Adam and Eve

⁴ This is the account^(G) of the heavens and the earth when they were created,^(H) when the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.

⁵ Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth^[a] and no plant had yet sprung up,^(I) for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth^(J) and there was no one to work the ground, ⁶ but streams^[b] came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. ⁷ Then the Lord God formed^(K) a man^[c](L) from the dust^(M) of the ground^(N) and breathed into his nostrils the breath^(O) of life,^(P) and the man became a living being.^(Q)

⁸ Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden;^(R) and there he put the man he had formed. ⁹ The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees^(S) that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life^(T) and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.^(U)

¹⁰ A river^(V) watering the garden flowed from Eden;^(W) from there it was separated into four headwaters. ¹¹ The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah,^(X) where there is gold. ¹² (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin^[d](Y) and onyx are also there.) ¹³ The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush.^{[e] 14} The name of the third river is the Tigris;^(Z) it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.^(AA)

¹⁵ The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden^(AB) to work it and take care of it. ¹⁶ And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;^{(AC) 17} but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,^(AD) for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”^(AE)

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

¹⁹ Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals^(AG) and all the birds in the sky.^(AH) He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called^(AI) each living creature,^(AJ) that was its name. ²⁰ So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.

But for Adam^[f] no suitable helper^(AK) was found. ²¹ So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep;^(AL) and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs^[g] and then closed up the place with flesh. ²² Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib^[h](AM) he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

²³ The man said,

²⁴ That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united^(AQ) to his wife, and they become one flesh.^(AR)

²⁵ Adam and his wife were both naked,^(AS) and they felt no shame.

The Fall

3 Now the serpent^(AT) was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?^(AU)”

² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,^{(AV) 3} but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”^(AW)

⁴ “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman.^{(AX) 5} “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God,^(AY) knowing good and evil.”

⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable^(AZ) for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband,^(BA) who was with her, and he ate it.^{(BB) 7} Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked;^(BC) so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.^(BD)

⁸ Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking^(BE) in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid^(BF) from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. ⁹ But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”^(BG)

¹⁰ He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid^(BH) because I was naked;^(BI) so I hid.”

¹¹ And he said, “Who told you that you were naked?^(BJ) Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?^(BK)”

¹² The man said, “The woman you put here with me^(BL)—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

¹³ Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”

The woman said, “The serpent deceived me,^(BM) and I ate.”

¹⁴ So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,

¹⁶ To the woman he said,

¹⁷ To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’^(BU)

²⁰ Adam^[k] named his wife Eve,^[l](CE) because she would become the mother of all the living.

²¹ The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.^{(CF) 22} And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us,^(CG) knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life^(CH) and eat, and live forever.” ²³ So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden^(CI) to work the ground^(CJ) from which he had been taken. ²⁴ After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side^[m] of the Garden of Eden^(CK) cherubim^(CL) and a flaming sword^(CM) flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.^(CN)

Cain and Abel

4 Adam^[n] made love to his wife^(CO) Eve,^(CP) and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.^[o](CQ) She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth^[p] a man.” ² Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.^(CR)

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil.^{(CS) 3} In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering^(CT) to the Lord.^{(CU) 4} And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions^(CV) from some of the firstborn of his flock.^(CW) The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering,^{(CX) 5} but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

⁶ Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry?^(CY) Why is your face downcast? ⁷ If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door;^(CZ) it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.^(DA)”

⁸ Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”^[q] While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.^(DB)

⁹ Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”^(DC)

“I don’t know,^(DD)” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

¹⁰ The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.^{(DE) 11} Now you are under a curse^(DF) and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. ¹² When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you.^(DG) You will be a restless wanderer^(DH) on the earth.^(DI)”

¹³ Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is more than I can bear. ¹⁴ Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence;^(DJ) I will be a restless wanderer on the earth,^(DK) and whoever finds me will kill me.”^(DL)

¹⁵ But the Lord said to him, “Not so^[r]; anyone who kills Cain^(DM) will suffer vengeance^(DN) seven times over.^(DO)” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. ¹⁶ So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence^(DP) and lived in the land of Nod,^[s] east of Eden.^(DQ)

¹⁷ Cain made love to his wife,^(DR) and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city,^(DS) and he named it after his son^(DT) Enoch. ¹⁸ To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.

