Passage

Genesis 2

Book: Genesis · NASB95

Genesis 2 is the second of the canonical creation accounts and the foundational anthropology of the Old Testament. After Genesis 1's cosmic-scale "let there be," chapter 2 narrows to the human: formation from dust, the breath of life, the placement in Eden, the work-and-keep mandate, the naming of the animals, the deep sleep, the building of the woman from the rib, the one-flesh union. Almost every Christian doctrine of personhood, vocation, sex, and marriage returns to this chapter. So do almost every Old Testament difficulty read on the chapter by skeptics. This rich hub is anchored here because the citations to it across ris3n's notes spread across hermeneutics, image-bearing, polygamy defeaters, ANE-borrowing objections, conditional immortality, common-descent debates, and genealogical Adam material.

Key verses

"Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being." (Genesis 2:7, NASB95)

"Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it." (Genesis 2:15, NASB95)

"Then the LORD God said, 'It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.'" (Genesis 2:18, NASB95)

"For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh." (Genesis 2:24, NASB95)

Immediate context (whole chapter, four PD translations)

ASV (ASV)

"1. And the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2. And on the seventh day God finished his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. 3. And God blessed the seventh day, and hallowed it; because that in it he rested from all his work which God had created and made. 4. These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that Jehovah God made earth and heaven. 5. And no plant of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had yet sprung up; for Jehovah God had not caused it to rain upon the earth: and there was not a man to till the ground; 6. but there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. 7. And Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. 8. And Jehovah God planted a garden eastward, in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9. And out of the ground made Jehovah God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 10. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became four heads. 11. The name of the first is Pishon: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; 12. and the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. 13. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Cush. 14. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth in front of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. 15. And Jehovah God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. 16. And Jehovah God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: 17. but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. 18. And Jehovah God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him. 19. And out of the ground Jehovah God formed every beast of the field, and every bird of the heavens; and brought them unto the man to see what he would call them: and whatsoever the man called every living creature, that was the name thereof. 20. And the man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the heavens, and to every beast of the field; but for man there was not found a help meet for him. 21. And Jehovah God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof: 22. and the rib, which Jehovah God had taken from the man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. 23. And the man said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. 24. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. 25. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed." (Genesis 2:1-25, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"1. The heavens, the earth, and all their vast array were finished. 2. On the seventh day God finished his work which he had done; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done. 3. God blessed the seventh day, and made it holy, because he rested in it from all his work of creation which he had done. 4. This is the history of the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that Yahweh God made the earth and the heavens. 5. No plant of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had yet sprung up; for Yahweh God had not caused it to rain on the earth. There was not a man to till the ground, 6. but a mist went up from the earth, and watered the whole surface of the ground. 7. Yahweh God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. 8. Yahweh God planted a garden eastward, in Eden, and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9. Out of the ground Yahweh God made every tree to grow that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food, including the tree of life in the middle of the garden and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 10. A river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from there it was parted, and became the source of four rivers. 11. The name of the first is Pishon: it flows through the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; 12. and the gold of that land is good. Bdellium and onyx stone are also there. 13. The name of the second river is Gihon. It is the same river that flows through the whole land of Cush. 14. The name of the third river is Hiddekel. This is the one which flows in front of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates. 15. Yahweh God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate and keep it. 16. Yahweh God commanded the man, saying, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; 17. but you shall not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die.” 18. Yahweh God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to him.” 19. Out of the ground Yahweh God formed every animal of the field, and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. Whatever the man called every living creature became its name. 20. The man gave names to all livestock, and to the birds of the sky, and to every animal of the field; but for man there was not found a helper comparable to him. 21. Yahweh God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep. As the man slept, he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. 22. Yahweh God made a woman from the rib which he had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. 23. The man said, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She will be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken out of Man.” 24. Therefore a man will leave his father and his mother, and will join with his wife, and they will be one flesh. 25. The man and his wife were both naked, and they were not ashamed." (Genesis 2:1-25, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"1. Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. 3. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made. ^{created: Heb. created to make} 4. These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, 5. And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. 6. But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. ^{there: or, a mist which went up from, etc.} 7. And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. ^{of the dust: Heb. dust of the ground} 8. And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9. And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 10. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. 11. The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; 12. And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. 13. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. ^{Ethiopia: Heb. Cush} 14. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. ^{toward: or, eastward to Assyria} 15. And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. ^{the man: or, Adam} 16. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: ^{thou: Heb. eating thou shalt eat} 17. But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. ^{thou shalt surely: Heb. dying thou shalt die} 18. And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. ^{meet: Heb. as before him} 19. And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. ^{Adam: or, the man} 20. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him. ^{gave: Heb. called} 21. And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; 22. And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. ^{made: Heb. builded} 23. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. ^{Woman: Heb. Isha} ^{Man: Heb. Ish} 24. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. 25. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed." (Genesis 2:1-25, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"1. And the heavens and the earth are completed, and all their host; 2. and God completeth by the seventh day His work which He hath made, and ceaseth by the seventh day from all His work which He hath made. 3. And God blesseth the seventh day, and sanctifieth it, for in it He hath ceased from all His work which God had prepared for making. 4. These [are] births of the heavens and of the earth in their being prepared, in the day of Jehovah God's making earth and heavens; 5. and no shrub of the field is yet in the earth, and no herb of the field yet sprouteth, for Jehovah God hath not rained upon the earth, and a man there is not to serve the ground, 6. and a mist goeth up from the earth, and hath watered the whole face of the ground. 7. And Jehovah God formeth the man, dust from the ground, and breatheth into his nostrils breath of life, and the man becometh a living creature. 8. And Jehovah God planteth a garden in Eden, at the east, and He setteth there the man whom He hath formed; 9. and Jehovah God causeth to sprout from the ground every tree desirable for appearance, and good for food, and the tree of life in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 10. And a river is going out from Eden to water the garden, and from thence it is parted, and hath become four chief [rivers]; 11. the name of the one [is] Pison, it [is] that which is surrounding the whole land of the Havilah where the gold [is], 12. and the gold of that land [is] good, there [is] the bdolach and the shoham stone; 13. and the name of the second river [is] Gibon, it [is] that which is surrounding the whole land of Cush; 14. and the name of the third river [is] Hiddekel, it [is] that which is going east of Asshur; and the fourth river is Phrat. 15. And Jehovah God taketh the man, and causeth him to rest in the garden of Eden, to serve it, and to keep it. 16. And Jehovah God layeth a charge on the man, saying, 'Of every tree of the garden eating thou dost eat; 17. and of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou dost not eat of it, for in the day of thine eating of it, dying thou dost die.' 18. And Jehovah God saith, 'Not good for the man to be alone, I do make to him an helper, as his counterpart.' 19. And Jehovah God formeth from the ground every beast of the field, and every fowl of the heavens, and bringeth in unto the man, to see what he doth call it; and whatever the man calleth a living creature, that [is] its name. 20. And the man calleth names to all the cattle, and to fowl of the heavens, and to every beast of the field; and to man hath not been found an helper, as his counterpart. 21. And Jehovah God causeth a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he sleepeth, and He taketh one of his ribs, and closeth up flesh in its stead. 22. And Jehovah God buildeth up the rib which He hath taken out of the man into a woman, and bringeth her in unto the man; 23. and the man saith, 'This [is] the [proper] step! bone of my bone, and flesh of my flesh!' for this it is called Woman, for from a man hath this been taken; 24. therefore doth a man leave his father and his mother, and hath cleaved unto his wife, and they have become one flesh. 25. And they are both of them naked, the man and his wife, and they are not ashamed of themselves." (Genesis 2:1-25, YLT)

