And God saw that the light was good: this is the evaluation step in the creation poem, which will be repeated in verses 10, 12, 18, 21, and 25. The thought here is not that the light had a quality of goodness in itself, but that in God’s mind the light was judged by him to be good. Good News Translation “God was pleased” correctly places the emphasis on God’s reaction to the light. Bible en français courant says “God established [the fact] that the light was a good thing.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “God took pleasure in the light.” In some languages it may be necessary to say, for example, “God looked at the light and was pleased with what he saw.” Because the evaluation of the light is another step in the process, it may be necessary in some languages to mark the transition; for example, “After the light appeared, God looked at it and he was pleased with what he saw.” One translation expresses it like this: “And when God looked at the light, he was happy with it.”

And God separated: Revised Standard Version and some other versions represent the Hebrew in repeating the noun God, whereas Good News Translation, New International Version, and others translate “and he separated.” In English and in many other languages the pronoun is not ambiguous, and it is used generally in regular speech. There is, however, a repeated use of the noun God throughout this passage, which goes beyond what is normal in biblical Hebrew; this is apparently a feature used for special effect here. Translators are advised to follow normal pronoun usage in their own languages, but to note that there is perhaps a feature of emphasis in the Hebrew text, and to consider how they may be able to express that in their translation.

Separated the light from the darkness: the word translated separated occurs also in verses 6 and 7, in which the waters under the firmament are separated from those above. The result of the separation of light from darkness is to give day and night. In this way the first act of creation sets in motion the cycle of time, day followed by night. The picture given in the text is that of light being created while everything is still in darkness, and of a second step being necessary to give light and darkness their own places to function. For the idea of light and darkness occupying separate spaces, see Job 26.10; 38.19-20.

The idea of separating light from darkness is often expressed as dividing the two things so that they go different ways or to different places. A typical expression of this is “God made the light and the darkness, those two things, divide….” However, in some languages it is difficult to speak in this way, since light and darkness are not material objects that can be moved about. Accordingly it may be necessary to say, for example, “God made the light to shine in one place and left it dark in another” or “God made some places light and some places he made dark.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Verse 6 does not fit very well into the series of negatives that have described the conditions so far, and it is separated from the main statement in Gen 2.5. If the position of verse 6 causes problems of understanding, it may be placed before “there was no man to till…,” which then becomes introductory to Gen 2.7. Without making any transfer it may be possible to introduce verse 6 with a connecting phrase; for example, “In spite of there being no rain, a mist…” or “Even though it had not yet rained….” In some languages it may be better to begin a new sentence here with a transitional reference to verse 5; for example, “At that time…” or “When there was still no rain….” See comments at the beginning of verse 4b.

But a mist went up from the earth: mist is a word found elsewhere only in Job 36.27 and whose meaning is uncertain (see Revised Standard Version note). The reference is probably to the water beneath the firmament mentioned in 1.7. Went up translates a verb used in Psa 135.7, “He it is who makes the clouds rise….” See also Jer 10.13; 51.16. The reference seems to be to mist rising like clouds, which then wet the earth with dew. This may be translated, for example, “Mist rose up from the ground and caused everything on the ground to be wet.” Some, however, interpret went up to refer to water surging up from underground, and this is the understanding of Good News Translation, “water would come up from beneath the surface [of the earth].” This may also be translated “Water would spring out of the ground, and so the earth would be watered.”

Whole face of the ground means “all the earth, the surface of the earth, the top of the ground” and refers to the area where plants grow.

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

God accepts the man’s accusation of the woman and so asks her “What is this that you have done?” which is better rendered in English by Good News Translation “Why did you do that?” In many languages there are different words for “Why?” or different ways of expressing questions that begin with “Why?”—and in particular one of the words or forms accuses the person addressed of doing something wrong. In such cases it is appropriate to use the accusing “Why?” in this context. The Hebrew question may go beyond a “Why?” question; for example, “Tell me what happened” or “Tell me what you did.”

The woman said: said may be more appropriately translated “answered” or “replied.” Since the woman’s reply is in fact shifting the blame on to the snake, it will be appropriate in some languages to put this into words; for example, “But the woman blamed the snake, and said…” or “The woman said, ‘It wasn’t my fault. The snake….’ ”

The serpent beguiled me: for serpent see 3.1. Beguiled means “tricked, deceived, misled.” There is no indication in the Hebrew that the serpent cast a spell, bewitched, or otherwise clouded the woman’s mind by the use of magic. If the term considered in translation applies to deception through magic powers, it will be better to say, for example, “the serpent lied to me” or “the serpent did not tell me the truth.”

And I ate should be linked clearly as a consequence of the serpent’s deceit; for example, “so I ate the fruit,” or “that is why I ate some of the fruit.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

His brother’s name: brother refers to a younger brother from the same mother. For languages in which the word “brother” can also include people in other relationships, it may be necessary to say something like “true [younger] brother.”

Father of all those means the one who originated, or the one who began, or who was “the very first one to play….” Lyre refers to a small stringed instrument of rectangular shape whose strings are all of the same length. The strings are plucked with the fingers as for the harp. Pipe, which is often translated “flute,” refers to a wind instrument made of reed, metal, wood, or ivory. These two instruments are mentioned together in Job 21.12; 30.31; Psa 150.4.

Lyre is translated “harp” by Good News Translation and others. However, it may be rendered by a term for a local stringed instrument such as the guitar. Pipe is often translated by the term for the local flute or other wind instrument; for instance, the term “bamboo” is used in some parts of the world. In the absence of any such instruments, it is possible to say, “The man who invented musical instruments,” “the first person to play music…,” or “the ancestor of those who are experts in playing music.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .