4. That's how God created the heavens and the earth.When the Lord God made the heavens and the earth,
5. no grass or plants were growing anywhere. God had not yet sent any rain, and there was no one to work the land.
6. But streams came up from the ground and watered the earth.
7. The Lord God took a handful of soil and made a man. God breathed life into the man, and the man started breathing.
8. The Lord made a garden in a place called Eden, which was in the east, and he put the man there.
9. The Lord God placed all kinds of beautiful trees and fruit trees in the garden. Two other trees were in the middle of the garden. One of the trees gave life—the other gave the power to know the difference between right and wrong.
10. From Eden a river flowed out to water the garden, then it divided into four rivers.
11. The first one is the River Pishon that flows through the land of Havilah,
12. where pure gold, rare perfumes, and precious stones are found.
13. The second is the River Gihon that winds through Ethiopia.
14. The River Tigris that flows east of Assyria is the third, and the fourth is the River Euphrates.
15. The Lord God put the man in the Garden of Eden to take care of it and to look after it.
16. But the Lord told him, “You may eat fruit from any tree in the garden,
17. except the one that has the power to let you know the difference between right and wrong. If you eat any fruit from that tree, you will die before the day is over!”
18. The Lord God said, “It isn't good for the man to live alone. I need to make a suitable partner for him.”