Thank you for the question about Genesis 1:20, “In Genesis ” God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven” is this a Biblical version of evolution?”
In sharing my response to the question, the question is incomplete for it fails to consider the context of the verse.
Instead of quoting from the KJV of Genesis 1:20, the Hebrew text of Genesis 1:20–21 says this. “And God said, “Let abound the waters with an abundance of creatures living and birds let fly above the earth across the face of the firmament of the sky 21 and/so God created sea creatures great and every thing living that moves with which abound according to their kinds and every bird winged according to its kind and saw God that (it was) good.” (Biblehub.com.).
As one reads the following verse, the cited verse by itself gives a distorted view of creation. Here are some thoughts for a better observation of the text of creation.
I. Observations in Genesis :20:
A. Genesis 1:20 doesn’t state anything about creation of water creatures and land creatures.
As one reads the verse, verse 20 is God’s declaration of his intended purpose of what he was going to do with the with water/ocean and the space above the landmass.
B. Genesis 1:20 states that life was to begin in the waters.
Genesis 1 states clearly that God wanted to begin life with sea life. Evolutionists agrees with that statement that life most likely started from the waters.
C. Genesis 1:20 states that there would be an abundance of life in the waters.
The word, abound and abundance reflects an explosion of life. The Cambrian Period of the geologist’s timetable affirms that sea life began first before land creatures came into existence.
D. Genesis 1:20 doesn’t state the mechanism or method that God would create the sea life.
The text is silent on how the sea creatures were to be come into existence. Whether there was a creative process of lower form to higher form or “instantaneous” by God. From our human process, one would think from lower forms of life to higher forms of life from the depths of the ocean floor to the surface of the water. Since the mechanism is unclear or not stated, it is within reasonable to think the creative process from lower form to higher form.
E. Genesis 1:20 states that the birds fly in the atmosphere of earth.
This assumes that the oxygen of earth was conducive for allowing life to begin on land and to be present in the atmosphere so that birds could fly in it. There was a “capture” of oxygen in the atmosphere to sustain life. Oxygen and water is required to have life as we understand it.
F. Gensis 1:20 states God’s intention to create flying creatures in the sky.
The kinds or species of flying creatures are not stated in the text nor the mechanism for their existence. The existence of birds before the creation of land creatures is different in the order of the theory of evolution.
With that in the background, Genesis 1:21 is a general statement of implementing the design of God.
The text is clear in that verse 21 of the creative act of God. The description of sea creatures and flying creatures are in general terms with the except that God made great sea creatures. The description of the large sea creatures are clear but their fossils give us an indication of their size.
I find the Biblical record is not totally contradictory to the theory of evolution. May main disagreement or difference is the timeline. My reconciliation of the “days” of creation is “creative days” of God, not a literal 24 hour period of time.
I hope my observation and interpretation of the text is fair and balance, being true to biblical text.
-Kingston