The Creation

1 In the beginning^(A) God created the heavens and the earth.^[a](B)

² Now the earth was^[b] formless and empty,^(C) darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.^{(D) 3} Then God said, “Let there be light,”^(E) and there was light. ⁴ God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. ⁵ God called the light “day,” and He called the darkness “night.” Evening came and then morning: the first day.

⁶ Then God said, “Let there be an expanse^[c] between the waters, separating water from water.”^{(F) 7} So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above the expanse.^(G) And it was so. ⁸ God called the expanse “sky.”^[d] Evening came and then morning: the second day.

⁹ Then God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered into one place,^(H) and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. ¹⁰ God called the dry land “earth,” and He called the gathering of the water “seas.” And God saw that it was good. ¹¹ Then God said, “Let the earth produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds.”^(I) And it was so. ¹² The earth produced vegetation: seed-bearing plants according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. ¹³ Evening came and then morning: the third day.

¹⁴ Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night. They will serve as signs^(J) for festivals^[e] and for days and years.^{(K) 15} They will be lights in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth.” And it was so. ¹⁶ God made the two great lights—the greater light to have dominion over the day and the lesser light to have dominion over the night—as well as the stars.^{(L) 17} God placed them in the expanse of the sky to provide light on the earth, ¹⁸ to dominate the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness.^(M) And God saw that it was good. ¹⁹ Evening came and then morning: the fourth day.

²⁰ Then God said, “Let the water swarm with^[f] living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.” ²¹ So God created the large sea-creatures^[g] and every living creature that moves and swarms in the water,^(N) according to their kinds. He also created every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. ²² So God blessed them, “Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters of the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.”^{(O) 23} Evening came and then morning: the fifth day.

²⁴ Then God said, “Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that crawl, and the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. ²⁵ So God made the wildlife of the earth according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and creatures that crawl on the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

²⁶ Then God said, “Let Us^(P) make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.^(Q) They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, all the earth,^[h] and the creatures that crawl^[i] on the earth.”^(R)

²⁸ God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth,^(T) and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls^[j] on the earth.” ²⁹ God also said, “Look, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the surface of the entire earth and every tree whose fruit contains seed. This food will be for you,^{(U) 30} for all the wildlife of the earth, for every bird of the sky, and for every creature that crawls on the earth—everything having the breath of life in it. I have given every green plant for food.”^(V) And it was so. ³¹ God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.^(W) Evening came and then morning: the sixth day.

2 So the heavens and the earth and everything in them^[k] were completed.^{(X) 2} By the seventh^[l] day God completed His work that He had done, and He rested^[m] on the seventh day from all His work that He had done.^{(Y) 3} God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, for on it He rested^(Z) from His work of creation.^[n](AA)

Man and Woman in the Garden

⁴ These are the records^(AB) of the heavens and the earth, concerning their creation at the time^[o] that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. ⁵ No shrub of the field^(AC) had yet grown on the land,^[p] and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not made it rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground. ⁶ But water would come out of the ground and water the entire surface of the land. ⁷ Then the Lord God formed the man out of the dust from the ground^(AD) and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils,^(AE) and the man became a living being.^(AF)

⁸ The Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east,^(AG) and there He placed the man He had formed. ⁹ The Lord God caused to grow out of the ground every tree pleasing in appearance and good for food, including the tree of life in the middle of the garden,^(AH) as well as the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.^(AI)

¹⁰ A river went^[q] out from Eden to water the garden. From there it divided and became the source of four rivers.^{[r] 11} The name of the first is Pishon, which flows through the entire land of Havilah,^[s](AJ) where there is gold. ¹² Gold from that land is pure;^[t] bdellium^[u] and onyx^[v] are also there. ¹³ The name of the second river is Gihon, which flows through the entire land of Cush. ¹⁴ The name of the third river is the Tigris,^(AK) which runs east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.^(AL)

¹⁵ The Lord God took the man and placed him in the garden of Eden to work it and watch over it. ¹⁶ And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree of the garden,^{(AM) 17} but you must not eat^[w] from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will certainly die.”^{(AN) 18} Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper as his complement.”^{(AO) 19} So the Lord God formed out of the ground every wild animal and every bird of the sky, and brought each to the man to see what he would call it.^(AP) And whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. ²⁰ The man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds of the sky, and to every wild animal; but for the man^[x] no helper was found as his complement. ²¹ So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to come over the man,^(AQ) and he slept. God took one of his ribs and closed the flesh at that place. ²² Then the Lord God made the rib He had taken from the man into a woman and brought her to the man.^{(AR) 23} And the man said:

²⁴ This is why a man leaves his father and mother and bonds with his wife, and they become one flesh.^{(AT) 25} Both the man and his wife were naked, yet felt no shame.

