The Creation of Man

⁷ Anu formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

⁸ Anu planted a garden eastward in Eden. There he put the man whom he had formed.

⁹ Out of the ground, Anu made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food. This included:

• the tree of life also in the midst of the garden
• the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

¹⁰ A river went out of Eden to water the garden. From thence it was parted, and became into 4 heads.

¹¹ The name of the first is Pison. It compasses the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. ¹² The gold* of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.

¹³ The name of the second river is Gihon: it compasses the whole land of Ethiopia.

¹⁴ The name of the third river is Hiddekel: it goes towards the east of Assyria. The fourth river is Euphrates.

¹⁵ Anu took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress and keep it.

¹⁶ Anu commanded the man, saying:

Anu

You can freely eat of every tree of the garden. ¹⁷ But do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat it, you shall surely die on that day. ¹⁸ It is not good that the man should be alone. I will make a helper for him.

^19-20 Out of the ground, Anu formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.

²¹ Anu put Adam to a deep sleep. He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh.

²² From the rib, Anu made a woman, and brought her unto the man.

²³ Adam said:

Adam

This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.

²⁴ Therefore, a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

²⁵ They were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.