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Genesis 3-4
New King James Version
Genesis 3-4
New King James Version
The Temptation and Fall of Man(A)
3 Now (B)the serpent was (C)more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the (D)fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you (E)touch it, lest you die.’ ”
4 (F)Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
6 So when the woman (G)saw that the tree was good for food, that it was [a]pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit (H)and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, (I)and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves [b]coverings.
8 And they heard (J)the [c]sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the [d]cool of the day, and Adam and his wife (K)hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.
9 Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”
10 So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, (L)and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
11 And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”
12 Then the man said, (M)“The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.”
13 And the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”
The woman said, (N)“The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
14 So the Lord God said to the serpent:
“Because you have done this,
You are cursed more than all cattle,
And more than every beast of the field;
On your belly you shall go,
And (O)you shall eat dust
All the days of your life.
15 And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between (P)your seed and (Q)her Seed;
(R)He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel.”
16 To the woman He said:
“I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception;
(S)In pain you shall bring forth children;
(T)Your desire shall be [e]for your husband,
And he shall (U)rule over you.”
17 Then to Adam He said, (V)“Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree (W)of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’:
(X)“Cursed is the ground for your sake;
(Y)In toil you shall eat of it
All the days of your life.
18 Both thorns and thistles it shall [f]bring forth for you,
And (Z)you shall eat the herb of the field.
19 (AA)In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread
Till you return to the ground,
For out of it you were taken;
(AB)For dust you are,
And (AC)to dust you shall return.”
20 And Adam called his wife’s name (AD)Eve,[g] because she was the mother of all living.
21 Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.
22 Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— 23 therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden (AE)to till the ground from which he was taken. 24 So (AF)He drove out the man; and He placed (AG)cherubim (AH)at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of (AI)life.
Cain Murders Abel(AJ)
4 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore [h]Cain, and said, “I have acquired a man from the Lord.” 2 Then she bore again, this time his brother [i]Abel. Now (AK)Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3 And [j]in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit (AL)of the ground to the Lord. 4 Abel also brought of (AM)the firstborn of his flock and of (AN)their fat. And the Lord (AO)respected Abel and his offering, 5 but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell.
6 So the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is [k]for you, but you should rule over it.”
8 Now Cain [l]talked with Abel his [m]brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and (AP)killed him.
9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?”
He said, (AQ)“I do not know. Am I (AR)my brother’s keeper?”
10 And He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood (AS)cries out to Me from the ground. 11 So now (AT)you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth.”
13 And Cain said to the Lord, “My [n]punishment is greater than I can bear! 14 Surely You have driven me out this day from the face of the ground; (AU)I shall be (AV)hidden from Your face; I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth, and it will happen that (AW)anyone who finds me will kill me.”
15 And the Lord said to him, [o]“Therefore, whoever kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him (AX)sevenfold.” And the Lord set a (AY)mark on Cain, lest anyone finding him should kill him.
The Family of Cain
16 Then Cain (AZ)went out from the (BA)presence of the Lord and dwelt in the land of [p]Nod on the east of Eden. 17 And Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch. And he built a city, (BB)and called the name of the city after the name of his son—Enoch. 18 To Enoch was born Irad; and Irad begot Mehujael, and Mehujael begot Methushael, and Methushael begot Lamech.
19 Then Lamech took for himself (BC)two wives: the name of one was Adah, and the name of the second was Zillah. 20 And Adah bore Jabal. He was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. 21 His brother’s name was Jubal. He was the father of all those who play the harp and [q]flute. 22 And as for Zillah, she also bore Tubal-Cain, an instructor of every craftsman in bronze and iron. And the sister of Tubal-Cain was Naamah.
23 Then Lamech said to his wives:
“Adah and Zillah, hear my voice;
Wives of Lamech, listen to my speech!
For I have [r]killed a man for wounding me,
Even a young man [s]for hurting me.
24 (BD)If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold,
Then Lamech seventy-sevenfold.”
A New Son
25 And Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and (BE)named him [t]Seth, “For God has appointed another seed for me instead of Abel, whom Cain killed.” 26 And as for Seth, (BF)to him also a son was born; and he named him [u]Enosh. Then men began (BG)to call on the name of the Lord.
Footnotes
- Genesis 3:6 Lit. a desirable thing
- Genesis 3:7 girding coverings
- Genesis 3:8 Or voice
- Genesis 3:8 Or wind, breeze
- Genesis 3:16 Lit. toward
- Genesis 3:18 cause to grow
- Genesis 3:20 Lit. Life or Living
- Genesis 4:1 Lit. Acquire
- Genesis 4:2 Lit. Breath or Nothing
- Genesis 4:3 Lit. at the end of days
- Genesis 4:7 Lit. toward
- Genesis 4:8 Lit. said to
- Genesis 4:8 Sam., LXX, Syr., Vg. add “Let us go out to the field.”
