In the beginning, God created heaven and earth. The earth was formless and empty; darkness covered the abyss, and the Spirit of God moved over the waters.

And light was made. God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light DAY, and the darkness He called NIGHT. There was evening and morning: the first day.

God said: "Let there be a firmament between the waters, and let it separate one from the other." And so it was done. God made the firmament and separated the waters that were below the firmament from those that were above. And God called the firmament HEAVEN. There was evening and morning: the second day.

God said: "Let the waters under heaven be gathered together in one place, and let dry land appear." And so it was done. God called the dry land EARTH, and the gathering of waters He called SEA. And God saw that it was good.

God said: "Let the earth bring forth green grass yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit according to their kind, containing their seed within themselves to reproduce upon the earth." And so it was done.

The earth brought forth green grass yielding seed according to its kind, and trees bearing fruit with their seed within themselves, according to their kind. And God saw that it was good. There was evening and morning: the third day.

God said: "Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to separate day from night; let them serve as signs and mark time, days, and years, and shine in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth." And so it was done.

God made the two great lights: the greater to rule the day, and the lesser to rule the night; and He made the stars also. God placed them in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth, to rule over day and night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. There was evening and morning: the fourth day.

God said: "Let the waters bring forth living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth beneath the firmament of heaven." God created the great sea creatures and all living things that move in the water, according to their kind, and all birds according to their kind. And God saw that it was good.

God blessed them, saying: "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters of the sea, and let birds multiply upon the earth." There was evening and morning: the fifth day.

God said: "Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kind: domestic animals, reptiles, and wild animals according to their kind." And so it was done. God made the wild animals according to their kind, the domestic animals likewise, and all creatures that crawl upon the earth. And God saw that it was good.

God created mankind in His image; He created them in the image of God, He created man and woman. God blessed them: "Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of heaven, and over all animals that crawl upon the earth."

God said: "Behold, I give you all seed-bearing plants upon the earth, and all fruit-bearing trees containing their seed within themselves, that they may serve as food for you. And to all animals of the earth, to all birds of heaven, to everything that crawls upon the earth and has the breath of life, I give all green plants for food." And so it was done.

God contemplated all His work, and saw that everything was very good. There was evening and morning: the sixth day.

Thus the heavens and the earth were completed with all their array. Having finished on the seventh day the work He had done, God rested on that seventh day from all the work He had done.

God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on that day He rested from all the work of creation.

Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there He placed the man He had formed. The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow from the earth, beautiful to see and with sweet fruit to eat. In the middle of the garden stood the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

The Lord God took the man and placed him in the Garden of Eden to cultivate and guard it.

For on the day you eat from it, you will surely die.

The Lord God said: "It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him."

So the Lord God, having formed from the earth all the animals of the fields and all the birds of heaven, brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever name the man gave to each living creature, that was its true name.

The man gave names to all the animals, to all the birds of heaven, and to all the animals of the fields. But for the man, no suitable helper was found.

Then the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man; and while he slept, He took one of his ribs and closed up the place with flesh. And from the rib that He had taken from the man, the Lord God made a woman, and brought her to the man.

The man said: "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman, because she was taken from man."

Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. Now the man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.