How God Created the Universe and Everything in It

1:1-2:3

1 This is how everything began: God created the heavens and the earth. 2 At first after that, the earth did not have its present form, and there was nothing living on it. It was totally dark, there was deep water everywhere, and God’s Spirit was moving above the water. 3 Then God said, “I command light to start shining!” And immediately light started shining. 4 God observed that the light was excellent. Then he divided the light from the darkness so that each had its own time. 5 He named the light Daytime, and the darkness he named Nighttime. Then evening came, and later morning came, and that was the end of the first day.

6 Then God said, “I command there to be a large space in the middle of the water, so that it divides the water into two separate places.” 7 That is how God made a large space and used it to divide the water that was below the space from the water that was above it. Everything happened exactly as he commanded, 8 and he named the space Sky. Then evening came, and later morning came, and that was the end of the second day.

9 Then God said, “I command the water that is below the sky to come together in one place so that there is dry ground.” And that is exactly what happened. 10 Then God named the ground that had dried off Land, and he named the water which had gathered together Ocean. And he observed that what he had made was excellent.

11 Then God said, “I command the land to produce green plants all over the earth, including all types of plants that produce seeds and all types of fruit trees that produce their own type of fruit with seeds inside.” And that is exactly what happened. 12 The land started producing green plants, including all types of plants that produce their own type of seeds and all types of trees that produce their own type of fruit with seeds inside. God observed that what he had made was excellent. 13 Then evening came, and later morning came, and that was the end of the third day.

14 Then God said, “I command there to be sources of light in the sky that divide the daytime from the nighttime. They must also mark when important things happen, and they must show when seasons, days and years begin and end. 15 They must function as lights in the sky that shine light on the earth.” And that is exactly what happened. 16 That is how God made the two bright lights, the brighter light to shine during the daytime, and the weaker light to shine during the nighttime. That is also when he made the stars. 17 He put those lights in the sky to shine light on the earth, 18 to shine during the daytime or during the nighttime, and to divide the light from the darkness. God observed that what he had made was excellent. 19 Then evening came, and later morning came, and that was the end of the fourth day.

20 Then God said, “I command there to be large groups of water animals that live everywhere in the water. I also command there to be birds that fly in the sky above the earth.” 21 That is how God made the huge sea animals and all the other types of animals that live all over the place in the water, each having its own type of young. That is also how he made all the different types of birds, each having its own type of young. God observed that what he had made was excellent. 22 Then he blessed them all by saying to them, “You water animals must have many young so that you increase greatly in number and live all over the place in the ocean. You birds must also increase greatly in number all over the earth.” 23 Then evening came, and later morning came, and that was the end of the fifth day.

24 Then God said, “I command the land to produce all types of animals, each having its own type of young, including domestic animals, all types of animals that crawl and all the other types of wild animals, each having its own type of young.” And that is exactly what happened. 25 That is how God made all the different types of wild animals, each having its own type of young, and all the domestic animals, each having its own type of young, and all different types of animals that crawl on the ground, each having its own type of young. God observed that what he had made was excellent.

26 Then God said to himself, “Now we should make human beings to be like us and act like us, and let us put them in charge of the fish in the ocean, the birds in the sky, the domestic animals, and the entire earth, including all the animals that live on the earth.” 27 So God created human beings to be like himself. Yes, he made them to be like himself. He also created them to be male or female.

28 Then God blessed them by saying to them, “Have many children so that you and your descendants increase greatly in number and live all over the earth and take control of it. You are in charge of the fish in the ocean, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that live on the land.” 29 Then he also said to them, “Listen, I am now giving to you for food all the different types of plants that produce seeds and grow anywhere on the earth, as well as all the different types of trees that produce fruit with seeds inside it. All of them are yours to eat from. 30 In the same way, I give every type of green plant for food to all the wild animals that live on the earth, and all the birds that fly in the sky, and all the other animals that live on the land and breathe air.” And that is how it was.

31 Then God looked at everything that he had made, and he observed that it was all very excellent. Then evening came, and later morning came, and that was the end of the sixth day.

2 That is how God finished creating the heavens and the earth, including all the many things that are in them. 2 By the seventh day he had finished the work he had been doing, so he rested on that day from all that work. 3 Then God established the seventh day as a day to bless people, by setting it apart as a special time to rest and worship him. He did that because on that day he no longer did the work that he had been doing, creating everything.