Genesis 1
At the start, there just was God,
nothing else had got the nod.
Not the moon and not the sun,
not the stars or anyone.
But then God said, ‘Let there be light’,
and in a blazing surge of might
he made the world, in all its glory
and set the stage for all our story.
First the day and then the night,
then the waters and, in spite
of gravity, he raised the sky
to separate the low from high.
Next was oceans and the land,
good for vegetation and
trees for fruit and plants for food
and everything he made was good.
Then God turned his gaze to space.
‘This needs filling,’ so in place
of emptiness he set the lights:
Sun, moon and stars up in their heights.
Next he filled the sky and ocean,
packing them with life and motion:
birds and bats and bees and bugs;
crabs and fish and whales and slugs.
Next he filled the land with creatures,
full of different sorts of features:
Beasts for farms and for the wild;
fearsome tigers, cattle mild.
And when God saw it all he said,
‘This is good. And from my head
I did all this—the forming, filling—
all this happened from my willing.’
But one thing yet was still undone.
One word of goodness still unsaid:
‘This world needs rulers, to be run;
a crown to be set on its head.’
And so God made the human race:
male and female, full of grace,
in his image but from dust,
made for friendship, made for trust.
God blessed them and he said, ‘You two:
fill this world and it subdue;
eat from every plant and stem,
and every creature, care for them.’
And then God looked upon his world,
its very goodness all unfurled,
and said, ‘I think I now shall rest;
this world is at its very best.’
Genesis 2–3
Now in the east, the LORD had made
a garden, a delightful glade.
And in it set the man and wife
and told them, ‘Farm it, bring forth life.’
This garden also had some trees,
the looks of which their eyes did please.
But there were two, right in the middle,
whose presence there was like a riddle.
The first was called the tree of life,
you ate its fruit and then from strife
you ever would be fully free:
you’d never die—I guarantee!
The other had a longer name
(shall I tell you all the same?):
‘the tree of the knowledge of good and evil’
(it would result in great upheaval).
God said, ‘From any tree you may
eat fruit all night, eat fruit all day;
but from the tree of good and evil
there is to be no fruit retrieval.’
‘For if you eat from it, you’ll die:
you will have listened to the lie
that you can make the rules, not me,
and that is not how it should be.’
And so the man and woman lived
in Eden, till a serpent slid
nearby the woman and then said,
‘So, has the thought come to your head,
‘That when God said, “You must not eat
the fruit of good and evil sweet,”
he did not mean you’d really die,
that really it was all a lie?’
‘You will not die! The only reason,
God has said that it is treason
is because he doesn’t want,
his creatures jumping in the font
‘Of knowledge, just like he drinks from:
that would hit him like a bomb!
So eat the fruit! Drink up the juice!
Become like God—there’s no excuse!’
The woman looked up at the fruit,
her longing it became acute
and so she plucked some with her hand
and ate it, against God’s command.
She handed some to Adam, who
took up the fruit and ate it too.
And then their eyes began to open
and everything from then was broken.
They saw that they were naked, so
from fig leaves they began to sew
some coverings, to hide their skin
and cover up the shame within.
Then God walked by, and so they hid
because they’d done what God forbid,
until God called out, ‘Where are you?’
And Adam came out into view.
He said to God, ‘We were afraid,
because with clothes we were not made.
And so we thought that we should hide
from you, and therefore keep our pride.’
God said, ‘Who told you you were nude?
Or said that being nude was rude?
Did you eat the fruit illegal—
the fruit of knowing good from evil?’
The man replied, ‘It’s all her fault!
The woman started this revolt!
She was the one who gave to me
the fruit from that delicious tree.’
‘It’s true,’ said Eve. ‘But don’t forget,
the snake’s the one who did upset
the balance of this world complete.
He lied to me and made me eat.’
So then God said unto the snake,
‘Because the fruit you made them take,
upon the ground you now will crawl
and cursed will you be over all.’
‘The woman and her children you
will hate, and they will hate you too.
You will bite her offspring’s heel,
but he will crush your head, and heal
The whole of this now fallen earth.
His death will lead to its rebirth.
But in the meantime, you will fight
until the child has put things right.’
Then God said to the woman, ‘Now,
your births will hurt, and also how
with Adam you will always fight!
Your marriage will be no delight.’
Then God turned to the man and said,
‘Because from my commands you fled,
the ground’s now cursed and will not grow
as easily the food you sow.
And one day you will up and die
and in the ground you then will lie,
for from the dust you always came
and in the dust you shall remain.’
Then God said to them one last thing,
one final judgment did he bring:
‘Eternal life I can’t allow,
so you must leave the garden now.’
And so the man and woman left,
of everlasting life bereft;
and out into the world alone,
they went to crumble into bone.
