Genesis 3
3
The Fall
1Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal#Literally “animal of the field” which Yahweh God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God indeed say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat, 3but from the tree that is in the midst of the garden, God said, ‘You shall not eat from it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die’.” 4But the serpent said to the woman, “You shall not surely die. 5For God knows that on the day you both eat from it, then your eyes will be opened and you both shall be like gods,#The plural is in the context of v. 22 “one of us” and the plural suffix pronouns 〚“you all”〛 throughout the verse knowing good and evil.” 6When#Or “And” the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes, and the tree was desirable to make one wise, then#Or “and” she took from its fruit and she ate. And she gave it also to her husband with her, and he ate. 7Then#Or “And” the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed together fig leaves and they made for themselves coverings.
8Then#Or “And” they heard the sound of Yahweh God walking in the garden at the windy time of day.#Literally “at the wind of the day” And the man#“The man” indicates the noun is singular and occurs with the definite article and his wife hid themselves from the presence of Yahweh God among the trees of the garden. 9And Yahweh God called to the man#“The man” indicates the noun is singular and occurs with the definite article and said to him, “Where are you?” 10And he replied,#Literally “And he said”; “replied” distinguishes Adam as the speaker “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid because I am naked, so I hid myself.” 11Then he#That is, Yahweh God asked,#Or “said” “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree from which I forbade you to eat?”#Literally “the tree which I commanded to not eat from it” 12And the man#“The man” indicates the noun is singular and occurs with the definite article replied,#Or “said” “The woman whom you gave to be with me—she gave to me from the tree and I ate.” 13Then#Or “And” Yahweh God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” 14Then#Or “And” Yahweh God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this,
you will be cursed
more than any domesticated animal
and more than any wild animal.#Literally “animal of the earth/land”
On your belly you shall go
and dust you shall eat
all the days of your life.
15And I will put hostility
between you and between the woman,
and between your offspring#Literally “seed” and between her offspring;#Literally “seed”
he will strike you on the head,
and you will strike him on the heel.”
16To the woman he said,
“I will greatly increase
your pain in childbearing;#Literally “your pain and your childbearing”
in pain you shall bear children.
And to your husband shall be your desire.
And he shall rule over you.”
17And to Adam#The noun lacks the definite article and is taken as a proper noun in this context he said, “Because you listened to the voice of your wife and you ate from the tree from which I forbade you to eat,#Literally “from the tree which I commanded saying not to eat from it”
the ground shall be cursed on your account.
In pain you shall eat from it
all the days of your life.
18And thorns and thistles shall sprout for you,
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
19By the sweat of your brow#Literally “your face”
you shall eat bread,
until your return to the ground.
For from it you were taken;
for you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.”
20And the man#“The man” indicates the noun is singular and occurs with the definite article named#Literally “called the name” his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all life. 21And Yahweh God made for Adam#The noun lacks the definite article and is taken as a proper noun in this context and for his wife garments of skin, and he clothed them.
22And Yahweh God said, “Look—the man has become as one of us, to know good and evil. What if#Literally “And now lest” he stretches out his hand and takes also from the tree of life and eats, and lives forever?” 23And Yahweh God sent him out from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. 24So#Or “And” he drove the man out, and placed cherubim east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming, turning sword#Literally “a flame of the sword which was turning” to guard the way to the tree of life.
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Genesis 3
3
1The serpent was clever, more clever than any wild animal God had made. He spoke to the Woman: “Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?”
2-3The Woman said to the serpent, “Not at all. We can eat from the trees in the garden. It’s only about the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, ‘Don’t eat from it; don’t even touch it or you’ll die.’”
4-5The serpent told the Woman, “You won’t die. God knows that the moment you eat from that tree, you’ll see what’s really going on. You’ll be just like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil.”
6When the Woman saw that the tree looked like good eating and realized what she would get out of it—she’d know everything!—she took and ate the fruit and then gave some to her husband, and he ate.
7Immediately the two of them did “see what’s really going on”—saw themselves naked! They sewed fig leaves together as makeshift clothes for themselves.
8When they heard the sound of God strolling in the garden in the evening breeze, the Man and his Wife hid in the trees of the garden, hid from God.
9 God called to the Man: “Where are you?”
10He said, “I heard you in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked. And I hid.”
11 God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat from that tree I told you not to eat from?”
12The Man said, “The Woman you gave me as a companion, she gave me fruit from the tree, and, yes, I ate it.”
God said to the Woman, “What is this that you’ve done?”
13“The serpent seduced me,” she said, “and I ate.”
14-15 God told the serpent:
“Because you’ve done this, you’re cursed,
cursed beyond all cattle and wild animals,
Cursed to slink on your belly
and eat dirt all your life.
I’m declaring war between you and the Woman,
between your offspring and hers.
He’ll wound your head,
you’ll wound his heel.”
16He told the Woman:
“I’ll multiply your pains in childbirth;
you’ll give birth to your babies in pain.
You’ll want to please your husband,
but he’ll lord it over you.”
17-19He told the Man:
“Because you listened to your wife
and ate from the tree
That I commanded you not to eat from,
‘Don’t eat from this tree,’
The very ground is cursed because of you;
getting food from the ground
Will be as painful as having babies is for your wife;
you’ll be working in pain all your life long.
The ground will sprout thorns and weeds,
you’ll get your food the hard way,
Planting and tilling and harvesting,
sweating in the fields from dawn to dusk,
Until you return to that ground yourself, dead and buried;
you started out as dirt, you’ll end up dirt.”
20The Man, known as Adam, named his wife Eve because she was the mother of all the living.
21 God made leather clothing for Adam and his wife and dressed them.
22 God said, “The Man has become like one of us, capable of knowing everything, ranging from good to evil. What if he now should reach out and take fruit from the Tree-of-Life and eat, and live forever? Never—this cannot happen!”
23-24So God expelled them from the Garden of Eden and sent them to work the ground, the same dirt out of which they’d been made. He threw them out of the garden and stationed angel-cherubim and a revolving sword of fire east of it, guarding the path to the Tree-of-Life.
THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.