Genesis 2
2
1Heaven and Earth were finished,
down to the last detail.
2-4By the seventh day
God had finished his work.
On the seventh day
he rested from all his work.
God blessed the seventh day.
He made it a Holy Day
Because on that day he rested from his work,
all the creating God had done.
This is the story of how it all started,
of Heaven and Earth when they were created.
Adam and Eve
5-7At the time God made Earth and Heaven, before any grasses or shrubs had sprouted from the ground—God hadn’t yet sent rain on Earth, nor was there anyone around to work the ground (the whole Earth was watered by underground springs)—God formed Man out of dirt from the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life. The Man came alive—a living soul!
8-9Then God planted a garden in Eden, in the east. He put the Man he had just made in it. God made all kinds of trees grow from the ground, trees beautiful to look at and good to eat. The Tree-of-Life was in the middle of the garden, also the Tree-of-Knowledge-of-Good-and-Evil.
10-14A river flows out of Eden to water the garden and from there divides into four rivers. The first is named Pishon; it flows through Havilah where there is gold. The gold of this land is good. The land is also known for a sweet-scented resin and the onyx stone. The second river is named Gihon; it flows through the land of Cush. The third river is named Hiddekel and flows east of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates.
15 God took the Man and set him down in the Garden of Eden to work the ground and keep it in order.
16-17 God commanded the Man, “You can eat from any tree in the garden, except from the Tree-of-Knowledge-of-Good-and-Evil. Don’t eat from it. The moment you eat from that tree, you’re dead.”
18-20 God said, “It’s not good for the Man to be alone; I’ll make him a helper, a companion.” So God formed from the dirt of the ground all the animals of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the Man to see what he would name them. Whatever the Man called each living creature, that was its name. The Man named the cattle, named the birds of the air, named the wild animals; but he didn’t find a suitable companion.
21-22 God put the Man into a deep sleep. As he slept he removed one of his ribs and replaced it with flesh. God then used the rib that he had taken from the Man to make Woman and presented her to the Man.
23-25The Man said,
“Finally! Bone of my bone,
flesh of my flesh!
Name her Woman
for she was made from Man.”
Therefore a man leaves his father and mother and embraces his wife. They become one flesh.
The two of them, the Man and his Wife, were naked, but they felt no shame.
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.
B'resheet (Gen) 2
2
1Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, along with everything in them. 2On the seventh day God was finished with his work which he had made, so he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. 3God blessed the seventh day and separated it as holy; because on that day God rested from all his work which he had created, so that it itself could produce.
(A: iv, S: ii) 4Here is the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created. On the day when Adonai, God, made earth and heaven, 5there was as yet no wild bush on the earth, and no wild plant had as yet sprung up; for Adonai, God, had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no one to cultivate the ground. 6Rather, a mist went up from the earth which watered the entire surface of the ground.
7Then Adonai, God, formed a person from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, so that he became a living being. 8Adonai, God, planted a garden toward the east, in ‘Eden, and there he put the person whom he had formed. 9Out of the ground Adonai, God, caused to grow every tree pleasing in appearance and good for food, including the tree of life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
10A river went out of ‘Eden to water the garden, and from there it divided into four streams. 11The name of the first is Pishon; it winds throughout the land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx stone are also found there. 13The name of the second river is Gichon; it winds throughout the land of Kush. 14The name of the third river is Tigris; it is the one that flows toward the east of Ashur. The fourth river is the Euphrates.
15Adonai, God, took the person and put him in the garden of ‘Eden to cultivate and care for it. 16Adonai, God, gave the person this order: “You may freely eat from every tree in the garden 17except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. You are not to eat from it, because on the day that you eat from it, it will become certain that you will die.”
18Adonai, God, said, “It isn’t good that the person should be alone. I will make for him a companion suitable for helping him.” 19So from the ground Adonai, God, formed every wild animal and every bird that flies in the air, and he brought them to the person to see what he would call them. Whatever the person would call each living creature, that was to be its name. (S: iii) 20So the person gave names to all the livestock, to the birds in the air and to every wild animal. But for Adam there was not found a companion suitable for helping him.
21Then God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the person; and while he was sleeping, he took one of his ribs and closed up the place from which he took it with flesh. 22The rib which Adonai, God, had taken from the person, he made a woman-person; and he brought her to the man-person. 23The man-person said, “At last! This is bone from my bones and flesh from my flesh. She is to be called Woman , because she was taken out of Man .” 24This is why a man is to leave his father and mother and stick with his wife, and they are to be one flesh.
25They were both naked, the man and his wife, and they were not ashamed.
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