The Command to Populate the Earth

Genesis 1:28-31

“And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” (Genesis 1:28)

The Gap theory, that there was a long period of time between Genesis 1;1 and Genesis 1:2, during which Satan was cast out of heaven and messed the earth, was developed in response to the discovery on numerous fossilized dinosaur skeletons, and science’s assertion that dinosaurs became extinct millions of years before man appeared on the earth. The translation of the Hebrew word as replenish is used to support the theory. The literal meaning of the word is “to fill” and is used in the same sentence structure in Genesis 1:22, where it is translated as “fill“. The only other place where this sentence structure is used that it is translated replenish is in Genesis 9:1, where either meaning is acceptable. There is nothing to indicate any redoing or refilling the earth. Discoveries of human and dinosaur tracks in the same layer of sedimentary rock cast serious doubt on the scientific claims. It appears that the original KJV translation as “fill” was later changed to “replenish”, probably to satisfy scholars of the day.

In Job 40 and 41 two creatures, behemoth, and Leviathan, are described as animals Job was familiar with. The descriptions do not fit with any modern animals, but resemble descriptions from folklore and drawings throughout history from many cultures. Job was written near the time of Abraham, about 300-400 years after the flood. David refers to one of the same creatures, Leviathan, 700-800 years later, declaring that God made him to play in the sea, in Psalm 104. Interestingly, records of dragon or dinosaur like creature sightings were common world wide up until about 1600 AD. What could have happened to them?

In 1968, Life magazine published a report on the Komodo dragon, stating that the large ones were relatively un aggressive, often weighing close to a ton and measuring up to fifteen feet long. Thirty or thirty five years later, National Geographic reported that Komodo dragons weighed 300 pounds and grew to a length of five feet, They also reported they were very aggressive and lived only about ten years, as compared to a lifespan of more than thirty in Life’s report. The change is largely attributable to efforts to save them from extinction resulting in over population and the consequent destruction of their natural food supply.

It is well known that other species have become extinct as a result of competition for food. Dinosaurs would have been especially susceptible due to their large size and the amount of food required to sustain them, just as the large Komodo dragons were. Increased fishing fleets would have caused the loss of available food, while firearms and improved weapons made it easier to kill them.

History and the Bible both account for the dinosaurs with no need for a Gap theory to explain them. Whether we accept the Biblical account or not is dependent on whether we believe God or science more. It indicates how we really feel about God, and how real our faith is. If we need to adapt the Bible to fit the theory, our faith is in human wisdom, rather than the power of God as Paul describes in I Corinthians 2:5. It is just as true for psychology as for creation.

Man kind was to fill the earth, and to oversee all the animals and plants according to God’s instruction. Because of his ability to forsee the results of his actions and the attitude God designed him with man would be able to make wise decisions about the effects of his actions on the world..

"And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.“(Genesis 1:29-30)

Because there were not carnivores as originally created, there would have been no reason to fear each other, and total energy could be devoted to getting enough to eat, rather than protecting oneself from predators. Genesis 2 will give a little more insight into god’s specific instructions to man. While we were originally created to be vegetarians, that does not mean we are still to be vegetarians. Today many animals are incapable of subsisting on vegetarian diet. It is nearly impossible for humans to remain healthy without taking supplements synthetically derived from meat. Clearly, there have been physical changes in some animals.

“And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.” (Genesis 1:31)

At the end of the sixth day, God was completely satisfied with what he’d created. It was very good.