What did God create on the fifth day of creation week?
"And God said, 'Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.' So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its 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 birds multiply on the earth.' And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day" (Genesis 1:20–23).
Day five begins the same as any other day; God speaks, and that which He commands comes into existence. Here on day five, we have the first living, breathing creatures of the creation. This is not to say that plants don't live, but here are animals—thinking creatures which, though limited in their intellectual capacity, have a higher function than that which has already been made.
First up are the swarming creatures of the seas. Back on day three, God lovingly prepared a separation between the land and the sea in anticipation of what He now does here. God, with just a few words and His infinite power, creates every type of water creature. Consider this but for a moment. There are sea dwelling creatures that cannot survive in the cold climates of Russia or Alaska, but thrive in the warm tropics of the Bahamas. In like manner, there are those which, if the water were but a few degrees warmer, would perish. Here, on the fifth day of creation, God brings forth, with the power of His voice alone, every water dwelling creature that lives.
And not just the fish of the waters, but here God brings forth the birds of the air. On the second day of creation, God lovingly prepared the atmosphere and sky both for the survival of His creation yet to come and also as a haven for the flying creatures of day five. Here, in the same breath in which He creates every water creature of every kind, He creates every winged creature of every kind as well, thus including birds that do not fly.
On day five we see a change in God's dealings with His creation. Up to this point, each aspect of creation is mindless; what is created is placed and remains, or reproduces according to God's Word without any conscious action from the created. Yet, with the fish and the birds God commands them to take action. "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth." They are to carry out the continuation of their species of their own accord. This is not to say that God is detached from His creation, for He "blessed them" and then He commanded them to their task. God is not out of control nor is He indifferent to their coming and going, their reproducing, nor their living or dying (Psalm 84:3; Luke 12:24). God is actively caring for His creation from the beginning and will continue to do so to the end (Matthew 6:25–33; Genesis 8:21–22).
With that, day five comes to a close with the familiar words, "And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day."
Copyright 2011-2024 Got Questions Ministries - All Rights Reserved.
