Genesis 11

The Tower of Babel

1 Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. 2 And as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in z the land of Shinar and settled there. 3 And they said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly." And they had brick for stone, a and bitumen for mortar. 4 Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower b with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth." 5 And c the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. 6 And 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. 7 Come, d let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another's speech." 8 So e the Lord dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. 9 Therefore its name was called f Babel, because there the Lord confused 1 the language of all the earth. And from there the Lord dispersed them over the face of all the earth.

Shem's Descendants

10 g These are the generations of Shem. When Shem was 100 years old, he fathered Arpachshad two years after the flood. 11 And Shem lived after he fathered Arpachshad 500 years and had other sons and daughters.

12 When Arpachshad had lived 35 years, he fathered Shelah. 13 And Arpachshad lived after he fathered Shelah 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

14 When Shelah had lived 30 years, he fathered Eber. 15 And Shelah lived after he fathered Eber 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

16 When Eber had lived 34 years, he fathered Peleg. 17 And Eber lived after he fathered Peleg 430 years and had other sons and daughters.

18 When Peleg had lived 30 years, he fathered Reu. 19 And Peleg lived after he fathered Reu 209 years and had other sons and daughters.

20 When Reu had lived 32 years, he fathered Serug. 21 And Reu lived after he fathered Serug 207 years and had other sons and daughters.

22 When Serug had lived 30 years, he fathered Nahor. 23 And Serug lived after he fathered Nahor 200 years and had other sons and daughters.

24 When h Nahor had lived 29 years, he fathered Terah. 25 And Nahor lived after he fathered Terah 119 years and had other sons and daughters.

26 When h Terah had lived 70 years, he fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

Terah's Descendants

27 Now these are the generations of Terah. Terah fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran fathered Lot. 28 Haran died in the presence of his father Terah in the land of his kindred, in Ur of the Chaldeans. 29 And Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram's wife was i Sarai, and the name of Nahor's wife, j Milcah, the daughter of Haran the father of Milcah and Iscah. 30 Now Sarai was barren; she had no child.

31 Terah k 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 forth together l from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan, but when they came to Haran, they settled there. 32 The days of Terah were 205 years, and Terah died in Haran.

  1. Cross References
    Genesis 10:10
    The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, ...
    Genesis 14:1
    In the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch ...
    Genesis 14:9
    With Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of G...
    Isaiah 11:11
    In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a...
    Daniel 1:2
    And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into ...
    Zechariah 5:11
    He said to me, "To the land of Shinar, to build...
  2. Cross References
    Genesis 14:10
    Now the Valley of Siddim was full of bitumen pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some fell into them, and the rest fled to the hill country.
    Exodus 2:3
    When she could hide him no longer, she took for him a basket made of bulrushes and daubed it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the river bank.
  3. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 1:28
    Where are we going up? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying, "The people are greater and taller than we. The cities are great and fortified up to heaven. And besides, we have seen the sons of the Anakim there."
  4. Cross References
    Genesis 18:21
    I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.
  5. Cross References
    Genesis 1:26
    Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.
    Psalms 2:4
    He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision.
  6. Cross References
    Genesis 10:25
    To Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided, and his brother's name was Joktan.
    Genesis 10:32
    These are the clans of the sons of Noah, according to their genealogies, in their nations, and from these the nations spread abroad on the earth after the flood.
    Luke 1:51
    He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
  7. Cross References
    Genesis 10:10
    The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.
  8. Cross References
    Genesis 10:22
    The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram.
    Genesis 11:10 - 26
    These are the generations of Shem. When Shem was 100 years old, he fathered Arpachshad two years after the flood.
    1 Chronicles 1:17 - 27
    The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram. And the sons of Aram: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Meshech.
  9. Cross References
    Joshua 24:2
    And Joshua said to all the people, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, 'Long ago, your fathers lived beyond the Euphrates, Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and they served other gods.
  10. Cross References
    Genesis 11:24
    When Nahor had lived 29 years, he fathered Terah.
  11. Cross References
    Genesis 17:15
    And God said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.
  12. Cross References
    Genesis 22:20
    Now after these things it was told to Abraham, "Behold, Milcah also has borne children to your brother Nahor:
  13. Cross References
    Genesis 12:1
    Now the Lord said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you.
  14. Cross References
    Genesis 15:7
    And he said to him, "I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.
    Joshua 24:2
    And Joshua said to all the people, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, 'Long ago, your fathers lived beyond the Euphrates, Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and they served other gods.
    Nehemiah 9:7
    You are the Lord, the God who chose Abram and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and gave him the name Abraham.
    Acts 7:2
    And Stephen said: "Brothers and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran.
    Acts 7:4
    Then he went out from the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran. And after his father died, God removed him from there into this land in which you are now living.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
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