III

THE EXPULSION FROM EDEN

(Genesis iii: 1-24)

Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which Jehovah God had made. And he said unto the woman, "Yea, hath God said, 'Ye shall not eat of any tree of the garden?"" And the woman said unto the serpent, "Of the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, 'Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die."" And the serpent said unto the woman, "Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil." And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat; and she gave also unto her husband with her, and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig-leaves together, and made themselves aprons. And they heard the voice of Jehovah God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of Jehovah God amongst the trees of the garden.

And Jehovah God called unto the man, and said unto him, "Where art thou?" And he said, "I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself." And he said, "Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?" And the man said, "The woman whom thou gavest to be

with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat." And Jehovah God said unto the woman, "What is this thou hast done?" And the woman said, "The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat." And Jehovah God said unto the serpent," Because thou hast done this, cursed art thou above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: and I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed: he shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." Unto the woman he said, "I will greatly multiply thy pain and thy conception; in pain thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee." And unto Adam he said, "Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, 'Thou shalt not eat of it:' cursed is the ground for thy sake; in toil shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return." And the man called his wife's name Eve;1 because she was the mother of all living. And Jehovah God made for Adam and for his wife coats of skins, and clothed them.

And Jehovah God said, "Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever-" therefore Jehovah God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden the

1. "Life."

Cherubim,1 and the flame of a sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

[During the years between the events narrated in the preceding selection and the one which follows, Abel and Cain, the two sons of Adam and Eve, have grown to young manhood.]

IV

CAIN AND ABEL

(Genesis iv: 2-16)

And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering2 unto Jehovah. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And Jehovah had respect unto Abel and to his offering: but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And Jehovah said unto Cain, "Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shall it not be lifted up? and if thou doest not well, sin coucheth at the door; and unto thee shall be its desire; but do thou rule over it." And Cain told Abel his brother. And it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

And Jehovah said unto Cain, "Where is Abel thy brother?" And he said, "I know not: am I my brother's keeper?" And he said, "What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the

1. The Cherubim were angels generally noted for wisdom.

2. A ceremonial sacrifice or gift to Jehovah, to show piety or devotion.

3. Because Cain lacked a true devotional spirit.

4. The desire to commit sin shall be strong in you.

ground. And now cursed art thou from the ground, which hath opened its mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; when thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee its strength; a fugitive and a wanderer shalt thou be in the earth." And Cain said unto Jehovah, "My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the ground; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer in the earth; and it will come to pass, that whosoever findeth me will slay me." And Jehovah said unto him, "Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold." And Jehovah appointed a sign for Cain, lest any finding him should smite him. And Cain went out from the presence of Jehovah, and dwelt in the land of Nod,1 on the east of Eden.

[Here follows a list of the descendants of Adam and Eve down to Noah, who was descended from Seth, the third son of Adam.]

V

NOAH AND THE FLOOD

(Genesis vi: 5-vii, viii; ix: 3-17)

And Jehovah saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented Jehovah that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And Jehovah said, "I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the ground; both man, and beast, and creeping things,

1. An unknown land; literally it means "wandering." By a humorous allusion to this, sleep is sometimes referred to as "the land of Nod."

and birds of the heavens; for it repenteth me that I have made them." But Noah found favor in the eyes of Jehovah.

3

Noah was a

These are the generations1 of Noah. righteous man, and perfect in his generations:2 Noah walked with God. And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth. And the earth was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God saw the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth.

4

And God said unto Noah, "The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. And this is how thou shalt make it: the length of the ark three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits. A light shalt thou make to the ark, and to a cubit shalt thou finish it upward; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it. And I, behold, I do bring the flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; everything that is in the earth shall die. But I will establish my covenant with thee; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee. And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort

1. Descendants.

2. Period or age.

3. According to Biblical history, Shem is the ancestor of the Hebrews; Ham, the ancestor of the Ethiopians; and Japheth, the ancestor of the various nations in northern Asia and Europe.

4. A cubit is a measure derived from the length of the forearm; the Hebrew cubit is variously estimated to be from nine to fourteen inches. 5. Promise of preservation.