FROM THE DUST OF THE EARTH
Key verse: 7
NIV
Adam and Eve
4 This is the account(A) of the heavens and the earth when they were created,(B) when the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.
5 Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth[a] and no plant had yet sprung up,(C) for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth(D) and there was no one to work the ground, 6 but streams[b] came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. 7 Then the Lord God formed(E) a man[c](F) from the dust(G) of the ground(H) and breathed into his nostrils the breath(I) of life,(J) and the man became a living being.(K)
Footnotes
- Genesis 2:5 Or land; also in verse 6
- Genesis 2:6 Or mist
- Genesis 2:7 The Hebrew for man (adam) sounds like and may be related to the Hebrew for ground (adamah); it is also the name Adam (see verse 20).
Cross references
- Genesis 2:4 : Ge 5:1; 6:9; 10:1; 11:10, 27; 25:12, 19; 36:1, 9; 37:2
- Genesis 2:4 : Ge 1:1; Job 38:8-11
- Genesis 2:5 : Ge 1:11
- Genesis 2:5 : Job 38:28; Ps 65:9-10; Jer 10:13
- Genesis 2:7 : Isa 29:16; 43:1, 21; 44:2
- Genesis 2:7 : S Ge 1:27
- Genesis 2:7 : Ge 3:19; 18:27; Job 4:19; 10:9; 17:16; 34:15; Ps 90:3; Ecc 3:20; 12:7
- Genesis 2:7 : Ge 3:23; 4:2; Ps 103:14; Jer 18:6; 1Co 15:47
- Genesis 2:7 : S Ge 1:2; Job 27:3; Isa 2:22
- Genesis 2:7 : S Ge 1:30; Isa 42:5; Ac 17:25
- Genesis 2:7 : Job 12:10; 32:8; 33:4; 34:14; Ps 104:29; Isa 57:16; Eze 37:5; 1Co 15:45*
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway
ESV
The Creation of Man and Woman
4 (A)These are the generations
of the heavens and the earth when they were created,
in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.
5 When no (B)bush of the field[a] was yet in the land[b] and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man (C)to work the ground, 6 and a mist[c] was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— 7 then the Lord God formed the man of (D)dust from the ground and (E)breathed into his (F)nostrils the breath of life, and (G)the man became a living creature.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Genesis 2:5 Or open country
- Genesis 2:5 Or earth; also verse 6
- Genesis 2:6 Or spring
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway
1. No man to work the ground (4-5)
The seeds were in the ground and everything was ready to spring to life, waiting to be watered--but there was no man to take care of the earth. God made man to be the shepherd and steward of his world.
2. God formed from dust (6-7a)
God molded man and animals (19) from dust. There is nothing innately precious or valuable about the stuff of which we are made. We are nothing but dust. But the hand of the Master Workman molded us. His touch makes our dust special.
3. God breathed the breath of life (7b)
God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being--an immortal soul. God is the owner of life. He breathes into us both physical and spiritual life. We belong to God. He loves us. He created us in his image, so we must respect our own lives and the lives of others.
Prayer: Father, I am only dust, so I cannot be proud. But your life is in me; I am precious to you--and so are my neighbors and all human beings.
One Word: Made from dust--but God-breathed
