Good News Translation GNT
New International Version NIV
1 At first, the people of the whole world had only one language and used the same words.
1
Now the whole world had one language and a common speech.
2 As they wandered about in the East, they came to a plain in Babylonia and settled there.
2
As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there.
3 They said to one another, "Come on! Let's make bricks and bake them hard." So they had bricks to build with and tar to hold them together.
3
They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar.
4 They said, "Now let's build a city with a tower that reaches the sky, so that we can make a name for ourselves and not be scattered all over the earth."
4
Then 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; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”
5 Then the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which they had built,
5
But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower the people were building.
6 and he said, "Now then, these are all one people and they speak one language; this is just the beginning of what they are going to do. Soon they will be able to do anything they want!
6
The 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.
7 Let us go down and mix up their language so that they will not understand each other."
7
Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”
8 So the Lord scattered them all over the earth, and they stopped building the city.
8
So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city.
9 The city was called Babylon, because there the Lord mixed up the language of all the people, and from there he scattered them all over the earth.
9
That is why it was called Babel —because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth.
10 These are the descendants of Shem. Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he had a son, Arpachshad.
10
This is the account of Shem’s family line. Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father of Arphaxad.
11 After that, he lived another 500 years and had other children.
11
And after he became the father of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters.
12 When Arpachshad was 35 years old, he had a son, Shelah;
12
When Arphaxad had lived 35 years, he became the father of Shelah.
13 after that, he lived another 403 years and had other children.
13
And after he became the father of Shelah, Arphaxad lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.
14 When Shelah was 30 years old, he had a son, Eber;
14
When Shelah had lived 30 years, he became the father of Eber.
15 after that, he lived another 403 years and had other children.
15
And after he became the father of Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.
16 When Eber was 34 years old, he had a son, Peleg;
16
When Eber had lived 34 years, he became the father of Peleg.
17 after that, he lived another 430 years and had other children.
17
And after he became the father of Peleg, Eber lived 430 years and had other sons and daughters.
18 When Peleg was 30 years old, he had a son, Reu;
18
When Peleg had lived 30 years, he became the father of Reu.
19 after that, he lived another 209 years and had other children.
19
And after he became the father of Reu, Peleg lived 209 years and had other sons and daughters.
20 When Reu was 32 years old, he had a son, Serug;
20
When Reu had lived 32 years, he became the father of Serug.
21 after that, he lived another 207 years and had other children.
21
And after he became the father of Serug, Reu lived 207 years and had other sons and daughters.
22 When Serug was 30 years old, he had a son, Nahor;
22
When Serug had lived 30 years, he became the father of Nahor.
23 after that, he lived another 200 years and had other children.
23
And after he became the father of Nahor, Serug lived 200 years and had other sons and daughters.
24 When Nahor was 29 years old, he had a son, Terah;
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When Nahor had lived 29 years, he became the father of Terah.
25 after that, he lived another 119 years and had other children.
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And after he became the father of Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and had other sons and daughters.
26 After Terah was 70 years old, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
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After Terah had lived 70 years, he became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran.
27 These are the descendants of Terah, who was the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Haran was the father of Lot,
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This is the account of Terah’s family line. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot.
28 and Haran died in his hometown of Ur in Babylonia, while his father was still living.
28
While his father Terah was still alive, Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans, in the land of his birth.
29 Abram married Sarai, and Nahor married Milcah, the daughter of Haran, who was also the father of Iscah.
29
Abram and Nahor both married. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milkah; she was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milkah and Iskah.
30 Sarai was not able to have children.
30
Now Sarai was childless because she was not able to conceive.
31 Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot, who was the son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, Abram's wife, and with them he left the city of Ur in Babylonia to go to the land of Canaan. They went as far as Haran and settled there.
31
Terah 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 Harran, they settled there.
32 Terah died there at the age of 205.
32
Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Harran.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.
Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. All rights reserved worldwide.