The Temptation and the Fall

3 Now the serpent was the most cunning of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You can’t eat from any tree in the garden’?”^(AU)

² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit from the trees in the garden. ³ But about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat it or touch it, or you will die.’”^(AV)

⁴ “No! You will not die,” the serpent said to the woman.^{(AW) 5} “In fact, God knows that when^[y] you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God,^[z] knowing good and evil.” ⁶ Then the woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.^{(AX) 7} Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.

Sin’s Consequences

⁸ Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze,^[aa] and they hid themselves from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.^{(AY) 9} So the Lord God called out to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”

¹⁰ And he said, “I heard You^[ab] in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.”

¹¹ Then He asked, “Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”

¹² Then the man replied,^(AZ) “The woman You gave to be with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate.”

¹³ So the Lord God asked the woman, “What is this you have done?”

And the woman said, “It was the serpent. He deceived me, and I ate.”^(BA)

¹⁴ Then the Lord God said to the serpent:

¹⁶ He said to the woman:

¹⁷ And He said to Adam, “Because you listened to your wife’s voice and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘Do not eat from it’:

²⁰ Adam named his wife Eve^[ae] because she was the mother of all the living. ²¹ The Lord God made clothing out of skins for Adam and his wife, and He clothed them.

²² The Lord God said, “Since man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil, he must not reach out, take from the tree of life, eat, and live forever.”^{(BI) 23} So the Lord God sent him away from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. ²⁴ He drove man out and stationed the cherubim and the flaming, whirling sword east of the garden of Eden to guard the way to the tree of life.^(BJ)

Cain Murders Abel

4 Adam was intimate with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain. She said, “I have had a male child with the Lord’s help.”^{[af] 2} Then she also gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel became a shepherd of flocks, but Cain worked the ground. ³ In the course of time Cain presented some of the land’s produce as an offering to the Lord.^{(BK) 4} And Abel also presented an offering—some of the firstborn of his flock and their fat portions.^(BL) The Lord had regard for Abel and his offering,^{(BM) 5} but He did not have regard for Cain and his offering. Cain was furious, and he looked despondent.^[ag]

⁶ Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you furious?^(BN) And why do you look despondent?^{[ah] 7} If you do what is right, won’t you be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.”^(BO)

⁸ Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”^[ai] And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.^(BP)

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

“I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s guardian?”

¹⁰ Then He said, “What have you done? Your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground!^{(BQ) 11} So now you are cursed, alienated, from the ground that opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood you have shed.^{[aj] 12} If you work the ground, it will never again give you its yield. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.”^(BR)

¹³ But Cain answered the Lord, “My punishment^[ak] is too great to bear! ¹⁴ Since You are banishing me today from the soil, and I must hide myself from Your presence and become a restless wanderer on the earth, whoever finds me will kill me.”^(BS)

¹⁵ Then the Lord replied to him, “In that case,^[al] whoever kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.”^[am] And He placed a mark^(BT) on Cain so that whoever found him would not kill him. ¹⁶ Then Cain went out from the Lord’s presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden.

The Line of Cain

¹⁷ Cain was intimate with his wife, and she conceived and gave birth to Enoch. Then Cain became the builder of a city, and he named the city Enoch after his son. ¹⁸ Irad was born to Enoch, Irad fathered Mehujael, Mehujael fathered Methushael, and Methushael fathered Lamech. ¹⁹ Lamech took two wives for himself, one named Adah and the other named Zillah. ²⁰ Adah bore Jabal; he was the father of the nomadic herdsmen.^{[an] 21} His brother was named Jubal; he was the father of all who play the lyre and the flute. ²² Zillah bore Tubal-cain, who made all kinds of bronze and iron tools. Tubal-cain’s sister was Naamah.

²³ Lamech said to his wives:

²⁵ Adam was intimate with his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, for she said, “God has given^[ao] me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.” ²⁶ A son was born to Seth^(BU) also, and he named him Enosh. At that time people began to call on the name of Yahweh.^(BV)

Sons of God and Daughters of Men

6 When mankind began to multiply on the earth and daughters were born to them, ² the sons of God^(A) saw that the daughters of mankind were beautiful, and they took any they chose as wives^[a] for themselves.^{(B) 3} And the Lord said, “My Spirit will not remain^[b] with^[c] mankind forever,^(C) because they are corrupt.^[d](D) Their days will be 120 years.” ⁴ The Nephilim^[e] were on the earth both in those days and afterward, when the sons of God came to the daughters of mankind, who bore children to them. They were the powerful men of old, the famous men.

