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Genesis 1:28
“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.’”
Few truths in Scripture are more foundational than the truth that human beings are made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26–27). It helps explain why the Lord devotes so much attention to mankind, why sin is so evil, what our ultimate purpose is, and much more. So we must ask, what does it mean to be made in God’s image?
Theologians have pondered this question for generations, and various answers have been proposed. The best place to begin, however, is the context in which the truth of our divine image bearing was first revealed. Thus, God’s command to be fruitful and multiply and to have dominion over the earth (Gen. 1:28) tells us much about what it means to be made in the image of our Creator.
In the ancient Near Eastern pagan cultures, kings set up images of themselves throughout their territories to remind the peoples they ruled who their sovereign was. That context forms the backdrop for how ancient Israel heard the call to multiply and have dominion. As image bearers of the Lord, we have the duty to point all creation to its true Sovereign, God Almighty. When creation sees human beings, it is supposed to “see” God, as it were, and that happens as we imitate Him (Eph. 5:1). Sin, of course, has made this impossible apart from divine saving grace. The call to multiply in Genesis 1:28 is also important. In a similar way, God wants to fill the world with His image bearers so that the whole world can know that He is King. Our duty, unless called otherwise, is to get married and have children so as to fulfill the Lord’s purposes here.
Only kings were considered images of the gods in ancient pagan cultures, and thus ordinary citizens were not afforded the same dignity as their rulers. Scripture tells us the truth—that all people are made in God’s image, so all people have a God-given dignity. Furthermore, the ancient Israelites knew that the kings of other nations claimed a license to rule because they were made in the image of their gods, so they would have understood that all humanity’s being made in God’s image means that all people were created to rule over the earth. This truth is explicitly stated in Genesis 1:28, where we see the Lord commanding Adam and Eve to subdue the earth and have dominion over it. We were created to be rulers under the great Ruler, vice-regents who steward creation by making use of its resources for the glory of God.
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
We obey God’s command to take dominion in the specific spheres where God has placed us, using our time, talents, and treasures to glorify Him and see His kingdom grow. We serve Him by working diligently and with excellence in the home, in our vocations, and in the church. We should be regularly considering how we can do our work with greater excellence and how we can be more faithful in it unto the Lord.
For further study
- Deuteronomy 28:1
- Psalm 8
- 1 Corinthians 10:31
- Colossians 3:22–24
The bible in a year
- 2 Chronicles 32–33
- John 18:25–40