Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you;
Parallel translations
- WEB God said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food.
- KJV 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.
- BSB Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit contains seed. They will be yours for food.
- NKJV And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food.
- NLT Then God said, “Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God gives the seed-bearing plants and fruit to humanity for food. The Creator graciously provides for the needs of those he made.
Overview
God designates the seed-bearing herbs and fruit trees as food for humanity, displaying his provision for human life from the very beginning. The generosity of this gift shows that God's intent for creation is the flourishing of his creatures. This pattern of God providing daily bread continues throughout Scripture and finds its fullest expression in Christ, the bread of life (John 6:35).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 20
- Gen 9:3Every moving thing that lives will be food for you. As I gave you the green herb, I have given everything to you.
- Ps 104:14–15He causes the grass to grow for the livestock, and plants for man to cultivate, that he may produce food out of the earth:
- Ps 145:15–16The eyes of all wait for you. You give them their food in due season.
- Ps 104:27–28These all wait for you, that you may give them their food in due season.
- Acts 14:17Yet he didn’t leave himself without witness, in that he did good and gave you rains from the sky and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.”
- Ps 147:9He provides food for the livestock, and for the young ravens when they call.
- Ps 24:1A Psalm by David. The earth is Yahweh’s, with its fullness; the world, and those who dwell therein.
- Job 36:31For by these he judges the people. He gives food in abundance.
- Matt 6:25–26Therefore I tell you, don’t be anxious for your life: what you will eat, or what you will drink; nor yet for your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
- Matt 6:11Give us today our daily bread.
- Gen 2:16Yahweh God commanded the man, saying, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden;
- Acts 17:28‘For in him we live, and move, and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also his offspring.’
- Ps 115:16The heavens are the heavens of Yahweh; but the earth has he given to the children of men.
- Isa 33:16he will dwell on high. His place of defense will be the fortress of rocks. His bread will be supplied. His waters will be sure.
- Hos 2:8For she did not know that I gave her the grain, the new wine, and the oil, and multiplied to her silver and gold, which they used for Baal.
- Ps 146:7who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry. Yahweh frees the prisoners.
- Ps 136:25Who gives food to every creature; for his loving kindness endures forever.
- Ps 111:5He has given food to those who fear him. He always remembers his covenant.
- 1 Tim 6:17Charge those who are rich in this present world that they not be haughty, nor have their hope set on the uncertainty of riches, but on the living God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy;
- Acts 17:24–25The God who made the world and all things in it, he, being Lord of heaven and earth, doesn’t dwell in temples made with hands,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Lay
The single best free starting point for Genesis 1–11 — clear, visual, and faithful to the literary design.
Pastoral
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Commentaries & study tools
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The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 1:29 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.