In The Beginning.

[Writing a new version of the 9 lessons and Carols service with modern readings, we needed a new opening to it. I had long felt that the rather brief reading of Genesis 3 didn’t really give the scope of the view of God, so I wrote a paraphrase. Here it is, in case someone finds it useful. Please keep my name on it, but feel free to use it]

It all begins with God. When there wasn’t anything, no light, no time, no earth, there was God. With but a word God brings everything into existence; from nothing to everything.

God stood on a planet he had made, the planet that would later be called earth. With a word he called light and darkness into being, and made the first day. He made the sky, and separated the water from the earth. He gave the earth the power to bring forth plants in all their wondrous variety. He set the sun in the sky, placed the stars, so many that it’s near impossible to count. He makes the animals, all kinds, from the birds in the air to those that walk on land, swim in the sea, and everything in between.

God then made two people from the earth. He made these two earthlings to resemble himself, and gave them the job of tending to the garden that he had made. A beautiful garden at the center of the world, a paradise, or an Eden.

In this Garden, he had planted two trees, the tree of Knowledge of good and evil, and the tree of life. He told the people they could eat of anything in the garden, but not from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, because otherwise they are doomed to die.

One day, the earthling called to live or Eve, was walking in the garden and a serpent said “See how pretty the fruit on the tree of knowledge of Good and Evil is? It tastes good, and it will make you wise.” Eve hesitated for a moment, because Eve remember what God had said. “Don’t worry,” said the snake, “eating the fruit won’t kill you”.

So Eve ate it, and it was tasty. Eve gave some to the other earthling, known as of the Earth or Adam, and they ate it.

That evening God walked through the garden, and called out to Adam and Eve “Where are you”? Adam and Eve had hidden themselves, and Adam said “We have hidden ourselves because we were afraid”. God said to them “Have you eaten the fruit of the tree that I told you not to eat?”. Adam said that Eve had given him some to eat, and Eve, in turn said that the snake had given her some.

God was not happy.

He told the snake “You will have to crawl on your belly from now on”. He told the earthlings, “Because you did not obey me, you will have to leave this paradise, and live in the world”.

God, however, did not set them out into the world unprepared. He made clothing for them, and showed them where they should live in this new world. God was not going to abandon his earthlings so easily.

– Written by Rev’d Bettinson, based on Genesis 1 and Genesis 3.