The Beginning

1 In the beginning God made from nothing the heavens and the earth. ² The earth was an empty waste and darkness was over the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was moving over the top of the waters. ³ Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ⁴ God saw that the light was good. He divided the light from the darkness. ⁵ Then God called the light day, and He called the darkness night. There was evening and there was morning, one day.

⁶ Then God said, “Let there be an open space between the waters. Let it divide waters from waters.” ⁷ God made the open space, and divided the waters under the open space from the waters above the open space. And it was so. ⁸ Then God called the open space Heaven. There was evening and there was morning, the second day.

⁹ Then God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered into one place. Let the dry land be seen.” And it was so. ¹⁰ Then God called the dry land Earth. He called the gathering of the waters Seas. And God saw that it was good. ¹¹ Then God said, “Let plants grow from the earth, plants that have seeds. Let fruit trees grow on the earth that bring their kind of fruit with their own seeds.” And it was so. ¹² Plants grew out of the earth, giving their own kind of seeds. Trees grew with their fruit, and their kind of seeds. And God saw that it was good. ¹³ There was evening and there was morning, the third day.

¹⁴ Then God said, “Let there be lights in the open space of the heavens to divide day from night. Let them tell the days and years and times of the year. ¹⁵ Let them be lights in the open space of the heavens to give light on the earth.” And it was so. ¹⁶ Then God made the two great lights, the brighter light to rule the day, and the smaller light to rule the night. He made the stars also. ¹⁷ God put them in the open space of the heavens to give light on the earth, ¹⁸ to rule the day and the night. He divided the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. ¹⁹ There was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

²⁰ Then God said, “Let the waters be full of living things. Let birds fly above the earth in the open space of the heavens.” ²¹ God made the big animals that live in the sea, and every living thing that moves through the waters by its kind, and every winged bird after its kind. And God saw that it was good. ²² God wanted good to come to them, saying, “Give birth to many. Grow in number. Fill the waters in the seas. Let birds grow in number on the earth.” ²³ There was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

²⁴ Then God said, “Let the earth bring into being living things after their kind: Cattle and things that move upon the ground, and wild animals of the earth after their kind.” And it was so. ²⁵ Then God made the wild animals of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and every thing that moves upon the ground after its kind. And God saw that it was good.

²⁶ Then God said, “Let Us make man like Us and let him be head over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every thing that moves on the ground.” ²⁷ And God made man in His own likeness. In the likeness of God He made him. He made both male and female. ²⁸ And God wanted good to come to them, saying, “Give birth to many. Grow in number. Fill the earth and rule over it. Rule over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” ²⁹ Then God said, “See, I have given you every plant that gives seeds that is on the earth, and every tree that has fruit that gives seeds. They will be food for you. ³⁰ I have given every green plant for food to every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to every thing that moves on the earth that has life.” And it was so. ³¹ God saw all that He had made and it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

2 So the heavens and the earth were completed, and all that is in them. ² On the seventh day God ended His work which He had done. And He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. ³ Then God honored the seventh day and made it holy, because in it He rested from all His work which He had done.

The Garden of Eden

⁴ This is the story of the heavens and the earth when they were made, in the day the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. ⁵ Now no bush of the field was yet on the earth. And no plant of the field had started to grow. For the Lord God had not sent rain upon the earth. And there was no man to work the ground. ⁶ But a fog came from the earth and watered the whole top of the ground. ⁷ Then the Lord God made man from the dust of the ground. And He breathed into his nose the breath of life. Man became a living being. ⁸ The Lord God planted a garden to the east in Eden. He put the man there whom He had made. ⁹ And the Lord God made to grow out of the ground every tree that is pleasing to the eyes and good for food. And He made the tree of life grow in the center of the garden, and the tree of learning of good and bad.

