Genesis 1
The Beginning
1In the beginning† God created the heavens and the earth.† 2Now the earth was[1] formless and empty,† darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God† was hovering over the waters.
3And God said,† “Let there be light,” and there was light.† 4God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.”† And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
6And God said, “Let there be an expanse† between the waters to separate water from water.” 7So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it.† And it was so. 8God called the expanse “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day.
9And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place,† and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. 10God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.
11Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation:† seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. 12The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 13And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.
14And God said, “Let there be lights† in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs† to mark seasons† and days and years, 15and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. 16God made two great lights—the greater light to govern† the day and the lesser light to govern† the night. He also made the stars.† 17God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, 18to govern the day and the night,† and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day.
20And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.” 21So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems,† according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.”† 23And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day.
24And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. 25God made the wild animals† according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
26Then God said, “Let us† make man in our image,† in our likeness, and let them rule† over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth,[2] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
27So God created man in his own image,†
in the image of God he created him;
male and female† he created them.
28God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth† and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
29Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.† 30And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.†” And it was so.
31God saw all that he had made,† and it was very good.† And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.
Genesis 2
1Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.
2By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested[3] from all his work.† 3And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy,† because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Adam and Eve
4This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created.
When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens— 5and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth[4] and no plant of the field had yet sprung up,† for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth[5] † and there was no man to work the ground, 6but streams[6] came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground— 7the LORD God formed the man[7] from the dust† of the ground† and breathed into his nostrils the breath† of life,† and the man became a living being.†
8Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden;† and there he put the man he had formed. 9And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life† and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.†
10A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. 11The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12(The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin[8] and onyx are also there.) 13The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush.[9] 14The name of the third river is the Tigris;† it runs along the east side of Asshur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
15The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”†
18The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”†
19Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field† and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature,† that was its name. 20So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field.
But for Adam[10] no suitable helper was found. 21So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs[11] and closed up the place with flesh. 22Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib[12] † he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
23The man said,
“This is now bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;†
she shall be called ‘woman,[13] ’
for she was taken out of man.”
24For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united† to his wife, and they will become one flesh.†
25The man and his wife were both naked,† and they felt no shame.
Genesis 3
The Fall of Man
1Now the serpent† was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
2The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ”
4“You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman.† 5“For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God,† knowing good and evil.”
6When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable† for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.† 7Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.
8Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking† in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid† from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”
10He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”
11And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”
12The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”
13Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”
The woman said, “The serpent deceived me,† and I ate.”
14So the LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,
“Cursed† are you above all the livestock
and all the wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
and you will eat dust†
all the days of your life.
15And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring[14] † and hers;†
he will crush[15] your head,†
and you will strike his heel.”
16To the woman he said,
“I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing;
with pain you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you.†”
17To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat of it,’
“Cursed† is the ground because of you;
through painful toil you will eat of it
all the days of your life.†
18It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.†
19By the sweat of your brow
you will eat your food†
until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
and to dust you will return.Ӡ
20Adam[16] named his wife Eve,[17] because she would become the mother of all the living.
21The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. 22And the LORD God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life† and eat, and live forever.” 23So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden† to work the ground† from which he had been taken. 24After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side[18] of the Garden of Eden cherubim† and a flaming sword†flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.†
Genesis 4
Cain and Abel
1Adam[19] lay with his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.[20] She said, “With the help of the LORD I have brought forth[21] a man.” 2Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.†
Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD.† 4But Abel brought fat portions† from some of the firstborn of his flock.† The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering,† 5but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
6Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door;† it desires to have you, but you must master it.†”
8Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”[22] And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.†
9Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”
“I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
10The LORD said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.† 11Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth.”
13Cain said to the LORD, “My punishment is more than I can bear. 14Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence;† I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.”†
15But the LORD said to him, “Not so[23]; if anyone kills Cain†, he will suffer vengeance seven times over.†” Then the LORD put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. 16So Cain went out from the LORD’s presence and lived in the land of Nod,[24] east of Eden.†
17Cain lay with his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son† Enoch. 18To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.
19Lamech married two women, one named Adah and the other Zillah. 20Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. 21His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play the harp and flute. 22Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged all kinds of tools out of[25] bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.
23Lamech said to his wives,
“Adah and Zillah, listen to me;
wives of Lamech, hear my words.
