Genesis 11
1 Now the whole world had one language and a common form of speech.
At that time the whole world spoke just one language and used words with the same meaning.
2 And as people journeyed eastward, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there.
As they moved east they discovered a plain in the land of Shinar so they settled there.
3 And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” So they used brick instead of stone, and tar instead of mortar.
They said to one another, “Come on, let's make some bricks and bake them with fire.” (They used brick instead of stone, and tar instead of cement).
4 “Come,” they said, “let us build for ourselves a city with a tower that reaches to the heavens, that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of all the earth.”
Then they said, “Now let's build a city for ourselves with a tower whose top reaches the heavens. That way we'll gain a great reputation and we won't end up being scattered all over the world.”
5 Then the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the sons of men were building.
But the Lord came down to take a look at the city and the tower that the people were building.
6 And the LORD said, “If they have begun to do this as one people speaking the same language, then nothing they devise will be beyond them.
The Lord said, “Look! These people are united and they all speak one language. If this is what they can do now when they're just getting started, nothing will be impossible for them when they all put their minds to it!
7 Come, let Us go down and confuse their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.”
We need to go down and mix up their language and make it confused so they won't be able to understand what they're saying to one other.”
8 So the LORD scattered them from there over the face of all the earth, and they stopped building the city.
The Lord sent them away from there and scattered them all over the world, and they gave up building the city.
9 That is why it is called Babel, for there the LORD confused the language of the whole world, and from that place the LORD scattered them over the face of all the earth.
That's why it was called Babel, because the Lord made the language of the world confused.
10 This is the account of Shem. Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father of Arphaxad.
The following is the genealogy of Shem. When Shem was 100, he had Arphaxad. This was two years after the flood.
11 And after he had become the father of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters.
Shem lived another 500 years after Arphaxad was born and had other sons and daughters.
12 When Arphaxad was 35 years old, he became the father of Shelah.
When Arphaxad was 35, he had Shelah.
13 And after he had become the father of Shelah, Arphaxad lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.
Arphaxad lived another 403 years after Shelah was born and had other sons and daughters.
14 When Shelah was 30 years old, he became the father of Eber.
When Shelah was 30, he had Eber.
15 And after he had become the father of Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.
Shelah lived another 403 years after Eber was born and had other sons and daughters.
16 When Eber was 34 years old, he became the father of Peleg.
When Eber was 34, he had Peleg.
17 And after he had become the father of Peleg, Eber lived 430 years and had other sons and daughters.
Eber lived another 430 years after Peleg was born and had other sons and daughters.
18 When Peleg was 30 years old, he became the father of Reu.
When Peleg was 30, he had Reu.
19 And after he had become the father of Reu, Peleg lived 209 years and had other sons and daughters.
Peleg lived another 209 years after Reu was born and had other sons and daughters.
20 When Reu was 32 years old, he became the father of Serug.
When Reu was 32, he had Serug.
21 And after he had become the father of Serug, Reu lived 207 years and had other sons and daughters.
Reu lived another 207 years after Serug was born and had other sons and daughters.
22 When Serug was 30 years old, he became the father of Nahor.
When Serug was 30, he had Nahor.
23 And after he had become the father of Nahor, Serug lived 200 years and had other sons and daughters.
Serug lived another 200 years after Nahor was born and had other sons and daughters.
24 When Nahor was 29 years old, he became the father of Terah.
When Nahor was 29, he had Terah.
25 And after he had become the father of Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and had other sons and daughters.
Nahor lived another 119 years after Terah was born and had other sons and daughters.
26 When Terah was 70 years old, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
When Terah was 70, he had Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
27 This is the account of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot.
The following is the genealogy of Terah. Terah was the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Haran was the father of Lot.
28 During his father Terah’s lifetime, Haran died in his native land, in Ur of the Chaldeans.
However, Haran died while his father, Terah, was still alive, in Ur of the Chaldeans, the land of his birth.
29 And Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. Abram’s wife was named Sarai, and Nahor’s wife was named Milcah; she was the daughter of Haran, who was the father of both Milcah and Iscah.
Abram and Nahor both got married. Abram's wife was named Sarai, and Nahor's wife was named Milcah. (She was the daughter of Haran, who was the father of both Milcah and Iscah).
30 But Sarai was barren; she had no children.
Sarai wasn't able to become pregnant and so had no children.
31 And Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai the wife of Abram, and they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans for the land of Canaan. But when they arrived in Haran, they settled there.
Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot, (who was the son of Haran), his daughter-in-law Sarai, (the wife of his son Abram), and left Ur of the Chaldeans to move to the land of Canaan. They got as far as Haran and settled there.
32 Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Haran.
Terah lived for 205 years and died in Haran.
