GENESIS 2

The Creation of Man and Woman

1 So the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts (inhabitants).

2 And by the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested (ceased) on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.

3 So God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it [as His own, that is, set it apart as holy from other days], because in it He rested from all His work which He had created and done.

4 This is the history of [the origin of] the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day [that is, days of creation] that theLordGod made the earth and the heavens–

5 no shruborplant of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had yet sprouted, for the LordGod had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man tocultivate the ground,

6 but amist (fog, dew, vapor) used to rise from the land and water the entire surface of the ground–

7 then the LordGodformed [that is, created the body of] man from thedust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being [an individual complete in body and spirit].

8 And the LordGodplanted a garden (oasis) in the east, in Eden (delight, land of happiness); and He put the man whom He had formed (created) there.

9 And [in that garden] the LordGod caused to grow from the ground every tree that is desirableandpleasing to the sight and good (suitable, pleasant) for food; the tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the [experiential] knowledge (recognition) of [the difference between] good and evil.

10 Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden; and from there it divided and became four [branching] rivers.

11 The first [river] is named Pishon; it flows around the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold.

12 The gold of that land is good; bdellium (a fragrant, valuable resin) and theonyx stone are found there.

13 The name of the second river is Gihon; it flows around the entire land of Cush [in Mesopotamia].

14 The third river is named Hiddekel (Tigris); it flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

15 So the LordGod took the man [He had made] and settled him in the Garden of Eden to cultivate and keep it.

16 And the LordGod commanded the man, saying, “You may freely (unconditionally) eat [the fruit] from every tree of the garden;

17 but [only] from the tree of the knowledge (recognition) of good and evil you shall not eat, otherwise on the day that you eat from it, you shall most certainlydie [because of your disobedience].”

18 Now the LordGod said, “It is not good (beneficial) for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper [one who balances him–a counterpart who is]suitableandcomplementary for him.”

19 So the LordGod formed out of the ground every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name.

20 And the man gave names to all the livestock, and to the birds of the air, and to every animal of the field; but for Adam there was not found a helper [that was] suitable (a companion) for him.

21 So the LordGod caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam; and while he slept, He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place.

22 And the rib which the LordGod had taken from the man He made (fashioned, formed) into a woman, and He brought herandpresented her to the man.

23 Then Adam said,

“This is now bone of my bones,

And flesh of my flesh;

She shall be called Woman,

Because she was taken out of Man.”

24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.

25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamedorembarrassed.

GENESIS 3

The Fall of Man

1 Now the serpent was more crafty (subtle, skilled in deceit) than any living creature of the field which the LordGod had made. Andthe serpent (Satan) said to the woman, “Can it really be that God has said, ‘You shall not eat fromany tree of the garden’?”

2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees of the garden,

3 except the fruit from the tree which is in the middle of the garden. God said, ‘You shall not eat from it nor touch it, otherwise you will die.’”

4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You certainly will not die!

5 For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened [that is, you will have greater awareness], and you will be like God, knowing [the difference between] good and evil.”

6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was delightful to look at, and a tree to be desired in order to make one wiseandinsightful, she took some of its fruit and ate it; and she also gave some to her husbandwith her, and he ate.

7 Then the eyes of the two of them were opened [that is, their awareness increased], and they knew that they were naked; and they fastened fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.

8 And they heard the sound of the LordGod walking in the garden in the cool [afternoon breeze] of the day, so the man and his wife hidandkept themselves hidden from thepresence of the LordGod among the trees of the garden.

9 But the LordGod called to Adam, and said to him, “Where are you?”

10 He said, “I heard the sound of You [walking] in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.”

11 God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten [fruit] from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”

12 And the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me–she gave me [fruit] from the tree, and I ate it.”

13 Then the LordGod said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent beguiledanddeceived me, and I ate [from the forbidden tree].”

14 The LordGod said to the serpent,

“Because you have done this,

You are cursed more than all the cattle,

And more than any animal of the field;

On your belly you shall go,

And dust you shall eat

All the days of your life.

15 “And I will put enmity (open hostility)

Between you and the woman,

And between your seed (offspring) and herSeed;

He shall [fatally] bruise your head,

And you shall [only] bruise His heel.”

16 To the woman He said,

“I will greatly multiply

Your pain in childbirth;

In pain you will give birth to children;

Yet your desireandlonging will be for your husband,

And he will rule [with authority] over youandbe responsible for you.”

17 Then to Adam the LordGod said, “Because you have listened [attentively] to the voice of your wife, and have eaten [fruit] from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’;

The ground is [now] under a curse because of you;

In sorrowandtoil you shall eat [the fruit] of it

All the days of your life.

18 “Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you;

And you shall eat the plants of the field.

19 “By the sweat of your face

You will eat bread

Until you return to the ground,

For from it you were taken;

For you are dust,

And to dust you shall return.”

20 The man named his wife Eve (life spring, life giver), because she was the mother of all the living.

21 The LordGod made tunics of [animal] skins for Adam and his wife and clothed them.

22 And the LordGod said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us (Father, Son, Holy Spirit), knowing [how to distinguish between] good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take from the tree of life as well, and eat [its fruit], and live [in this fallen, sinful condition] forever”–

23 therefore the LordGod sent Adam away from the Garden of Eden, to tillandcultivate the ground from which he was taken.

24 So God drove the man out; and at the east of the Garden of Eden He [permanently] stationed thecherubim and the sword with the flashing blade which turned round and round [in every direction] to protectandguard the way (entrance, access) to the tree of life.

GENESIS 4

Cain and Abel

1 Now the manAdam knew Eve as his wife, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain, and she said, “I have obtained a man (baby boy, son) withthe help ofthe Lord.”

2 And [later] she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept the flocks [of sheep and goats], but Cain cultivated the ground.

3 And in the course of time Cain brought to the Lordan offering of the fruit of the ground.

4 But Abel brought [an offering of] the [finest] firstborn of his flock and thefat portions. And the Lordhad respect (regard) for Abel and for his offering;

5 but for Cain and his offering He had no respect. So Cain became extremely angry (indignant), andhe looked annoyedandhostile.

6 And the Lordsaid to Cain, “Why are you so angry? And why do you look annoyed?

7 If you do well [believing Me and doing what is acceptable and pleasing to Me], will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well [but ignore My instruction], sin crouches at your door; its desire is for you [to overpower you], but you must master it.”

8 Cain talked with Abel his brother [about what God had said]. And when they were [alone, working] in the field, Cainattacked Abel his brother and killed him.

9 Then the Lordsaid to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother?” And he [lied and] said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”

10 The Lordsaid, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s [innocent] blood is crying out to Me from the ground [for justice].

11 And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s [shed] blood from your hand.

12 When you cultivate the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength [it will resist producing good crops] for you; you shall be a fugitive and a vagabond [roaming aimlessly] on the earth [in perpetual exile without a home, a degraded outcast].”

13 Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is greater than I can bear.

14 Behold, You have driven me out this day from the face of the land; and from Your face (presence) I will be hidden, and I will be a fugitive and an [aimless] vagabond on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.”

15 And the Lordsaid to him, “Therefore, whoever kills Cain, a sevenfold vengeance [that is, punishment seven times worse] shall be taken on him [by Me].” And the Lordset a [protective]mark (sign) on Cain, so that no one who found (met) him would kill him.

16 So Cain went away from the [manifested] presence of the Lord, and lived in the land of Nod [wandering in exile], east of Eden.

17 Cain knew hiswife [one of Adam’s descendants] and she conceived and gave birth to Enoch; and Cain built a city and named it Enoch, after the name of his son.

18 Now to Enoch was born Irad, and Irad became the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael became the father of Methushael, and Methushael became the father of Lamech.

19 And Lamech took for himself two wives; the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other, Zillah.

20 Adah gave birth to Jabal; he became the father of those [nomadic herdsmen] who live in tents and have cattleandraise livestock.

