Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden: therefore introduces a conclusion. Sent him forth translates the usual word “send,” which does not indicate the manner of action. However, in the context of punishment it seems clear that the idea is “ordered him out, commanded him to leave.” A stronger term is used in verse 24. Note that him applies to the couple, as rendered by Good News Translation.

For till see 2.5, 15.

The ground from which he was taken: that is, “from which God had formed him,” as in 2.7. This expression may need to be restructured in languages that have no passive, and in those that find the “from which” construction too unnatural. For instance, one translation has “Before, God made the man from the ground, and now he made him go and work that same ground to make his food garden.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .