Genesis 1:1 in Spanish (Génesis 1:1)

The Bible's first sentence, and one of the best first sentences a Spanish learner can own: nine words, all of them common, all of them worth knowing.

Here it is in the Reina-Valera with the English underneath, read aloud by a real voice at full speed and slow.

Genesis 1:1 · Génesis 1:1

En el principio creó Dios los cielos y la tierra.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Word by word

En el principio
in the beginning
creó Dios
God created (Spanish puts the verb before God here)
los cielos
the heavens
y la tierra
and the earth

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How to pronounce it

Common questions

How do you say in the beginning in Spanish?+

"En el principio." Genesis 1:1 continues: "creó Dios los cielos y la tierra", God created the heavens and the earth.

Why does the Spanish say creó Dios instead of Dios creó?+

Spanish word order is flexible, and the Reina-Valera mirrors the Hebrew by letting the verb lead. Both orders are correct; this one puts the act of creating first.

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