Genesis 1

Easy-to-Read Version

The Beginning of the World

1 God created the sky and the earth. At first, ²the earth was completely empty. There was nothing on the earth. Darkness covered the ocean, and God’s Spirit moved over^[a] the water.

The First Day—Light

³Then God said, “Let there be light!” And light began to shine.^[b] ⁴He saw the light, and he knew that it was good. Then he separated the light from the darkness. ⁵God named the light “day,” and he named the darkness “night.”

There was evening, and then there was morning. This was the first day.

The Second Day—Sky

⁶Then God said, “Let there be a space^[c] to separate the water into two parts!” ⁷So God made the space and separated the water. Some of the water was above it, and some of the water was below it. ⁸God named that space “sky.” There was evening, and then there was morning. This was the second day.

The Third Day—Dry Land and Plants

⁹Then God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered together so that the dry land will appear.” And it happened. ¹⁰God named the dry land “earth,” and he named the water that was gathered together “seas.” And God saw that this was good.

¹¹Then God said, “Let the earth grow grass, plants that make grain, and fruit trees. The fruit trees will make fruit with seeds in it. And each plant will make its own kind of seed. Let these plants grow on the earth.” And it happened. ¹²The earth grew grass and plants that made grain. And it grew trees that made fruit with seeds in it. Every plant made its own kind of seeds. And God saw that this was good.

¹³There was evening, and then there was morning. This was the third day.

The Fourth Day—Sun, Moon, and Stars

¹⁴Then God said, “Let there be lights in the sky. These lights will separate the days from the nights. They will be used for signs to show when special meetings^[d] begin and to show the days and years. ¹⁵They will be in the sky to shine light on the earth.” And it happened.

¹⁶So God made the two large lights. He made the larger light to rule during the day and the smaller light to rule during the night. He also made the stars. ¹⁷God put these lights in the sky to shine on the earth. ¹⁸He put them in the sky to rule over the day and over the night. They separated the light from the darkness. And God saw that this was good.

¹⁹There was evening, and then there was morning. This was the fourth day.

The Fifth Day—Fish and Birds

²⁰Then God said, “Let the water be filled with many living things, and let there be birds to fly in the air over the earth.” ²¹So God created the large sea animals.^[e] He created all the many living things in the sea and every kind of bird that flies in the air. And God saw that this was good.

²²God blessed all the living things in the sea and told them to have many babies and fill the seas. And he blessed the birds on land and told them to have many more babies.

²³There was evening, and then there was morning. This was the fifth day.

The Sixth Day—Land Animals and People

²⁴Then God said, “Let the earth produce many kinds of living things. Let there be many different kinds of animals. Let there be large animals and small crawling animals of every kind. And let all these animals produce more animals.” And all these things happened.

²⁵So God made every kind of animal. He made the wild animals, the tame animals, and all the small crawling things. And God saw that this was good.

²⁶Then God said, “Now let’s make humans^[f] who will be like us.^[g] They will rule over all the fish in the sea and the birds in the air. They will rule over all the large animals and all the little things that crawl on the earth.”

²⁷So God created humans in his own image. He created them to be like himself.^[h] He created them male and female. ²⁸God blessed them and said to them, “Have many children. Fill the earth and take control of it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the air. Rule over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

²⁹God said, “I am giving you all the grain bearing plants and all the fruit trees. These trees make fruit with seeds in it. This grain and fruit will be your food. ³⁰And I am giving all the green plants to the animals. These green plants will be their food. Every animal on earth, every bird in the air, and all the little things that crawl on the earth will eat that food.” And all these things happened.

³¹God looked at everything he had made. And he saw that everything was very good.

There was evening, and then there was morning. This was the sixth day.

Footnotes

Genesis 1:2 moved over The Hebrew word means “to fly over” or “to swoop down,” like a bird flying over its nest to protect its babies.
Genesis 1:3 Or “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. While ²the earth had no special shape, and darkness covered the ocean, and God’s Spirit hovered over the water, ³God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” Or “When God began to create the sky and the earth, ²while the earth was completely empty, and darkness covered the ocean, and a powerful wind blew over the water, ³God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.”
Genesis 1:6 space Or “firmament.” The Hebrew word can refer to a piece of metal that has been hammered into the shape of a bowl.
Genesis 1:14 special meetings The Israelites used the sun and moon to decide when the months and years began. Many Israelite festivals and special meetings began at the time of the new moon or full moon.
Genesis 1:21 large sea animals Or “sea monsters.”
Genesis 1:26 humans The Hebrew word means “man,” “people,” or the name “Adam.” It is like the word meaning “earth” or “red clay.”
Genesis 1:26 Now let’s make … like us Or “Now let’s make humans in our image and in our likeness.”
Genesis 1:27 So God created humans … himself Or “So God created them in his image. In the image of God he created them.” Compare Gen. 5:1, 3.