¹⁰ Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden. And from there it divided and became four rivers. ¹¹ The name of the first is Pishon. It flows around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. ¹² The gold of that land is good. Bdellium and onyx stone are there. ¹³ The name of the second river is Gihon. It flows around the whole land of Cush. ¹⁴ The name of the third river is Tigris. It flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

¹⁵ Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work the ground and care for it. ¹⁶ The Lord God told the man, “You are free to eat from any tree of the garden. ¹⁷ But do not eat from the tree of learning of good and bad. For the day you eat from it you will die for sure.”

¹⁸ Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper that is right for him.” ¹⁹ Out of the ground the Lord God made every animal of the field and every bird of the sky. He brought them to the man to find out what he would call them. And whatever the man called a living thing, that was its name. ²⁰ Adam gave names to all the cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every animal of the field. But there was no helper found that was right for Adam. ²¹ So the Lord God put the man to sleep as if he were dead. And while he was sleeping, He took one of the bones from his side and closed up the place with flesh. ²² The Lord God made woman from the bone which He had taken from the man. And He brought her to the man. ²³ The man said, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She will be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” ²⁴ For this reason a man will leave his father and his mother, and will be joined to his wife. And they will become one flesh. ²⁵ The man and his wife were both without clothes and were not ashamed.

Man Does Not Obey God

3 Now the snake was more able to fool others than any animal of the field which the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God say that you should not eat from any tree in the garden?” ² Then the woman said to the snake, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden. ³ But from the tree which is in the center of the garden, God has said, ‘Do not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’”

⁴ The snake said to the woman, “No, you for sure will not die! ⁵ For God knows that when you eat from it, your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and bad.” ⁶ The woman saw that the tree was good for food, and pleasing to the eyes, and could fill the desire of making one wise. So she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave some to her husband, and he ate. ⁷ Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were without clothes. So they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves clothing.

⁸ Then they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the evening. The man and his wife hid themselves from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. ⁹ But the Lord God called to the man. He said to him, “Where are you?” ¹⁰ And the man said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden. I was afraid because I was without clothes. So I hid myself.” ¹¹ The Lord God said, “Who told you that you were without clothes? Have you eaten from the tree of which I told you not to eat?” ¹² The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” ¹³ Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” And the woman said, “The snake fooled me, and I ate.”

¹⁴ Then the Lord God said to the snake, “Because you have done this, you will be hated and will suffer more than all cattle, and more than every animal of the field. You will go on your stomach and you will eat dust all the days of your life. ¹⁵ And I will make you and the woman hate each other, and your seed and her seed will hate each other. He will crush your head, and you will crush his heel.”

¹⁶ To the woman He said, “I will make your pain much worse in giving birth. You will give birth to children in pain. Yet your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”

¹⁷ Then He said to Adam, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I told you, “Do not eat from it,” the ground is cursed because of you. By hard work you will eat food from it all the days of your life. ¹⁸ It will grow thorns and thistles for you. You will eat the plants of the field. ¹⁹ You will eat bread by the sweat of your face because of hard work, until you return to the ground, because you were taken from the ground. You are dust, and you will return to dust.”

²⁰ The man called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. ²¹ And the Lord God made clothes of skins for Adam and his wife, and dressed them.

²² Then the Lord God said, “See, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and bad. Now then, he might put out his hand to take from the tree of life also, and eat and live forever.” ²³ So the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to work the ground from which he was taken. ²⁴ So He drove the man out. And He placed cherubim east of the garden of Eden with a sword of fire that turned every way. They kept watch over the path to the tree of life.

The Families Jesus Came Through ^(A)

1 These are the families through which Jesus Christ came. He came through David and Abraham. ² Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers. ³ Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah. Their mother was Tamar. Perez was the father of Hezron. Hezron was the father of Aram. ⁴ Aram was the father of Amminadab. Amminadab was the father of Nahshon. Nahshon was the father of Salmon. ⁵ Salmon was the father of Boaz. The mother of Boaz was Rahab. Boaz was the father of Obed. The mother of Obed was Ruth. Obed was the father of Jesse. ⁶ Jesse was the father of David the king.

