‘And God said, “Let the waters that are under the heaven be gathered together in one place and let the dry land appear”, and it was so. And God called the dry land ‘eretz' and the waters that were gathered together he called seas. And God saw that it was good.'
As with the word ‘yom' the word ‘eretz' is not fixed in meaning. Originally ‘eretz' was the whole earth including the waters (Genesis 1:1-2), now it is the dry land as opposed to the waters. It can mean the earth as opposed to the heavens (Genesis 1:1-2), land as opposed to sea (as here), and within that definition a particular area of land. Thus the people of Israel were later the ‘people of the land ('eretz'), which meant Israel. As ‘yom' means a period of time, so ‘eretz' means the idea of somewhere to dwell.
God is here causing dry land ‘to appear' in preparation for animals and man. It was already there but comes out of the sea. The birds too will benefit, as will many river fish. Again the writer expresses satisfaction with the situation by saying that God sees it as good. He is satisfied with the provision He has made for man. Thus we should be filled with praise at His wonderful provision.
It will be noted that the dry land is seen as already being under the waters. It is intrinsic within the waters. This is not a new act of creation, but a shaping by His word of what is already there. From the formlessness He produces form. From the shapeless He produces shape. But those who see ‘evolution' at work here must recognise that it happens under God's command and control.
So the dry land is surrounded by water, and there is abundant water above. All are held in their place and controlled by the hand of God. But let God withdraw His hand and total inundation will result, as later it will (Genesis 1:7-8).
So now we have light and shape and differentiation, the building blocks of life are being put in place. But darkness ever threatens to envelop all things if God withdraws His word, and shapelessness will overcome what has been formed unless God sustains it.