Genesis 2

1So the heavens and the earth and everything else were created.

The Seventh Day

2 # Ex 20.11. #He 4.4,10. By the seventh day God had finished his work, and so he rested. 3God blessed the seventh day and made it special, because on that day he rested from his work.

4That's how God created the heavens and the earth.

The Garden of Eden

When the Lord God made the heavens and the earth, 5no grass or plants were growing anywhere. God had not yet sent any rain, and there was no one to work the land. 6But streams#2.6 streams: Or “mist.” came up from the ground and watered the earth.

7 # Ws 15.8,11; 1 Co 15.45. The Lord God took some soil from the ground and made a man.#2.7 man: In Hebrew “man” comes from the same word as “ground.” God breathed life into the man, and the man started breathing. 8The Lord made a garden in a place called Eden, which was in the east, and he put the man there.

9 # Rev 2.7; 22.2,14. The Lord God filled the garden with all kinds of beautiful trees and fruit trees. Two other trees were in the middle of the garden. One of these gave life—the other gave the wisdom to know the difference between right and wrong.

10From Eden a river flowed out to water the garden, then it divided into four rivers. 11The first one is the Pishon River that flows through the land of Havilah, 12where pure gold, rare perfumes, and precious stones are found. 13The second is the Gihon River that winds through Ethiopia.#2.13 Ethiopia: The Hebrew text has “Cush,” which was a region south of Egypt that included parts of the present countries of Ethiopia and Sudan. 14The Tigris River that flows east of Assyria is the third, and the fourth is the Euphrates River.

15The Lord God put the man in the Garden of Eden to take care of it and to look after it. 16But the Lord told him, “You may eat fruit from any tree in the garden, 17except the one that has the power to let you know the difference between right and wrong. If you eat any fruit from that tree, you will die before the day is over!”

18The Lord God said, “It isn't good for the man to live alone. I will make a suitable partner for him.” 19-20So the Lord took some soil and made animals and birds. He brought them to the man to see what names he would give each of them. Then the man named the tame animals and the birds and the wild animals. That's how they got their names.

None of these was the right kind of partner for the man. 21So the Lord God made him fall into a deep sleep, and he took out one of the man's ribs. Then after closing the man's side, 22the Lord made a woman out of the rib.

The Lord God brought her to the man, 23and the man exclaimed,

“Here is someone like me!

She is part of my body,

my own flesh and bones.

She came from me, a man.

So I will name her Woman!”#2.23 a man … Woman: In Hebrew the words “man” and “woman” are similar.

24 # Mt 19.5; Mk 10.7,8; 1 Co 6.16; Eph 5.31. That's why a man will leave his own father and mother. He marries a woman, and the two of them become like one person.

25Although the man and his wife were both naked, they were not ashamed.

Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)

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Genesis 2

1So the heavens and the earth and everything in them were completed.

2By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing. So on that day he rested from all his work. 3God blessed the seventh day and made it holy. He blessed it because on that day he rested from all the work he had done.

Adam and Eve

4Here is the story of the heavens and the earth when they were created. The Lord God made the earth and the heavens.

5At that time, bushes had not yet appeared on the earth. Plants had not started to grow. The Lord God had not sent rain on the earth. And there was no one to farm the land. 6But streams came from the earth. They watered the entire surface of the ground. 7Then the Lord God formed a man. He made him out of the dust of the ground. God breathed the breath of life into him. And the man became a living person.

8The Lord God had planted a garden in the east in Eden. He put in the garden the man he had formed. 9The Lord God made every kind of tree grow out of the ground. The trees were pleasing to look at. Their fruit was good to eat. There were two trees in the middle of the garden. One of them had fruit that let people live forever. The other had fruit that let people tell the difference between good and evil.

10A river watered the garden. It flowed out of Eden. From there the river separated into four other rivers. 11The name of the first river is the Pishon. It winds through the whole land of Havilah. Gold is found there. 12The gold of that land is good. Onyx and sweet-smelling resin are also found there. 13The name of the second river is the Gihon. It winds through the whole land of Cush. 14The name of the third river is the Tigris. It runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is called the Euphrates.

15The Lord God put the man in the Garden of Eden. He put him there to farm its land and take care of it. 16The Lord God gave the man a command. He said, “You may eat fruit from any tree in the garden. 17But you must not eat the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you do, you will certainly die.”

18The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.”

19The Lord God had formed all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He had made all of them out of the ground. He brought them to the man to see what names he would give them. And the name the man gave each living creature became its name. 20So the man gave names to all the livestock, all the birds in the sky, and all the wild animals.

But Adam didn’t find a helper that was just right for him. 21So the Lord God caused him to fall into a deep sleep. While the man was sleeping, the Lord God took out one of the man’s ribs. Then the Lord God closed the opening in the man’s side. 22Then the Lord God made a woman. He made her from the rib he had taken out of the man. And the Lord God brought her to the man.

23The man said,

“Her bones have come from my bones.

Her body has come from my body.

She will be named ‘woman,’

because she was taken out of a man.”

24That’s why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife. The two of them become one.

25Adam and his wife were both naked. They didn’t feel any shame.

Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®

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