Judgment Decreed

⁵ When the Lord saw that man’s wickedness was widespread on the earth and that every scheme his mind thought of was nothing but evil all the time,^{(E) 6} the Lord regretted that He had made man on the earth,^(F) and He was grieved in His heart. ⁷ Then the Lord said, “I will wipe off from the face of the earth mankind, whom I created, together with the animals, creatures that crawl, and birds of the sky—for I regret that I made them.” ⁸ Noah, however, found favor in the sight of the Lord.^(G)

God Warns Noah

⁹ These are the family records^(H) of Noah. Noah was a righteous man,^(I) blameless among his contemporaries;^(J) Noah walked with God.^{(K) 10} And Noah fathered three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

¹¹ Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with wickedness.^{[f] 12} God saw how corrupt the earth was, for every creature had corrupted its way on the earth.^{(L) 13} Then God said to Noah, “I have decided to put an end to every creature, for the earth is filled with wickedness^[g] because of them; therefore I am going to destroy them along with the earth.

¹⁴ “Make yourself an ark of gopher^[h] wood. Make rooms in the ark, and cover it with pitch inside and outside. ¹⁵ This is how you are to make it: The ark will be 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high.^{[i] 16} You are to make a roof,^[j] finishing the sides of the ark to within 18 inches^[k] of the roof. You are to put a door in the side of the ark. Make it with lower, middle, and upper decks.

¹⁷ “Understand that I am bringing a flood—floodwaters on the earth^(M) to destroy every creature under heaven with the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will die. ¹⁸ But I will establish My covenant with you,^(N) and you will enter the ark with your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives. ¹⁹ You are also to bring into the ark two of all the living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you. ²⁰ Two of everything—from the birds according to their kinds, from the livestock according to their kinds, and from the animals that crawl on the ground according to their kinds—will come to you so that you can keep them alive. ²¹ Take with you every kind of food that is eaten; gather it as food for you and for them.” ²² And Noah did this. He did everything that God had commanded him.^(O)

Entering the Ark

7 Then the Lord said to Noah, “Enter the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you alone are righteous before Me in this generation.^{(P) 2} You are to take with you seven pairs, a male and its female, of all the clean animals,^(Q) and two of the animals that are not clean, a male and its female, ³ and seven pairs, male and female, of the birds of the sky—in order to keep offspring alive on the face of the whole earth. ⁴ Seven days from now I will make it rain on the earth 40 days and 40 nights, and I will wipe off from the face of the earth every living thing I have made.” ⁵ And Noah did everything that the Lord commanded him.^(R)

⁶ Noah was 600 years old when the flood came and water covered the earth. ⁷ So Noah, his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives entered the ark because of the waters of the flood. ⁸ From the clean animals, unclean animals, birds, and every creature that crawls on the ground, ⁹ two of each, male and female, entered the ark with Noah, just as God had commanded him. ¹⁰ Seven days later the waters of the flood came on the earth.

The Flood

¹¹ In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the sources of the watery depths burst open,^(S) the floodgates of the sky were opened,^{(T) 12} and the rain fell on the earth 40 days and 40 nights. ¹³ On that same day Noah along with his sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, Noah’s wife, and his three sons’ wives entered the ark with him. ¹⁴ They entered it with all the wildlife according to their kinds, all livestock according to their kinds, the creatures that crawl on the earth according to their kinds, all birds, every fowl, and everything with wings according to their kinds. ¹⁵ Two of all flesh that has the breath of life in it entered the ark with Noah. ¹⁶ Those that entered, male and female of all flesh, entered just as God had commanded him. Then the Lord shut him in.

¹⁷ The flood continued for 40 days on the earth; the waters increased and lifted up the ark so that it rose above the earth. ¹⁸ The waters surged and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the water. ¹⁹ Then the waters surged even higher on the earth, and all the high mountains under the whole sky were covered. ²⁰ The mountains were covered as the waters surged above them more than 20 feet.^{[l] 21} Every creature perished—those that crawl on the earth, birds, livestock, wildlife, and those that swarm^[m] on the earth, as well as all mankind. ²² Everything with the breath of the spirit of life in its nostrils^(U)—everything on dry land died. ²³ He wiped out every living thing that was on the surface of the ground, from mankind to livestock, to creatures that crawl, to the birds of the sky, and they were wiped off the earth. Only Noah was left, and those that were with him in the ark.^{(V) 24} And the waters surged on the earth 150 days.