King David was the father of Solomon. His mother had been the wife of Uriah. ⁷ Solomon was the father of Rehoboam. Rehoboam was the father of Abijah. Abijah was the father of Asa. ⁸ Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat was the father of Joram. Joram was the father of Uzziah. ⁹ Uzziah was the father of Jotham. Jotham was the father of Ahaz. Ahaz was the father of Hezekiah. ¹⁰ Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh. Manasseh was the father of Amon. Amon was the father of Josiah. ¹¹ Josiah was the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time the people were taken to Babylon.

¹² After they were taken to the city of Babylon, Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel. Shealtiel was the father of Zerubbabel. ¹³ Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud. Abiud was the father of Eliakim. Eliakim was the father of Azor. ¹⁴ Azor was the father of Zadok. Zadok was the father of Achim. Achim was the father of Eliud. ¹⁵ Eliud was the father of Eleazar. Eleazar was the father of Matthan. Matthan was the father of Jacob. ¹⁶ Jacob was the father of Joseph. Joseph was the husband of Mary. She was the mother of Jesus Who is called the Christ. ¹⁷ So the number of families from Abraham to David was fourteen. The number of families from David to the time the people were taken to Babylon was fourteen. The number of families after they were taken to Babylon to the birth of Jesus Christ was fourteen.

The Birth of Jesus ^(B)

¹⁸ The birth of Jesus Christ was like this: Mary His mother had been promised in marriage to Joseph. Before they were married, it was learned that she was to have a baby by the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Joseph was her promised husband. He was a good man and did not want to make it hard for Mary in front of people. He thought it would be good to break the promised marriage without people knowing it. ²⁰ While he was thinking about this, an angel of the Lord came to him in a dream. The angel said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. She is to become a mother by the Holy Spirit. ²¹ A Son will be born to her. You will give Him the name Jesus because He will save His people from the punishment of their sins.”

²² This happened as the Lord said it would happen through the early preacher. ²³ He said, “The young woman, who has never had a man, will give birth to a Son. They will give Him the name Immanuel. This means God with us.” ^{(C) 24} Joseph awoke from his sleep. He did what the angel of the Lord told him to do. He took Mary as his wife. ²⁵ But he did not have her, as a husband has a wife, until she gave birth to a Son. Joseph gave Him the name Jesus.

The Difference between Good and Sinful People

1 Happy is the man who does not walk in the way sinful men tell him to, or stand in the path of sinners, or sit with those who laugh at the truth. ² But he finds joy in the Law of the Lord and thinks about His Law day and night. ³ This man is like a tree planted by rivers of water, which gives its fruit at the right time and its leaf never dries up. Whatever he does will work out well for him.

⁴ Sinful men are not like this. They are like straw blown away by the wind. ⁵ So the sinful will not stand. They will be told they are guilty and have to suffer for it. Sinners will not stand with those who are right with God. ⁶ For the Lord knows the way of those who are right with Him. But the way of the sinful will be lost from God forever.

God’s Chosen One Will Rule

2 Why are the nations so shaken up and the people planning foolish things? ² The kings of the earth stand in a line ready to fight, and all the leaders are against the Lord and against His Chosen One. ³ They say, “Let us break their chains and throw them away from us.”

⁴ He Who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord makes fun of them. ⁵ Then He will speak to them in His anger and make them afraid, saying, ⁶ “But as for Me, I have set My King on Zion, My holy mountain.” ⁷ I will make known the words of the Lord. He said to Me, “You are My Son. Today I have become Your Father. ⁸ Ask of Me, and I will give the nations for you to own. The ends of the earth will belong to You. ⁹ You will break them using a piece of iron. And they will be broken in pieces like pots of clay.”

¹⁰ So, kings, be wise. Listen, you rulers of the earth. ¹¹ Serve the Lord with fear, and be full of joy as you shake in fear. ¹² Kiss the Son. Be afraid that He may be angry and destroy you in the way. For His anger is quick. Happy are all who put their trust in Him.

