Genesis 11:5-31

5 The Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which mortals had built.
6 And the Lord said, "Look, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them.
7 Come, let us go down, and confuse their language there, so that they will not understand one another's speech."
8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city.
9 Therefore it was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.
10 These are the descendants of Shem. When Shem was one hundred years old, he became the father of Arpachshad two years after the flood;
11 and Shem lived after the birth of Arpachshad five hundred years, and had other sons and daughters.
12 When Arpachshad had lived thirty-five years, he became the father of Shelah;
13 and Arpachshad lived after the birth of Shelah four hundred three years, and had other sons and daughters.
14 When Shelah had lived thirty years, he became the father of Eber;
15 and Shelah lived after the birth of Eber four hundred three years, and had other sons and daughters.
16 When Eber had lived thirty-four years, he became the father of Peleg;
17 and Eber lived after the birth of Peleg four hundred thirty years, and had other sons and daughters.
18 When Peleg had lived thirty years, he became the father of Reu;
19 and Peleg lived after the birth of Reu two hundred nine years, and had other sons and daughters.
20 When Reu had lived thirty-two years, he became the father of Serug;
21 and Reu lived after the birth of Serug two hundred seven years, and had other sons and daughters.
22 When Serug had lived thirty years, he became the father of Nahor;
23 and Serug lived after the birth of Nahor two hundred years, and had other sons and daughters.
24 When Nahor had lived twenty-nine years, he became the father of Terah;
25 and Nahor lived after the birth of Terah one hundred nineteen years, and had other sons and daughters.
26 When Terah had lived seventy years, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
27 Now these are the descendants of Terah. Terah was the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran was the father of Lot.
28 Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldeans.
29 Abram and Nahor took wives; 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 Milcah and Iscah.
30 Now Sarai was barren; she had no child.
31 Terah took his son Abram and his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram's wife, and they went out together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan; but when they came to Haran, they settled there.

Genesis 11:5-31 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 11

This chapter gives an account of the inhabitants of the earth before the confusion of tongues at Babel, of their speech and language, which was one and the same, and of the place where they dwelt, Ge 11:1,2 and of their design to build a city and tower, to make them a name and keep them together, which they put in execution, Ge 11:3,4 of the notice the Lord took of this affair, and of the method he took to put a stop to their designs, by confounding their speech, and dispersing them abroad upon the face of the earth, Ge 11:5-9 then follows a genealogy of Shem's posterity down to Abraham, Ge 11:10-26 and a particular relation is given of Terah, the father of Abraham, and his family, and of his going forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, in order to go into the land of Canaan, and of his death at Haran by the way, Ge 11:27-32.

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Heb [balal], meaning [to confuse]
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.