Genesis 1:26 (DRB)

Passage

And he said: Let us make man to our image and likeness: and let him have dominion over the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the air, and the beasts, and the whole earth, and every creeping creature that moveth upon the earth.

Nearby Context

Genesis 1:24 And God said: Let the earth bring forth the living creature in its kind, cattle and creeping things, and beasts of the earth, according to their kinds. And it was so done.

Genesis 1:25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds, and cattle, and every thing that creepeth on the earth after its kind. And God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:26 And he said: Let us make man to our image and likeness: and let him have dominion over the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the air, and the beasts, and the whole earth, and every creeping creature that moveth upon the earth.

Genesis 1:27 And God created man to his own image: to the image of God he created him: male and female he created them.

Genesis 1:28 And God blessed them, saying: Increase and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and rule over the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the air, and all living creatures that move upon the earth.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "said", "make", "image", "likeness", "dominion", "over", "fishes", and "fowls". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "said" and "make", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 25's "And God made the beasts of the..." into verse 27's "And God created man to his own...", so "said" and "make" belong inside that flow. In Genesis context, the local focus is creation, human rebellion, covenant promise, and God's providence.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "said" and "make" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.