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All readings taken from “The Message” paraphrase.
For instructions on how these readings were used, see the file entitled
“Garden State Genesis Dramas”.
“Garden State” Reading #1
Genesis 1
Reader 1:
First this: God created the Heavens and Earth-all you see, all you
don’t see.
Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky
blackness.
God’s Spirit brooded like a bird above the watery abyss.
Reader 2:
God spoke: “Light!”
And light appeared.
God saw that light was good
and separated light from dark.
God named the light Day,
he named the dark Night.
It was evening, it was morning-
Day One.
Reader 1:
God spoke: “Sky! In the middle of the waters;
separate water from water!”
God made sky.
He separated the water under sky
from the water above sky.
And there it was:
he named sky the Heavens;
It was evening, it was morning-
Day Two.
Reader 2:
God spoke: “Separate!
Water-beneath-Heaven, gather into one place;
Land, appear!”
And there it was.
God named the land Earth.
He named the pooled water Ocean.
God saw that it was good.
Reader 1:
God spoke: “Earth, green up! Grow all varieties
of seed-bearing plants,
Every sort of fruit-bearing tree.”
And there it was.
Earth produced green seed-bearing plants,
all varieties,
And fruit-bearing trees of all sorts.
God saw that it was good.
It was evening, it was morning-
Day Three.
Reader 2:
God spoke: “Lights! Come out!
Shine in Heaven’s sky!
Separate Day from Night.
Mark seasons and days and years,
Lights in Heaven’s sky to give light to Earth.”
And there it was.
God made two big lights, the larger
to take charge of Day,
The smaller to be in charge of Night;
and he made the stars.
God placed them in the heavenly sky
to light up Earth
And oversee Day and Night,
to separate light and dark.
God saw that it was good.
It was evening, it was morning-
Day Four.
Reader 1:
God spoke: “Swarm, Ocean, with fish and all sea life!
Birds, fly through the sky over Earth!”
God created the huge whales,
all the swarm of life in the waters,
And every kind and species of flying birds.
God saw that it was good.
God blessed them: “Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Ocean!
Birds, reproduce on Earth!”
It was evening, it was morning-
Day Five.
Reader 2:
God spoke: “Earth, generate life! Every sort and kind:
cattle and reptiles and wild animals-all kinds.”
And there it was:
wild animals of every kind,
Cattle of all kinds, every sort of reptile and bug.
God saw that it was good.
Reader 1:
God spoke: “Let us make human beings in our image, make them
reflecting our nature
So they can be responsible for the fish in the sea,
the birds in the air, the cattle,
And, yes, Earth itself,
and every animal that moves on the face of Earth.”
God created human beings;
he created them godlike,
Reflecting God’s nature.
He created them male and female.
God blessed them:
“Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Earth! Take charge!
Be responsible for fish in the sea and birds in the air,
for every living thing that moves on the face of Earth.”
Reader 2:
Then God said, “I’ve given you
every sort of seed-bearing plant on Earth
And every kind of fruit-bearing tree,
given them to you for food.
To all animals and all birds,
everything that moves and breathes,
I give whatever grows out of the ground for food.”
And there it was.
God looked over everything he had made;
it was so good, so very good!
It was evening, it was morning-
Day Six.
Reader 1:
Heaven and Earth were finished, down to the last detail.
By the seventh day
God had finished his work.
On the seventh day
he rested from all his work.
God blessed the seventh day.
He made it a Holy Day
Because on that day he rested from his work,
all the creating God had done.
This is the story of how it all started,
of Heaven and Earth when they were created.
“Garden State” Reading #2
Genesis 2
Reader 1:
At the time God made Earth and Heaven, before any grasses or shrubs had
sprouted from the ground-God hadn’t yet sent rain on Earth, nor was there
anyone around to work the ground (the whole Earth was watered by
underground springs)-God formed Man out of dirt from the ground and blew
into his nostrils the breath of life. The Man came alive-a living soul!
Reader 2:
Then God planted a garden in Eden, in the east. He put the Man he had
just made in it. God made all kinds of trees grow from the ground, trees
beautiful to look at and good to eat. The Tree-of-Life was in the middle of
the garden, also the Tree-of-Good/Evil-Knowledge.
