Genesis 8:19

19 Every beast, every creeping thing, and every bird, everything that moves on the earth, went out by their families from the ark.

Genesis 8:19 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 8:19

Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, [and]
whatsoever creepeth upon the earth
All went out, not one was left, and they went out

after their kind;
not in a confused disorderly manner, mixing with one another; but as they went in by pairs, male and female of every sort, so they came forth in like manner, or, "according to their families" F3; by which it seems as if the creatures did breed in the ark, and had their families of young ones; and which is the sense of some in Aben Ezra, and he himself thinks it not foreign, though he interprets it as we do, and as the Greek version does, "after their kind": thus they

went forth out of the ark;
everyone with his mate, in order to procreate and multiply upon the earth.


FOOTNOTES:

F3 (Mhytxpvml) "juxta familias suas", Tigurine version, Pagninus, Montanus

Genesis 8:19 In-Context

17 "Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you, birds and animals and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, that they may breed abundantly on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth."
18 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him.
19 Every beast, every creeping thing, and every bird, everything that moves on the earth, went out by their families from the ark.
20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD , and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar.
21 The LORD smelled the soothing aroma; and the LORD said to Himself, "I will never again curse the ground on account of man, for the intent of man's heart is evil from his youth; and I will never again destroy every living thing, as I have done.

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Or "according to their kind"
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