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The Beginning

In the beginning(A) God created(B) the heavens(C) and the earth.(D) Now the earth was formless(E) and empty,(F) darkness was over the surface of the deep,(G) and the Spirit of God(H) was hovering(I) over the waters.

And God said,(J) “Let there be light,” and there was light.(K) God saw that the light was good,(L) and he separated the light from the darkness.(M) God called(N) the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.”(O) And there was evening, and there was morning(P)—the first day.

And God said,(Q) “Let there be a vault(R) between the waters(S) to separate water from water.” So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it.(T) And it was so.(U) God called(V) the vault “sky.”(W) And there was evening, and there was morning(X)—the second day.

And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place,(Y) and let dry ground(Z) appear.” And it was so.(AA) 10 God called(AB) the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters(AC) he called “seas.”(AD) And God saw that it was good.(AE)

11 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation:(AF) seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.(AG)” And it was so.(AH) 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds(AI) and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.(AJ) 13 And there was evening, and there was morning(AK)—the third day.

14 And God said, “Let there be lights(AL) in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night,(AM) and let them serve as signs(AN) to mark sacred times,(AO) and days and years,(AP) 15 and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so.(AQ) 16 God made two great lights—the greater light(AR) to govern(AS) the day and the lesser light to govern(AT) the night.(AU) He also made the stars.(AV) 17 God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, 18 to govern the day and the night,(AW) and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.(AX) 19 And there was evening, and there was morning(AY)—the fourth day.

20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures,(AZ) and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.”(BA) 21 So God created(BB) the great creatures of the sea(BC) and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it,(BD) according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind.(BE) And God saw that it was good.(BF) 22 God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.”(BG) 23 And there was evening, and there was morning(BH)—the fifth day.

24 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures(BI) according to their kinds:(BJ) the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so.(BK) 25 God made the wild animals(BL) according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds.(BM) And God saw that it was good.(BN)

26 Then God said, “Let us(BO) make mankind(BP) in our image,(BQ) in our likeness,(BR) so that they may rule(BS) over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky,(BT) over the livestock and all the wild animals,[a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

27 So God created(BU) mankind(BV) in his own image,(BW)
    in the image of God(BX) he created them;
    male and female(BY) he created them.(BZ)

28 God blessed them and said to them,(CA) “Be fruitful and increase in number;(CB) fill the earth(CC) and subdue it. Rule over(CD) the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.(CE)

29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.(CF) 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life(CG) in it—I give every green plant for food.(CH)” And it was so.

31 God saw all that he had made,(CI) and it was very good.(CJ) And there was evening, and there was morning(CK)—the sixth day.

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 1:26 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text (see Syriac); Masoretic Text the earth

Six Days of Creation and the Sabbath

When God began to create[a] the heavens and the earth,(A) the earth was complete chaos, and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God[b] swept over the face of the waters.(B) Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.(C) And God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness.(D) God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.(E)

And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.”(F) So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so.(G) God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

And God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so.(H) 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.(I) 11 Then God said, “Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.” And it was so.(J) 12 The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years,(K) 15 and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars.(L) 17 God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.(M) 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

20 And God said, “Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the dome of the sky.” 21 So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, of every kind, with which the waters swarm and every winged bird of every kind. And God saw that it was good.(N) 22 God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”(O) 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.” And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind and the cattle of every kind and everything that creeps upon the ground of every kind. And God saw that it was good.(P)

26 Then God said, “Let us make humans[c] in our image, according to our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over the cattle and over all the wild animals of the earth[d] and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.”(Q)

27 So God created humans[e] in his image,
    in the image of God he created them;[f]
    male and female he created them.(R)

28 God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.”(S) 29 God said, “See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food.(T) 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the air and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so.(U) 31 God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.(V)

Footnotes

  1. 1.1 Or In the beginning God created
  2. 1.2 Or while the spirit of God or while a mighty wind
  3. 1.26 Heb adam
  4. 1.26 Syr: Heb and over all the earth
  5. 1.27 Heb adam
  6. 1.27 Heb him

Heaven and Earth

1-2 First this: God created the Heavens and Earth—all you see, all you don’t see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness. God’s Spirit brooded like a bird above the watery abyss.

3-5 God spoke: “Light!”
    And light appeared.
God saw that light was good
    and separated light from dark.
God named the light Day,
    he named the dark Night.
It was evening, it was morning—
Day One.

6-8 God spoke: “Sky! In the middle of the waters;
    separate water from water!”
God made sky.
He separated the water under sky
    from the water above sky.
And there it was:
    he named sky the Heavens;
It was evening, it was morning—
Day Two.

9-10 God spoke: “Separate!
    Water-beneath-Heaven, gather into one place;
Land, appear!”
    And there it was.
God named the land Earth.
    He named the pooled water Ocean.
God saw that it was good.

