1Now the whole earth had one language and few words. 2And as men migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. 3And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. 4Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” 5And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the sons of men had built. 6And the LORD said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; and nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. 7Come, let us go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.” 8So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. 9Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the LORD confused11.9 Compare Heb balal, confuse the language of all the earth; and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.

Ancestors of Abraham

10These are the descendants of Shem. When Shem was a hundred years old, he became the father of Arpach'shad two years after the flood; 11and Shem lived after the birth of Arpach'shad five hundred years, and had other sons and daughters.

12When Arpach'shad had lived thirty-five years, he became the father of Shelah; 13and Arpach'shad lived after the birth of Shelah four hundred and three years, and had other sons and daughters.

14When Shelah had lived thirty years, he became the father of Eber; 15and Shelah lived after the birth of Eber four hundred and three years, and had other sons and daughters.

16When Eber had lived thirty-four years, he became the father of Peleg; 17and Eber lived after the birth of Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and had other sons and daughters.

18When Peleg had lived thirty years, he became the father of Re'u; 19and Peleg lived after the birth of Re'u two hundred and nine years, and had other sons and daughters.

20When Re'u had lived thirty-two years, he became the father of Serug; 21and Re'u lived after the birth of Serug two hundred and seven years, and had other sons and daughters.

22When Serug had lived thirty years, he became the father of Nahor; 23and Serug lived after the birth of Nahor two hundred years, and had other sons and daughters.

24When Nahor had lived twenty-nine years, he became the father of Terah; 25and Nahor lived after the birth of Terah a hundred and nineteen years, and had other sons and daughters.

26When Terah had lived seventy years, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

27Now these are the descendants of Terah. Terah was the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran was the father of Lot. 28Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chalde'ans. 29And Abram and Nahor took wives; the name of Abram's wife was Sar'ai, and the name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran the father of Milcah and Iscah. 30Now Sar'ai was barren; she had no child.

31Terah took Abram his son and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sar'ai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram's wife, and they went forth together from Ur of the Chalde'ans to go into the land of Canaan; but when they came to Haran, they settled there. 32The days of Terah were two hundred and five years; and Terah died in Haran.