- Genesis 4:13 iniquity
- Genesis 4:15 So with MT, Tg.; LXX, Syr., Vg. Not so;
- Genesis 4:16 Lit. Wandering
- Genesis 4:21 pipe
- Genesis 4:23 slain a man for my wound
- Genesis 4:23 for my hurt
- Genesis 4:25 Lit. Appointed
- Genesis 4:26 Gr. Enos, Luke 3:38
Genesis 3-4
New International Version
Genesis 3-4
New International Version
The Fall
3 Now the serpent(A) was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?(B)”
2 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,(C) 3 but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”(D)
4 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman.(E) 5 “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God,(F) knowing good and evil.”
6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable(G) for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband,(H) who was with her, and he ate it.(I) 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked;(J) so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.(K)
8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking(L) in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid(M) from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”(N)
10 He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid(O) because I was naked;(P) so I hid.”
11 And he said, “Who told you that you were naked?(Q) Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?(R)”
12 The man said, “The woman you put here with me(S)—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”
13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”
The woman said, “The serpent deceived me,(T) and I ate.”
14 So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,
“Cursed(U) are you above all livestock
and all wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
and you will eat dust(V)
all the days of your life.
15 And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring[a](W) and hers;(X)
he will crush[b] your head,(Y)
and you will strike his heel.”
16 To the woman he said,
“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
with painful labor you will give birth to children.(Z)
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you.(AA)”
17 To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’(AB)
“Cursed(AC) is the ground(AD) because of you;
through painful toil(AE) you will eat food from it
all the days of your life.(AF)
18 It will produce thorns and thistles(AG) for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.(AH)
19 By the sweat of your brow(AI)
you will eat your food(AJ)
until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
and to dust you will return.”(AK)
20 Adam[c] named his wife Eve,[d](AL) because she would become the mother of all the living.
21 The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.(AM) 22 And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us,(AN) knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life(AO) and eat, and live forever.” 23 So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden(AP) to work the ground(AQ) from which he had been taken. 24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side[e] of the Garden of Eden(AR) cherubim(AS) and a flaming sword(AT) flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.(AU)
Cain and Abel
4 Adam[f] made love to his wife(AV) Eve,(AW) and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.[g](AX) She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth[h] a man.” 2 Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.(AY)
Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil.(AZ) 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering(BA) to the Lord.(BB) 4 And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions(BC) from some of the firstborn of his flock.(BD) The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering,(BE) 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry?(BF) Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door;(BG) it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.(BH)”
8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”[i] While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.(BI)
9 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”(BJ)
“I don’t know,(BK)” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
10 The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.(BL) 11 Now you are under a curse(BM) and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you.(BN) You will be a restless wanderer(BO) on the earth.(BP)”
13 Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is more than I can bear. 14 Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence;(BQ) I will be a restless wanderer on the earth,(BR) and whoever finds me will kill me.”(BS)
15 But the Lord said to him, “Not so[j]; anyone who kills Cain(BT) will suffer vengeance(BU) seven times over.(BV)” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. 16 So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence(BW) and lived in the land of Nod,[k] east of Eden.(BX)
17 Cain made love to his wife,(BY) and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city,(BZ) and he named it after his son(CA) Enoch. 18 To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.
19 Lamech married(CB) two women,(CC) one named Adah and the other Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. 21 His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments(CD) and pipes.(CE) 22 Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged(CF) all kinds of tools out of[l] bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.
23 Lamech said to his wives,
“Adah and Zillah, listen to me;
wives of Lamech, hear my words.
I have killed(CG) a man for wounding me,
a young man for injuring me.
24 If Cain is avenged(CH) seven times,(CI)
then Lamech seventy-seven times.(CJ)”
25 Adam made love to his wife(CK) again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth,[m](CL) saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.”(CM) 26 Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.(CN)
At that time people began to call on[n] the name of the Lord.(CO)
Footnotes
- Genesis 3:15 Or seed
- Genesis 3:15 Or strike
- Genesis 3:20 Or The man
- Genesis 3:20 Eve probably means living.
- Genesis 3:24 Or placed in front
- Genesis 4:1 Or The man
- Genesis 4:1 Cain sounds like the Hebrew for brought forth or acquired.
- Genesis 4:1 Or have acquired
- Genesis 4:8 Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Masoretic Text does not have “Let’s go out to the field.”
- Genesis 4:15 Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew Very well
- Genesis 4:16 Nod means wandering (see verses 12 and 14).
- Genesis 4:22 Or who instructed all who work in
- Genesis 4:25 Seth probably means granted.
- Genesis 4:26 Or to proclaim
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.