Genesis 3:1–5:32

The First Sin and the First Promise

¹The snake was more clever than all the wild animals the Lord God had made. He asked the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must never eat the fruit of any tree in the garden’?” 

²The woman answered the snake, “We’re allowed to eat the fruit from any tree in the garden ³except the tree in the middle of the garden. God said, ‘You must never eat it or touch it. If you do, you will die!’ ” 

⁴“You certainly won’t die!” the snake told the woman. ⁵“God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened. You’ll be like God, knowing good and evil.” 

⁶The woman saw that the tree had fruit that was good to eat, nice to look at, and desirable for making someone wise. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 

⁷Then their eyes were opened, and they both realized that they were naked. They sewed fig leaves together and made clothes for themselves. 

⁸In the cool of the evening, the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking around in the garden. So they hid from the Lord God among the trees in the garden. ⁹The Lord God called to the man and asked him, “Where are you?” 

¹⁰He answered, “I heard you in the garden. I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.” 

¹¹God asked, “Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat fruit from the tree I commanded you not to eat from?” 

¹²The man answered, “That woman, the one you gave me, gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” 

¹³Then the Lord God asked the woman, “What have you done?” 

“The snake deceived me, and I ate,” the woman answered. 

¹⁴So the Lord God said to the snake, “Because you have done this, 

You are cursed more than all the wild or domestic animals. 

You will crawl on your belly. 

You will be the lowest of animals as long as you live. 

¹⁵I will make you and the woman hostile toward each other. 

I will make your descendants 

and her descendant hostile toward each other. 

He will crush your head, 

and you will bruise his heel.” 

¹⁶He said to the woman, 

“I will increase your pain and your labor 

when you give birth to children. 

Yet, you will long for your husband, 

and he will rule you.” 

¹⁷Then he said to the man, “You listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree, although I commanded you, ‘You must never eat its fruit.’ 

The ground is cursed because of you. 

Through hard work you will eat ⸤food that comes⸥ from it 

every day of your life. 

¹⁸The ground will grow thorns and thistles for you, 

and you will eat wild plants. 

¹⁹By the sweat of your brow, you will produce food to eat 

until you return to the ground, 

because you were taken from it. 

You are dust, and you will return to dust.” 

²⁰Adam named his wife Eve ^[Life^[ because she became the mother of every living person. 

²¹The Lord God made clothes from animal skins for the man and his wife and dressed them. 

²²Then the Lord God said, “The man has become like one of us, since he knows good and evil. He must not reach out and take the fruit from the tree of life and eat. Then he would live forever.” ²³So the Lord God sent the man out of the Garden of Eden to farm the ground from which the man had been formed. ²⁴After he sent the man out, God placed angels^aand a flaming sword that turned in all directions east of the Garden of Eden. He placed them there to guard the way to the tree of life. 

4TH CHAPTER

Cain Murders Abel

¹Adam made love to his wife Eve. She became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “I have gotten the man that the Lord promised.” ²Then she gave birth to another child, Abel, Cain’s brother. Abel was a shepherd, and Cain was a farmer. 

³Later Cain brought some crops from the land as an offering to the Lord. ⁴Abel also brought some choice parts of the firstborn animals from his flock. The Lord approved of Abel and his offering, ⁵but he didn’t approve of Cain and his offering. So Cain became very angry and was disappointed. ⁶Then the Lord asked Cain, “Why are you angry, and why do you look disappointed? ⁷If you do well, won’t you be accepted? But if you don’t do well, sin is lying outside your door ready to attack. It wants to control you, but you must master it.” 

⁸Cain talked to his brother Abel. Later, when they were in the fields, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. 

⁹The Lord asked Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” 

“I don’t know,” he answered. “Am I supposed to take care of my brother?” 

¹⁰The Lord asked, “What have you done? Your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground. ¹¹So now you are cursed from the ground, which has received the blood of your brother whom you killed. ¹²When you farm the ground, it will no longer yield its best for you. You will be a fugitive, a wanderer on the earth.” 