Morning Prayer of Trust

3 O Lord, how many are they who hate me! How many rise up against me! ² Many are saying of me, “There is no help for him in God.” ³ But You, O Lord, are a covering around me, my shining-greatness, and the One Who lifts my head. ⁴ I was crying to the Lord with my voice. And He answered me from His holy mountain. ⁵ I lay down and slept, and I woke up again, for the Lord keeps me safe.

⁶ I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people who stand all around against me. ⁷ Rise up, O Lord! Save me, O my God! For You have hit on the face all those who hate me, and you have broken the teeth of the sinful. ⁸ It is You Who saves, O Lord. May You bring happiness to Your people.

Evening Prayer of Trust

4 Answer me when I call, O my God Who is right and good! You have made a way for me when I needed help. Be kind to me, and hear my prayer.

² O sons of men, how long will you turn my honor into shame? How long will you love what is of no use, and run after lies? ³ Know that the Lord has set apart him who is God-like for Himself. The Lord hears when I call to Him.

⁴ Shake with anger and do not sin. When you are on your bed, look into your hearts and be quiet. ⁵ Give the gifts that are right and good, and trust in the Lord.

⁶ Many are asking, “Who will show us any good?” Let the light of Your face shine on us, O Lord. ⁷ You have filled my heart with more happiness than they have when there is much grain and wine. ⁸ I will lie down and sleep in peace. O Lord, You alone keep me safe.

Prayer for Help

5 Hear my words, O Lord. Think about my crying. ² Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God. For I pray to you. ³ In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice. In the morning I will lay my prayers before You and will look up.

⁴ You are not a God Who is pleased with what is bad. The sinful cannot be with You. ⁵ The proud cannot stand before You. You hate all who do wrong. ⁶ You destroy those who tell lies. The Lord hates liars and men who kill other people.

⁷ But as for me, by Your great loving-kindness, I will come into Your house. At Your holy house I will put my face to the ground before You in love and fear. ⁸ O Lord, lead me in what is right and good, because of the ones who hate me. Make Your way straight in front of me.

⁹ For in their talk there is no truth. Their hearts destroy. Their mouths are like an open grave. With their tongues, they say sweet-sounding words that are not true. ¹⁰ Hold them guilty, O God! Let them fall by their own plans. Throw them out because of their many sins. For they have fought against You. ¹¹ But let all who put their trust in You be glad. Let them sing with joy forever. You make a covering for them, that all who love Your name may be glad in You. ¹² For You will make those happy who do what is right, O Lord. You will cover them all around with Your favor.

Prayer for Help in Time of Trouble

6 O Lord, do not speak sharp words to me in Your anger, or punish me when You are angry. ² Be kind to me, O Lord, for I am weak. O Lord, heal me for my bones are shaken. ³ My soul is in great suffering. But You, O Lord, how long? ⁴ Return, O Lord. Set my soul free. Save me because of Your loving-kindness. ⁵ No one remembers You when he is dead. Who gives You praise from the grave? ⁶ I am tired of crying inside myself. All night long my pillow is wet with tears. I flood my bed with them. ⁷ My eye has grown weak with sorrow. It has grown old because of all who hate me. ⁸ Go away from me, all you who sin. For the Lord has heard the sound of my crying. ⁹ The Lord has heard my cry for help. The Lord receives my prayer. ¹⁰ All those who hate me will be ashamed and worried. They will turn away. They will be put to shame right away.

Prayer for Help against the Sinful

7 O Lord my God, in You I have put my trust. Save me from all those who come for me, and keep me safe. ² Or they will tear me like a lion, carrying me away where there is no one to help. ³ O Lord my God, if I have done this, and there is guilt on my hands, ⁴ if I have done wrong to him who was at peace with me, or without a reason have robbed him who worked against me, ⁵ let him who hates me come for me and catch me. Let him break me under his feet until I die, and lay my honor in the dust.

⁶ Rise up in Your anger, O Lord. Rise up against the anger of those who hate me. Awake, my God, and help me. Prove what is right. ⁷ Let the people gather around You, and rule over them from Your throne. ⁸ May the Lord judge which people are guilty or not. O Lord, judge in my favor if I am right with You, and if I am without blame. ⁹ Let the sins of the sinful stop. But build up those who are right with You. For the God Who is right and good tests both the hearts and the minds. ¹⁰ I am kept safe by God, Who saves those who are pure in heart.

