Fishes and Fowls Created Part 2 of 3 (Genesis Series)

by John Lowe
(Woodruff, S.C.)

21 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 created great whales,
“Created,” means that something new and distinct was summoned into existence.

“Great whales or Great fishes” are created on day five. Though this is generally understood to denote whales, yet the term must be understood to be a general rather than a particular term, encompassing all the great aquatic animals, such as the various species of whales, the porpoise, the dolphin, the narwhale, crocodiles, and the shark. God takes pleasure in creating little as well as great things: that's why he forms animals so minute that 30,000 can be contained in one drop of water; and others so great that they seem to require almost a whole sea to float in.

“And God created” may cause some to pose a question which can be developed as follows: The world was created out of nothing; but now Moses says that things formed from other matter were created. Which is it? The fact is, the material from which the fish were created was already in existence; which does not fit the definition of “created.” One way to resolve this rather small problem is to NOT restrict the creation spoken of here entirely to the work of the fifth day, but rather consider it to refer to that shapeless and confused mass, which was as the fountain of the whole world. Then it can be said that God created whales and other fishes, but not when they received their form; but their creation must include the universal matter which was made out of nothing. Therefore, with respect to species, form only was added to them on day five, because the material they were created from already existed; but creation is nevertheless a term that can be applied to both the whole and the parts. The way I see it, we should let the word of God stand as the Holy Spirit inspired Moses to write it; and stop spending time trying to rewrite God’s Word, especially when such trivial matters arise.

The greatest, as well as the least, owe their breath and being to God; and the whale, which awkwardly moves through the ocean, costs him no more than the worm which twinkles in the drop under the lens of the microscope: each are endued with powers which are exactly suited to his situation, and so exquisitely made, that anyone who looks upon it without feelings of wonder and adoration must be blind indeed.

and every living creature that moveth,
The subject here is the smaller animals that live in the water of the great oceans or in the rivers; and those that are amphibious and can move about on the banks; and their numbers are too great to be counted. This includes creeping animals, either on land—“They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort” (Gen 7:14; KJV)—‘or in water—“Let heaven and earth praise Him, The seas and everything that moves in them” (Psalms 69:34; NKJV)—though here it clearly signifies aquatic creatures.

which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind,
We see that the great variety of birds and sea creatures were created at the same time, not evolving slowly over millions of years. Even though plant life was created before animal life, animal life was not created out of plant life. Although animals are diverse in their nature, many share similar structures: birds, reptiles, mammals, and so forth. This makes a persuasive case for a common Designer: All life did not come from the same primordial cell, but it did all come from the same Designer.

The generic terms in this clause represent many distinct orders and species, and each was created after its kind. God commanded them to be produced. He said, “Let the waters bring forth abundantly” not as if the waters had any productive power of their own, but, "Let them be brought into being, the fish in the waters and the fowl out of them." God himself executed this command: “God created great whales.” Insects, which perhaps are as varied and as numerous as any species of animal, and their structure just as odd; were part of this day's work, some of them being similar to the fish and others to the fowl. God created a great variety of fish and fowl, each after their kind, and in great numbers. He made great whales, whose bulk and strength, exceed that of any other animal, which is another remarkable proof of the power and greatness of the Creator. The peculiar formation of the bodies of animals, their different sizes, shapes, and natures, along with the admirable powers of instinct with which they are endued, when duly considered, serve, not only to silence and shame the objections of atheists and infidels, but to suggest a generous Creator.

When he says that “the waters brought forth,” we must understand that though the waters itself is lifeless, they suddenly teem with a living offspring and God replenishes them daily, because He not only commanded that they exist, but that they continue for as long as there are oceans and rivers.

and every winged fowl after his kind:
Here the wing is made a characteristic of this class, which includes more than what we call birds; these were all created by God, or produced out of the water and out of the earth by His wonderful power. Every creature was created “According to their kind”: Again, all animal life is created according to its kind. God deliberately structured plenty of variation within each kind, but one “kind” does not become another. For example, structure among dogs is diverse. The teacup poodle is very different from the Great Dane, but they are both dogs. However, they won’t become mice, no matter how much breeding is done. Evolutionists often give convincing examples of microevolution, the variation of a kind within its kind, because it is adapting to the environment. For example, the ratio of black to white peppered moths may increase when pollution makes it easier for dark moths to escape detection; or finches may develop different beaks in response to their distinctive environment. But the moths are still moths, and the finches are still finches. There has been no change outside of the kind. Microevolution does not prove macroevolution.

Why fowls and fish were created on the same day is not to be explained by any supposed similarity between the air and the water. The only answer, this side of heaven, is to simply say, “That’s the way He wanted it.”

and God saw that it was good.
“And God saw that it was good;” or foresaw that those creatures he made in the waters and in the air would serve to display the glory of his perfect creation, and be very useful and beneficial to man. (Some of the creatures described by the ancients must refer to animals that are now extinct. Some of these may have been very large dinosaurs.)

When the Maker inspects His work, He “saw that it was good.”