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

The Creation

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

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) Then God said, “Let there be light,”(E) and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and He called the darkness “night.” Evening came and then morning: the first day.

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

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)

27 So God created man in His own image;
He created him in the image of God;
He created them male and female.(S)

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.

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 1:1 Or created the universe
  2. Genesis 1:2 Or When God began to create the sky and the earth, the earth was
  3. Genesis 1:6 The Hb word for expanse is from a root meaning “to spread out, stamp, beat firmly,” which suggests something like a dome; Jb 37:16-18; Is 40:22.
  4. Genesis 1:8 Or “heavens”
  5. Genesis 1:14 Or for the appointed times
  6. Genesis 1:20 Lit with swarms of
  7. Genesis 1:21 Or created sea monsters
  8. Genesis 1:26 Syr reads sky, and over every animal of the land
  9. Genesis 1:26 Lit scurry
  10. Genesis 1:28 Lit and all scurrying animals that scurry