> [!Scripture] >**26 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." >27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. >28 God blessed them; and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth."** <img src="https://audio.mhbbible.com/media%3Agenesis%201%2026-28.jpg" alt="Genesis 1:26-28" style="max-width: 100%; height: auto;"> > [!success] Audio Commentary > <audio controls src="https://audio.mhbbible.com/Genesis%201%2026-28.ogg"></audio> ## Brief Observations - **Day 6 culminates in humanity's creation** — God gives this act its own demarcation with "Then God said," even though it's still day 6. Humanity is the final creative work, after everything else is finished, proving we had no role in assisting God. This humbles us, as He challenges Job: "Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?" + **Last in creation underscores God's sovereignty** — He does what He wills, independent of us. James warns against presumptuous plans: "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that." This truth banishes fatalism and brings peace—we serve an omnipotent God who controls every detail. - **Created last as a sign of God's affection** — The order starts simple and builds to complexity; humanity in His image is His masterpiece. He prepared the entire universe for our occupation, so from our first moment, we could explore, contemplate, and find comfort in His works—many still feel closest to God in nature. + **We share earth's origin with beasts but stand apart** — Made on the same day from the same ground, we have instincts to subdue lest we become beastly. But the language shifts: from "Let the earth bring forth" to "Let Us make man in Our image"—signifying direct, intimate creation with affection and joy, as Wisdom rejoices in "the sons of men" (Prov 8). - **The Trinity counsels in our creation** — "Let Us make man in Our image" reveals Father, Son, and Holy Spirit together from eternity. We owe our existence to the triune God, and our highest purpose is devotion to Him—baptized in His name, living for His glory. + **Made in God's image and likeness** — We resemble Him more than any creature, yet an infinite gulf remains, bridged only by Christ, the true incarnate image. The image stamps us like a king's face on a coin—we're not divine, but bear His mark in soul (intelligent, immortal, influential), dominion (ruling creation), and moral governance (distinguishing good/evil, pursuing holiness). - **Our bodies reflect divine design** — God has no physical body, but honored ours through Christ's incarnation. Our glorified heavenly bodies will be like His—free from sin's decay, perfected versions of what we have now. + **Image-bearers must reflect God's character** — We display His wisdom in knowledge, holiness in purity, justice in righteousness. Sin vandalizes this image, corrupting us until God's light is unrecognizable. The more we align with Him, the more we shine; the more we deface it, the further we fall. - **God's word creates instantly; ours must match actions** — His words reshape reality because He never lies. Ours separate from deeds, making lies dangerous—they build false structures that reality destroys, often taking us down with them. Integrity demands words and actions align. + **Created male and female for monogamous union** — God made one man and one woman, Adam from dust, Eve from his rib—no harem, no polygamy. Jesus cites this against divorce: marriage makes one flesh, a pre-Fall design. Treat your spouse as if there are no other options, and watch the marriage thrive. - **No marriage in heaven, like angels** — Eternal beings don't propagate; sex is for mortal multiplication against death. In eternity, we become like angels—neither marrying nor given in marriage. + **Be fruitful and multiply: a blessing and command** — God grants a vast inheritance through children, spreading humanity to fill and subdue the earth. All nations descend from one couple, compelling us to love one another as kin. Fertility is God's gift: "Children are a heritage from the Lord." He weaves each in the womb—making abortion a heinous rejection of His fearfully wonderful work. - **Subdue and rule over creation** — Dominion over fish, birds, beasts is for survival and honor—God didn't make us prey but stewards. We've subdued much, but it's a shadow of pre-Fall peace. In the redeemed world, harmony returns. Until then, God's providence sustains us. + **Redemption surpasses original paradise** — Sin brought loss, but Christ's sacrifice calls us "redeemed"—a better name, a higher state than Adam and Eve's innocence. Our lives are for growth, sanctification, and bringing glory to God, preparing for eternal glory. ## Full Commentary The first thing we notice about this passage is that, despite this still being the sixth day of creation, this next creative act is given its own space by repeating the demarcation, “Then God said.” Also notice how humanity is the very last creative act of God. He didn’t create human beings until everything else was already finished. This is in part to prove humanity had no hand in assisting His creative work. This is why God’s able to challenge Job,  "Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding.” Being created last helps us remain humble and reminds us that all worlds belong to the Creator God. I think this truth also shines light on the comprehensive sovereignty of God. God’s challenge to Job concerning the creation was a response to Job questioning the will of God. It established a framework of authority which suggests God has done what He has done independent of us and God is going to do what He is going to do whether we like it or not. In the New Testament James sharpens this point by saying, “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.’ Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are _just_ a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, _you ought_ to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.’ But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.” This view of God’s sovereignty need not inspire fatalism, in fact I think the opposite is true. We’re able to live and breathe easily solely because of the fact we serve an omnipotent God who is in control of everything down to the smallest detail. Creating human beings last is also symbolic of God’s affection for us. Remember how we said God’s creative order starts with the simple and gradually increases in complexity. His final act of creating human beings in His own image is His most magnificent and complex creative work. Across the first five days of creation God had been preparing the universe for human occupation, and He dignified us by ensuring all was complete before He brought us into being. From the moment of our creation, we’ve been able to explore and contemplate the things our heavenly Father has made and comfort ourselves in them. We still do this today, which is why so many Christians claim to feel closest to God in the midst of nature. While there are important distinctions between man and beast, one commonality is that we were created on the same day from the same earth. This means we have instincts and desires which, if we fail to subdue them, can make us more like wild beasts than like sophisticated men. The language introducing the creation of man is also different from everything which came before us. Notice in the previous creation days how God says, “Let there be light, let there be a firmament, let the waters bring forth and let the earth bring forth.” We’ve already established that God Himself is creating by the power of His word at every turn — but it’s interesting to point out how He explicitly says this for the creation of humanity. The language shifts from letting some part of the creation bring forth another part into, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.” What does this change in language signify? Well when God is declaring over the universe that each new layer should be brought forth into being — He’s creating from a position of authority. He’s like a king giving orders to the creation. But when He creates humanity there’s a kind of affection and intimacy symbolized by Him creating them directly with no intermediary structures. God’s creation of humanity was an act of love and He did it with a great sense of joy. In Proverbs chapter 8, when the personification of wisdom is speaking about creating the universe alongside God He says, “Then I was beside Him, _as_ a master workman; And I was daily _His_ delight, Rejoicing always before Him, Rejoicing in the world, His earth, And _having_ my delight in the sons of men.” The narrative across the creation account gives us the sense that each phase of creation was simply preliminary to this final act of creating man. It’s as if this was the creative work God had been looking forward to during each creation day. In the very first verse of Genesis it says God created the heavens and the earth. Humanity is distinct among all of God’s creation because within us is created both flesh and spirit, both heaven and earth. Also notice the plurality in the name of God given at the creation of humanity. It says, “Let Us make man in Our image.” We know Father, Son and Spirit are together from everlasting to everlasting — but the explicit mention of all three during the creation of humanity indicates they counseled together as they considered the creation of us. We owe our creation, and therefore our entire existence, to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. So now when we are born-again in baptism we are baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We are created by a triune God and so the highest purpose of our life’s design is to be dedicated and devoted to a triune God. We read in this passage that human beings are made in the image of God according to His likeness. The terms _image_ and _likeness_ complement each other here to deliver the meaning that human beings are nearest in resemblance to God than any other creature He has made. Despite this resemblance there remains a near infinite distance between us and God. A distance so great it is rendered impassable apart from salvation in Jesus Christ. Jesus alone is the incarnate image of God’s person. He is the Son of His Father God which means He is of the same nature as God. When we talk about humanity being made in the image of God the idea is more like the image of a king stamped onto a coin. While we bear His image, we ourselves are not God the way Jesus is God. We can attempt to describe the image of God by subcategorizing it three ways. The first is that man resembles God in the nature and constitution of man’s soul. God does not have a physical body the way we have physical bodies in this life. It’s true God honored the physical body of man through the incarnation of Jesus Christ. Jesus put on mortal flesh so that He might reconcile the mortal flesh of man to His Father. In the same way, when we enter into Heaven we will put on the glory of an eternal body just as Christ has an eternal body. The physical body of human beings is designed by the same God who created the heavens and the Earth. Since we share in the same essential platform as the incarnate Christ, we may conclude God designed humanity’s body-plan to match His design for Himself in the