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God created fish and all the things that live in the water on the fifth day. “And God said, ‘Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.’ So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good” (Genesis 1:20-21). This is one day before the creation of man, therefore fish have been around longer than humans. Fish are also one of the creatures listed that man has been given to rule over. “God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground’” (Genesis 1:28).
God used fish in miraculous ways. Fish are mentioned as part of a plague on Egypt. “The fish in the Nile will die, and the river will stink; the Egyptians will not be able to drink its water” (Exodus 7:18). In the book of Jonah, God uses a great fish to swallow Jonah and carry him safely for three days and then deposit him onto dry land (Jonah 1:17; 2:10). In the New Testament, Matthew records Jesus telling Peter to go fishing in order to catch a fish and pull a coin out of its mouth. Jesus speaking to Peter said, “But so that we may not cause offense, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for My tax and yours” (Matthew 17:27).
Aren’t you better than a fish? Since God can use fish to do amazing things, couldn’t He do even more amazing things through us?
Brad Tolbert
Monticello church of Christ
Monticello, AR