2 Genesis 1 – 3

the earth and control it; exercise authority over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air
and every creature that moves on the earth.”
29 God said, “Look, I'm giving you as your food every seed-bearing plant anywhere
on earth, and every tree that produces fruit with seeds. 30 I'm giving all the green plants to
all the land animals, to the birds, and to every creature that moves on the earth—to every
living thing.” And that's what happened.
31 God saw everything that he had created, and yes, it was very good. So there was
evening, and then the morning, making day six.
1 a
The creation of the heavens, the earth, and everything in them was complete. By 2
2 the time the seventh day came, God had finished the work he'd done, and he rested on
3
the seventh day from all the work he'd been doing. God blessed the seventh day, and set
it apart as holy, because he rested from all the work he'd done in creation.
4 This is the account of the Lord God's creation when he made the heavens and the
earth.
5 Up to this point there were no wild plantsb or crops growing on the earth, because
the Lord God hadn't sent rain, and there was no one to cultivate the ground. 6 Dew came
up from the earth and made the whole surface of the ground wet. 7 The Lord God shaped
the man Adamc from the dust of the ground. He breathed into his nostrils the breath of
life, and Adam became a living being.
8 The Lord planted a garden in Eden, in the east. There he put the man Adam he had
created. 9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow in the garden, beautiful trees and
trees producing fruit that's good to eat. The tree of life was in the middle of the garden,
along with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 10 A river flowed out from Eden to
water the garden. From there it split into four branches. 11 The first branch was called the
Pishon and it flowed through the whole land of Havilah, where gold is found. 12 (The gold
from that land is pure. Bdelliumd and onyx stone are also found there.) 13 The second
branch was called the Gihon and it flowed through the whole land of Cush.e 14 The third
branch was called the Tigrisf and it flowed east of the city of Asshur. The fourth branch
was called the Euphrates.g
15 The Lord God put the man in the Garden of Eden to cultivate it and care for it.
16 The Lord God ordered Adam, “You are free to eat fruit from every tree in the garden,
17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, because the day
you eat from it you are certain to die.”
18 Then the Lord God said, “It's not good for Adam to be alone. I will make someone
to help him, someone that's like him.”
19 The Lord God used the ground to make all the wild animals, and all the birds. He
took them all to Adam to see what he would call them, and Adam named every living
creature. 20 Adam gave names to all the livestock, all the birds, and all the wild animals.
But Adam didn't find anyone like him who could help him.

a 2:1. “Everything in them”: literally, “all the array of them.” The word used for “array” is usually
a military term designating the formation of an army of soldiers.
b 2:5. “Plants”: the word can also mean “bushes” or “shrubs.”
c 2:7. The word for man is Adam, so it serves the purpose of identifying both the first man and his personal
name. Since it is not always clear whether the term refers to man generically or the person of Adam, this
version has chosen in most cases to translate “the man” as Adam, and then by extension, “the woman,” as
Eve, even though she is not specifically named until 3:20. In this way the account is brought to a more
personal level. In addition note that the word for ground is “adamah,” showing the close connection of the
man to the earth.
d 2:12. “Bdellium”: later references state that this is an aromatic resin. Whether this is the same substance
as mentioned here is not known.
e 2:13. “Cush”: in much of the Old Testament this is another name for Ethiopia; whether this is so here is
uncertain.
f 2:14. “Tigris”: literally “Hiddekel,” thought to be the old Hebrew name for the Tigris. See also
Daniel 10:4.
g 2:14. “Euphrates”: literally “Parat,” usually thought to be synonymous with the Euphrates.