fullness of time. All this means is that our glorified bodies in heaven will not be entirely distinct platforms from those we have right now. It’s just that the bodily consequences of sinful vice and the disease of fallen nature will be expunged from them. Our bodies will be good as Christ’s body is good. Our souls bear the image of God because they are intelligent and immortal. Our spirits are actively engaged and they’re able to influence others as well as be influenced by others. We use our souls to create actuality out of potential futures in the same way God created actuality from the precosmogonic chaos during the first day. Of the ways in which we resemble God, our souls present the clearest image. This is because our souls are made up of understanding, will, and the energy for action. The living soul is the condition of the lights of consciousness being on as opposed to off. I don’t believe we have a will that is entirely free of influence and external control, but we do have a will nonetheless. One of the key measurements of a person’s sanctification is the extent to which his will begins to recognize and align with God’s sovereign will. The second subcategory of God’s image on us is the authority He has granted us over the creation. God said, “Let us make man in our image, and let him have dominion.” One of the fascinating aspects of human beings is how powerful they are despite being so fragile. There are not many parts of the world where we could survive without the power of intellect. We don’t have the same natural tools as wild animals and yet we’ve subjugated even apex predators to our own will. We don’t need retractable claws or a sharpened sense of smell because we use our intellect to develop artificial tools for surviving and thriving in even the harshest climates. The animal kingdom fears and serves man in the same way man must fear and serve God. The third dimension of God’s image is found in our knowledge, righteousness, and holiness. God is holy and Jesus lived an upright life. Listen to what Paul says when he encourages the church in Ephesus to live as Christians: >**Ephensians 4:17-24** >**17** So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, >**18** being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; >**19** and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. >**20** But you did not learn Christ in this way, >**21** if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, >**22** that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, >**23** and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, >**24** and put on the new self, which in _the likeness of_ God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. The image of God is revealed in humanity to the extent that their minds are renewed and they practice holiness. None of us represent this image perfectly as Jesus did, but our continued sanctification implies a clearer representation across time. Jesus is upright and during His incarnation He shaped all of His natural power to conformity with the will of God. Jesus sees all things clearly — this includes Himself, the Father, and the world. There are no mistakes or incompletions in His knowledge. Throughout His life on earth He complied readily and universally with the will of the Father without hesitation or resistance. As we continue to grow in our likeness to Christ, we also begin to see all things with increasing clarity. To have the mind of Christ is to see God, yourself, and the world as it actually is — with one-to-one mapping. Part of being Christlike means your affections are well-regulated and you are not possessed by any appetite or passion. It means your thoughts meditate on all the best things and you are no longer enslaved to vanity or to a defiant attitude. Before the Fall, this was the condition of Adam and Eve as well. They lived holy, happy, upright lives. Such an honor bestowed upon man to live in the image of God is why Christians have deep respect for human life today. We should not harm each other with our words or our actions because doing so is an affront to this image which has been given to us. It offends God when we debase ourselves in service to sin because such wickedness besmirches the honor He’s given us. You can’t deface the image of God in your own life without paying consequences for it. The more you vandalize the image of God with your own sins and evil, the more corrupt you become and the further you fall. Extend this process far enough and you’ll no longer recognize God nor will anyone see the light of God in you. When God makes man He speaks and the creation event immediately follows. One of the ways God is distinct from us is that our words and actions are separate while God’s words create actions. Part of the reason God’s word has immediate consequences on reality is because God never lies. Every word God speaks is absolute truth. A greater measure of human character is found in their actions because it’s easy for human beings to say one thing while doing or believing something different. One of the reasons lying is so dangerous is because it attempts to form an actuality which is incongruent with what’s real and true. Reality rejects the lie and destroys the falsehoods built on it. If you get caught up in a structure of lies when reality snaps back at it, it’s easy for you yourself to become collateral damage in the destruction. Verse 27 of this passage shows us that God made human beings male and female. This is an example of another basic truth which humanity has gone to great lengths to subvert. Some of us have constructed a massive set of false premises concerning transgenderism which has resulted in enormous numbers of people inhabiting a structure of lies. As the truth continues to reassert itself, these people end up paying the price for it. God created Adam first and then He created Eve from the bone of Adam. It’s useful to notice how God created just one couple to be bonded in marriage. Adam and Eve. He didn’t create Adam and then supply him with a harem of wives and concubines. Polygamy was never part of God’s plan for marriage. Jesus Himself references the creation when He’s speaking against divorce in Matthew 19. He’s explaining how marriage was always implied in God’s plan by designing human beings to be male and female. The union in marriage where one man and one woman join to become one flesh was instantiated in God’s plan even before the Fall. God hates divorce and divorce was never something people should do lightly. In Adam’s case, there was no other woman for him to marry should he choose to put away Eve. He had no other options. It’s unclear how many marriages today would function much better if both spouses treated the marriage as if there were no other options. Angels are immortal and it’s not part of their design to propagate their species — consequently they are neither male nor female. Human beings no longer marry in heaven because in heaven we become eternal as well. Biological sex is given and purposed for the union of man and woman in marriage. In the present, mortal realm, our ability to be fruitful and multiply is the only protection we have against aging and eventual death. The candles of this world can only remain lit by reproducing themselves in other candles. God began the human race through one man and one woman so that despite our multiplication into many nations, we might be compelled to love one another. We might remember our common humanity and the truth that all of us are descended from a common ancestor. When God instructs Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply, He’s simultaneously granting them a large inheritance. Part of God’s command to multiply was that this multiplication might fill the Earth. God’s design was that humanity would spread to every region of the planet and subdue it. Human beings were made to dwell upon the face of all the Earth. In the previous studies, we discussed God’s intent to prepare the planet for human occupation. It is at this moment that His intent is made explicit to Adam and Eve. Our purpose was given that we might govern the planet and receive the kindness of God’s providence daily. The lesser creatures on Earth are beneficiaries of God’s providence as well, although they may not know it. Since we were given the capacity to know God and to recognize His providence, it’s our responsibility to honor Him and praise Him for it. The preeminent purpose of our mortal lives on Earth is to bring glory to God in the way we live. Along with this purpose, we really are in a holding pattern of steady growth and sanctification which prepares us for a better state of being in heaven. When we talk about fruitfully multiplying, it’s important we remember that fertility is decided by God. Having many children is a reflection of God’s blessing on you. Concerning God’s agency to create and give children scripture says, “Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them…” Without God’s promises and without God’s blessing, one generation would not be able to pass into the next. God is in charge of who is conceived and when. Psalm 139 famously reads, “For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.” God’s direct control over creating every individual within the womb is the primary reason abortion is such a heinous sin. To abort an unborn child is to dispatch a person who is fearfully and wonderfully made before he or she even has a chance at life on Earth. After giving them instruction to be fruitful and multiply, God tells Adam and Eve to subdue the Earth and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth. There is no doubt humanity has subdued the Earth. We have dominion over the animal kingdom. It’s true there are natural disasters and other functions of the planet which bring us to our knees in helplessness — but by and large we’ve become so technologically advanced that we can travel anywhere and live in most climates easily. Animal life and biological ecosystems are upheld simply because we draft laws to protect them from ourselves and others. This dominion is given to us by God both for our survival as well as a free extension of honor from God. God placed man in an honorable position so that man might realize the love God has for him and be more strongly inclined to bring honor to God. He didn’t create us as helpless prey animals doomed to suffer the reality of predators on a harsh planet. He gave us a home suitable for life and gave us the ability to domesticate wild things. Despite the power we have over God’s creation — it is merely a shadow of what once was before the Fall. Before sin entered the world Adam and Eve were able to live in peaceful equilibrium with their environment. This peace will be the condition of humanity and animals within the eternal, redeemed creation of the future. Until that glorious moment we must live in a fallen world, but we’re able to do so because of God’s unfailing providence. God gives us what is necessary to support our lives and safety and He even gives us a better name than we had before original sin. Because of Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross, we are able to be called redeemed in Christ. To be redeemed and to belong to Jesus is an even better state of being than the paradise lost by Adam and Eve.