¹⁹ Lamech married^(DU) two women,^(DV) one named Adah and the other Zillah. ²⁰ Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. ²¹ His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments^(DW) and pipes.^{(DX) 22} Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged^(DY) all kinds of tools out of^[t] bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.

²³ Lamech said to his wives,

²⁵ Adam made love to his wife^(ED) again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth,^[u](EE) saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.”^{(EF) 26} Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.^(EG)

At that time people began to call on^[v] the name of the Lord.^(EH)

Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed

19 The two angels^(A) arrived at Sodom^(B) in the evening, and Lot^(C) was sitting in the gateway of the city.^(D) When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground.^{(E) 2} “My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet^(F) and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.”

“No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”^(G)

³ But he insisted^(H) so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house.^(I) He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast,^(J) and they ate.^{(K) 4} Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom^(L)—both young and old—surrounded the house. ⁵ They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”^(M)

⁶ Lot went outside to meet them^(N) and shut the door behind him ⁷ and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. ⁸ Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”^(O)

⁹ “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner,^(P) and now he wants to play the judge!^(Q) We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.

¹⁰ But the men^(R) inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. ¹¹ Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness^(S) so that they could not find the door.

¹² The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you?^(T) Get them out of here, ¹³ because we^(U) are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against its people is so great^(V) that he has sent us to destroy it.”^(W)

¹⁴ So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry^[a] his daughters. He said, “Hurry and get out of this place, because the Lord is about to destroy the city!^(X)” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.^(Y)

¹⁵ With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away^(Z) when the city is punished.^(AA)”

¹⁶ When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters^(AB) and led them safely out of the city, for the Lord was merciful to them.^{(AC) 17} As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives!^(AD) Don’t look back,^(AE) and don’t stop anywhere in the plain!^(AF) Flee to the mountains^(AG) or you will be swept away!”

¹⁸ But Lot said to them, “No, my lords,^[b] please! ¹⁹ Your^[c] servant has found favor in your^[d] eyes,^(AH) and you^[e] have shown great kindness^(AI) to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains;^(AJ) this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. ²⁰ Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”

²¹ He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this request^(AK) too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. ²² But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar.^[f](AL))

²³ By the time Lot reached Zoar,^(AM) the sun had risen over the land. ²⁴ Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur^(AN) on Sodom and Gomorrah^(AO)—from the Lord out of the heavens.^{(AP) 25} Thus he overthrew those cities^(AQ) and the entire plain,^(AR) destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land.^{(AS) 26} But Lot’s wife looked back,^(AT) and she became a pillar of salt.^(AU)

²⁷ Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the Lord.^{(AV) 28} He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.^(AW)

²⁹ So when God destroyed the cities of the plain,^(AX) he remembered^(AY) Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe^(AZ) that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.^(BA)

Lot and His Daughters

³⁰ Lot and his two daughters left Zoar^(BB) and settled in the mountains,^(BC) for he was afraid to stay in Zoar. He and his two daughters lived in a cave. ³¹ One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man around here to give us children—as is the custom all over the earth. ³² Let’s get our father to drink wine and then sleep with him and preserve our family line^(BD) through our father.”^(BE)

³³ That night they got their father to drink wine, and the older daughter went in and slept with him. He was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up.^(BF)

³⁴ The next day the older daughter said to the younger, “Last night I slept with my father. Let’s get him to drink wine again tonight, and you go in and sleep with him so we can preserve our family line through our father.”^{(BG) 35} So they got their father to drink wine^(BH) that night also, and the younger daughter went in and slept with him. Again he was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up.^(BI)

³⁶ So both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father.^{(BJ) 37} The older daughter had a son, and she named him Moab^[g];^(BK) he is the father of the Moabites^(BL) of today. ³⁸ The younger daughter also had a son, and she named him Ben-Ammi^[h]; he is the father of the Ammonites^[i](BM) of today.

¹⁵ I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.^{(A) 16} And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.^{(B) 17} As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.^(C)

Life Through the Spirit

8 Therefore, there is now no condemnation^(A) for those who are in Christ Jesus,^{(B) 2} because through Christ Jesus^(C) the law of the Spirit who gives life^(D) has set you^[a] free^(E) from the law of sin^(F) and death. ³ For what the law was powerless^(G) to do because it was weakened by the flesh,^[b](H) God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh^(I) to be a sin offering.^[c](J) And so he condemned sin in the flesh, ⁴ in order that the righteous requirement^(K) of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.^(L)