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Genesis 3

The man and the woman turn away from God

3 The Lord God made many wild animals. But the snake was the most clever of them all. The snake asked the woman, ‘Did God say, “You must not eat the fruit from any tree in the garden”? Is that really true?’

2 The woman replied, ‘We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden. 3 But God said, “You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden. You must not even touch it. If you do that, you will die.” ’

4 Then the snake said to the woman, ‘No, you will not die. 5 God knows that when you eat the fruit from this tree, you will understand things. You will become like God himself. You will know about good things and evil things.’ [ a ]

6 The woman looked at the fruit on the tree. She saw that it would be good to eat, and it was beautiful to look at. She wanted to eat it because it would make her become wise. So she took some fruit and she ate it. Then she gave some of the fruit to her husband who was with her. He also ate it.

7 Then they understood what they had done. [ b ] They realized that they were not wearing any clothes. So they took some leaves from fig trees. They tied them together to cover their bodies.

8 In the evening there was a nice cool wind. The Lord God walked in the garden. The man and the woman heard the sound of the Lord God. They hid themselves behind some trees, so that God would not see them. 9 The Lord God called out to the man. He said to him, ‘Where are you?’

10 The man replied, ‘I heard you in the garden. I was afraid because I had no clothes. So I hid myself from you.’

11 The Lord God said, ‘Who told you that you had no clothes? Have you eaten fruit from the tree that I said you must not eat?’

12 The man said, ‘It was the woman that you put here with me. She gave me some fruit from the tree. So I ate it.’

13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, ‘Why have you done a thing like that?’ The woman replied, ‘It was the snake. The snake deceived me with a lie. So I ate the fruit.’

14 The Lord God said to the snake,

‘Because you have done this, I will curse you. [ c ]
Among all the farm animals and wild animals,
you are the one that I will curse.
From now on, you will move across the ground on your stomach.
You will eat dust from the ground.
You will do this for your whole life.
15 I will cause you and the woman to become enemies.
Your descendants and her descendants will always be enemies.
One of her descendants will attack your head. [ d ]
You will attack his heel.’ [ e ]

16 God said to the woman, ‘I will cause you to have great pain when you give birth to children. You will want to please your husband. But he will rule over you as your master.’

17 Then God said to Adam, [ f ] ‘You listened to your wife and you did what she said. You ate fruit from the tree after I told you, “You must not eat fruit from this tree.” Because you did that, I will curse the ground. You will have to work very hard to make plants grow in it for your food. It will be like this for your whole life. 18 Thorn bushes and thistles will grow in the ground. [ g ] But you will eat plants that grow in the fields. 19 You will have to work hard for a long time before you have any food to eat. You will do this for your whole life until you die. Then you will return into the ground. That is where you came from. I made you from the soil of the ground, and you will become soil again.’

20 Adam gave his wife a name. He called her Eve. This was because she would become the mother of all people. [ h ]

21 The Lord God made clothes for Adam and Eve to wear. He used the skins from animals to make them.

22 The Lord God said, ‘The man has now become like one of us because he understands good and evil. So we must not let him take fruit from the tree that gives life. If he eats that fruit, he will live for ever.’

23 So the Lord God sent Adam out of the Garden of Eden. To get his food, Adam had to dig the ground that God had used to make him. 24 Then God put cherubs to be guards for the garden. God put them on the east side of the garden. There was also a sword of fire that moved quickly from side to side. As a result, nobody could go near to the tree that gives life.

Footnotes

  1. 3:5 The snake did not want the woman to trust God. He wanted the woman not to obey God. The woman told the snake that they must not touch the tree in the middle of the garden. But God did not say this. God told the woman that she must not eat the fruit from that tree. The snake told a lie when he said that the man and the woman would not die. The snake told the woman another lie: if she ate the fruit she would be like God.
  2. 3:7 When the man and the woman ate the fruit, they could then understand what is good and what is evil. That is how they became like God. When God made the man and the woman, there was nothing bad in them. So they did not know the difference between good things and evil things.
  3. 3:14 When God cursed the snake, it means that he punished the snake. Because he is God, what he says will certainly happen.
  4. 3:15 God is speaking of a human descendant who would destroy the power of the snake. When God sent Jesus into the world, a woman gave birth to him. By his death on the cross, Jesus destroyed Satan's power.
  5. 3:15 ‘heel’ is a part of the foot. It is at the back of the foot.
  6. 3:17 Adam is the name of the man. In the Hebrew language, Adam means ‘man’.
  7. 3:18 God cursed the ground. Thistles and thorn bushes are not food plants. They are weeds that grow quickly. They stop food plants from growing. Because God has cursed the ground, Adam's descendants have to work very hard to grow plants for their food.
  8. 3:20 All humans on earth are descendants of Adam and Eve.

