The tower of Babel. The confusion of tongues. The genealogy of Sem down to Abram.

¹ Now the earth was of one language and of the same speech.

² And when they were advancing from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt in it.

³ And each one said to his neighbor, “Come, let us make bricks, and bake them with fire.” And they had bricks instead of stones, and pitch instead of mortar.

⁴ And they said: “Come, let us make a city and a tower, so that its height may reach to heaven. And let us make our name famous before we are divided into all the lands.”

⁵ Then the Lord descended to see the city and the tower, which the sons of Adam were building.

⁶ And he said: “Behold, the people are united, and all have one tongue. And since they have begun to do this, they will not desist from their plans, until they have completed their work.

⁷ Therefore, come, let us descend, and in that place confound their tongue, so that they may not listen, each one to the voice of his neighbor.”

⁸ And so the Lord divided them from that place into all the lands, and they ceased to build the city.

⁹ And for this reason, its name was called ‘Babel,’ because in that place the language of the whole earth became confused. And from then on, the Lord scattered them across the face of every region.¹

1. 11:9Babel: That is, confusion.(Challoner)

¹⁰ These are the generations of Shem. Shem was one hundred years old when he conceived Arphaxad, two years after the great flood.

¹¹ And after he conceived Arphaxad, Shem lived for five hundred years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

¹² Next, Arphaxad lived for thirty-five years, and then he conceived Shelah.

¹³ And after he conceived Shelah, Arphaxad lived for three hundred and three years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

¹⁴ Likewise, Shelah lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Eber.

¹⁵ And after he conceived Eber, Shelah lived for four hundred and three years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

¹⁶ Then Eber lived for thirty-four years, and he conceived Peleg.

¹⁷ And after he conceived Peleg, Eber lived for four hundred and thirty years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

¹⁸ Likewise, Peleg lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Reu.

¹⁹ And after he conceived Reu, Peleg lived for two hundred and nine years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

²⁰ Then Reu lived for thirty-two years, and then he conceived Serug.

²¹ Likewise, after he conceived Serug, Reu lived for two hundred and seven years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

²² In truth, Serug lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Nahor.

²³ And after he conceived Nahor, Serug lived for two hundred years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

²⁴ And so Nahor lived for twenty-nine years, and then he conceived Terah.

²⁵ And after he conceived Terah, Nahor lived for one hundred and nineteen years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

²⁶ And Terah lived for seventy years, and then he conceived Abram, and Nahor, and Haran.

²⁷ And these are the generations of Terah. Terah conceived Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Next Haran conceived Lot.

²⁸ And Haran died before his father Terah, in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldeans.

²⁹ Then Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai. And the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah.¹

1. 11:29This Haran might not be the same as the brother of Nachor. This Haran is the father of Milcah and Iscah, whereas the other Haran is the father of Lot. This also explains the redundancy of saying that Milcah is Haran’s daughter, and then saying that Haran is the father of Milcah and Iscah.(Conte)

³⁰ But Sarai was barren and had no children.

³¹ And so Terah took his son Abram, and his grandson Lot, the son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and he led them away from Ur of the Chaldeans, to go into the land of Canaan. And they approached as far as Haran, and they dwelt there.

³² And the days of Terah that passed were two hundred and five years, and then he died in Haran.