Genesis 1
1 Long, long ago God created the heavens and the earth.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2 When he began to create the earth, it was shapeless and completely desolate/chaotic. Darkness covered the deep water that surrounded the earth. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the water.
The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the surface of the deep. The Spirit of God moved over the surface of the waters.
3 God said, “I want light to shine!” And light shone.
God said, “Let there be light!” and there was light.
4 God was pleased with the light. Then he made the light to shine in some places, and in other places there was still darkness.
God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness.
5 He gave to the light the name ‘day’, and he gave to the darkness the name ‘night’. After that, there was an evening which was followed by a morning. He called that whole period of time ‘the first day’.
God called the light “day,” and he called the darkness “night.” So there was evening, and then the morning, making day one.
6 Then God said, “I command that there be an empty space like a huge dome to separate the water that is above it from the water on the earth that is below it!”
God said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters to divide the waters.”
7 And that is what happened. God gave to the space the name ‘sky’.
So God made an expanse to divide the waters that were above from the waters that were below. And that's what happened.
8 Then there was another evening, which was followed by another morning. He called that period of time ‘the second day’.
God called the expanse, “sky.” So there was evening, and then the morning, making day two.
9 Then God said, “I want the water that is below the sky to come together, and dry ground to appear and rise above the water.” And that is what happened.
God said, “Let the waters below the sky collect together in one place so that the land may appear.” And so it was.
10 God gave to the ground the name ‘earth’, and he gave to the water that came together the name ‘oceans’. God was pleased with the earth and the oceans.
God called the land “earth” and the waters “seas.” God saw that it was good.
11 Then God said, “I want the earth to produce plants, including plants that will produce seeds and trees that will produce fruit. Each kind of tree will bear its own kind of fruit.”
God said, “Let the earth produce vegetation—plants that produce seeds and trees that produce seeded fruit—each one according to its own kind.” And that's what happened.
12 Then plants grew on the earth; each kind of plant began to produce its own kind of seed.
The earth produced vegetation—plants that produce seeds and trees that produce seeded fruit—each one according to its own kind. God saw that it was good.
13 Then there was another evening which was followed by another morning. God called that period of time ‘the third day’.
So there was evening, and then the morning, making day three.
14 Then God said, “I want a sun, a moon, and many stars to shine in the sky. The sun will shine in the daytime and the moon and stars will shine during the nighttime. By the changes in their appearance they will indicate the various seasons (OR, the times for special celebrations), and will enable people to know when days and years begin.
God said, “Let there be lights in the sky to separate day from night, and to provide a way to mark seasons, days, and years.
15 I want them also to be like lights in the sky that will shine on the earth.” And that is what happened.
They shall be lights in the sky to shine on the earth.” And that's what happened.
16 God made two of them that were like big lights. The bigger one, the sun, shines during the day and the smaller one, the moon, shines during the night. He also made the stars.
God created two great lights: the larger one in charge of the day, and the smaller one in charge of the night. He created the stars too.
17 God set all of them in the sky to shine on the earth,
God placed these lights in the sky to shine upon the earth,
18 to rule the day and the night, and to separate the light of the daytime from the darkness of the nighttime. God was pleased with these things he had made.
to be in charge of the day and in charge of the night, and to separate light from darkness. God saw that it was good.
19 Then there was another evening which was followed by another morning. He called that period of time ‘the fourth day’.
So there was evening, and then the morning, making day four.
20 Then God said, “I want many creatures to live in all the oceans, and I also want birds to fly in the sky above the earth.”
God said, “Let the waters be full of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the sky.”
21 So God created huge sea creatures and every other kind of creature that moves in the water, and caused them to live in all the oceans. He also created many kinds of birds. God was pleased with all those creatures.
So God created huge sea creatures and all the living things that swim and fill the waters, each one according to its own kind; and every bird that flies, each one according to its own kind. God saw that it was good.
22 God blessed them. He said, “Produce offspring and become very numerous. I want the creatures in the water to live in all the oceans, and birds also to become very numerous.” And that is what happened.
God blessed them and said, “Reproduce and increase, and fill the waters of the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.”
23 Then there was another evening that was followed by another morning. He called that period of time ‘the fifth day’.
So there was evening, and then the morning, making day five.
24 Then God said, “I want various kinds of creatures to appear on the earth. There will be many kinds of (livestock/domestic animals), creatures that scurry across the ground, and large wild animals.” And that is what happened.
God said, “Let the land produce living creatures, each one according to its own kind—the livestock, the creatures that run along the ground, and the wild animals, each one according to its own kind.” And that's what happened.
25 God made all kinds of wild animals and (livestock/domestic animals) and all kinds of creatures that scurry across the ground. God was pleased with all these creatures.
God made the wild animals, the livestock, and the creatures that run along the ground, all according to their own kind. God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, “Now we will make human beings that will be like us in many ways. I want them to rule over the fish in the sea, over the birds, over all the (livestock/domestic animals), and over all the other creatures that scurry across the ground.”
God said, “Let us make human beings in our image who are like us. They will have authority over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, and over the whole of the earth and every creature that moves on it.”
27 So God created human beings that were like him in many ways. He made them to be like himself. He created some to be male and some to be female.
So God created human beings in his own image. He created them in the image of God. He created them male and female.
28 God blessed them, saying, “Produce many children, who will live all over the earth and rule over it. I want them to rule over the fish and the birds and over all creatures that scurry across the ground.”
God blessed them and told them, “Reproduce, increase, and spread throughout the earth and control it; exercise authority over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every creature that moves on the earth.”
29 God said to the humans, “Listen! I have given you all the plants that produce seeds, all over the earth, and all the trees that have seeds in their fruit. All these things are for you to eat.
God said, “Look, I'm giving you as your food every seed-bearing plant anywhere on earth, and every tree that produces fruit with seeds.
30 I have given all the green plants to all the wild animals and to the birds and to all the creatures that scurry across the ground, to everything that breathes, for them to eat.” And that is what happened.
I'm giving all the green plants to all the land animals, to the birds, and to every creature that moves on the earth—to every living thing.” And that's what happened.
31 God was pleased with everything that he had made. Truly, it was all very good. Then there was another evening, that was followed by another morning. He called that period of time ‘the sixth day’.
God saw everything that he had created, and yes, it was very good. So there was evening, and then the morning, making day six.