The Beginning of Sin

3 The snake was the most clever of all the wild animals that the Lord God had made. The snake spoke to the woman and said, “Woman, did God really tell you that you must not eat from any tree in the garden?”

2 The woman answered the snake, “No, we can eat fruit from the trees in the garden. 3 But there is one tree we must not eat from. God told us, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden. You must not even touch that tree, or you will die.’”

4 But the snake said to the woman, “You will not die. 5 God knows that if you eat the fruit from that tree you will learn about good and evil, and then you will be like God!”

6 The woman could see that the tree was beautiful and the fruit looked so good to eat. She also liked the idea that it would make her wise. So she took some of the fruit from the tree and ate it. Her husband was there with her, so she gave him some of the fruit, and he ate it.

7 Then it was as if their eyes opened, and they saw things differently. They saw that they were naked. So they got some fig leaves, sewed them together, and wore them for clothes.

8 During the cool part of the day, the Lord God was walking in the garden. The man and the woman heard him, and they hid among the trees in the garden. 9 The Lord God called to the man and said, “Where are you?”

10 The man said, “I heard you walking in the garden, and I was afraid. I was naked, so I hid.”

11 God said to the man, “Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat fruit from that special tree? I told you not to eat from that tree!”

12 The man said, “The woman you put here with me gave me fruit from that tree. So I ate it.”

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

She said, “The snake tricked me, so I ate the fruit.”

14 So the Lord God said to the snake,

“You did this very bad thing,
so bad things will happen to you.
It will be worse for you
than for any other animal.
You must crawl on your belly
and eat dust all the days of your life.
15 I will make you and the woman enemies to each other.
Your children and her children will be enemies.
You will bite her child’s foot,
but he will crush your head.”

16 Then God said to the woman,

“I will cause you to have much trouble
when you are pregnant.
And when you give birth to children,
you will have much pain.
You will want your husband very much,
but he will rule over you.” [ a ]

17 Then God said to the man,

“I commanded you not to eat from that tree.
But you listened to your wife and ate from it.
So I will curse the ground because of you.
You will have to work hard all your life for the food the ground produces.
18 The ground will grow thorns and weeds for you.
And you will have to eat the plants that grow wild in the fields. [ b ]
19 You will work hard for your food,
until your face is covered with sweat.
You will work hard until the day you die,
and then you will become dust again.
I used dust to make you,
and when you die, you will become dust again.”

20 Adam [ c ] named his wife Eve. [ d ] He gave her this name because Eve would be the mother of everyone who ever lived.

21 The Lord God used animal skins and made some clothes for the man and his wife. Then he put the clothes on them.

22 The Lord God said, “Look, the man has become like us—he knows about good and evil. And now the man might take the fruit from the tree of life. If the man eats that fruit, he will live forever.”

23 So the Lord God forced the man out of the Garden of Eden to work the ground he was made from. 24 God forced the man to leave the garden. Then he put Cherub angels and a sword of fire at the entrance to the garden to protect it. The sword flashed around and around, guarding the way to the tree of life.

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 3:16 You will … over you Or “You will want to rule your husband, but he will rule over you.” In Hebrew this is like the last part of Gen. 4:7.
  2. Genesis 3:18 See Gen. 1:28-29.
  3. Genesis 3:20 Adam This name means “man” or “people.” It is like the word meaning “earth” or “red clay.”
  4. Genesis 3:20 Eve This name is like the Hebrew word meaning “life.”

3 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:

3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.

4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:

5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.

6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

8 And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.

9 And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?

10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

11 And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?

12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

13 And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

14 And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:

15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;

18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;

19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

20 And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.

21 Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.

22 And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:

23 Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.

24 So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

The Fall of Mankind

3 Now ( A ) the serpent was more cunning than any animal of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God really said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” 2 The woman said to the serpent, “ ( B ) From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; 3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’” 4 ( C ) The serpent said to the woman, “You certainly will not die! 5 For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and ( D ) you will [ a ] become like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 ( E ) When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they ( F ) knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves waist coverings.

