2:2. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made: and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done.

He rested, etc.... That is, he ceased to make or create any new kinds of things. Though, as our Lord tells us, John 5.17, “He still worketh”, viz., by conserving and governing all things, and creating souls.

2:3. And he blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

2:4. These are the generations of the heaven and the earth, when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the heaven and the earth:

2:5. And every plant of the field before it sprung up in the earth, and every herb of the ground before it grew: for the Lord God had not rained upon the earth; and there was not a man to till the earth.

2:6. But a spring rose out of the earth, watering all the surface of the earth.

2:7. And the Lord God formed man of the slime of the earth: and breathed into his face the breath of life, and man became a living soul.

2:8. And the Lord God had planted a paradise of pleasure from the beginning: wherein he placed man whom he had formed.

2:9. And the Lord God brought forth of the ground all manner of trees, fair to behold, and pleasant to eat of: the tree of life also in the midst of paradise: and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

The tree of life.... So called because it had that quality, that by eating of the fruit of it, man would have been preserved in a constant state of health, vigour, and strength, and would not have died at all. The tree of knowledge.... To which the deceitful serpent falsely attributed the power of imparting a superior kind of knowledge, beyond that which God was pleased to give.

2:10. And a river went out of the place of pleasure to water paradise, which from thence is divided into four heads.

2:11. The name of the one is Phison: that is it which compasseth all the land of Hevilath, where gold groweth.

2:12. And the gold of that land is very good: there is found bdellium, and the onyx stone.

2:13. And the name of the second river is Gehon: the same is it that compasseth all the land of Ethiopia.

2:14. And the name of the third river is Tigris: the same passeth along by the Assyrians. And the fourth river is Euphrates.

2:15. And the Lord God took man, and put him into the paradise of pleasure, to dress it, and to keep it.

2:16. And he commanded him, saying: Of every tree of paradise thou shalt eat:

2:17. But of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat. For in what day soever thou shalt eat of it, thou shalt die the death.

2:18. And the Lord God said: It is not good for man to be alone: let us make him a help like unto himself.

2:19. And the Lord God having formed out of the ground all the beasts of the earth, and all the fowls of the air, brought them to Adam to see what he would call them: for whatsoever Adam called any living creature the same is its name.

2:20. And Adam called all the beasts by their names, and all the fowls of the air, and all the cattle of the field: but for Adam there was not found a helper like himself.

2:21. Then the Lord God cast a deep sleep upon Adam: and when he was fast asleep, he took one of his ribs, and filled up flesh for it.

2:22. And the Lord God built the rib which he took from Adam into a woman: and brought her to Adam.

2:23. And Adam said: This now is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man.

2:24. Wherefore a man shall leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they shall be two in one flesh.

2:25. And they were both naked: to wit, Adam and his wife: and were not ashamed.

Genesis Chapter 3

The serpent’s craft. The fall of our first parents. Their punishment. The promise of a Redeemer.

3:1. Now the serpent was more subtle than any of the beasts of the earth which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman: Why hath God commanded you, that you should not eat of every tree of paradise?

3:2. And the woman answered him, saying: Of the fruit of the trees that are in paradise we do eat:

3:3. But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of paradise, God hath commanded us that we should not eat; and that we should not touch it, lest perhaps we die.

3:4. And the serpent said to the woman: No, you shall not die the death.

3:5. For God doth know that in what day soever you shall eat thereof, your eyes shall be opened: and you shall be as Gods, knowing good and evil.

3:6. And the woman saw that the tree was good to eat, and fair to the eyes, and delightful to behold: and she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave to her husband, who did eat.

3:7. And the eyes of them both were opened: and when they perceived themselves to be naked, they sewed together fig leaves, and made themselves aprons.

And the eyes, etc.... Not that they were blind before, (for the woman saw that the tree was fair to the eyes, ver. 6.) nor yet that their eyes were opened to any more perfect knowledge of good; but only to the unhappy experience of having lost the good of original grace and innocence, and incurred the dreadful evil of sin. From whence followed a shame of their being naked; which they minded not before; because being now stript of original grace, they quickly began to be subject to the shameful rebellions of the flesh.

3:8. And when they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in paradise at the afternoon air, Adam and his wife hid themselves from the face of the Lord God, amidst the trees of paradise.

3:9. And the Lord God called Adam, and said to him: Where art thou?

3:10. And he said: I heard thy voice in paradise; and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.

3:11. And he said to him: And who hath told thee that thou wast naked, but that thou hast eaten of the tree whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldst not eat?

3:12. And Adam said: The woman, whom thou gavest me to be my companion, gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

3:13. And the Lord God said to the woman: Why hast thou done this? And she answered: The serpent deceived me, and I did eat.

3:14. And the Lord God said to the serpent: Because thou hast done this thing, thou art cursed among all cattle, and beasts of the earth: upon thy breast shalt thou go, and earth shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.

3:15. I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel.

She shall crush.... Ipsa, the woman; so divers of the fathers read this place, conformably to the Latin: others read it ipsum, viz., the seed. The sense is the same: for it is by her seed, Jesus Christ, that the woman crushes the serpent’s head.

3:16. To the woman also he said: I will multiply thy sorrows, and thy conceptions: in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children, and thou shalt be under thy husband’s power, and he shall have dominion over thee.

3:17. And to Adam he said: Because thou hast hearkened to the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee, that thou shouldst not eat, cursed is the earth in thy work: with labour and toil shalt thou eat thereof all the days of thy life.

3:18. Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee, and thou shalt eat the herbs of the earth.

3:19. In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread till thou return to the earth out of which thou wast taken: for dust thou art, and into dust thou shalt return.

3:20. And Adam called the name of his wife Eve: because she was the mother of all the living.

3:21. And the Lord God made for Adam and his wife garments of skins, and clothed them.

3:22. And he said: Behold Adam is become as one of us, knowing good and evil: now therefore lest perhaps he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever.

Behold Adam, etc.... This was spoken by way of reproaching him with his pride, in affecting a knowledge that might make him like to God.

3:23. And the Lord God sent him out of the paradise of pleasure, to till the earth from which he was taken.

3:24. And he cast out Adam: and placed before the paradise of pleasure Cherubims, and a flaming sword, turning every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

Genesis Chapter 4

The history of Cain and Abel.

4:1. And Adam knew Eve his wife; who conceived and brought forth Cain, saying: I have gotten a man through God.

4:2. And again she brought forth his brother Abel. And Abel was a shepherd, and Cain a husbandman.

4:3. And it came to pass after many days, that Cain offered, of the fruits of the earth, gifts to the Lord.

4:4. Abel also offered of the firstlings of his flock, and of their fat: and the Lord had respect to Abel, and to his offerings.

Had respect.... That is, shewed his acceptance of his sacrifice (as coming from a heart full of devotion): and that, as we may suppose, by some visible token, such as sending fire from heaven upon his offerings.

4:5. But to Cain and his offerings he had no respect: and Cain was exceeding angry, and his countenance fell.