I have killed[26] † a man for wounding me,
a young man for injuring me.
24If Cain is avenged† seven times,†
then Lamech seventy-seven times.”
25Adam lay with his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth,[27] † saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.”† 26Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.
At that time men began to call on[28] the name of the LORD.†
Genesis 5
From Adam to Noah
1This is the written account of Adam’s line.
When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God.† 2He created them male and female† and blessed them. And when they were created, he called them “man.[29] ”
3When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image;† and he named him Seth. 4After Seth was born, Adam lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. 5Altogether, Adam lived 930 years, and then he died.†
6When Seth had lived 105 years, he became the father[30] of Enosh. 7And after he became the father of Enosh, Seth lived 807 years and had other sons and daughters. 8Altogether, Seth lived 912 years, and then he died.
9When Enosh had lived 90 years, he became the father of Kenan. 10And after he became the father of Kenan, Enosh lived 815 years and had other sons and daughters. 11Altogether, Enosh lived 905 years, and then he died.
12When Kenan had lived 70 years, he became the father of Mahalalel. 13And after he became the father of Mahalalel, Kenan lived 840 years and had other sons and daughters. 14Altogether, Kenan lived 910 years, and then he died.
15When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he became the father of Jared. 16And after he became the father of Jared, Mahalalel lived 830 years and had other sons and daughters. 17Altogether, Mahalalel lived 895 years, and then he died.
18When Jared had lived 162 years, he became the father of Enoch.† 19And after he became the father of Enoch, Jared lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. 20Altogether, Jared lived 962 years, and then he died.
21When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. 22And after he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God† 300 years and had other sons and daughters. 23Altogether, Enoch lived 365 years. 24Enoch walked with God;† then he was no more, because God took him away.†
25When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he became the father of Lamech. 26And after he became the father of Lamech, Methuselah lived 782 years and had other sons and daughters. 27Altogether, Methuselah lived 969 years, and then he died.
28When Lamech had lived 182 years, he had a son. 29He named him Noah[31] and said, “He will comfort us in the labor and painful toil of our hands caused by the ground the LORD has cursed.†” 30After Noah was born, Lamech lived 595 years and had other sons and daughters. 31Altogether, Lamech lived 777 years, and then he died.
32After Noah was 500 years old, he became the father of Shem, Ham and Japheth.
Genesis 6
The Flood
1When men began to increase in number on the earth† and daughters were born to them, 2the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. 3Then the LORD said, “My Spirit will not contend with[32] man forever,† for he is mortal[33];† his days will be a hundred and twenty years.”
4The Nephilim† were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of men and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.
5The LORD saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time.† 6The LORD was grieved† that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. 7So the LORD said, “I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth—men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air—for I am grieved that I have made them.” 8But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.†
9This is the account of Noah.
Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time,† and he walked with God.† 10Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth.†
11Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence.† 12God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways.† 13So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth.† 14So make yourself an ark of cypress[34] wood;† make rooms in it and coat it with pitch† inside and out. 15This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be 450 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high.[35] 16Make a roof for it and finish[36] the ark to within 18 inches[37] of the top. Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks. 17I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish.† 18But I will establish my covenant with you,† and you will enter the ark†—you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you. 19You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you. 20Two† of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive. 21You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.”
22Noah did everything just as God commanded him.†
Genesis 7
1The LORD then said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and your whole family,† because I have found you righteous† in this generation. 2Take with you seven[38] of every kind of clean† animal, a male and its mate, and two of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate, 3and also seven of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive throughout the earth. 4Seven days from now I will send rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights, and I will wipe from the face of the earth every living creature I have made.”
5And Noah did all that the LORD commanded him.†
6Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters came on the earth. 7And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark to escape the waters of the flood. 8Pairs of clean and unclean animals, of birds and of all creatures that move along the ground, 9male and female, came to Noah and entered the ark, as God had commanded Noah. 10And after the seven days the floodwaters came on the earth.
11In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, on the seventeenth day of the second month—on that day all the springs of the great deep† burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens† were opened. 12And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.†
13On that very day Noah and his sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, together with his wife and the wives of his three sons, entered the ark. 14They had with them every wild animal according to its kind, all livestock according to their kinds, every creature that moves along the ground according to its kind and every bird according to its kind, everything with wings. 15Pairs of all creatures that have the breath of life in them came to Noah and entered the ark.† 16The animals going in were male and female of every living thing, as God had commanded Noah. Then the LORD shut him in.
