Genesis 11

The Tower of Babel

1At one time all the people of the world spoke the same language and used the same words. 2As the people migrated to the east, they found a plain in the land of Babylonia#11:2 Hebrew Shinar. and settled there.

3They began saying to each other, “Let’s make bricks and harden them with fire.” (In this region bricks were used instead of stone, and tar was used for mortar.) 4Then they said, “Come, let’s build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world.”

5But the Lord came down to look at the city and the tower the people were building. 6“Look!” he said. “The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them! 7Come, let’s go down and confuse the people with different languages. Then they won’t be able to understand each other.”

8In that way, the Lord scattered them all over the world, and they stopped building the city. 9That is why the city was called Babel,#11:9 Or Babylon. Babel sounds like a Hebrew term that means “confusion.” because that is where the Lord confused the people with different languages. In this way he scattered them all over the world.

The Line of Descent from Shem to Abram

10This is the account of Shem’s family.

Two years after the great flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father of#11:10 Or the ancestor of; also in 11:12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24. Arphaxad. 11After the birth of#11:11 Or the birth of this ancestor of; also in 11:13, 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 25. Arphaxad, Shem lived another 500 years and had other sons and daughters.

12When Arphaxad was 35 years old, he became the father of Shelah. 13After the birth of Shelah, Arphaxad lived another 403 years and had other sons and daughters.#11:12-13 Greek version reads 12When Arphaxad was 135 years old, he became the father of Cainan. 13After the birth of Cainan, Arphaxad lived another 430 years and had other sons and daughters, and then he died. When Cainan was 130 years old, he became the father of Shelah. After the birth of Shelah, Cainan lived another 330 years and had other sons and daughters, and then he died. Compare Luke 3:35-36.

14When Shelah was 30 years old, he became the father of Eber. 15After the birth of Eber, Shelah lived another 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

16When Eber was 34 years old, he became the father of Peleg. 17After the birth of Peleg, Eber lived another 430 years and had other sons and daughters.

18When Peleg was 30 years old, he became the father of Reu. 19After the birth of Reu, Peleg lived another 209 years and had other sons and daughters.

20When Reu was 32 years old, he became the father of Serug. 21After the birth of Serug, Reu lived another 207 years and had other sons and daughters.

22When Serug was 30 years old, he became the father of Nahor. 23After the birth of Nahor, Serug lived another 200 years and had other sons and daughters.

24When Nahor was 29 years old, he became the father of Terah. 25After the birth of Terah, Nahor lived another 119 years and had other sons and daughters.

26After Terah was 70 years old, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

The Family of Terah

27This is the account of Terah’s family. Terah was the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran was the father of Lot. 28But Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans, the land of his birth, while his father, Terah, was still living. 29Meanwhile, Abram and Nahor both married. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah. (Milcah and her sister Iscah were daughters of Nahor’s brother Haran.) 30But Sarai was unable to become pregnant and had no children.

31One day Terah took his son Abram, his daughter-in-law Sarai (his son Abram’s wife), and his grandson Lot (his son Haran’s child) and moved away from Ur of the Chaldeans. He was headed for the land of Canaan, but they stopped at Haran and settled there. 32Terah lived for 205 years#11:32 Some ancient versions read 145 years; compare 11:26 and 12:4. and died while still in Haran.

Genesis 11

1 Now the earth was of one language and of the same speech.

2 And when they were advancing from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt in it.

3 And each one said to his neighbor, "Come, let us make bricks, and bake them with fire." And they had bricks instead of stones, and pitch instead of mortar.

4 And they said: "Come, let us make a city and a tower, so that its height may reach to heaven. And let us make our name famous before we are divided into all the lands."

5 Then the Lord descended to see the city and the tower, which the sons of Adam were building.

6 And he said: "Behold, the people are united, and all have one tongue. And since they have begun to do this, they will not desist from their plans, until they have completed their work.

7 Therefore, come, let us descend, and in that place confound their tongue, so that they may not listen, each one to the voice of his neighbor."

8 And so the Lord divided them from that place into all the lands, and they ceased to build the city.

9 And for this reason, its name was called 'Babel,' because in that place the language of the whole earth became confused. And from then on, the Lord scattered them across the face of every region.

10 These are the generations of Shem. Shem was one hundred years old when he conceived Arphaxad, two years after the great flood.

11 And after he conceived Arphaxad, Shem lived for five hundred years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

12 Next, Arphaxad lived for thirty-five years, and then he conceived Shelah.

13 And after he conceived Shelah, Arphaxad lived for three hundred and three years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

14 Likewise, Shelah lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Eber.

15 And after he conceived Eber, Shelah lived for four hundred and three years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

16 Then Eber lived for thirty-four years, and he conceived Peleg.

17 And after he conceived Peleg, Eber lived for four hundred and thirty years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

18 Likewise, Peleg lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Reu.

19 And after he conceived Reu, Peleg lived for two hundred and nine years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

20 Then Reu lived for thirty-two years, and then he conceived Serug.

21 Likewise, after he conceived Serug, Reu lived for two hundred and seven years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

22 In truth, Serug lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Nahor.

23 And after he conceived Nahor, Serug lived for two hundred years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

24 And so Nahor lived for twenty-nine years, and then he conceived Terah.

25 And after he conceived Terah, Nahor lived for one hundred and nineteen years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

26 And Terah lived for seventy years, and then he conceived Abram, and Nahor, and Haran.

27 And these are the generations of Terah. Terah conceived Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Next Haran conceived Lot.

28 And Haran died before his father Terah, in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldeans.

29 Then Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai. And the name of Nahor's wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah.

30 But Sarai was barren and had no children.

31 And so Terah took his son Abram, and his grandson Lot, the son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and he led them away from Ur of the Chaldeans, to go into the land of Canaan. And they approached as far as Haran, and they dwelt there.

32 And the days of Terah that passed were two hundred and five years, and then he died in Haran.

Choose your language

NLT Holy Sanctuary Audio Bible

Genesis 11

Genesis 11