²⁶ Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
²⁷ So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
²⁸ And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” ²⁹ And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. ³⁰ And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. ³¹ And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

1) What is indicated by the word “us” in verse 26?
The plural form used when God is speaking here is an indication of the Trinity. Even from before the creation of the world, God existed in three persons, and here we see their active involvement in creating mankind. The “us” is also indicative of completeness, fullness, or entire “whole”, meaning that, even here in from the very beginning, God was the God. There was no other god, nor will there ever be. All authority is His alone.

2) What does it mean to be created in God’s image?
These verses clearly state that mankind was made in the image of God, after His likeness. This is in contrast to how the rest of creation was made—only humans bear God’s image. The doctrine of the image of God (the Imago Dei) is fleshed out throughout Scripture. It means that we, as humans, were created with not just bodies, but with souls or spirits. We resemble God in the way think and reason and make choices (mentally), how we understand that there is right and wrong (morally), and in the way we interact in relationships with one another and with God (socially). Because we bear God’s image, human beings have the greatest value of all creation.

3) What does it mean that mankind should have dominion over the earth?
God commanded mankind to fill the earth and subdue it, and to have dominion over it. God created mankind to have authority over the rest of creation. He gave us the fruit of the earth for food, which indicated that the plants were created for us. The command to “subdue” the earth means to bring it into subjection for mankind’s needs. While this does not indicate that we are to be wasteful or poor stewards, the earth was put under mankind’s authority by God.

1) What is indicated by the word “us” in verse 26?
Father God, Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit, thank You for being eternally present and for showing that your unity existed in time past as it does now. Thank You for working in Your mysterious triune way to create the world and redeem it. Praise You for holding all power. Nothing can stand against You!

2) What does it mean to be created in God’s image?
Never forget, dear sister in Christ, that you are an image bearer of the Creator of the world! You were specifically designed to showcase who He is! Though sin has taken its toll on all of us, through our salvation, we are being made new again, and it is possible through the Holy Spirit in us to properly display that image to a hurting world. You have infinite value because of Who designed you!

3) What does it mean that mankind should have dominion over the earth?
The earth was created for us. We must be good stewards of this beautiful world, but we must never forget that God designed us to have authority over the earth—and he gave us the capability to learn to rule it well and care for it well.

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We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources.  Just type in the verse you’re looking at and Boom! It’s right in front of you in English and Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament), which are the original languages the Bible was written in.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Find super awesome stuff like “origin”, “definition”, and even all the different ways that single word has been translated into English! If you want to be geeky, you can even click the word and hear its original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want to get more background on a word or phrasing or passage? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus.
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