At the time when God made
earth and heaven, no trees or plants grew on the earth, for God
had not yet sent the rain; and there was no man to till the soil;
but a mist rose from the earth and watered the ground.
Then God made man out of dust taken from the ground and breathed
into him the breath of life; and man became a living being. And
God planted a garden in Eden, far in the East; and out of the
ground he made grow all kinds of trees that are pleasant to look at
and good for food, also the tree of life and the tree that gives the
knowledge of good and evil.
Then God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till
it and to care for it. And God gave the man this command: "You
may eat all you wish from every tree of the garden, except from the
tree that gives the knowledge of good and evil; from this you shall
not eat, for if you eat from it you shall surely die."
Then God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone; I will
make a companion for him." So out of the ground God made all the
wild beasts and birds, and brought them to the man to see what he
would name them; and whatever he called each living thing that
became its name. But for the man himself there was found no
companion suited to him.
Then God made the man fall into a deep sleep; and while he
slept, he took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.
The rib which he had taken from the man, God made into a woman
and brought her to the man. Then the man said, "Because she was made
from my body, she shall be called Woman."