Verse

Genesis 1:24

ESV And God said, "Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds — livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds." And it was so.
NIV And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind." And it was so.
NASB Then God said, 'Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kind: livestock and crawling things and animals of the earth according to their kind'; and it was so.
CSB Then God said, "Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that crawl, and the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds." And it was so.
NLT Then God said, 'Let the earth produce every sort of animal, each producing offspring of the same kind — livestock, small animals that scurry along the ground, and wild animals.' And that is what happened.
KJV And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
NKJV Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind”; and it was so.

What does Genesis 1:24 mean?

Here, on the sixth day of creation, God moves from the seas and the air to the land. He speaks the command for animals to come into existence. More specifically, He calls for the land to produce living creatures according to their various kinds. This is a curious reference, and part of the long-running debate over what specific mechanism God might have used to create these animals, if any.

"Livestock" would include cattle and other domesticated animals. "Creeping things" is a reference to rodents, reptiles, insects, and so forth. "Beasts of the earth" are wild animals.

Once again, this conforms to the strict sequence shown in Genesis chapter 1. The first three days of creation show explicit parallels to the second three days. On day 1, God made light; on day 4, He created the sun, moon, and stars to distribute that light. On day 2, God separated the waters, creating the vast, empty oceans; on day 5, He filled those waters with sea creatures. On day 3, God created the land and filled it with vegetation; now on day 6, He fills the land with animals ready to eat from those plants.
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