Setting

Speaker: Moses (traditional Mosaic authorship); narrator of the second creation account
Audience: Israel post-Exodus; later, the whole canonical reader
Location: the garden in Eden; "eastward," bounded by four named rivers (Pishon, Gihon, Tigris, Euphrates)
Time period: narrated as primeval history; composed c. 1446-1406 BC

Theological reading

Genesis 2 is canonically positioned to do five things at once.

First, it grounds human dignity in dust and breath together. Man (adam) is formed from the ground (adamah), but he becomes a "living being" only when God breathes into his nostrils. Material origins do not subtract personhood; they are the soil in which the divine breath does its work. This text refuses both the gnostic flight from matter and the materialist flattening of soul.

Second, it grounds vocation. The man is placed in Eden "to cultivate it and keep it" (abad and shamar). Work precedes the Fall. Humans are not parked in paradise; they are stationed there to serve and guard a garden that bears the marks of priestly space (the same verb pair occurs of Levites tending the tabernacle).

Third, it grounds the moral order. The single prohibition, not-this-one-tree, sets the structure: human flourishing is in covenanted communion under God's word, and the alternative is death ("dying thou dost die", the Hebrew idiom is doubled for emphasis).

Fourth, it grounds marriage. The "not good" of solitude is the first negative judgment in the canon. The woman is built (banah) from the rib, called ishshah over against ish, and the etiology of marriage is given in 2:24: leaving, cleaving, becoming one flesh. Jesus cites this verse as the divine intention behind sex and marriage in Matthew 19.4-6 and Mark 10:6-9; Paul cites it again in Ephesians 5.31 for the Christ-and-Church analogy. The texts treat 2:24 as the canonical anchor.

Fifth, it grounds Sabbath (2:1-3). God's sevenfold rhythm of work and rest is built into creation before it is given as law. The day that has no "and there was evening and morning" is the day God shares with humanity.

The chapter is the constant return point for several apologetic debates: was Adam historical, how does Genesis 2 relate to Genesis 1, what does the adam/adamah wordplay imply about origins, does the chapter's anthropology survive evolutionary biology, what do the rivers and geography indicate. See Genesis Hermeneutics, Old Earth Creationism, Common Descent Critique, and Genesis ANE Myth Borrowing Objection for these threads.

Key words

H0120 - adam, adam, "man," "humanity," tied to adamah ("ground") by sound and root.
H0430 - elohim, elohim, used in alternation with the divine name YHWH through this chapter.
H1320 - basar, basar, "flesh," in the one-flesh formula of 2:24.
H4194 - mavet, mavet, "death," in the doubled idiom of 2:17.

Theological themes

Material plus breath anthropology. Dust-formed body, divine breath, living person. No body/soul dualism that despises matter, no materialism that denies the breath.
Pre-Fall vocation. Work and rule are gifts before they are burdens.
Pre-Fall covenantal command. The single prohibition under threat of death is the original probationary covenant.
Marriage as one flesh. Heterosexual, exclusive, lifelong; Jesus and Paul read it this way.
Sabbath in creation. The seventh day blessed and sanctified before law, temple, or Israel.
Eden as priestly garden. Abad and shamar mark this as sacred space; man is its first priest.

Cross-references

Genesis 1.26-28, the image-of-God passage; Genesis 2 narrates the same human in close-up.
Genesis 3, the Fall narrative that turns on the prohibition in 2:17.
Matthew 19.4-6, Mark 10:6-9, Jesus citing Genesis 2:24 on marriage.
Ephesians 5.31, Paul citing 2:24 for the Christ-Church analogy.
Romans 5.12-21, Paul's federal Adam, dependent on Genesis 2-3 being read as historical.
1 Corinthians 15.45-49, Paul on the first Adam and the last.

Quoted in

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.