21 His brother’s name was Jubal; he became the father of all those [musicians] who play the lyre and flute.

22 Zillah gave birth to Tubal-cain, the smith (craftsman)andteacher of every artisan in instruments of bronze and iron. The sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah.

23 Lamech said to his wives,

“Adah and Zillah,

Hear my voice;

You wives of Lamech,

Listen to what I say;

For I have killed a man [merely] for wounding me,

And a boy [only] for striking (bruising) me.

24 “If Cain is avenged sevenfold [as the Lordsaid he would be],

Then Lamech [will be avenged]seventy-sevenfold.”

25 Adam knew [Eve as] his wife again; and she gave birth to a son, and named him Seth, for [she said], “God has granted another child for me in place of Abel, because Cain killed him.”

26 To Seth, also, a son was born, whom he named Enosh (mortal man, mankind). At that [same] time men began to call on the name of the Lord[in worship through prayer, praise, and thanksgiving].

GENESIS 5

Descendants of Adam

1 This is the book (the written record, the history) of the generations of [the descendants of] Adam. When God created man, He made him in the likeness of God [not physical, but a spiritual personality and moral likeness].

2 He created them male and female, and blessed them and named themMankind at the time they were created.

3 When Adam had lived a hundred and thirty years, hebecame the father ofa sonin his own likeness, according to his image, and named him Seth.

4 After he became the father of Seth, Adam lived eight hundred years and hadothersons and daughters.

5 So Adam lived nine hundred and thirty years in all, and he died.

6 When Seth was a hundred and five years old, he became the father of Enosh.

7 Seth lived eight hundred and seven years after the birth of Enosh, and he hadothersons and daughters.

8 So Seth lived nine hundred and twelve years, and he died.

9 When Enosh was ninety years old, he became the father of Kenan.

10 Enosh lived eight hundred and fifteen years after the birth of Kenan and hadothersons and daughters.

11 So Enosh lived nine hundred and five years, and he died.

12 When Kenan was seventy years old, he became the father of Mahalalel.

13 Kenan lived eight hundred and forty years after the birth of Mahalalel and hadothersons and daughters.

14 So Kenan lived nine hundred and ten years, and he died.

15 When Mahalalel was sixty-five years old, he became the father of Jared.

16 Mahalalel lived eight hundred and thirty years after the birth of Jared and hadothersons and daughters.

17 So Mahalalel lived eight hundred and ninety-five years, and he died.

18 When Jared was a hundred and sixty-two years old, he became the father of Enoch.

19 Jared lived eight hundred years after the birth of Enoch and hadothersons and daughters.

20 So Jared lived nine hundred and sixty-two years, and he died.

21 When Enoch was sixty-five years old, he became the father of Methuselah.

22 Enoch walked [in habitual fellowship] with God three hundred years after the birth of Methuselah and hadothersons and daughters.

23 So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years.

24 And [in reverent fear and obedience] Enoch walked with God; and he was not [found among men], because God took him [away to be home with Him].

25 When Methuselah was a hundred and eighty-seven years old, he became the father of Lamech.

26 Methuselah lived seven hundred and eighty-two years after the birth of Lamech and hadothersons and daughters.

27 So Methuselah lived nine hundred and sixty-nine years, and he died.

28 When Lamech was a hundred and eighty-two years old, he became the father of a son.

29 He named him Noah, saying, “This one shall bring us restandcomfort from our work and from the [dreadful] toil of our hands because of the ground which the Lordcursed.”

30 Lamech lived five hundred and ninety-five years after the birth of Noah and hadothersons and daughters.

31 So all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy-seven years, and he died.

32 After Noah was five hundred years old, he became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

GENESIS 6

The Corruption of Mankind

1 Now it happened, when men began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them,

2 that thesons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautifulanddesirable; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they choseanddesired.

3 Then the Lordsaid, “My Spirit shall not striveandremain with man forever, because he is indeed flesh [sinful, corrupt–given over to sensual appetites]; nevertheless his days shall yet bea hundred and twenty years.”

4 There were Nephilim (men of stature, notorious men) on the earth in those days–and also afterward–when the sons of God lived with the daughters of men, and they gave birth to theirchildren. These were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown (great reputation, fame).

5 The Lordsaw that the wickedness (depravity) of man was great on the earth, and that every imaginationorintent of the thoughts of his heart were only evil continually.

6 The Lordregretted that He had made mankind on the earth, and He was [deeply] grieved in His heart.

7 So the Lordsaid, “I will destroy (annihilate) mankind whom I have created from the surface of the earth–not only man, but the animals and the crawling things and the birds of the air–because it [deeply] grieves Me [to see mankind’s sin]andI regret that I have made them.”

8 But Noah found favorandgrace in the eyes of the Lord.

9 These arethe records ofthe generations (family history) of Noah. Noah was a righteous man [one who was just and had right standing with God], blameless in his [evil] generation; Noah walked (lived) [in habitual fellowship] with God.

10 Now Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

11 The [population of the] earth was corrupt [absolutely depraved–spiritually and morally putrid] in God’s sight, and the land was filled with violence [desecration, infringement, outrage, assault, and lust for power].

12 God looked on the earth and saw how debasedanddegenerate it was, for all humanity had corrupted their way on the earthandlost their true direction.

13 God said to Noah, “I intend to make an end of all that lives, for through men the land is filled with violence; and behold, I am about todestroy them together with the land.

14 Make yourself anark ofgopher wood; make in it rooms (stalls, pens, coops, nests, cages, compartments) andcoat it inside and out with pitch (bitumen).

15 This is the way you are to make it: the length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits (450’ x 75’ x 45’).

16 You shall make awindow [for light and ventilation] for the ark, and finish it to at least a cubit (eighteen inches) from the top–and set the [entry] door of the ark in its side; and you shall make it with lower, second and third decks.

17 For behold, I, even I, will bring a flood of waters on the earth, to destroy all life under the heavens in which there is the breathandspirit of life; everything that is on the land shall die.

18 But I will establish My covenant (solemn promise, formal agreement) with you; and you shall come into the ark–you and your [three] sons and your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.

19 And of every living thing [found on land], you shall bring two of every kind into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female.

20 Of fowlsandbirds according to their kind, of animals according to their kind, of every crawling thing of the ground according to its kind–two of every kind shall come to you to keep them alive.

21 Also take with you every kind of food that is edible, and you shall collectandstore it; and it shall be food for you and for them.”

22 So Noah did this; according to all that God commanded him, that is what he did.

GENESIS 7

The Flood

1 Then the Lordsaid to Noah, “Come into the ark, you with all your household, for you [alone] I have seen as righteous (doing what is right) before Me in this generation.

2 Of everyclean animal you shall take with you seven pair, the male and his female, and of animals that are not clean, two each the male and his female;

3 also of the birds of the air, seven pair, the male and the female, to keep the offspring alive on the surface of the earth.

4 For in seven days I am going to cause it to rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights; and I will destroy (blot out, wipe away) every living thing that I have made from the surface of the earth.”

5 So Noah did all that the Lordcommanded him.

6 Noah was six hundred years old when the flood (deluge) of water came on the earth [covering all of the land].

7 Then Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him entered the ark to escape the flood waters.

8 Ofclean animals and animals that are not clean and birdsandfowls and everything that crawls on the ground,

9 they came [motivated by God] into the ark with Noah two by two, the male and the female, just as God had commanded Noah.

10 And after the seven days [God released the rain and] the floodwaters came on the earth.

11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, on the seventeenth day of the second month, on that same day all the fountains of the great deep [subterranean waters] burst open, and the windowsandfloodgates of the heavens were opened.

12 It rained on the earth for forty days and forty nights.

13 On the very same day Noah and Shem and Ham and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah’s wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered the ark,

14 they and every animal according to its kind, all the livestock according to their kinds, every moving thing that crawls on the earth according to its kind, and every bird according to its kind, every winged thing of every sort.

15 So they went into the ark with Noah, two by two of all living beings in which there was the breathandspirit of life.

16 Those which entered, male and female of all flesh (creatures), entered as God had commanded Noah; and the Lordclosedthe doorbehind him.

17 The flood [the great downpour of rain] was forty daysandnights on the earth; and the waters increased and lifted up the ark, and it floated [high] above the land.

18 The waters became mighty and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the waters.

19 The waters prevailed so greatlyandwere so mightyandoverwhelming on the earth, so that all the high mountains everywhere under the heavens were covered.

20 [In fact] the waters becamefifteen cubits higher [than the highest ground], and the mountains were covered.

21 All living beings that moved on the earth perished–birds and cattle (domestic animals), [wild] animals, all things that swarmandcrawl on the earth, and all mankind.

22 Everything on the dry land, all in whose nostrils was the breathandspirit of life, died.

23 God destroyed (blotted out, wiped away) every living thing that was on the surface of the earth; man and animals and the crawling things and the birds of the heavens were destroyed from the land. Only Noah and those who were with him in the ark remained alive.

24 The waters covered [all of] the earth for a hundred and fifty days (five months).

GENESIS 8

The Flood Abates

1 And God rememberedandthought kindly of Noah and every living thing and all the animals that were with him in the ark; and God made a wind blow over the land, and the waters receded.

2 Also the fountains of the deep [subterranean waters] and the windows of the heavens were closed, the [pouring] rain from the sky was restrained,

3 and the waters receded steadily from the earth. At the end of a hundred and fifty days the waters had diminished.

4 On the seventeenth day of the seventh month [five months after the rain began], the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat [inTurkey].

5 The waters continued to decrease until the tenth month; on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains were seen.

6 At the end of [another] forty days Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made;

7 and he sent out a raven, which flew here and there until the waters were dried up from the earth.

8 Then Noah sent out a dove to see if the water level had fallen below the surface of the land.

9 But the dove found no place on which to rest the sole of her foot, and she returned to him to the ark, for the waters were [still] on the face of the entire earth. So he reached out his hand and took the dove, and brought her into the ark.

10 He waited another seven days and again sent the dove out from the ark.

11 The dove came back to him in the evening, and there, in her beak, was a fresh olive leaf. So Noah knew that the water level had subsided from the earth.

12 Then he waited another seven days and sent out the dove, but she did not return to him again.

13 Now in the six hundred and first year [of Noah’s life], on the first day of the first month, the waters were drying up from the earth. Then Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and the surface of the ground was drying.

14 On the twenty-seventh day of the second month the land was [entirely] dry.

15 And God spoke to Noah, saying,

16 “Go out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives with you.

17 Bring out with you every living thing from all flesh–birds and animals and every crawling thing that crawls on the earth–that they may breed abundantly on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.”

18 So Noah went out, and his wife and his sons and their wives with him [after being in the ark one year and ten days].

19 Every animal, every crawling thing, every bird–and whatever moves on the land–went out by families (types, groupings) from the ark.

20 And Noah built an altar to the Lord, and took of every [ceremonially] clean animal and of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar.

21 The Lordsmelled the pleasing aroma [a soothing, satisfying scent] and the Lordsaid to Himself, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intent (strong inclination, desire) of man’s heart is wicked from his youth; and I will never again destroy every living thing, as I have done.

22 “While the earth remains,

Seedtime and harvest,

Cold and heat,

Winter and summer,

And day and night

Shall not cease.”

GENESIS 9

Covenant of the Rainbow

1 And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.

2 The fear and the terror of you shall be [instinctive] in every animal of the land and in every bird of the air; and together with everything that moves on the ground, and with all the fish of the sea; they are given into your hand.

3 Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; I give you everything, asI gaveyou the green plantsandvegetables.

4 But you shall not eat meat along with its life,that is,its blood.

5 For your lifeblood I will most certainly require an accounting; from every animal [that kills a person] I will require it. And from man, from every man’s brother [that is, anyone who murders] I will require the life of man.

