Genesis 1
1
The Story of Creation
1In the beginning, when God created the universe,#1.1 In the beginning… the universe; or In the beginning God created the universe; or When God began to create the universe. 2the earth was formless and desolate. The raging ocean that covered everything was engulfed in total darkness, and the Spirit of God#1.2 the Spirit of God; or the power of God; or a wind from God; or an awesome wind. was moving over the water. 3#2 Cor 4.6Then God commanded, “Let there be light” — and light appeared. 4God was pleased with what he saw. Then he separated the light from the darkness, 5and he named the light “Day” and the darkness “Night”. Evening passed and morning came — that was the first day.
6-7 # 2 Pet 3.5 Then God commanded, “Let there be a dome to divide the water and to keep it in two separate places” — and it was done. So God made a dome, and it separated the water under it from the water above it. 8He named the dome “Sky”. Evening passed and morning came — that was the second day.
9Then God commanded, “Let the water below the sky come together in one place, so that the land will appear” — and it was done. 10He named the land “Earth”, and the water which had come together he named “Sea”. And God was pleased with what he saw. 11Then he commanded, “Let the earth produce all kinds of plants, those that bear grain and those that bear fruit” — and it was done. 12So the earth produced all kinds of plants, and God was pleased with what he saw. 13Evening passed and morning came — that was the third day.
14Then God commanded, “Let lights appear in the sky to separate day from night and to show the time when days, years, and religious festivals#1.14 religious festivals; or seasons. begin; 15they will shine in the sky to give light to the earth” — and it was done. 16So God made the two larger lights, the sun to rule over the day and the moon to rule over the night; he also made the stars. 17He placed the lights in the sky to shine on the earth, 18to rule over the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God was pleased with what he saw. 19Evening passed and morning came — that was the fourth day.
20Then God commanded, “Let the water be filled with many kinds of living beings, and let the air be filled with birds.” 21So God created the great sea monsters, all kinds of creatures that live in the water, and all kinds of birds. And God was pleased with what he saw. 22He blessed them all and told the creatures that live in the water to reproduce, and to fill the sea, and he told the birds to increase in number. 23Evening passed and morning came — that was the fifth day.
24Then God commanded, “Let the earth produce all kinds of animal life: domestic and wild, large and small” — and it was done. 25So God made them all, and he was pleased with what he saw.
26 # 1 Cor 11.7 Then God said, “And now we will make human beings; they will be like us and resemble us. They will have power over the fish, the birds, and all animals, domestic and wild,#1.26 One ancient translation animals, domestic and wild; Hebrew domestic animals and all the earth. large and small.” 27#Mt 19.4; Mk 10.6 #Gen 5.1–2So God created human beings, making them to be like himself. He created them male and female, 28blessed them, and said, “Have many children, so that your descendants will live all over the earth and bring it under their control. I am putting you in charge of the fish, the birds, and all the wild animals. 29I have provided all kinds of grain and all kinds of fruit for you to eat; 30but for all the wild animals and for all the birds I have provided grass and leafy plants for food” — and it was done. 31God looked at everything he had made, and he was very pleased. Evening passed and morning came — that was the sixth day.
Good News Bible with Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.
Genesis 1
1
1In the beginning God#GodHebrew: Elohim created the heavens and the earth. 2And the earth was waste and empty, and darkness was on the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God#GodHebrew: Elohim was hovering over the face of the waters.
3And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said, Let there be light. And there was light. 4And God#GodHebrew: Elohim saw the light that it was good; and God#GodHebrew: Elohim divided between the light and the darkness. 5And God#GodHebrew: Elohim called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening, and there was morning — the first day.
6And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said, Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it be a division between waters and waters. 7And God#GodHebrew: Elohim made the expanse, and divided between the waters that are under the expanse and the waters that are above the expanse; and it was so. 8And God#GodHebrew: Elohim called the expanse Heavens. And there was evening, and there was morning — a second day.
9And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear. And it was so. 10And God#GodHebrew: Elohim called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters he called Seas. And God#GodHebrew: Elohim saw that it was good. 11And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said, Let the earth cause grass to spring up, herb producing seed, fruit-trees yielding fruit after their kind, the seed of which is in them, on the earth. And it was so. 12And the earth brought forth grass, herb producing seed after its kind, and trees yielding fruit, the seed of which is in them, after their kind. And God#GodHebrew: Elohim saw that it was good. 13And there was evening, and there was morning — a third day.
14And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said, Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens, to divide between the day and the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years; 15and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens, to give light on the earth. And it was so. 16And God#GodHebrew: Elohim made the two great lights, the great light to rule the day, and the small light to rule the night, — and the stars. 17And God#GodHebrew: Elohim set them in the expanse of the heavens, to give light on the earth, 18and to rule during the day and during the night, and to divide between the light and the darkness. And God#GodHebrew: Elohim saw that it was good. 19And there was evening, and there was morning — a fourth day.
20And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living souls, and let fowl fly above the earth in the expanse of the heavens. 21And God#GodHebrew: Elohim created the great sea monsters, and every living soul that moves with which the waters swarm, after their kind, and every winged fowl after its kind. And God#GodHebrew: Elohim saw that it was good. 22And God#GodHebrew: Elohim blessed them, saying, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply on the earth. 23And there was evening, and there was morning — a fifth day.
24And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said, Let the earth bring forth living souls after their kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth, after their kind. And it was so. 25And God#GodHebrew: Elohim made the beast of the earth after its kind, and the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing of the ground after its kind. And God#GodHebrew: Elohim saw that it was good.
26And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over the whole earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth on the earth. 27And God#GodHebrew: Elohim created Man in his image, in the image of God#GodHebrew: Elohim created he him; male and female created he them. 28And God#GodHebrew: Elohim blessed them; and God#GodHebrew: Elohim 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 fowl of the heavens, and over every animal that moveth on the earth.
29And God#GodHebrew: Elohim said, Behold, I have given you every herb producing seed that is on the whole earth, and every tree in which is the fruit of a tree producing seed: it shall be food for you; 30and to every animal of the earth, and to every fowl of the heavens, and to everything that creepeth on the earth, in which is a living soul, every green herb for food. And it was so.
31And God#GodHebrew: Elohim saw everything that he had made, and behold it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning — the sixth day.
First published in 1890. This edition is maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.