But this present chronicle will not include an account of that stay [in paradise], nor [will it start] from the creation of heaven, the earth and the universe, as some have done, but [it will start] from the establishment of our human race, and our era, beginning with the forefather of our race, called Adam, who was the one who fell from paradise and was case out from the blissful life.
- Taking the information from the scriptures of the Hebrews, as the book of Moses relates, I will set down the number of the years of the doomed and mortal life [of Adam], (77) and what follows; which is where the historical accounts of the Hebrews begin.
At this point, the book of Moses says [Genesis, 3'23 ]: “The Lord banished him” (that is, the first man) “from paradise to work the ground from which he had been taken.
And he drove Adam out, and made him dwell outside the region of paradise.” Then it adds [Genesis, 4'1 ]: “Adam lay with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain.” Our present chronicle will start from this point; but it will not include the first part of history, which cannot be calculated and must be left separate from the subsequent times.