6 “Whoever sheds man’s blood [unlawfully],

By man (judicial government) shall his blood be shed,

For in the image of God

He made man.

7 “As for you, be fruitful and multiply;

Populate the earth abundantly and multiply in it.”

8 Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying,

9 “Now behold, I am establishing My covenant (binding agreement, solemn promise) with you and with your descendants after you

10 and with every living creature that is with you–the birds, the livestock, and the wild animals of the earth along with you, of everything that comes out of the ark–every living creature of the earth.

11 I will establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the water of a flood, nor shall there ever again be a flood to destroyandruin the earth.”

12 And God said, “This is the token (visible symbol, memorial) of the [solemn] covenant which I am making between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations;

13 I set My rainbow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth.

14 It shall come about, when I bring clouds over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the clouds,

15 and I will [compassionately] remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and never again will the water become a flood to destroy all flesh.

16 When the rainbow is in the clouds and I look at it, I will [solemnly] remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.”

17 And God said to Noah, “This [rainbow] is the sign of the covenant (solemn pledge, binding agreement) which I have established between Me and all living things on the earth.”

18 The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem and Ham and Japheth. Ham would become the father of Canaan.

19 These are the three sons of Noah, and from these [men] the whole earth was populatedandscattered with inhabitants.

20 And Noah began to farmandcultivate the ground and he planted a vineyard.

21 He drank some of the wine and became drunk, and he was uncoveredandlay exposed inside his tent.

22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw [by accident] the nakedness of his father, and [to his father’s shame] told his two brothers outside.

23 So Shem and Japheth took a robe and put it on both their shoulders, and walked backwards and covered the nakedness of their father; their faces were turned away so that they did not see their father’s nakedness.

24 When Noah awoke from his wine [induced stupor], he knew what his younger son [Ham] had done to him.

25 So he said,

“Cursed be Canaan [the son of Ham];

A servant of servants

He shall be to his brothers.”

26 He also said,

“Blessed be the Lord,

The God ofShem;

And let Canaan be his servant.

27 “May God enlarge [the land of] Japheth,

Andlethim dwell in the tents of Shem;

And let Canaan be his servant.”

28 Noah lived three hundred and fifty years after the flood.

29 So all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years, and he died.

GENESIS 10

Descendants of Noah

1 These arethe records ofthe generations (descendants) of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah; and the sons born to them after the flood:

2 the sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras;

3 the sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah;

4 the sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim.

5 From these, [the people of] the coastlands of the nations were separatedandspread into their lands, every oneaccording to his own language, according to their constituent groups (families),andinto their nations:

6 the sons of Ham: Cush, Mizraim [from whom descended the Egyptians], Put, and Canaan;

7 the sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca; and the sons of Raamah; Sheba and Dedan.

8 Cush became the father of Nimrod; he became a mighty one on the earth.

9 He was a mighty hunter before the Lord; therefore it is said, “Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the Lord.”

10 The beginning of his kingdom wasBabel and Erech and Accad and Calneh, in the land of Shinar [in Babylonia].

11 From that land Nimrod went to Assyria, and built Nineveh, and Rehoboth-Ir, and Calah,

12 and [Nimrod built] Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah; all these [combined to form] the great city [Nineveh].

13 Mizraim [the ancestor of the Egyptians] became the father of Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim

14 and Pathrusim and Casluhim–from whom came the Philistines–and Caphtorim.

15 Canaan became the father of Sidon, his firstborn, and Heth

16 and the Jebusite and the Amorite and the Girgashite

17 and the Hivite and the Arkite and the Sinite

18 and the Arvadite and the Zemarite and the Hamathite. Afterward the families of the Canaanite were spread abroad.

19 The territory of the Canaanite extended from Sidon as one goes to Gerar, as far as Gaza; and as one goes toSodom and Gomorrah and Admah and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha.

20 These are the descendants of Ham according to their constituent groups, according to their languages, by their lands, and by their nations.

21 Also to Shem, the father of all the children of Eber [including the Hebrews], theolder brother of Japheth, children were born.

