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Now the snake was the most cunning animal that the LORD God had made. The snake asked the woman, "Did God really tell you not to eat fruit from any tree in the garden?"
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"We may eat the fruit of any tree in the garden," the woman answered,
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"except the tree in the middle of it. God told us not to eat the fruit of that tree or even touch it; if we do, we will die."
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The snake replied, "That's not true; you will not die.
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God said that because he knows that when you eat it, you will be like God and know what is good and what is bad."
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The woman saw how beautiful the tree was and how good its fruit would be to eat, and she thought how wonderful it would be to become wise. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, and he also ate it.
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As soon as they had eaten it, they were given understanding and realized that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and covered themselves.
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That evening they heard the LORD God walking in the garden, and they hid from him among the trees.
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But the LORD God called out to the man, "Where are you?"
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He answered, "I heard you in the garden; I was afraid and hid from you, because I was naked."
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"Who told you that you were naked?" God asked. "Did you eat the fruit that I told you not to eat?"
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The man answered, "The woman you put here with me gave me the fruit, and I ate it."
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The LORD God asked the woman, "Why did you do this?" She replied, "The snake tricked me into eating it."
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Then the LORD God said to the snake, "You will be punished for this; you alone of all the animals must bear this curse: From now on you will crawl on your belly, and you will have to eat dust as long as you live.
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I will make you and the woman hate each other; her offspring and yours will always be enemies. Her offspring will crush your head, and you will bite her offspring's heel."
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And he said to the woman, "I will increase your trouble in pregnancy and your pain in giving birth. In spite of this, you will still have desire for your husband, yet you will be subject to him."
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And he said to the man, "You listened to your wife and ate the fruit which I told you not to eat. Because of what you have done, the ground will be under a curse. You will have to work hard all your life to make it produce enough food for you.
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It will produce weeds and thorns, and you will have to eat wild plants.
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You will have to work hard and sweat to make the soil produce anything, until you go back to the soil from which you were formed. You were made from soil, and you will become soil again."
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Adam named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all human beings.
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And the LORD God made clothes out of animal skins for Adam and his wife, and he clothed them.
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Then the LORD God said, "Now these human beings have become like one of us and have knowledge of what is good and what is bad. They must not be allowed to take fruit from the tree that gives life, eat it, and live forever."
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So the LORD God sent them out of the Garden of Eden and made them cultivate the soil from which they had been formed.
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Then at the east side of the garden he put living creatures and a flaming sword which turned in all directions. This was to keep anyone from coming near the tree that gives life.
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Then Adam had intercourse with his wife, and she became pregnant. She bore a son and said, "By the LORD's help I have gotten a son." So she named him Cain.
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Later she gave birth to another son, Abel. Abel became a shepherd, but Cain was a farmer.
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After some time Cain brought some of his harvest and gave it as an offering to the LORD.
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Then Abel brought the first lamb born to one of his sheep, killed it, and gave the best parts of it as an offering. The LORD was pleased with Abel and his offering,
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but he rejected Cain and his offering. Cain became furious, and he scowled in anger.
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Then the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? Why that scowl on your face?
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If you had done the right thing, you would be smiling; but because you have done evil, sin is crouching at your door. It wants to rule you, but you must overcome it."
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Then Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let's go out in the fields." When they were out in the fields, Cain turned on his brother and killed him.
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The LORD asked Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?" He answered, "I don't know. Am I supposed to take care of my brother?"
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Then the LORD said, "Why have you done this terrible thing? Your brother's blood is crying out to me from the ground, like a voice calling for revenge.
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You are placed under a curse and can no longer farm the soil. It has soaked up your brother's blood as if it had opened its mouth to receive it when you killed him.
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If you try to grow crops, the soil will not produce anything; you will be a homeless wanderer on the earth."
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And Cain said to the LORD, "This punishment is too hard for me to bear.
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You are driving me off the land and away from your presence. I will be a homeless wanderer on the earth, and anyone who finds me will kill me."
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But the LORD answered, "No. If anyone kills you, seven lives will be taken in revenge." So the LORD put a mark on Cain to warn anyone who met him not to kill him.
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And Cain went away from the LORD's presence and lived in a land called "Wandering," which is east of Eden.
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Cain and his wife had a son and named him Enoch. Then Cain built a city and named it after his son.
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Enoch had a son named Irad, who was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael had a son named Methushael, who was the father of Lamech.
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Lamech had two wives, Adah and Zillah.
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Adah gave birth to Jabal, who was the ancestor of those who raise livestock and live in tents.
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His brother was Jubal, the ancestor of all musicians who play the harp and the flute.
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Zillah gave birth to Tubal Cain, who made all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron. The sister of Tubal Cain was Naamah.
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Lamech said to his wives, "Adah and Zillah, listen to me: I have killed a young man because he struck me.
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If seven lives are taken to pay for killing Cain, Seventy-seven will be taken if anyone kills me."
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Adam and his wife had another son. She said, "God has given me a son to replace Abel, whom Cain killed." So she named him Seth.
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Seth had a son whom he named Enosh. It was then that people began using the LORD's holy name in worship.
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This is the list of the descendants of Adam. (When God created human beings, he made them like himself.
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He created them male and female, blessed them, and named them "Human Beings.")
