"Then said" - Literally, "And said", where "and said" is the Qal Waw Consecutive Imperfect of the verb 'amar (559), "to say, speak, utter." The NASB editors translated the Waw at the beginning of the verse as "then" rather than "and" for stylistic purposes.

"God" - "God" is the always plural noun 'elohiym (430), the generic name for God, the Strong One, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and everything in them (Gen. 1:1).

Let Us make man in Our image according to Our likeness (emphasis mine): The doctrine of the Trinity is not fully presented in the OT. There is, however, ample room for it. The Hebrew plural verb and plural pronouns here are consistent with the plural name for God, Elohim (430), and provide ample room for the existence of the complex, Triune God.

"Let Us make" is the 1st Person Plural Qal Imperfect of the verb ‛âśâh (6213), to make (Gen. 1:7), do (Gen. 2:2), fashion, construct (Ex. 25:8), prepare (Gen. 18:7, 8; 19:3).

"man" - The Hebrew noun is âdám (120). But this noun does double duty. Most of the time, as here, it refers to generic man. Lexicographers have, somewhat arbitrarily, assigned a different, specific meaning to the same word, depending on the context. That specific designation is to the man, “Adam,” represented by the same Hebrew word, âdám, but assigned an adjacent number, (121). It is transparent as to why we identify the first man as “Adam,” which is merely a transliteration of the Hebrew word for “Man.” But the reader should know that the same Hebrew noun, âdám, appears, again, somewhat arbitrarily, under two different designations, 120 and 121. It is the same noun, and the context indicates whether the writer, in this case Moses, is speaking of generic mankind or of the specific individual, Adam. Sometimes the distinction is not always clear.

'in Our image' - the singular noun tselem (6754), "image, likeness, resemblance," is used sometimes of statues of heathen gods (2 Kings 11:18; 2 Chron. 23:17; Amos 5:26), and sometimes of paintings (Ezek. 23:14) with the 1st Person Plural pronominal suffix, "our."

God is a Spirit-being (John 4:24), and so His creation of man in His own image is a spiritual likeness, not a physical likeness. There are several ways in which we as humans were created in God’s image: (1) There is a moral likeness. God is a moral Being with a profound sense of right and wrong. God made us with a moral sense of right and wrong. We have consciences. Consciences can be wrongly programmed, and thus give a false reading. Or we can override our consciences. Nevertheless, we all have standards of right and wrong, of fair and unfair. No coyote, for example, has ever felt a twinge of conscience about killing a rabbit. (2) There is an intelligence likeness. Though various animals display certain levels of intelligence, there is a vast gulf between man and animals. Only man is able to create a computer, land humans on the moon, or perform brain surgery. (3) There is a communication likeness. God is a gregarious, relational Being. He created us for communion and fellowship. To do that, we must be able to communicate with Him and He with us. Language separates man from animals. Man can learn to communicate with animals, but no dolphin is able to speak fluent Chinese or English. (4) There is a spiritual likeness, otherwise called a “God-consciousness.” Though man’s ability to perceive God has been enormously hampered ever since his “fall” (Gen. 3), still, most humans have a God-consciousness, no matter how flawed their perception might be. No animals have ever been found worshiping God. (5) There is a creative likeness. God is a creative Being. He gives man the ability to create other human lives that exist forever into eternity future in some status. This creative likeness is also seen in our ability to create beautiful music, art, architecture, landscapes, furniture, and machines. Man is the only being created in God’s likeness and image. Man is the crown of God’s creation!

"male" is the masculine singular noun zâkâr (2145), "male," whether offspring of man (Gen. 1:27; 5:2) or of animals (Gen. 6:19; 7:3), distinguishable from female (Gen. 1:27; 5:2).

"and female" is the feminine singular noun neqêbâh (5347), used of an adult woman (Gen. 1:27; 5:2), in reference to a girl child (Lev. 12:5), and in reference to any animal specie (Lev. 3:1, 6; 4:28, 32), and in distinction from a male (Gen. 1:27; 5:2; 6:19; 7:3, 9). The noun is preceded here by the conjunction waw ("and").

"He created" is the 3rd Masculine Singular Qal Perfect of the verb bârâ' (1254) in the Qal stem, to "shape, fashion, create," and, in the Qal, always with God as the subject.

"them" is the 3rd Masculine Plural of the Object Marker 'êth (853), referring back to the male and female of the first and only human beings. Genesis 2:18-25 narrates the method  through which God created the female, Eve (Gen. 3:20), from the male, Adam (Gen. 5:1-5).