17For forty days† the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth. 18The waters rose and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the water. 19They rose greatly on the earth, and all the high mountains under the entire heavens were covered.† 20The waters rose and covered the mountains to a depth of more than twenty feet.[39],[40] 21Every living thing that moved on the earth perished—birds, livestock, wild animals, all the creatures that swarm over the earth, and all mankind.† 22Everything on dry land that had the breath of life† in its nostrils died. 23Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; men and animals and the creatures that move along the ground and the birds of the air were wiped from the earth.† Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.†
24The waters flooded the earth for a hundred and fifty days.†
Genesis 8
1But God remembered† Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth,† and the waters receded. 2Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens† had been closed, and the rain had stopped falling from the sky. 3The water receded steadily from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days the water had gone down, 4and on the seventeenth day of the seventh month the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. 5The waters continued to recede until the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible.
6After forty days Noah opened the window he had made in the ark 7and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. 8Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. 9But the dove could find no place to set its feet because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. 10He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. 11When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth. 12He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him.
13By the first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and first year, the water had dried up from the earth. Noah then removed the covering from the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry. 14By the twenty-seventh day of the second month the earth was completely dry.
15Then God said to Noah, 16“Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives.† 17Bring out every kind of living creature that is with you—the birds, the animals, and all the creatures that move along the ground—so they can multiply on the earth and be fruitful and increase in number upon it.”†
18So Noah came out, together with his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives. 19All the animals and all the creatures that move along the ground and all the birds—everything that moves on the earth—came out of the ark, one kind after another.
20Then Noah built an altar to the LORD† and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean† birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings† on it. 21The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma† and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground† because of man, even though[41] every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood.† And never again will I destroy all living creatures,† as I have done.
22“As long as the earth endures,
seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat,
summer and winter,
day and night
will never cease.Ӡ
Genesis 9
God’s Covenant With Noah
1Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.† 2The fear and dread of you will fall upon all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air, upon every creature that moves along the ground, and upon all the fish of the sea; they are given into your hands. 3Everything that lives and moves will be food for you.† Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.
4“But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it.† 5And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal.† And from each man, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of his fellow man.†
6“Whoever sheds the blood of man,
by man shall his blood be shed;†
for in the image of God†
has God made man.
7As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it.Ӡ
8Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: 9“I now establish my covenant with you† and with your descendants after you 10and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you—every living creature on earth. 11I establish my covenant† with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.†”
12And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant† I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15I will remember my covenant† between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant† between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”
17So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant† I have established between me and all life on the earth.”
The Sons of Noah
18The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham and Japheth. (Ham was the father of Canaan.)† 19These were the three sons of Noah, and from them came the people who were scattered over the earth.†
20Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded[42] to plant a vineyard. 21When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. 22Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers outside. 23But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father’s nakedness.
24When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, 25he said,
“Cursed be Canaan!†
The lowest of slaves
will he be to his brothers.†”
26He also said,
“Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem!
May Canaan be the slave of Shem.[43]
27May God extend the territory of Japheth[44];
may Japheth live in the tents of Shem,
and may Canaan be his[45] slave.”
28After the flood Noah lived 350 years. 29Altogether, Noah lived 950 years, and then he died.
Genesis 10
The Table of Nations
1This is the account† of Shem, Ham and Japheth, Noah’s sons, who themselves had sons after the flood.
The Japhethites
2The sons[46] of Japheth:
Gomer,† Magog,† Madai, Javan, Tubal,† Meshech and Tiras.
3The sons of Gomer:
Ashkenaz,† Riphath and Togarmah.†
4The sons of Javan:
Elishah, Tarshish,† the Kittim and the Rodanim.[47] 5(From these the maritime peoples spread out into their territories by their clans within their nations, each with its own language.)
The Hamites
6The sons of Ham:
Cush, Mizraim,[48] Put and Canaan.†
7The sons of Cush:
Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabteca.
The sons of Raamah:
Sheba and Dedan.
