New Revised Standard NRS
The Bible in Basic English BBE
1 Now the whole earth had one language and the same words.
1
And all the earth had one language and one tongue.
2 And as they migrated from the east, they came upon a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there.
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And it came about that in their wandering from the east, they came to a stretch of flat country in the land of Shinar, and there they made their living-place.
3 And they said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly." And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar.
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And they said one to another, Come, let us make bricks, burning them well. And they had bricks for stone, putting them together with sticky earth.
4 Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth."
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And they said, Come, let us make a town, and a tower whose top will go up as high as heaven; and let us make a great name for ourselves, so that we may not be wanderers over the face of the earth.
5 The Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which mortals had built.
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And the Lord came down to see the town and the tower which the children of men were building.
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.
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And the Lord said, See, they are all one people and have all one language; and this is only the start of what they may do: and now it will not be possible to keep them from any purpose of theirs.
7 Come, let us go down, and confuse their language there, so that they will not understand one another's speech."
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Come, let us go down and take away the sense of their language, so that they will not be able to make themselves clear to one another.
8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city.
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So the Lord God sent them away into every part of the earth: and they gave up building their town.
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.
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So it was named Babel, because there the Lord took away the sense of all languages and from there the Lord sent them away over all the face of 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;
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These are the generations of Shem. Shem was a hundred years old when he became the father of Arpachshad, two years after the great flow of waters;
11 and Shem lived after the birth of Arpachshad five hundred years, and had other sons and daughters.
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And after the birth of Arpachshad, Shem went on living for five hundred years, and had sons and daughters:
12 When Arpachshad had lived thirty-five years, he became the father of Shelah;
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And Arpachshad was thirty-five years old when 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.
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And after the birth of Shelah, Arpachshad went on living for four hundred and three years, and had sons and daughters:
14 When Shelah had lived thirty years, he became the father of Eber;
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And Shelah was thirty years old when 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.
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And after the birth of Eber, Shelah went on living for four hundred and three years, and had sons and daughters:
16 When Eber had lived thirty-four years, he became the father of Peleg;
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And Eber was thirty-four years old when 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.
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And after the birth of Peleg, Eber went on living for four hundred and thirty years, and had sons and daughters:
18 When Peleg had lived thirty years, he became the father of Reu;
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And Peleg was thirty years old when 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.
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And after the birth of Reu, Peleg went on living for two hundred and nine years, and had sons and daughters:
20 When Reu had lived thirty-two years, he became the father of Serug;
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And Reu was thirty-two years old when 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.
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And after the birth of Serug, Reu went on living for two hundred and seven years, and had sons and daughters:
22 When Serug had lived thirty years, he became the father of Nahor;
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And Serug was thirty years old when he became the father of Nahor:
23 and Serug lived after the birth of Nahor two hundred years, and had other sons and daughters.
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And after the birth of Nahor, Serug went on living for two hundred years, and had sons and daughters:
24 When Nahor had lived twenty-nine years, he became the father of Terah;
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And Nahor was twenty-nine years old when 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.
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And after the birth of Terah, Nahor went on living for a hundred and nineteen years, and had sons and daughters:
26 When Terah had lived seventy years, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
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And Terah was seventy years old when 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.
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These are the generations 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.
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And death came to Haran when he was with his father Terah in the land of his birth, Ur of the Chaldees.
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.
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And Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves: 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 Iscah.
30 Now Sarai was barren; she had no child.
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And Sarai 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.
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And Terah took Abram, his son, and Lot, the son of Haran, and Sarai, his daughter-in-law, the wife of his son Abram and they went out from Ur of the Chaldees, to go to the land of Canaan; and they came to Haran, and were there for some time.
32 The days of Terah were two hundred five years; and Terah died in Haran.
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And all the years of Terah's life were two hundred and five: and Terah came to his end in Haran.
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.
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.