Genesis  ◦   Chapter 2

1Thus the Earth and its solar system and everything in them were completed.

2By the seventh day, God had completed his work of creating the Earth and its solar system; and on the seventh day God rested – he ceased the use of his creative power.3By resting from using his creative power, God blessed the seventh day and set it apart as evidence of his character and methods.

4This is the history of the creation of the earth and its solar system:

When the Creator God made the Earth and its solar system,
5the earth was covered in a lush variety of plants. The bushes, shrubs and grains of the field grew in abundance before the Creator God sent rain upon the earth and before any human tilled the ground, 6for springs would well up from the ground, and dew would water the entire surface of the earth. 7Then the Creator God took soil from the earth and built a man and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.

8The Creator God had planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he placed the man he had made.9And the Creator God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground – beautiful trees with delicious and nutritious fruit. In the middle of the garden were the Tree of Life, and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil – the tree where man will know by experience either good or evil; he will know it by the choice made.

10A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and then it divided into four rivers.11The first was named Pishon; it flowed through the entire land of Havilah, where the land was adorned with gold. 12(The gold there was pure, and precious gems and fragrant perfumes were in abundance.) 13The name of the second river was Gihon; it flowed through the entire land of Cush. 14The third river was named Tigris and it flowed along the east side of Asshur. And the fourth river was called the Euphrates.

15The Creator God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to shape, develop and take care of it. 16The Creator God charged the man with the responsibility of freedom – of developing his own character by the choices he makes – saying, “You may eat freely from any tree in the garden; 17but the tree in the middle of the garden is where you will develop your character and choose to know by experience either good (by choosing loyalty to me and my methods of love), or evil (by choosing to distrust me and preferring selfishness). So understand this reality: on the day you choose to eat of it, you will sever your bond of trust with me and you will decay and die.”

18The Creator God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone, for alone he cannot experience the joy of loving companionship that we share. He needs another being, equal to himself, to love. We will make a complementary partner, perfectly designed to complete him.”

19Now, the Creator God had made from the elements of the earth all the animals of the land and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man and enjoyed watching him study them, understand them, discover their differences, and then name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. 20So the man gave names to all the animals that thrive in loving service to humans, the birds of the air, and all those animals that serve by roaming free. But for Adam no companion to complement and complete him was found.

21So the Creator God put the man into a deep sleep; and while he was asleep, God took one of the man’s ribs and then closed the opening with new flesh. 22Then, from the living tissue the Creator God had taken from the man, he built a woman – the perfect partner for the man – and he brought her to the man.

23The man said, “Now, at last, this one is my companion, built from my flesh and blood, and she makes me complete. She will be known as Woman.”

24This is the reason a man will leave his father and mother and unite completely with his wife, and they will become one – a bonded pair, a new family.

25The man and his wife did not cover themselves: they were totally open and exposed, and they felt no shame.