Reader 1:
A river flows out of Eden to water the garden and from there divides
into four rivers. The first is named Pishon; it flows through Havilah where
there is gold. The gold of this land is good. The land is also known for a
sweet-scented resin and the onyx stone. The second river is named Gihon; it
flows through the land of Cush. The third river is named Hiddekel and flows
east of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates.
Reader 2:
God took the Man and set him down in the Garden of Eden to work the
ground and keep it in order.
God commanded the Man, “You can eat from any tree in the garden, except
from the Tree-of-Good/Evil-Knowledge. Don’t eat from it. The moment you eat
from that tree, you’re dead.”
Reader 1:
God said, “It’s not good for the Man to be alone; I’ll make him a
helper, a companion.” So God formed from the dirt of the ground all the
animals of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the
Man to see what he would name them. Whatever the Man called each living
creature, that was its name. The Man named the cattle, named the birds of
the air, named the wild animals; but he didn’t find a suitable companion.
Reader 2:
God put the Man into a deep sleep. As he slept he removed one of his
ribs and replaced it with flesh. God then used the rib that he had taken
from the Man to make Woman and presented her to the Man.
Reader 1:
The Man said,
“Finally! Bone of my bone,
flesh of my flesh!
Name her Woman
for she was made from Man.”
Therefore a man leaves his father and mother and embraces his wife.
They become one flesh.
The two of them, the Man and his Wife, were naked, but they felt no
shame.
“Garden State” Reading #3
Genesis 3
Reader 1:
The serpent was clever, more clever than any wild animal God had made.
He spoke to the Woman: “Do I understand that God told you not to eat from
any tree in the garden?”
Reader 2:
The Woman said to the serpent, “Not at all. We can eat from the trees in
the garden. It’s only about the tree in the middle of the garden that God
said, ‘Don’t eat from it; don’t even touch it or you’ll die.’”
Reader 1:
The serpent told the Woman, “You won’t die. God knows that the moment
you eat from that tree, you’ll see what’s really going on. You’ll be just
like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil.”
Reader 2:
When the Woman saw that the tree looked like good eating and realized
what she would get out of it-she’d know everything!-she took and ate the
fruit and then gave some to her husband, and he ate.
Immediately the two of them did “see what’s really going on”-saw
themselves naked! They sewed fig leaves together as makeshift clothes for
themselves.
Reader 1:
When they heard the sound of God strolling in the garden in the evening
breeze, the Man and his Wife hid in the trees of the garden, hid from God.
Reader 2:
God called to the Man: “Where are you?”
Reader 1:
He said, “I heard you in the garden and I was afraid because I was
naked. And I hid.”
Reader 2:
God said, “Who told you you were naked? Did you eat from that tree I
told you not to eat from?”
Reader 1:
The Man said, “The Woman you gave me as a companion, she gave me fruit
from the tree, and, yes, I ate it.”
God said to the Woman, “What is this that you’ve done?”
Reader 2:
“The serpent seduced me,” she said, “and I ate.”
Reader 1:
God told the serpent:
“Because you’ve done this, you’re cursed,
cursed beyond all cattle and wild animals,
Cursed to slink on your belly
and eat dirt all your life.
I’m declaring war between you and the Woman,
between your offspring and hers.
He’ll wound your head,
you’ll wound his heel.”
Reader 2:
He told the Woman:
“I’ll multiply your pains in childbirth;
you’ll give birth to your babies in pain.
You’ll want to please your husband,
but he’ll lord it over you.”
Reader 1:
He told the Man:
“Because you listened to your wife
and ate from the tree
That I commanded you not to eat from,
‘Don’t eat from this tree,’
The very ground is cursed because of you;
getting food from the ground
Will be as painful as having babies is for your wife;
you’ll be working in pain all your life long.
The ground will sprout thorns and weeds,
you’ll get your food the hard way,
Planting and tilling and harvesting,
sweating in the fields from dawn to dusk,
Until you return to that ground yourself, dead and buried;
you started out as dirt, you’ll end up dirt.”
Reader 2:
The Man, known as Adam, named his wife Eve because she was the mother
of all the living.
God made leather clothing for Adam and his wife and dressed them.