11-13 God spoke: “Earth, green up! Grow all varieties
    of seed-bearing plants,
Every sort of fruit-bearing tree.”
    And there it was.
Earth produced green seed-bearing plants,
    all varieties,
And fruit-bearing trees of all sorts.
    God saw that it was good.
It was evening, it was morning—
Day Three.

14-15 God spoke: “Lights! Come out!
    Shine in Heaven’s sky!
Separate Day from Night.
    Mark seasons and days and years,
Lights in Heaven’s sky to give light to Earth.”
    And there it was.

16-19 God made two big lights, the larger
    to take charge of Day,
The smaller to be in charge of Night;
    and he made the stars.
God placed them in the heavenly sky
    to light up Earth
And oversee Day and Night,
    to separate light and dark.
God saw that it was good.
It was evening, it was morning—
Day Four.

20-23 God spoke: “Swarm, Ocean, with fish and all sea life!
    Birds, fly through the sky over Earth!”
God created the huge whales,
    all the swarm of life in the waters,
And every kind and species of flying birds.
    God saw that it was good.
God blessed them: “Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Ocean!
    Birds, reproduce on Earth!”
It was evening, it was morning—
Day Five.

24-25 God spoke: “Earth, generate life! Every sort and kind:
    cattle and reptiles and wild animals—all kinds.”
And there it was:
    wild animals of every kind,
Cattle of all kinds, every sort of reptile and bug.
    God saw that it was good.

26-28 God spoke: “Let us make human beings in our image, make them
    reflecting our nature
So they can be responsible for the fish in the sea,
    the birds in the air, the cattle,
And, yes, Earth itself,
    and every animal that moves on the face of Earth.”
God created human beings;
    he created them godlike,
Reflecting God’s nature.
    He created them male and female.
God blessed them:
    “Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Earth! Take charge!
Be responsible for fish in the sea and birds in the air,
    for every living thing that moves on the face of Earth.”

29-30 Then God said, “I’ve given you
    every sort of seed-bearing plant on Earth
And every kind of fruit-bearing tree,
    given them to you for food.
To all animals and all birds,
    everything that moves and breathes,
I give whatever grows out of the ground for food.”
    And there it was.

31 God looked over everything he had made;
    it was so good, so very good!
It was evening, it was morning—
Day Six.

The Account of Creation

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.[a] The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.

Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. Then he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day” and the darkness “night.”

And evening passed and morning came, marking the first day.

Then God said, “Let there be a space between the waters, to separate the waters of the heavens from the waters of the earth.” And that is what happened. God made this space to separate the waters of the earth from the waters of the heavens. God called the space “sky.”

And evening passed and morning came, marking the second day.

Then God said, “Let the waters beneath the sky flow together into one place, so dry ground may appear.” And that is what happened. 10 God called the dry ground “land” and the waters “seas.” And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, “Let the land sprout with vegetation—every sort of seed-bearing plant, and trees that grow seed-bearing fruit. These seeds will then produce the kinds of plants and trees from which they came.” And that is what happened. 12 The land produced vegetation—all sorts of seed-bearing plants, and trees with seed-bearing fruit. Their seeds produced plants and trees of the same kind. And God saw that it was good.

13 And evening passed and morning came, marking the third day.

14 Then God said, “Let lights appear in the sky to separate the day from the night. Let them be signs to mark the seasons, days, and years. 15 Let these lights in the sky shine down on the earth.” And that is what happened. 16 God made two great lights—the larger one to govern the day, and the smaller one to govern the night. He also made the stars. 17 God set these lights in the sky to light the earth, 18 to govern the day and night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.

19 And evening passed and morning came, marking the fourth day.

20 Then God said, “Let the waters swarm with fish and other life. Let the skies be filled with birds of every kind.” 21 So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that scurries and swarms in the water, and every sort of bird—each producing offspring of the same kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 Then God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply. Let the fish fill the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.”

23 And evening passed and morning came, marking the fifth day.

24 Then God said, “Let the earth produce every sort of animal, each producing offspring of the same kind—livestock, small animals that scurry along the ground, and wild animals.” And that is what happened. 25 God made all sorts of wild animals, livestock, and small animals, each able to produce offspring of the same kind. And God saw that it was good.

26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings[b] in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth,[c] and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”

27 So God created human beings[d] in his own image.
    In the image of God he created them;
    male and female he created them.

28 Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”

29 Then God said, “Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food. 30 And I have given every green plant as food for all the wild animals, the birds in the sky, and the small animals that scurry along the ground—everything that has life.” And that is what happened.

31 Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good!

And evening passed and morning came, marking the sixth day.

Footnotes

  1. 1:1 Or In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, . . . Or When God began to create the heavens and the earth, . . .
  2. 1:26a Or man; Hebrew reads adam.
  3. 1:26b As in Syriac version; Hebrew reads all the earth.
  4. 1:27 Or the man; Hebrew reads ha-adam.

