And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
Parallel translations
- WEB God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so.
- BSB And God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered into one place, so that the dry land may appear.” And it was so.
- NKJV Then God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so.
- NASB Then God said, “Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so.
- NLT Then God said, “Let the waters beneath the sky flow together into one place, so dry ground may appear.” And that is what happened.
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 gathers the waters and makes dry land appear at his word. He prepares the stage on which life and humanity will dwell.
Overview
On the third day God commands the seas to gather so that dry land emerges, again with the assurance 'it was so.' This separation makes the earth a place capable of supporting plants, animals, and people. God's effortless mastery over the chaotic waters reappears later when Christ calms the sea, revealing his own divine authority (Mark 4:39-41).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- 2 Pet 3:5For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:
- Jonah 1:9And he said unto them, I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land.
- Jer 5:22Fear ye not me? saith the LORD: will ye not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?
- Ps 95:5The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.
- Ps 33:7He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses.
- Prov 8:28–29When he established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep:
- Eccl 1:7All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.
- Job 26:10He hath compassed the waters with bounds, until the day and night come to an end.
- Ps 104:5–9Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever.
- Job 38:8–11Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb?
- Ps 24:1–2The earth is the LORD’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
- Rev 10:6And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer:
- Ps 136:5–6To him that by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy endureth for ever.
- Ps 104:3Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind:
- Job 26:7He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing.
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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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 1:9 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.