1The creation of the heavens, the earth, and everything in them#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. was complete. 2By the time the seventh day came, God had finished the work he'd done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work he'd been doing. 3God blessed the seventh day, and set it apart as holy, because he rested from all the work he'd done in creation.

4This is the account of the Lord God's creation when he made the heavens and the earth.

5Up to this point there were no wild plants#2:5. “Plants”: the word can also mean “bushes” or “shrubs.” or crops growing on the earth, because the Lord God hadn't sent rain, and there was no one to cultivate the ground. 6Dew came up from the earth and made the whole surface of the ground wet. 7The Lord God shaped the man Adam#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. from the dust of the ground. He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and Adam became a living being.

8The Lord planted a garden in Eden, in the east. There he put the man Adam he had created. 9The 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. 10A river flowed out from Eden to water the garden. From there it split into four branches. 11The 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. Bdellium#2:12. “Bdellium”: later references state that this is an aromatic resin. Whether this is the same substance as mentioned here is not known. and onyx stone are also found there.) 13The second branch was called the Gihon and it flowed through the whole land of Cush.#2:13. “Cush”: in much of the Old Testament this is another name for Ethiopia; whether this is so here is uncertain. 14The third branch was called the Tigris#2:14. “Tigris”: literally “Hiddekel,” thought to be the old Hebrew name for the Tigris. See also Daniel 10:4. and it flowed east of the city of Asshur. The fourth branch was called the Euphrates.#2:14. “Euphrates”: literally “Parat,” usually thought to be synonymous with the Euphrates.

15The Lord God put the man in the Garden of Eden to cultivate it and care for it. 16The Lord God ordered Adam, “You are free to eat fruit from every tree in the garden, 17but 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.”

18Then 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.”

19The 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. 20Adam 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.

21So the Lord God put Adam into a deep sleep and as he slept the Lord God removed one of Adam's ribs and closed up the place where he took it with body tissue. 22The Lord God made a woman, using the rib he'd taken from Adam, and presented her to Adam.

23“Finally!” said Adam. “Here is bone from my bone and flesh from my flesh. She shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man.”#2:23. “Man”: a different Hebrew word is used here and in the following verse.

24This is the reason a man leaves his father and mother and is joined#2:24. “Joined”: literally, “clings to,” or “sticks together with.” to his wife, and the two become one being. 25Adam and his wife Eve#2:25. See note under 2:7. were both naked, but they weren't embarrassed about it.

Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com

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Genesis 2

The Seventh Day

(Exodus 16:22–30; Hebrews 4:1–11)

1Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. 2And by the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on that day He rested from all His work.#2:2 Cited in Hebrews 4:4

3Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on that day He rested from all the work of creation that He had accomplished.

Man and Woman in the Garden

4This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord #2:4 Lord or GOD, with capital letters, represents the proper name of the God of Israel and the one true God, transliterated from the Hebrew as YHWH; here and throughout the Scriptures. God made them.

5Now no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth, nor had any plant of the field sprouted; for the Lord God had not yet sent rain upon the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground. 6But springs #2:6 Or mist welled up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground.

7Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and the man became a living being.#2:7 Or a living soul; cited in 1 Corinthians 15:45

8And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, where He placed the man He had formed. 9Out of the ground the Lord God gave growth to every tree that is pleasing to the eye and good for food. And in the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

10Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it branched into four headwaters:

11The name of the first river is Pishon; it winds through the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12And the gold of that land is pure, and bdellium and onyx are found there.

13The name of the second river is Gihon; it winds through the whole land of Cush.

14The name of the third river is Hiddekel; it runs along the east side of Assyria.

And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

15Then the Lord God took the man and placed him in the Garden of Eden to cultivate and keep it.

16And the Lord God commanded him, “You may eat freely from every tree of the garden, 17but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die.”

18The Lord God also said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make for him a suitable helper.”

19And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and He brought them to the man to see what he would name each one. And whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. 20The man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam #2:20 Or the man, as in verses 19 and 21 no suitable helper was found.

21So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep, and while he slept, He took one of the man’s ribs #2:21 Or took part of the man’s side; similarly in verse 22 and closed up the area with flesh. 22And from the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man, He made a woman and brought her to him. 23And the man said:

“This is now bone of my bones

and flesh of my flesh;

she shall be called ‘woman,’

for out of man she was taken.”

24For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.#2:24 LXX and the two will become one flesh; cited in Matthew 19:5, Mark 10:7–8, 1 Corinthians 6:16, and Ephesians 5:31

25And the man and his wife were both naked, and they were not ashamed.

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Genesis 2

Genesis 2