And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, &c.— The elements being formed, the sea collected to its proper place, and the surface of the earth appearing, the next act of Divine Power was to clothe that surface with the beautiful furniture which we now behold upon it. Accordingly he gave his almighty fiat; and the grass, that which springs up annually without sowing; the herbs, all plants, corn, &c. which are sown; and the trees, in their lovely verdure, and amazing variety, were produced.
The seeds, or first principles of all the vegetables, were very probably formed with the first chaotic atoms or principles of all things; and we must believe that they arose to absolute maturity and perfection, by the immediate interposition of the Divine Power: nor can it fail to inspire us with the highest idea of the Supreme Mind, when we reflect on the infinite variety, beauty, and regularity of this part of the creation, every individual herb and flower of which must necessarily have been planned and formed by his wisdom, before it was brought to being and perfection.
Whose seed is in itself— The learned Michaelis observes, that the Syriac version has it, whose plant is in itself; which is strictly philosophical; as the best naturalists have incontestibly proved that the seeds of plants contain the perfect draught, in miniature—all the parts and members of the mature and complete plant. And thus it is also in the animal creation. And as no plants can be produced without seed, we here see, by God's wisdom, the origin of all the plants, &c. upon the earth; which from the first have been continued, by means of this original provision of seed. But, as Abarbanel observes, the production of plants, in the beginning, differed from their production ever since, in these two things: 1st, That they have sprung ever since, out of their seed, either sown by us, or falling from them: whereas, in the beginning, they were brought out of the earth, with their seed in them, to propagate them ever after. 2nd, That they need now, as they have ever done since the first creation, the influence of the sun to make them germinate. But then they sprung forth, in perfection, by the immediate power of God, before there was any sun.
Hence we may observe, that God must have the glory of all the benefit we receive, as indeed from every thing, so particularly from the products of the earth. And if we have through grace an interest in him who is the Fountain, we may rejoice in him, when the streams are dried up, and the fig-tree doth not blossom.