The Pulpit Commentary — Genesis — Section 106

EXPOSITION. Ver. 20.-Dayfi,1:e. The waters ancl the truth tl1at plants are living organisms. 011Jy R ii·, separated on the second day, ore on this the life principle of the animal creation is filled with their respective inhabitants. And different from that of the vegetable kingrl.om. God said. Nature never makes an onward It may be impossible by the most acn te ru ovement, in the sense of nu absolutely new microscopic analysis to differentiate the pro- departure, unless under the impulse of the toplasmic cell of vegetable matter from that w01·d of Elohim. These words distinctly of animal organisms, and plants may appear clnim that the creatures of the sea and of the to be possessed of functions tlvi.t resemble air, even if evolved from material elements, those of animals, yet the two are generically we1·e produced in obedience to Divine com- different-vegetable protoplasm never weaz. mand, and not spontaneously generated by ing animal texture, and plant fibre never issu. tlie potentia vitre of either land, sea, or sky. i.ng from the loom of animal protoplasm. That Let the waters bring forth abundantly the which constitutes an animal is the possession moving creature. Literally, swarm with of respiratory organs, to which, doubtless, swarmers, or crawl with crnwlers. The fun- there is a reference in the term nephesh. damental signification of shai·atz is to creep from naphash, to breathe. And fowl that or swarm, and hence to multiply (Gesenius); may fly. Literally, let "winged creatures" or, vice versa, to multiply in masses, and fly. The fowls include all tribes covered hence to swarm or abound (Furst ; cf. eh. with feathers that can raise themselves into viii. 17; Exod. i. 7; viii. 3). The sheretzim, the air. The English version produces the though including small aquatic creatures that impression that they were made from the have short or no legs, nre obviously "all waters, which is contrary to eh. iL 19. kinds of living creatures inhabiting either The correct rendering disposes of the diffi- Janel or water which are oviparous and re- culty. Above the earth in the open firma- markable for fecundity" (Bush). We .mo.y, ment of heaven. Not above the firmament therefore, understand the creative fio.t of the like the clouds (Von Bohlen, Baumgarten), fifth day 11s summoning first into existence but in the concave vonlt (Tuch, Delitzsch), the insect creation (in Lev. xi. 20-23 de- or before tho surface of the expanse (Kalisch). fined as flying sheretzim ), the fishes of the Ver. 21.-And God created (bara, as in sea (sheretzim of the waters, Lev. xi. 9, 10), ver. 1, to indicate the introduction of an and the reptiles o.nd saurians of sea nncl land 11.bsolntely new thing, viz., the principle of (sheretzim of the lanrl, Lev. xi. 41, 42). animal life) great whales. Tanninim, from Dowson concludes that "the prolific animals tanan; Greek, rtivw; Latin, tendo; Sansc., of the fifth day's creation belonged to the tan, to stretch. These were the first of the two three Cuvierian sub-kingdoms of the mdinta classes into which the sheretzim of the pre- nrticulata, mollusca, and to the classes of vious verse were divided. 'l'he word is usecl fish and reptiles among the vertebrata. of serpents (Exod. vii. 9 ; Deut. x.xxii. 33 , That hnth life. Nephesh chayyah; literally, Ps. xci. 13 ; J er. Ii. 34), of the crocodilo o living breath. Here the creatures of the sea (Ezek. xxix. 3 ; xxxii. 2), and may therefor~ are distinguished from all previous creo.tions, here describe II great sea monsters" in gen- and in particular from vegetation, as being eral: rd •·~r'I ra µ,yci:\a (LXX.); '' monstrowi possessed of a vital principle. This does crawlers thnt wriggle through the water or not, of comsc, contrndicl the wcll-knomi scud along the banks" Clilmphy) ; whales,  TTTR DOOK OF GENI~STS. [rn. 1. 20-28