Genesis 2

That is how God finished {creating} the heavens and the earth, including all the many things that are in them.

By the seventh day he had finished the work he had been doing, so he rested on that day from all that work.

Then God established the seventh day {as a day} to bless {people}, by setting it apart as a special time {to rest and worship him}. {He did that} because on that day he no longer did the work that he had been doing, creating {everything}. \*

What follows tells {more details about} the history of what {God} did when he created the heavens and the earth: During the time {when} God {who is} God created the earth and the heavens,

{for a while} there were not yet any bushes {growing} in the fields on the earth, and there were not any {other} plants that had sprouted yet. {That was} because God had not {yet} sent rain to water the earth, and human beings did not exist {yet} to cultivate the ground.

{During that time} springs of water kept seeping up from underground and supplied water to the entire surface of the land. \*

Then God {who is} God {took} {some} dirt from the earth {and} formed the first man {out of it}. Then he blew his breath into the man’s nostrils to make him live, so that the man became alive.

Now God had planted a {large} garden in {the region of} Eden, {which was} in the east, and that is where he put the man whom he had created. \*

{There} God had caused all {types of} trees to grow from the ground that are beautiful to look at and {that grow fruit that is} good to eat. In the middle of the garden was the tree whose fruit makes people live {forever}, as well as the tree whose fruit enables people to know {what is} good and {what is} evil.

There was a river flowing through {the region of} Eden that provided water for the park. From Eden the river divided into four {smaller} rivers. \*

The first {river} {was} the Pishon {River}, which flowed around the entire region of Havilah, {a place} where {there was} {much} gold.

In fact, the gold from that region {was} {very} pure. A {type of} fragrant resin and {valuable} onyx gemstones {were} {also} in that region. \*

The second river {was} the Gihon {River}, which flowed around through the entire region of Cush.

The third river {was} the Tigris {River}, which flowed east of {the region of} Assyria, and the fourth river {was} called the Euphrates {River}. \*

After God placed the man in Eden Garden to cultivate it and take care of it,

he instructed him, “You may eat as much {fruit} as you want {to eat} from any tree in the garden,

except I forbid you to eat {any fruit} from the tree whose fruit enables people to know {what is} good and {what is} evil. If you eat {fruit} from that tree, on that {same} day you will definitely die.” \*

Then God {who is} God said, “{It is} not good {for} the man to live by himself. {So} I will create someone who is just right for him to help him.”

Now {previously,} God had used {dirt} from the ground to form all {the different types of} wild animals and all {the different types of} birds {that fly} in the sky. So he brought {them all} to the man to hear how he would name them. Whatever name the man gave to each {kind of} animal, that {became} the name for that kind of animal.

The man gave names to all the {different kinds of} livestock and to {all} the {different kinds of} birds {that fly} in the sky, and to all the {different kinds of} wild animals, but none of them was an appropriate companion to help him. \*

So God caused the man to sleep deeply. Then while the man was asleep, God took a rib {out of the man’s body} and filled in the place where it had been with flesh {and healed it}.

Next God made a woman from the rib which he had taken out of the man{’s body}, and he took her to the man.

{When the man saw her,} he exclaimed, “Finally! Here is someone {like me} who has bones and flesh from me! I will call her ‘woman,’ because {it was} from {the body of} a man {that} {God} took her.” \*

Because of that, {when a man gets married,} he must leave {the home of} his father and mother, and he must unite with his wife, so that they become completely united.

{During that time} the man and his wife did not wear any clothes, but {yet} they were not ashamed {about it}. \*