The beginning

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth
Now the earth was empty and formless
Darkness was over the surface of the deep
And the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters

And God said, “Let there be light”
And there was light
God saw that the light was good
And He separated that light from the darkness being in good mood

God called the darkness “night”
And the light He called “day”
And there was evening
And there was morning—the first day

And God said “Let there be a vault between the waters
To separate water from water”
So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault
From the water above it making no fault

And it was so
God called the vault “sky”
And there was evening
And there was morning—the second day after the night

And God said
“Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place
And let dry ground appear”
And it was so. God saw it clear

God called the dry ground “land”
And the gathered waters He called “seas”
And God saw that it was good
It was as He planned for this

Then God said
“Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants
And trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it
According to their various kinds”

And it was so
The land produced vegetation:
Plants bearing seed according to their kinds
In different locations

And trees bearing fruit with seed in it
According to their kinds
And God saw that it was good
As it was in His mind

God saw that it was good
According to His say
And there was evening
And there was morning—the third day

And God said
“Let there be lights in the vault of the sky
To separate the day from the night
And let them serve as signs to mark sacred times

And mark days and mark years
And let them be lights in the vault of the sky
To give light on the earth”
And it was so. And it made Him mirth

God made two great lights—
The greater light to govern the day
And the lesser light to govern the night
And the stars He also made

God set them in the vault of the sky
To give on the earth the light
To separate light from darkness
And to govern the day and the night

And God saw that it was good
And God saw that it was according to His say
And there was evening
And there was morning—the fourth day

And God said
“Let the water teem with living creatures
And let birds above the earth fly
Across the vault of the sky”

So God created the great creatures of the sea
And every living thing with which the water teems
And that moves about in it, according to their kinds
And every winged bird according to its kind

And God saw that it was good
God blessed them and said
“Be fruitful and increase in number”
And after that

“Fill the water in the seas
And let the birds increase on the earth”
And there was evening
And there was morning—the day fifth

And God said
“Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds:
The livestock, the creatures that move along the ground
And the wild animals, each according to its kind”

And it was so
God made the wild animals according to their kinds
The livestock and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds
And God saw that it was good. And God thought that it was right

Then God said
“Let us make mankind in our image
In our likeness, so that they may rule over everyone
And it will be their privilege

To rule over the fish in the sea
To rule over the birds in the sky found
Over the livestock and all the wild animals
And over all the creatures that move along the ground”

So God created mankind in his own image
In the image of God He created them
Male and female He created them
He indeed created them and then

God blessed them and said to them
“Be fruitful and increase in number with proud
Fill the earth and subdue it
Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground”

Then God said
“I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth
And every tree that has fruit with seed in it
They will be yours for food, and to all the beasts of the earth

And all the birds in the sky
And all the creatures that move along the ground—
Everything that has the breath of life in it—
I give every green plant for food. Have it with proud”

And it was so. God saw all that He had made
And it was very good as His say
And there was evening,
And there was morning—the sixth day

Thus the heavens and the earth
Were completed in all their vast array
God had finished the work
He had been doing by the seventh day

So on the seventh day He rested from all His work
As there were left none
Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy
Because on it He rested from all the work of creating that He had done