8Cush was the father[49] of Nimrod, who grew to be a mighty warrior on the earth. 9He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD.” 10The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon,† Erech, Akkad and Calneh, in[50] Shinar.[51] † 11From that land he went to Assyria,† where he built Nineveh,† Rehoboth Ir,[52] Calah 12and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city.
13Mizraim was the father of
the Ludites, Anamites, Lehabites, Naphtuhites, 14Pathrusites, Casluhites (from whom the Philistines† came) and Caphtorites.
15Canaan† was the father of
Sidon† his firstborn,[53] and of the Hittites,† 16Jebusites,† Amorites, Girgashites, 17Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, 18Arvadites, Zemarites and Hamathites.
Later the Canaanite† clans scattered 19and the borders of Canaan† reached from Sidon† toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha.
20These are the sons of Ham by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations.
The Semites
21Sons were also born to Shem, whose older brother was[54] Japheth; Shem was the ancestor of all the sons of Eber.†
22The sons of Shem:
Elam,† Asshur, Arphaxad,† Lud and Aram.
23The sons of Aram:
Uz,† Hul, Gether and Meshech.[55]
24Arphaxad was the father of[56] Shelah,
and Shelah the father of Eber.†
25Two sons were born to Eber:
One was named Peleg,[57] because in his time the earth was divided; his brother was named Joktan.
26Joktan was the father of
Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 27Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 28Obal, Abimael, Sheba, 29Ophir, Havilah and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan.
30The region where they lived stretched from Mesha toward Sephar, in the eastern hill country.
31These are the sons of Shem by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations.
32These are the clans of Noah’s sons,† according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earth† after the flood.
Genesis 11
The Tower of Babel
1Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2As men moved eastward,[58] they found a plain in Shinar[59] † and settled there.
3They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks† and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar† for mortar. 4Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens,† so that we may make a name† for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”†
5But the LORD came down† to see the city and the tower that the men were building. 6The LORD said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7Come, let us† go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”†
8So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth,† and they stopped building the city. 9That is why it was called Babel[60] †—because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth.
From Shem to Abram
10This is the account of Shem.
Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father[61] of Arphaxad. 11And after he became the father of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters.
12When Arphaxad had lived 35 years, he became the father of Shelah.† 13And after he became the father of Shelah, Arphaxad lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.[62]
14When Shelah had lived 30 years, he became the father of Eber. 15And after he became the father of Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.
16When Eber had lived 34 years, he became the father of Peleg. 17And after he became the father of Peleg, Eber lived 430 years and had other sons and daughters.
18When Peleg had lived 30 years, he became the father of Reu. 19And after he became the father of Reu, Peleg lived 209 years and had other sons and daughters.
20When Reu had lived 32 years, he became the father of Serug.† 21And after he became the father of Serug, Reu lived 207 years and had other sons and daughters.
22When Serug had lived 30 years, he became the father of Nahor. 23And after he became the father of Nahor, Serug lived 200 years and had other sons and daughters.
24When Nahor had lived 29 years, he became the father of Terah.† 25And after he became the father of Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and had other sons and daughters.
26After Terah had lived 70 years, he became the father of Abram,† Nahor† and Haran.
27This is the account of Terah.
Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot.† 28While his father Terah was still alive, Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans,† in the land of his birth. 29Abram and Nahor both married. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai,† and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah;† she was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milcah and Iscah. 30Now Sarai was barren; she had no children.†
31Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans† to go to Canaan.† But when they came to Haran, they settled there.
32Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Haran.
Genesis 12
The Call of Abram
1The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you.†
2“I will make you into a great nation†
and I will bless you;†
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
3I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;†
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.†”
4So Abram left, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran.† 5He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people† they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.
6Abram traveled through the land† as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh† at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites† were in the land. 7The LORD appeared to Abram† and said, “To your offspring[63] I will give this land.”† So he built an altar there to the LORD,† who had appeared to him.
8From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel† and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD. 9Then Abram set out and continued toward the Negev.†
Abram in Egypt
10Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe. 11As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, “I know what a beautiful woman you are. 12When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me but will let you live. 13Say you are my sister,† so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you.”
14When Abram came to Egypt, the Egyptians saw that she was a very beautiful woman. 15And when Pharaoh’s officials saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into his palace. 16He treated Abram well for her sake, and Abram acquired sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, menservants and maidservants, and camels.
