Genesis 2:7 BSB — MannaFest

Genesis 2:7

Then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and the man became a living being.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

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

KJV

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

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Commentary

4 voices

Ambrose of Milan

On Isaac and the Soul (397)

Therefore the soul is not blood, because blood is of the flesh; nor is the soul a harmony, because harmony of this sort is also of the flesh; neither is the soul air, because blown breath is one thing and the soul something else. The soul is not fire, nor is the soul actuality, but the soul is living, for Adam "became a living soul," since the soul rules and gives life to the body, which is without life or feeling.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

Man is a little world, consisting of heaven and earth, soul and body. Now here we have an account of the origin of both and the putting of both together: let us seriously consider it, and say, to our Creator's praise, We are fearfully and wonderfully made, Ps. cxxxix.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible (1832)

God formed man of the dust - In the most distinct manner God shows us that man is a compound being, having a body and soul distinctly, and separately created; the body out of the dust of the earth, the soul immediately breathed from God himself. Does not this strongly mark that the soul and body are not the same thing? The body derives its origin from the earth, or as עפר aphar implies, the dust; hence because it is earthly it is decomposable and perishable.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

Here the sacred writer supplies a few more particulars about the first pair. formed--had FORMED MAN OUT OF THE DUST OF THE GROUND. Science has proved that the substance of his flesh, sinews, and bones, consists of the very same elements as the soil which forms the crust of the earth and the limestone that lies embedded in its bowels.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

16 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
וַיִּיצֶר֩	vai.yi.Tzer	and he formed	H3335 →
יְהוָ֨ה	Yah.weh	Yahweh	H3068 →
אֱלֹהִ֜ים	'E.lo.Him	God	H430 →
אֶת־	'et-	<obj.>	H853 →
הָֽאָדָ֗ם	ha.'a.Dam	the man	H120 →
עָפָר֙	'a.Far	dust	H6083 →
מִן־	min-	from	H4480 →
הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה	ha.'a.da.Mah	the ground	H127 →
וַיִּפַּ֥ח	vai.yi.Pach	and he blew	H5301 →
בְּאַפָּ֖יו	be.'a.Pav	in nostrils his	H639 →
נִשְׁמַ֣ת	nish.Mat	[the] breath of	H5397 →
חַיִּ֑ים	chai.Yim	life	H2416 →
וַֽיְהִ֥י	vay.Hi	and he became	H1961 →
הָֽאָדָ֖ם	ha.'a.Dam	the man	H120 →
לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ	le.Ne.fesh	<into> a creature	H5315 →
חַיָּֽה׃	chai.Yah	living	H2416 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
Isaiah 64:8
But now, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand.
leads to
- Ephesians 2:10
  For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.
- Psalms 119:73
  Your hands have made me and fashioned me; give me understanding to learn Your commandments.
- Jeremiah 18:2–6
  “Go down at once to the potter’s house, and there I will reveal My message to you.”
- Psalms 138:8
  The LORD will fulfill His purpose for me. O LORD, Your loving devotion endures forever— do not abandon the works of Your hands.
- Psalms 100:3
  Know that the LORD is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture.
Through
Job 33:4
The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
leads to
- Job 32:8
  But there is a spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding.
Through
Ecclesiastes 12:7
before the dust returns to the ground from which it came and the spirit returns to God who gave it.
leads to
- Daniel 12:2
  And many who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, but others to shame and everlasting contempt.
Through
1 Corinthians 15:45
So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being;” the last Adam a life-giving spirit.
leads to
- John 5:21
  For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom He wishes.

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About Genesis

The Creation of Eve — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

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Creation
Man formed from dust and given the breath of life — body and spirit joined at creation

Continue: Genesis 2 →

01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About Genesis

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About Genesis