Genesis 11  Legacy Standard Bible

The Tower of Babel

11 Now the whole earth ^[a]had the same language and ^[b]the same words. ² And it happened as they journeyed east, that they found a plain in the land ^(A)of Shinar and ^[c]settled there. ³ Then they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and they had ^(B)tar for mortar. ⁴ And they said, “Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top ^(C)will reach into heaven, and let us make for ourselves ^(D)a name, lest we ^(E)be scattered over the face of the whole earth.” ^5 (F)Then Yahweh came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. ⁶ And Yahweh said, “Behold, they are one people, and they all have ^[d](G)the same language. And this is what they have begun to do. So now nothing which they purpose to do will be ^[e]impossible for them. ⁷ Come, ^(H)let Us go down and there ^(I)confuse their ^[f]language, so that they will not understand one another’s ^[g]language.” ⁸ So Yahweh ^(J)scattered them from there over the face of the whole earth; and they stopped building the city. ⁹ Therefore its name was called ^[h](K)Babel, because there Yahweh confused the ^[i]language of the whole earth; and from there Yahweh scattered them over the face of the whole earth.

The Generations of Shem

^10 (L)These are the generations of Shem. Shem was 100 years old and ^[j]became the father of Arpachshad two years after the flood; ¹¹ and Shem lived 500 years after he became the father of Arpachshad, and he became the father of other sons and daughters.

¹² And Arpachshad lived 35 years and became the father of Shelah; ¹³ and Arpachshad lived 403 years after he became the father of Shelah, and he became the father of other sons and daughters.

¹⁴ And Shelah lived 30 years and became the father of Eber; ¹⁵ and Shelah lived 403 years after he became the father of Eber, and he became the father of other sons and daughters.

¹⁶ And Eber lived 34 years and became the father of Peleg; ¹⁷ and Eber lived 430 years after he became the father of Peleg, and he became the father of other sons and daughters.

¹⁸ And Peleg lived 30 years and became the father of Reu; ¹⁹ and Peleg lived 209 years after he became the father of Reu, and he became the father of other sons and daughters.

²⁰ And Reu lived 32 years and became the father of Serug; ²¹ and Reu lived 207 years after he became the father of Serug, and he became the father of other sons and daughters.

²² And Serug lived 30 years and became the father of Nahor; ²³ and Serug lived 200 years after he became the father of Nahor, and he became the father of other sons and daughters.

²⁴ Nahor lived 29 years and became the father of ^(M)Terah; ²⁵ and Nahor lived 119 years after he became the father of Terah, and he became the father of other sons and daughters.

²⁶ And Terah lived 70 years and became ^(N)the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

The Generations of Terah

²⁷ Now these are the generations of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and ^(O)Haran became the father of ^(P)Lot. ²⁸ And Haran died ^[k]in the presence of Terah his father in the land of his birth, in ^(Q)Ur of the Chaldeans. ²⁹ Abram and ^(R)Nahor took wives for themselves. The name of Abram’s wife was ^(S)Sarai; and the name of Nahor’s wife was ^(T)Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah and the father of Iscah. ^30 (U)And Sarai was barren; she had no child.

³¹ And 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 ^[l]together from ^(V)Ur of the Chaldeans in order to go to the land of Canaan; and they came as far as Haran and ^[m]settled there. ³² And the days of Terah were 205 years; and Terah died in Haran.