The Beginning of the World

·In the beginning [or In the beginning when] God created [C this Hebrew verb is used only when God is the one creating] the ·sky [heavens] and the earth. ·The [or…the] earth ·had no form and was empty [or was a formless void]. Darkness covered the ·ocean [deep], and ·God’s Spirit [or a mighty wind] was ·moving [hovering] over the water.

Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, so he ·divided [separated] the light from the darkness. God ·named [called] the light “day” and the darkness “night.” ·Evening passed, and morning came [L There was evening and there was morning; C in the OT a day begins at nightfall]. This was the first day.

Then God said, “Let there be ·something to divide the water in two [L a firmament/dome/expanse in the midst of the waters to separate/divide the waters from the waters].” So God made the ·air [L firmament; dome; expanse; C rain clouds] and placed some of the water above the ·air [L firmament; dome; expanse] and some below it [C referring to the rain and the oceans, lakes, and rivers]. God ·named [called] the ·air [L firmament/dome/expanse] “·sky [heaven].” Evening passed, and morning came [1:5]. This was the second day.

Then God said, “Let the water under the ·sky [heavens] be gathered together so the dry land will appear.” And it happened. 10 God ·named [called] the dry land “earth” and [L he called] the water that was gathered together “seas.” God saw that this was good.

11 Then God said, “Let the earth produce ·plants [vegetation]—some to make grain for seeds and ·others to make fruits with seeds in them. Every seed will produce more of its own kind of plant [L fruit trees on earth bearing fruit according to its own kind/species that has seed in them].” And it happened. 12 The earth ·produced [brought forth] plants with grain for seeds and trees that made fruits with seeds in them. ·Each seed grew its own kind of plant [L …according to its kind/species]. God saw that all this was good. 13 Evening passed, and morning came [1:5]. This was the third day.

14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the ·sky [L firmament/dome/expanse of the heavens] to ·separate [divide] day from night. ·These lights will be used for [L They will be] signs, seasons, days, and years. 15 They will be in the ·sky [L firmament/dome/expanse] to give light to the earth.” And it happened.

16 So God made the two ·large [great] lights. He made the ·brighter [L greater] light to rule the day and made the ·smaller [lesser] light to rule the night. ·He also made the stars [L …and the stars]. 17 God put all these in the sky to shine on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to ·separate [divide] the light from the darkness. God saw that all these things were good. 19 Evening passed, and morning came [1:5]. This was the fourth day.

20 Then God said, “Let the water ·be filled with living things [L swarm with living creatures], and let birds fly in the ·air [L firmament/dome/expanse] above the earth.”

21 So God created [1:1] the large sea ·animals [or monsters] and every living thing that ·moves [L swarms] in the sea. The sea is filled with these living things, with each one ·producing more of its own kind [L according to its kind/species]. He also ·made [or created; 1:1] every bird that flies, and each bird ·produced more of its own kind [L according to its kind/species]. God saw that this was good. 22 God blessed them and said, “·Have many young ones so that you may grow in number [T Be fruitful and multiply]. ·Fill […and fill] the water of the seas, and let the birds ·grow in number [multiply] on the earth.” 23 Evening passed, and morning came [1:5]. This was the fifth day.

24 Then God said, “Let the earth be filled with ·animals [living creatures], ·each producing more of its own kind [L according to their kind/species]. Let there be ·tame animals [beasts; livestock] and small crawling animals and wild animals, ·and let each produce more of its kind [L according to their kind/species].” And it happened.

25 So God made the wild animals, the ·tame animals [beasts; livestock], and all the small crawling animals ·to produce more of their own kind [L according to their kind/species]. God saw that this was good.

26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image and likeness. And let them ·rule [T have dominion] over the fish in the sea and the birds in the ·sky [heavens], over the ·tame animals [beasts; livestock], over all the earth, and over all the small crawling animals on the earth.”

27 So God created [1:1] ·human beings [T man; C the Hebrew adam can mean human beings, humankind, person, man, or the proper name Adam] in his image [C reflecting God’s nature/character and representing him in the world]. In the image of God he created them. He created them male and female. 28 God blessed them and said [L to them], “·Have many children and grow in number [T Be fruitful and multiply]. ·Fill […and fill] the earth and ·be its master [subdue it]. ·Rule [T Have dominion] over the fish in the sea and over the birds in the ·sky [heavens] and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

29 God said, “Look, I have given you all the plants that have grain for seeds [L on the face of the earth] and all the trees whose fruits have seeds in them. They will be food for you. 30 I have given all the green plants as food for every wild animal, every bird of the ·air [sky; heavens], and every small ·crawling [creeping] animal.” And it happened. 31 God looked at everything he had made, and it was ·very [exceedingly] good. Evening passed, and morning came [1:5]. This was the sixth day.