God said, “The Man has become like one of us, capable of knowing
everything, ranging from good to evil. What if he now should reach out and
take fruit from the Tree-of-Life and eat, and live forever? Never-this
cannot happen!”
So God expelled them from the Garden of Eden and sent them to work
the ground, the same dirt out of which they’d been made. He threw them out
of the garden and stationed angel-cherubim and a revolving sword of fire
east of it, guarding the path to the Tree-of-Life.
“Garden State” Reading #4
Revelation 21 & 22
Reader 2:
I saw Heaven and earth new created. Gone the first Heaven, gone the first
earth, gone the sea. I saw Holy Jerusalem, new created, descending
resplendent out of Heaven, as ready for God as a bride for her husband.
I heard a voice thunder from the Throne:
Reader 1:
“Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men
and women! They’re his people, he’s their God. He’ll wipe every tear from
their eyes. Death is gone for good-tears gone, crying gone, pain gone-all
the first order of things gone. Look! I’m making everything new. Write it
all down-each word dependable and accurate.”
Reader 2:
One of the Seven Angels who had carried the bowls filled with the
seven final disasters spoke to me: “Come here. I’ll show you the Bride, the
Wife of the Lamb.” He took me away in the Spirit to an enormous, high
mountain and showed me Holy Jerusalem descending out of Heaven from God,
resplendent in the bright glory of God.
Reader 1:
The City shimmered like a precious gem, light filled, pulsing light.
She had a wall majestic and high with twelve gates. At each gate stood an
Angel, and on the gates were inscribed the names of the Twelve Tribes of
the sons of Israel: three gates on the east, three gates on the north,
three gates on the south, three gates on the west. The wall was set on
twelve foundations, the names of the Twelve Apostles of the Lamb inscribed
on them.
Reader 2:
The main street of the City was pure gold, translucent as glass. But
there was no sign of a Temple, for the Lord God-the Sovereign Strong-and
the Lamb are the Temple. The City doesn’t need sun or moon for light. God’s
Glory is its light, the Lamb its lamp! The nations will walk in its light
and earth’s kings bring in their splendor. Its gates will never be shut by
day, and there won’t be any night. They’ll bring the glory and honor of the
nations into the City. Nothing dirty or defiled will get into the City, and
no one who defiles or deceives. Only those whose names are written in the
Lamb’s Book of Life will get in.
Reader 1:
Then the Angel showed me Water of Life River, crystal bright. It
flowed from the Throne of God and the Lamb, right down the middle of the
street. The Tree of Life was planted on each side of the River, producing
twelve kinds of fruit, a ripe fruit each month. The leaves of the Tree are
for healing the nations. Never again will anything be cursed. The Throne of
God and of the Lamb is at the center. His servants will offer God service-
worshiping, they’ll look on his face, their foreheads mirroring God. Never
again will there be any night. No one will need lamplight or sunlight. The
shining of God, the Master, is all the light anyone needs. And they will
rule with him age after age after age.
Reader 2:
The Angel said to me, “These are dependable and accurate words, every
one. The God and Master of the spirits of the prophets sent his Angel to
show his servants what must take place, and soon. And tell them, ‘Yes, I’m
on my way!’ Blessed be the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this
book.”
“How blessed are those who wash their robes! The Tree of Life is
theirs for good, and they’ll walk through the gates to the City…
Reader 1:
“I, Jesus, sent my Angel to testify to these things for the churches.
I’m the Root and Branch of David, the Bright Morning Star.”
Both Reader 2 and Reader 1:
“Come!” say the Spirit and the Bride.
Reader 2:
Whoever hears, echo,
Both Reader 2 and Reader 1:
“Come!”
Reader 2:
Is anyone thirsty?
Reader 1:
Come!
Reader 2:
All who will,
Reader 1:
Come and drink,
Both Reader 2 and Reader 1:
Drink freely of the Water of Life!
Reader 2:
He who testifies to all these things says it again:
Reader 1:
“I’m on my way! I’ll be there soon!”
Both Reader 2 & Reader 1:
Yes! Come, Master Jesus!
(pause, look out at audience, slowly extend hands over them)
Both Reader 2 & Reader 1:
The grace of the Master Jesus be with all of you. Oh, Yes!
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