The Flood Recedes

8 God remembered Noah,^(W) as well as all the wildlife and all the livestock that were with him in the ark. God caused a wind^[n] to pass over the earth,^(X) and the water began to subside. ² The sources of the watery depths and the floodgates of the sky were closed, and the rain from the sky stopped.^{(Y) 3} The water steadily receded from the earth, and by the end of 150 days the waters had decreased significantly.^{(Z) 4} The ark came to rest in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat.^[o](AA)

⁵ The waters continued to recede until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were visible. ⁶ After 40 days Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made, ⁷ and he sent out a raven. It went back and forth until the waters had dried up from the earth. ⁸ Then he sent out a dove to see whether the water on the earth’s surface had gone down, ⁹ but the dove found no resting place for her foot. She returned to him in the ark because water covered the surface of the whole earth. He reached out and brought her into the ark to himself. ¹⁰ So Noah waited seven more days and sent out the dove from the ark again. ¹¹ When the dove came to him at evening, there was a plucked olive leaf in her beak. So Noah knew that the water on the earth’s surface had gone down. ¹² After he had waited another seven days, he sent out the dove, but she did not return to him again. ¹³ In the six hundred and first year,^[p] in the first month, on the first day of the month, the water that had covered the earth was dried up. Then Noah removed the ark’s cover and saw that the surface of the ground was drying. ¹⁴ By the twenty-seventh day of the second month, the earth was dry.

The Lord’s Promise

¹⁵ Then God spoke to Noah, ¹⁶ “Come out of the ark, you, your wife, your sons, and your sons’ wives with you. ¹⁷ Bring out all the living creatures^[q] that are with you—birds, livestock, those that crawl on the ground—and they will spread over the earth and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.”^{(AB) 18} So Noah, along with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives, came out. ¹⁹ All wildlife, all livestock, every bird, and every creature that crawls on the earth came out of the ark by their groups.

²⁰ Then Noah built an altar to the Lord. He took some of every kind of clean animal and every kind of clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. ²¹ When the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma,^(AC) He said to Himself, “I will never again curse the ground^(AD) because of man, even though man’s inclination is evil from his youth.^(AE) And I will never again strike down every living thing as I have done.^(AF)

God’s Covenant with Noah

9 God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.^{(AH) 2} The fear and terror of you will be in every living creature on the earth, every bird of the sky, every creature that crawls on the ground, and all the fish of the sea. They are placed under your authority.^{[r] 3} Every living creature will be food for you;^(AI) as I gave the green plants, I have given you everything.^{(AJ) 4} However, you must not eat meat with its lifeblood in it.^{(AK) 5} I will require the life of every animal^(AL) and every man for your life and your blood. I will require the life of each man’s brother for a man’s life.^(AM)

⁷ But you, be fruitful and multiply; spread out over the earth and multiply on it.”^(AP)

⁸ Then God said to Noah and his sons with him, ⁹ “Understand that I am confirming My covenant^(AQ) with you and your descendants after you, ¹⁰ and with every living creature that is with you—birds, livestock, and all wildlife of the earth that are with you—all the animals of the earth that came out of the ark. ¹¹ I confirm My covenant with you that never again will every creature be wiped out by the waters of a flood; there will never again be a flood to destroy the earth.”^(AR)

¹² And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant^(AS) I am making between Me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all future generations: ¹³ I have placed My bow in the clouds,^(AT) and it will be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. ¹⁴ Whenever I form clouds over the earth and the bow appears in the clouds, ¹⁵ I will remember My covenant^(AU) between Me and you and all the living creatures:^[s] water will never again become a flood to destroy every creature. ¹⁶ The bow will be in the clouds, and I will look at it and remember the everlasting covenant^(AV) between God and all the living creatures^[t] on earth.” ¹⁷ God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have confirmed between Me and every creature on earth.”

Prophecies about Noah’s Family

¹⁸ Noah’s sons who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Ham was the father of Canaan. ¹⁹ These three were Noah’s sons, and from them the whole earth was populated.^(AW)

²⁰ Noah, a man of the soil, was the first to plant^[u] a vineyard. ²¹ He drank some of the wine, became drunk, and uncovered himself inside his tent. ²² Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside.^{(AX) 23} Then Shem and Japheth took a cloak and placed it over both their shoulders, and walking backward, they covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father naked.

²⁴ When Noah awoke from his drinking and learned what his youngest son had done to him, ²⁵ he said:

²⁶ He also said:

²⁸ Now Noah lived 350 years after the flood. ²⁹ So Noah’s life lasted 950 years; then he died.