What happened to the word day in Gen 2:17

Faith & Science Conversation
1

I’m not looking to discuss the meaning of the word ‘day’ (24 hour day or long period of time), but rather what happened to it in Genesis 2:17. If you look at the various translations (see below) you see what I’m referring to. For the NIV and NLT is it an omission or correction? The inclusion or exclusion have some implications on what type of death the verse is talking about.

New International Version
but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die."

New Living Translation
except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die."

English Standard Version
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

New American Standard Bible
but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die."

King James Bible
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

King James 2000 Bible
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die.

2

I am no Hebrew scholar, but you can look at a Hebrew/English interlinear and see that the phrase “for in the day that you eat” is clearly there. The translations you have listed that are more literal, such as NASB or ESV, include the phrase.

BTW, if you don’t have access to an interlinear you can find Genesis 2:17 at Bible Hub. But be aware that using an interlinear when you don’t know the original language can cause you problems.

3

Thanks, Mike, this is a really good question. I’ve posed this “in the day” problem to YECs and have not received a satisfactory explanation. My contention is that proper interpretation indicates that “spiritual” death (separation from God, and not physical death is the natural result of choosing our own way over God’s. I cannot understand the YEC argument that physical death was only a result of Adam and Eve’s first sin of forbidden fruit consumption.