8 Now they heard the sound of ( G ) the Lord God walking in the garden in the [ b ] cool of the day, ( H ) and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 Then the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “ ( I ) Where are you?” 10 He said, “ ( J ) I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.” 11 And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree from which I commanded you not to eat?” 12 ( K ) The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me some of the fruit of the tree, and I ate.” 13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” And the woman said, “ ( L ) The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” 14 Then the Lord God said to the serpent,

( M ) Because you have done this,
Cursed are you more than all the livestock,
And more than any animal of the field;
On your belly you shall go,
And ( N ) dust you shall eat
All the days of your life;
15 And I will [ c ] ( O ) make enemies
Of you and the woman,
And of your [ d ] offspring and her [ e ] Descendant;
( P ) He shall [ f ] bruise you on the head,
And you shall bruise Him on the heel.”

16 To the woman He said,

“I will greatly multiply
Your pain [ g ] in childbirth,
In pain you shall ( Q ) deliver children;
Yet your desire will be for your husband,
And ( R ) he shall rule over you.”

17 Then to Adam He said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’;

( S ) Cursed is the ground because of you;
( T ) With [ h ] hard labor you shall eat from it
All the days of your life.
18 Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you;
Yet you shall eat the [ i ] plants of the field;
19 By the sweat of your face
You shall eat bread,
Until you ( U ) return to the ground,
Because ( V ) from it you were taken;
For you are dust,
And to dust you shall return.”

20 Now the man named his wife [ j ] ( W ) Eve, because she was the mother of all the living. 21 And the Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.

22 Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of ( X ) Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out with his hand, and take fruit also from ( Y ) the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— 23 therefore the Lord God sent him out of the Garden of Eden, to cultivate the ground from which he was taken. 24 So ( Z ) He drove the man out; and at the ( AA ) east of the Garden of Eden He stationed the ( AB ) cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to ( AC ) the tree of life.

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 3:5 Or be
  2. Genesis 3:8 Lit breeze of
  3. Genesis 3:15 Lit put enmity between you
  4. Genesis 3:15 Lit seed
  5. Genesis 3:15 Lit Seed ; i.e., a prophetic reference to Christ
  6. Genesis 3:15 Or crush
  7. Genesis 3:16 Lit and your pregnancy
  8. Genesis 3:17 Or hardship
  9. Genesis 3:18 Lit plant
  10. Genesis 3:20 I.e., living; or life

The Fall

3 Now the serpent ( A ) was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’? ( B )

2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, ( C ) 3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” ( D )

4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. ( E ) 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, ( F ) knowing good and evil.”

6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable ( G ) for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, ( H ) who was with her, and he ate it. ( I ) 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; ( J ) so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. ( K )

8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking ( L ) in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid ( M ) from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” ( N )

10 He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid ( O ) because I was naked; ( P ) so I hid.”

11 And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? ( Q ) Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from? ( R )

12 The man said, “The woman you put here with me ( S ) —she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”

The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, ( T ) and I ate.”

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

“Cursed ( U ) are you above all livestock
and all wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
and you will eat dust ( V )
all the days of your life.
15 And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring [ a ] ( W ) and hers; ( X )
he will crush [ b ] your head, ( Y )
and you will strike his heel.”

16 To the woman he said,

“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
with painful labor you will give birth to children. ( Z )
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you. ( AA )

17 To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ ( AB )

“Cursed ( AC ) is the ground ( AD ) because of you;
through painful toil ( AE ) you will eat food from it
all the days of your life. ( AF )
18 It will produce thorns and thistles ( AG ) for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field. ( AH )
19 By the sweat of your brow ( AI )
you will eat your food ( AJ )
until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
and to dust you will return.” ( AK )

20 Adam [ c ] named his wife Eve, [ d ] ( AL ) because she would become the mother of all the living.

21 The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. ( AM ) 22 And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, ( AN ) knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life ( AO ) and eat, and live forever.” 23 So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden ( AP ) to work the ground ( AQ ) from which he had been taken. 24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side [ e ] of the Garden of Eden ( AR ) cherubim ( AS ) and a flaming sword ( AT ) flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life. ( AU )

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 3:15 Or seed
  2. Genesis 3:15 Or strike
  3. Genesis 3:20 Or The man
  4. Genesis 3:20 Eve probably means living.
  5. Genesis 3:24 Or placed in front
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