¹¹ God is always right in how He judges. He is angry with the sinful every day. ¹² If a man is not sorry for his sins and will not turn from them, God will make His sword sharp. He will string His bow and make it ready. ¹³ He takes up His sword and the bow of death. And He makes arrows of fire.

¹⁴ See how the sinful man thinks up sins and plans trouble and lies start growing inside him. ¹⁵ He has dug out a deep hole, and has fallen into the hole he has dug. ¹⁶ The trouble he makes will return to him. When he hurts others it will come down on his own head. ¹⁷ I will give thanks to the Lord because He is right and good. I will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.

God’s Shining-Greatness

8 O Lord, our Lord, how great is Your name in all the earth. You have set Your shining-greatness above the heavens. ² Out of the mouth of children and babies, You have built up strength because of those who hate You, and to quiet those who fight against You.

³ When I look up and think about Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in their place, ⁴ what is man, that You think of him, the son of man that You care for him? ⁵ You made him a little less than the angels and gave him a crown of greatness and honor. ⁶ You made him to rule over the works of Your hands. You put all things under his feet: ⁷ All sheep and cattle, all the wild animals, ⁸ the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, and all that pass through the sea. ⁹ O Lord, our Lord, how great is Your name in all the earth!

Wise Sayings for Good Use

1 These are the wise sayings of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel: ² They show you how to know wisdom and teaching, to find the words of understanding. ³ They help you learn about the ways of wisdom and what is right and fair. ⁴ They give wisdom to the child-like, and much learning and wisdom to those who are young. ⁵ A wise man will hear and grow in learning. A man of understanding will become able ⁶ to understand a saying and a picture-story, the words of the wise and what they mean.

⁷ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of much learning. Fools hate wisdom and teaching.

⁸ Hear your father’s teaching, my son, and do not turn away from your mother’s teaching. ⁹ For they are a glory to your head and a chain of beauty around your neck. ¹⁰ My son, if sinners try to lead you into sin, do not go with them. ¹¹ If they say, “Come with us. Let us lie in wait to kill someone. Let us set a trap for those who are without blame. ¹² Let us swallow them alive like death, as those who go down to the grave. ¹³ We will find all kinds of things of great worth. We will fill our houses with the stolen riches. ¹⁴ Throw in your share with us. We will all have one money bag.”

¹⁵ My son, do not walk in the way with them. Keep your feet from their path. ¹⁶ For their feet run to sin and hurry to kill. ¹⁷ Yes, the net is spread for nothing if the bird is watching. ¹⁸ They set traps for their own lives and wait to die. ¹⁹ Such are the ways of all who get things by hurting others. Their desire for stolen riches takes away their own lives.

²⁰ Wisdom calls out in the street. She lifts her voice in the center of town. ²¹ There she cries out in the noisy streets. At the open gates of the city she speaks: ²² “O foolish ones, how long will you love being foolish? How long will those who laugh at others be happy in their laughing? How long will fools hate much learning? ²³ Listen to my strong words! See, I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make my words known to you. ²⁴ I called but you would not listen. I put out my hand and no one gave it a thought. ²⁵ You did not listen when I told you what you should do, and you would not hear any of my strong words. ²⁶ So I will laugh at your trouble. I will laugh when you are afraid. ²⁷ Fear will come to you like a storm. Hard times will come like a strong wind. When trouble and suffering come upon you, ²⁸ then they will call on me, but I will not answer. They will look for me, but they will not find me. ²⁹ Because they hated much learning, and did not choose the fear of the Lord. ³⁰ They would not listen when I told them what they should do. They laughed at all my strong words. ³¹ So they will eat the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own plans. ³² For the foolish will be killed by their turning away. The trust that fools put in themselves will destroy them. ³³ But he who listens to me will live free from danger, and he will rest easy from the fear of what is sinful.”