Genesis 1:27

So God created man. The account of the accomplishment of the divine purpose is expressed in a form of Hebrew poetry, common in all poetic books of the Hebrew Bible, in which the thought expressed in the first part of a stanza is repeated with slight variations in words but not in meaning in the second or even in the third part of the stanza, as in our verse:

“So God created man in his own image,

in the image of God created he him;

male and female created he them.”

Moses, who has given us other samples of his poetic ability (see Ex. 15; Deut. 32, 33; Ps. 90), was the first of all the inspired writers who told of God’s wondrous works in words of poetry. When he had reached the point in his record that told of the creation of man, the crown of God’s work on this earth, he left the ordinary narrative style and employed poetry.

In his own image. Noteworthy is the use of the singular, “his.” The plural of v. 26 reveals that the Deity possesses plurality in unity, whereas v. 27 emphasizes that the plurality of God does not negate God’s unity.

Male and female. A new element is introduced in the information given about the creation of man by mentioning differences in sex. The two words “male” and “female” are translations of Hebrew adjectives that indicate the sex of the two individuals. The blessing of fertility pronounced over the animals (v. 22) implies that they must have been created likewise with sexual differences, but this fact is not mentioned. Probably a special reason existed for mentioning it in connection with the creation of man. That reason may spring from the fact that only in man does the duality of sex find its expression in the institution of holy wedlock. This verse prepares us for the revelation concerning God’s plan for the creation of the family that is presented in ch. 2.