Application: God created man as male and female. The practice throughout history of men cohabiting with men and women cohabiting with women is a perversion of the uniqueness with which God created male and female. It is an affront to God the Creator and an affront to one's own person and identity to engage in such behavior. The modern-day repudiation of God's creative order identified as transgenderism, transsexualism, or other forms of gender dysphoria is a denial that God created man as male and female. It is a repudiation of creation and a repudiation of God. Genesis 18:16-19:29 is a staggering reminder of the judgment that will befall people who abandon God's creative design (Rom. 1:18-32; 2 Pet. 2:6; Jude 1:5-7). People who trust in Jesus as the Messiah are urged to flee such practices (1 Cor. 6:9-11; Gal. 5:16-24).

(1) "Be fruitful" is the Masculine Plural Qal Imperative of the verb pârâh (6509), "bear fruit, be fruitful" (BDB)

(2) "and multiply" is the Masculine Plural Qal Imperative of the verb râbâh (7235) in the Qal meaning "become numerous, be(come) great" (Simple Hebrew-English Dictionary), "multiply," preceded by the conjunction waw, "and."

(3) "and fill," the Masculine Plural Qal Imperative of the verb mâlâ' (4390), "be full, fill" (BDB), "populate" (JTB), preceded by the conjunction waw, "and;" "the earth" consists of the Object Marker 'êth (853) followed by the article ha, "the," and the either-gender, common noun, 'erets (776), here referring to the entire planet Earth.

"and subdue it;" is the Masculine Plural Qal Imperative of the verb kâbash (3533), preceded by the conjunction waw ("and"); in this context (Gen. 1:28), meaning "to subdue in a beneficent fashion," "to make the earth subservient to the wishes and plans of man;" followed by the 3rd Feminine Singular suffix, "it," whose antecedent is the either gender, common noun, 'erets (776), planet Earth.

God never intended that man should leave vast tracts of land untouched. It is man’s job to improve nature, not leave it in the wild (Gen. 2:15). Environmentalists’ loathing of man’s subduing of nature has actually led to destructive policies. For example, the notion that humans cannot even go into a standing forest and harvest dead wood and thin out trees in California and the Pacific Northwest has created situations in which forests have such an abundance of fuel that any fire whatever consumes vast regions of trees. Typically, in California, 4.4 million acres of forest burn up annually! This mindless, anti-man policy is, in my mind, responsible for the countless devastating wildfires in California and the Pacific Northwest every year. In the process, some people die, many homes are destroyed, and a great many animals lose their lives. So this blinded policy destroys more animals than it saves! How foolish and counter-productive! Whenever man rejects what God has established, tragedy and dysfunction strike sooner or later.

Let us also keep in mind that, when God gave this command to man, man was holy, good, unfallen. Had the first man not sinned (Gen. 3:1-7), (and no one else had), man would have been able to subdue the earth without polluting it and otherwise damaging it. Unfortunately man sinned, and man's domination of the earth has, in many cases, been extremely harmful. We eagerly await the return of the Ultimate Man and King, Jesus Christ for a restoration of nature to something of its original glory (see, for example, Isa. 11:6-9; Ezek. 47:1-12). The ultimate restoration of nature awaits the fiery destruction of the existing sin-cursed universe and God's creation of New Heavens and New Earth, wherein will dwell only righteousness, righteous people, and eternal life (2 Pet. 3:10-13; Rev. 21:1-22:5).

(1) "and rule over the fish of the sea" (Gen. 1:28


(2) "and over the birds of the sky" - literally, "and over the bird of the heavens" (Gen. 1:28)


(3) "and over every living thing that moves upon the earth." (Gen. 1:28)

When God created man, he was a vegetarian. God’s original earth, and indeed, original cosmos, had no death, no decay, no exploding stars. There could be no eating of meat, because death did not yet exist. Tragically, death would only come when man chose to defy God's simple single restriction (Gen. 2:16-17; 3:1-19; 5:1-31; Rom. 5:12).

"and to every bird" consists of the prefixed conjunction waw, "and", followed by the preposition lamed, "to", followed by the Masculine Singular noun kôl (3606), "all, whole, entirety," in this context, "every", in a Construct state with the following Masculine Singular noun, ‛ôph (5775), "bird, fowl, flying creature, (winged) insect" (JTB)

"of the sky" literally, "of the heavens", the prefixed article ha, "the" followed by the Masculine, always-plural noun shâmayim (8064), "heavens," here referring to the atmosphere bounded by the Water Vapor Canopy above and the earth / sea beneath.