22 The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud and Aram;

23 the sons of Aram [ancestor of the Syrians]: Uz, Hul, Gether andMash.

24 Arpachshad became the father of Shelah; and Shelah became the father of Eber.

25 Two sons were born to Eber; the name of one was Peleg (division), for [the inhabitants of] the earth were divided in his days; and his brother’s name was Joktan.

26 Joktan became the father of Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah,

27 and Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah,

28 andObal, Abimael, Sheba,

29 and Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab; all these were the sons of Joktan.

30 Now their territory extended from Mesha as one goes toward Sephar, to the hill country of the east.

31 These are Shem’s descendants according to their constituent groups (families), according to their languages, by their lands, according to their nations.

32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, according to their descendants, by their nations; and from these [people] the nations were separatedandspread abroad on the earth after the flood.

GENESIS 11

Universal Language, Babel, Confusion

1 Now the whole earthspoke one language and used the same words (vocabulary).

2 And as people journeyed eastward, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and they settled there.

3 They said one to another, “Come, let us make bricks and fire them thoroughly [in a kiln, to harden and strengthen them].” So they used brick for stone [as building material], and they used tar (bitumen, asphalt) for mortar.

4 They said, “Come, let us build a city for ourselves, and a tower whose topwill reachinto the heavens, and let us make a [famous] name for ourselves, so that we will not be scattered [into separate groups]andbe dispersed over the surface of the entire earth [as the Lordinstructed].”

5 Now the Lordcame down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.

6 And the Lordsaid, “Behold, they are one [unified] people, and they all have the same language. This is only the beginning of what they will do [in rebellion against Me], and now no evil thing they imagine they can do will be impossible for them.

7 Come, let Us (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) go down and there confuseandmix up their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.”

8 So the Lordscattered them abroad from there over the surface of the entire earth; and they stopped building the city.

9 Therefore the name of the city wasBabel–because there the Lordconfused the language of the entire earth; and from that place the Lordscatteredanddispersed them over the surface of all the earth.

Descendants of Shem

10 These arethe records ofthe generations of Shem [from whom Abraham descended]. Shem was a hundred years old when he became the father of Arpachshad, two years after the flood.

11 And Shem lived five hundred years after Arpachshad was born, and he hadothersons and daughters.

12 When Arpachshad had lived thirty-five years, he became the father of Shelah.

13 Arpachshad lived four hundred and three years after Shelah was born, and he hadothersons and daughters.

14 When Shelah had lived thirty years, he became the father of Eber.

15 Shelah lived four hundred and three years after Eber was born, and he hadothersons and daughters.

16 When Eber had lived thirty-four years, he became the father of Peleg.

17 And Eber lived four hundred and thirty years after Peleg was born, and he hadothersons and daughters.

18 When Peleg had lived thirty years, he became the father of Reu.

19 And Peleg lived two hundred and nine years after Reu was born, and he hadothersons and daughters.

20 When Reu had lived thirty-two years, he became the father of Serug.

21 And Reu lived two hundred and seven years after Serug was born, and he hadothersons and daughters.

22 When Serug had lived thirty years, he became the father of Nahor.

23 And Serug lived two hundred years after Nahor was born, and he hadothersons and daughters.

24 When Nahor had lived twenty-nine years, he became the father of Terah.

25 And Nahor lived a hundred and nineteen years after Terah was born, and he hadothersons and daughters.

26 After Terah had lived seventy years, he became the father ofAbram and Nahor and Haran [his firstborn].

27 Now these arethe records ofthe descendants of Terah. Terah was the father of Abram (Abraham), Nahor, and Haran; and Haran was the father of Lot.

28 Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his birth, inUr of the Chaldeans.

29 Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai (later called Sarah), and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah and Iscah.

30 But Sarai was barren; she did not have a child.

31 Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife; and they went out together to go from Ur of the Chaldeans into the land of Canaan; but when they came to Haran [about five hundred and fifty miles northwest of Ur], they settled there.

32 Terah lived two hundred and five years; and Terah died in Haran.