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When Adam was 130 years old, he had a son who was like him, and he named him Seth.
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After that, Adam lived another 800 years. He had other children
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and died at the age of 930.
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When Seth was 105, he had a son, Enosh,
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and then lived another 807 years. He had other children
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and died at the age of 912.
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When Enosh was 90, he had a son, Kenan,
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and then lived another 815 years. He had other children
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and died at the age of 905.
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When Kenan was 70, he had a son, Mahalalel,
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and then lived another 840 years. He had other children
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and died at the age of 910.
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When Mahalalel was 65, he had a son, Jared,
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and then lived another 830 years. He had other children
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and died at the age of 895.
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When Jared was 162, he had a son, Enoch,
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and then lived another 800 years. He had other children
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and died at the age of 962.
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When Enoch was 65, he had a son, Methuselah.
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After that, Enoch lived in fellowship with God for 300 years and had other children.
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He lived to be 365 years old.
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He spent his life in fellowship with God, and then he disappeared, because God took him away.
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When Methuselah was 187, he had a son, Lamech,
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and then lived another 782 years. He had other children
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and died at the age of 969.
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When Lamech was 182, he had a son
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and said, "From the very ground on which the LORD put a curse, this child will bring us relief from all our hard work"; so he named him Noah.
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Lamech lived another 595 years. He had other children
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and died at the age of 777.
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After Noah was 500 years old, he had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
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At that time Emperor Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Roman Empire.
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When this first census took place, Quirinius was the governor of Syria.
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Everyone, then, went to register himself, each to his own hometown.
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Joseph went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to the town of Bethlehem in Judea, the birthplace of King David. Joseph went there because he was a descendant of David.
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He went to register with Mary, who was promised in marriage to him. She was pregnant,
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and while they were in Bethlehem, the time came for her to have her baby.
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She gave birth to her first son, wrapped him in cloths and laid him in a manger---there was no room for them to stay in the inn.
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There were some shepherds in that part of the country who were spending the night in the fields, taking care of their flocks.
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An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone over them. They were terribly afraid,
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but the angel said to them, "Don't be afraid! I am here with good news for you, which will bring great joy to all the people.
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This very day in David's town your Savior was born---Christ the Lord!
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And this is what will prove it to you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."
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Suddenly a great army of heaven's angels appeared with the angel, singing praises to God:
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"Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom he is pleased!"
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When the angels went away from them back into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us."
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So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and saw the baby lying in the manger.
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When the shepherds saw him, they told them what the angel had said about the child.
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All who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said.
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Mary remembered all these things and thought deeply about them.
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The shepherds went back, singing praises to God for all they had heard and seen; it had been just as the angel had told them.
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A week later, when the time came for the baby to be circumcised, he was named Jesus, the name which the angel had given him before he had been conceived.
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The time came for Joseph and Mary to perform the ceremony of purification, as the Law of Moses commanded. So they took the child to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord,
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as it is written in the law of the Lord: "Every first-born male is to be dedicated to the Lord."
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They also went to offer a sacrifice of a pair of doves or two young pigeons, as required by the law of the Lord.
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At that time there was a man named Simeon living in Jerusalem. He was a good, God-fearing man and was waiting for Israel to be saved. The Holy Spirit was with him
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and had assured him that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's promised Messiah.
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Led by the Spirit, Simeon went into the Temple. When the parents brought the child Jesus into the Temple to do for him what the Law required,
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Simeon took the child in his arms and gave thanks to God:
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"Now, Lord, you have kept your promise, and you may let your servant go in peace.
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With my own eyes I have seen your salvation,
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which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples:
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A light to reveal your will to the Gentiles and bring glory to your people Israel."
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The child's father and mother were amazed at the things Simeon said about him.
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Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother, "This child is chosen by God for the destruction and the salvation of many in Israel. He will be a sign from God which many people will speak against
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and so reveal their secret thoughts. And sorrow, like a sharp sword, will break your own heart."
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There was a very old prophet, a widow named Anna, daughter of Phanuel of the tribe of Asher. She had been married for only seven years and was now eighty-four years old. She never left the Temple; day and night she worshiped God, fasting and praying.
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That very same hour she arrived and gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were waiting for God to set Jerusalem free.
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When Joseph and Mary had finished doing all that was required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to their hometown of Nazareth in Galilee.
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The child grew and became strong; he was full of wisdom, and God's blessings were upon him.
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Every year the parents of Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival.
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When Jesus was twelve years old, they went to the festival as usual.
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When the festival was over, they started back home, but the boy Jesus stayed in Jerusalem. His parents did not know this;
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they thought that he was with the group, so they traveled a whole day and then started looking for him among their relatives and friends.
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They did not find him, so they went back to Jerusalem looking for him.
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On the third day they found him in the Temple, sitting with the Jewish teachers, listening to them and asking questions.
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All who heard him were amazed at his intelligent answers.
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His parents were astonished when they saw him, and his mother said to him, "Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been terribly worried trying to find you."
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He answered them, "Why did you have to look for me? Didn't you know that I had to be in my Father's house?"
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But they did not understand his answer.
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So Jesus went back with them to Nazareth, where he was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart.
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Jesus grew both in body and in wisdom, gaining favor with God and people.
