein the plural number is used for the signification of this mystery. Moreover, this device is utterly overthrown by comparing this text with Genesis 3:22:

The Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us. Therefore there are more persons than one in the Godhead. How many they are other texts plainly inform us, as we shall see in their proper places. And whereas he saith not now as he did before: Let the earth or waters

bring forth, but, Let us make; this change of the phrase and manner of expression shows that man was, as the last, so the most perfect and the chief of the ways and works of God in this lower world.

After our likeness. Image and likeness are two words noting the same thing, even exact likeness. For both of them are used of Adam, Genesis 5:3:

He begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and they are separately and indifferently used in the same sense, man being said to be made in the likeness of God, Genesis 5:1, and in the image of God, Genesis 9:6.

Quest. Wherein doth the image of God in man consist?

Answ. 1. It is in the whole man, both in the blessedness of his estate, and in his dominion over the rest of the creatures.

2. It shines forth even in the body, in the majesty of man’s countenance, and height of his stature, which is set towards heaven, when other creatures by their down-looks show the lowness and meanness of their nature, as even heathens have observed.

3. It principally consists and most eminently appears in man’s soul.

4. In its nature and substance, as it is, like God, spiritual, invisible, immortal, &c.

5. In its powers and faculties, reason or understanding, and freedom in its choice and actions.

6. In the singular endowments wherewith God hath adorned it, as knowledge, righteousness, and true holiness, in which St. Paul chiefly placeth this image, Ephesians 4:24 Colossians 3:10.

The male and female are both comprehended in the word man, as is expressed, Genesis 1:27, together with their posterity.

Over the cattle; by which he understands either,

1. Both tame and wild beasts, the same word being used here in a differing sense from what it hath Genesis 1:25, as is frequent in Scripture. Or,

2. Tame beasts, which are particularly mentioned, because they are more under man’s dominion than the wild beasts, and more fitted for man’s use and benefit, though the other be not excluded, but comprehended under the former, as the more famous kind, as is usual in Scriptures and other authors.

Over all the earth; over all other creatures and productions of the earth, and over the earth itself, to manage it as they see fit for their own comfort and advantage.

Not both together, as some of the Jews have fabled, but successively, the woman after and out of the man, as is more particularly related, Genesis 2:21, &c., which is here mentioned by anticipation. Albeit the woman also seems to have been made upon the sixth day, as is here related, and as the following blessing showeth, which is common to both of them, though the particular history of it is brought in afterwards, Genesis 2:1-25, by way of recapitulation or repetition.

Having blessed them with excellent natures, and heavenly gifts and graces, he further blesseth them with a special and temporal blessing expressed in the following words.

Replenish the earth, with inhabitants to be begotten by you.

Question. Whether this be a command obliging all men to marriage and procreation? So the Hebrew doctors think. It may be thus resolved:

1. It is a command obliging all men so far as not to suffer the extinction of mankind: thus it did absolutely bind Adam and Eve, as also Noah, and his sons and their wives, after the Flood.

2. It doth not oblige every particular person to marry, as appears both from the example of the Lord Jesus, who lived and died in an unmarried state, and from his commendation of those who made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of God, Matthew 19:12; and from St. Paul’s approbation of virginity, 1 Corinthians 7:1, 1 Corinthians 7:8, 1 Corinthians 7:26-27, 1 Corinthians 7:32, &c.

3. It is here rather a promise or benediction than a command, as appears both from Genesis 2:22, where the same words are applied to the brute beasts, who are not subject to a command; and because if this were a command, it would equally oblige every man to exercise dominion over fishes and fowls, &c., which is absurd. It is therefore a permission rather than a command, though it be expressed in the form of a command, as other permissions frequently are, as Genesis 2:16 Deu 14:4.

It is neither affirmed nor denied that flesh also was granted to the first men for food, and therefore we may safely be ignorant of it. It is sufficient for us that it was expressly allowed, Genesis 9:3.

No notes from Poole on this verse.

No notes from Poole on this verse.