17But the LORD inflicted serious diseases on Pharaoh and his household† because of Abram’s wife Sarai. 18So Pharaoh summoned Abram. “What have you done to me?”† he said. “Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife? 19Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go!” 20Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had.
Genesis 13
Abram and Lot Separate
1So Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev,† with his wife and everything he had, and Lot went with him. 2Abram had become very wealthy in livestock and in silver and gold.
3From the Negev he went from place to place until he came to Bethel,† to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had been earlier 4and where he had first built an altar.† There Abram called on the name of the LORD.
5Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. 6But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together.† 7And quarreling† arose between Abram’s herdsmen and the herdsmen of Lot. The Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land† at that time.
8So Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not have any quarreling between you and me,† or between your herdsmen and mine, for we are brothers.† 9Is not the whole land before you? Let’s part company. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left.”
10Lot looked up and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan was well watered, like the garden of the LORD,† like the land of Egypt, toward Zoar.† (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.)† 11So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company: 12Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot lived among the cities of the plain† and pitched his tents near Sodom.† 13Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the LORD.†
14The LORD said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west.† 15All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring[64] forever.† 16I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. 17Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land,† for I am giving it to you.”
18So Abram moved his tents and went to live near the great trees of Mamre† at Hebron,† where he built an altar to the LORD.†
Genesis 14
Abram Rescues Lot
1At this time Amraphel king of Shinar,[65] † Arioch king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer king of Elam and Tidal king of Goiim 2went to war against Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim,† and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar).† 3All these latter kings joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (the Salt Sea[66] †). 4For twelve years they had been subject to Kedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
5In the fourteenth year, Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him went out and defeated the Rephaites† in Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emites† in Shaveh Kiriathaim 6and the Horites† in the hill country of Seir,† as far as El Paran† near the desert. 7Then they turned back and went to En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh), and they conquered the whole territory of the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who were living in Hazazon Tamar.†
8Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah,† the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim† and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) marched out and drew up their battle lines in the Valley of Siddim 9against Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five. 10Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, and when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some of the men fell into them and the rest fled to the hills.† 11The four kings seized all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food; then they went away. 12They also carried off Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions, since he was living in Sodom.
13One who had escaped came and reported this to Abram the Hebrew. Now Abram was living near the great trees of Mamre† the Amorite, a brother[67] of Eshcol and Aner, all of whom were allied with Abram. 14When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household† and went in pursuit as far as Dan.† 15During the night Abram divided his men to attack them and he routed them, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. 16He recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people.
17After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley).†
18Then Melchizedek† king of Salem[68] † brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, 19and he blessed Abram,† saying,
“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
Creator[69] of heaven and earth.†
20And blessed be[70] God Most High,†
who delivered your enemies into your hand.”
Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.†
21The king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the people and keep the goods for yourself.”
22But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand† to the LORD, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth,† and have taken an oath 23that I will accept nothing belonging to you,† not even a thread or the thong of a sandal, so that you will never be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24I will accept nothing but what my men have eaten and the share that belongs to the men who went with me—to Aner, Eshcol and Mamre. Let them have their share.”
Genesis 15
God’s Covenant With Abram
1After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram† in a vision:
“Do not be afraid,† Abram.
I am your shield,[71] †
your very great reward.[72] ”
2But Abram said, “O Sovereign LORD, what can you give me since I remain childless† and the one who will inherit[73] my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant† in my household will be my heir.”
4Then the word of the LORD came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son coming from your own body will be your heir.†” 5He took him outside and said, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars†—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”†
6Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.†
7He also said to him, “I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.”
8But Abram said, “O Sovereign LORD, how can I know† that I will gain possession of it?”
9So the LORD said to him, “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.”
10Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other;† the birds, however, he did not cut in half.† 11Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.
12As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep,† and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. 13Then the LORD said to him, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved† and mistreated four hundred years.† 14But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out† with great possessions.† 15You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age.† 16In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites† has not yet reached its full measure.”
17When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces.† 18On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land,† from the river[74] of Egypt† to the great river, the Euphrates— 19the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, 21Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.”
Genesis 16
Hagar and Ishmael
1Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children.† But she had an Egyptian maidservant† named Hagar; 2so she said to Abram, “The LORD has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her.”†
