Genesis 1 in plain modern English. New Ground English Translation.

In the beginning, God created the skies and the earth.

The earth was shapeless and empty, darkness covered the deep waters, and the Breath of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.

Then God said, "Let there be light" — and there was light.

God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness.

God called the light "day" and the darkness "night." There was evening and there was morning — the first day.

Then God said, "Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters to separate water from water."

So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And that's exactly what happened.

God called the expanse "sky." There was evening and there was morning — the second day.

Then God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered into one place, and let dry ground appear." And that's exactly what happened.

God called the dry ground "land" and the gathered waters "seas." And God saw that it was good.

Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation — seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, each producing its own kind." And that's exactly what happened.

The land produced vegetation — seed-bearing plants of every kind and trees bearing fruit with seed in it, each of its own kind. And God saw that it was good.

There was evening and there was morning — the third day.

Then God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate day from night, and let them serve as markers for seasons, days, and years."

"Let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And that's exactly what happened.

God made two great lights — the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars.

God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth,

to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.

There was evening and there was morning — the fourth day.

Then God said, "Let the waters swarm with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky."

So God created the great sea creatures and every living thing that moves and swarms in the waters, each of its own kind, and every winged bird, each of its own kind. And God saw that it was good.

God spoke a generous word over them: "Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth."

There was evening and there was morning — the fifth day.

Then God said, "Let the land produce living creatures of every kind — livestock, creatures that crawl along the ground, and wild animals, each of its own kind." And that's exactly what happened.

God made the wild animals of every kind, the livestock of every kind, and every creature that crawls along the ground of every kind. And God saw that it was good.

Then God said, "Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us, so they can have authority over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals of the earth, and every creature that crawls along the ground."

So God created human beings in his own image; in the image of God he created them — male and female he created them.

God spoke a generous word over them and said, "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and bring it under your care. Have authority over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and every living thing that moves on the earth."

Then God said, "Look — I'm giving you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food."

"And to every wild animal of the earth, every bird in the sky, and everything that crawls on the earth — everything that has the breath of life in it — I'm giving every green plant for food." And that's exactly what happened.

God looked at everything he had made, and it was very good. There was evening and there was morning — the sixth day.