1Now#Or “And” the whole earth had one language and the same words. 2And as people migrated#Or “set out” from the east they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. 3And they said to each other,#Literally “each to his companion” “Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly.”#Literally “burn to burning” And they had brick for stone and they had tar for mortar. 4And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower whose top reaches to the heavens. And let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

5Then#Or “And” Yahweh came down to see the city and the tower that humankind#Literally “sons of Adam” or “sons of humankind” was building. 6And Yahweh said, “Behold, they are one people with one language,#Literally “one people and one language to all of them” and this is only the beginning of what they will do.#Literally “and this they begin to do” So#Or “And” now nothing that they intend to do will be impossible for them. 7Come, let us go down and confuse their language there, so that they will not understand each other’s language.”#Literally “each the language of his companion” 8So Yahweh scattered them from there over the face of the whole earth, and they stopped building the city. 9Therefore its name was called Babel, for there Yahweh confused the language of the whole earth, and there Yahweh scattered them over the face of the whole earth.

The Descendants of Shem

10These are the generations#Or “family records” of Shem. When Shem was one hundred years old,#Literally “the son of one hundred years” he fathered Arphaxad, two years after the flood. 11And Shem lived five hundred years after he fathered Arphaxad, and he fathered other sons and daughters. 12When Arphaxad had lived thirty-five years, he fathered Shelah. 13And Arphaxad lived four hundred and three years after he fathered Shelah, and he fathered other sons and daughters. 14When Shelah had lived thirty years, he fathered Eber. 15And Shelah lived four hundred and three years after he fathered Eber, and he fathered other sons and daughters. 16When Eber had lived thirty-four years, he fathered Peleg. 17And Eber lived four hundred and thirty years after he fathered Peleg, and he fathered other sons and daughters. 18When Peleg had lived thirty years, he fathered Reu. 19And Peleg lived two hundred and nine years after he fathered Reu, and he fathered other sons and daughters. 20When Reu had lived thirty-two years, he fathered Serug. 21And Reu lived two hundred and seven years after he fathered Serug, and he fathered other sons and daughters. 22When Serug had lived thirty years, he fathered Nahor. 23And Serug lived two hundred years after he fathered Nahor, and he fathered other sons and daughters. 24When Nahor had lived twenty-nine years, he fathered Terah. 25And Nahor lived one hundred and nineteen years after he fathered Terah, and he fathered other sons and daughters. 26When Terah had lived seventy years, he fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

The Descendants of Terah

27Now#Or “And” these are the generations#Or “family records” of Terah. Terah fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran, and Haran fathered Lot. 28And Haran died in the presence of Terah his father in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldeans. 29And Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. The name of the wife of Abram was Sarai, and the name of the wife of Nahor was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah and Iscah. 30And Sarai was barren; she had no child. 31And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot, the son of Haran, his grandson,#Literally “the son of his son” and Sarai his daughter-in-law, the wife of Abram his son, and went out with them from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan. And they went to Haran, and they settled there. 32And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years, and Terah died in Haran.

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Berĕshith (Genesis) 11

1And all the earth had one language#Hebrew lip. and one speech.

2And it came to be, as they set out from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shin‛ar,#Earlier name for Baḇel. and they dwelt there.

3And they said to each other, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar.

4And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens, and make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered over all the face of the earth.”

5Then יהוה came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.

6And יהוה said, “Look, they are one people and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do! And now, they are not going to be withheld from doing whatever they plan to do.

7“Come, let Us go there and confuse their language, so that they do not understand one another’s speech.”

8And יהוה scattered them from there, over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city.

9That is why its name was called Baḇel,#Baḇel is derived from a verb which means “to confuse.” because there יהוה confused the language of all the earth, and from there יהוה scattered them over the face of all the earth.

10This is the genealogy of Shĕm: Shĕm was a hundred years old and brought forth Arpaḵshaḏ, two years after the flood.

11And after he brought forth Arpaḵshaḏ, Shĕm lived five hundred years, and brought forth sons and daughters.

12And Arpaḵshaḏ lived thirty-five years, and brought forth Shelaḥ.

13And after he brought forth Shelaḥ, Arpaḵshaḏ lived four hundred and three years, and brought forth sons and daughters.

14And Shelaḥ lived thirty years, and brought forth Ěḇer.

15And after he brought forth Ěḇer, Shelaḥ lived four hundred and three years, and brought forth sons and daughters.

16And Ěḇer lived thirty-four years, and brought forth Peleḡ.

17And after he brought forth Peleḡ, Ěḇer lived four hundred and thirty years, and brought forth sons and daughters.

18And Peleḡ lived thirty years, and brought forth Re‛u.

19And after he brought forth Re‛u, Peleḡ lived two hundred and nine years, and brought forth sons and daughters.

20And Re‛u lived thirty-two years, and brought forth Seruḡ.

21And after he brought forth Seruḡ, Re‛u lived two hundred and seven years, and brought forth sons and daughters.

22And Seruḡ lived thirty years, and brought forth Naḥor.

23And after he brought forth Naḥor, Seruḡ lived two hundred years, and brought forth sons and daughters.

24And Naḥor lived twenty-nine years, and brought forth Teraḥ.

25And after he brought forth Teraḥ, Naḥor lived one hundred and nineteen years, and brought forth sons and daughters.

26And Teraḥ lived seventy years, and brought forth Aḇram, Naḥor, and Haran.

27And this is the genealogy of Teraḥ: Teraḥ brought forth Aḇram, Naḥor, and Haran. And Haran brought forth Lot.

28And Haran died before his father Teraḥ in the land of his birth, in Ur-kasdim.

29And Aḇram and Naḥor took wives: the name of Aḇram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Naḥor’s wife, Milkah, the daughter of Haran the father of Milkah and the father of Yiskah.

30And Sarai was barren, she had no child.

31And Teraḥ took his son Aḇram and his grandson Lot, son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Aḇram’s wife, and they went out with them from Ur-kasdim to go to the land of Kena‛an. And they came to Ḥaran and dwelt there.

32And the days of Teraḥ came to be two hundred and five years, and Teraḥ died in Ḥaran.

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Genesis 11

Berĕshith (Genesis) 11