¹³But Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is more than I can stand! ¹⁴You have forced me off this land today. I have to hide from you and become a fugitive, a wanderer on the earth. Now anyone who finds me will kill me!” 

¹⁵So the Lord said to him, “Not so! Anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.” The Lord gave Cain a sign so that anyone meeting him would not kill him. 

¹⁶Then Cain left the Lord’s presence and lived in Nod ^[The Land of Wandering^[, east of Eden. 

Cain’s Ten Descendants—Cain to Lamech

¹⁷Cain made love to his wife. She became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was building a city, and he named it Enoch after his son. ¹⁸To Enoch was born Irad. Irad was the father of Mehujael. Mehujael was the father of Methushael. And Methushael was the father of Lamech. 

¹⁹Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. ²⁰Adah gave birth to Jabal. He was the first person to live in tents and have livestock. ²¹His brother’s name was Jubal. He was the first person to play the harp and the flute. ²²Zillah also had a son, Tubalcain, who made bronze and iron tools. Tubalcain’s sister was Naamah. 

²³Lamech said to his wives, 

“Adah and Zillah, listen to me! 

Wives of Lamech, hear what I say! 

I killed a man for bruising me, 

a young man for wounding me. 

²⁴If Cain is avenged 7 times, 

then Lamech, 77 times.” 

Adam’s Godly Descendants—Adam to Enosh

²⁵Adam made love to his wife again. She gave birth to a son and named him Seth, because ⸤she said,⸥ “God has given^ame another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.” 

²⁶A son was also born to Seth, and he named him Enosh. At that time people began to worship the Lord. 

5TH CHAPTER

Adam’s Ten Descendants—Adam to Noah—1 Chronicles 1:1–3

¹This is the written account of Adam and his descendants. 

When God created humans, 

he made them in the likeness of God. 

²He created them male and female. 

He blessed them and called them humans 

when he created them. 

³When Adam was 130 years old, he became the father ⸤of a son⸥ in his own likeness, in his own image. He named him Seth. ⁴After Adam became the father of Seth, he lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. ⁵Adam lived a total of 930 years; then he died. 

⁶When Seth was 105 years old, he became the father of Enosh. ⁷After he became the father of Enosh, Seth lived 807 years and had other sons and daughters. ⁸Seth lived a total of 912 years; then he died. 

⁹When Enosh was 90 years old, he became the father of Kenan. ¹⁰After he became the father of Kenan, Enosh lived 815 years and had other sons and daughters. ¹¹Enosh lived a total of 905 years; then he died. 

¹²When Kenan was 70 years old, he became the father of Mahalalel. ¹³After he became the father of Mahalalel, Kenan lived 840 years and had other sons and daughters. ¹⁴Kenan lived a total of 910 years; then he died. 

¹⁵When Mahalalel was 65 years old, he became the father of Jared. ¹⁶After he became the father of Jared, Mahalalel lived 830 years and had other sons and daughters. ¹⁷Mahalalel lived a total of 895 years; then he died. 

¹⁸When Jared was 162 years old, he became the father of Enoch. ¹⁹After he became the father of Enoch, Jared lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. ²⁰Jared lived a total of 962 years; then he died. 

²¹When Enoch was 65 years old, he became the father of Methuselah. ²²After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God for 300 years and had other sons and daughters. ²³Enoch lived a total of 365 years. ²⁴Enoch walked with God; then he was gone because God took him. 

²⁵When Methuselah was 187 years old, he became the father of Lamech. ²⁶After he became the father of Lamech, Methuselah lived 782 years and had other sons and daughters. ²⁷Methuselah lived a total of 969 years; then he died. 

²⁸When Lamech was 182 years old, he became the father of a son. ²⁹He named him Noah ^[Relief^[, and said, “This child will bring us relief from the work and painful labor of our hands since the Lord has cursed the ground.” ³⁰After Lamech became the father of Noah, he lived 595 years and had other sons and daughters. ³¹Lamech lived a total of 777 years; then he died. 

³²When Noah was 500 years old, he became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.