1Now the whole earth used one language and had the same words.

2As they journeyed in the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and they settled there.

3They said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They had brick instead of stone and tar as mortar.

4They said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower whose top will reach to the sky, and let us make a name for ourselves. If we do not, we will be scattered across the surface of the whole earth.”

5So Yahweh came down to see the city and the tower which the descendants of Adam had built.

6Yahweh said, “Look, they are one people with the same language, and they are beginning to do this! Soon nothing that they intend to do will be impossible for them.

7Come, let us go down and confuse their language there, so that they may not understand each other.”

8So Yahweh scattered them from there across the surface of all the earth and they stopped building the city.

9Therefore, its name was called Babel, because there Yahweh confused the language of the whole earth and from there Yahweh scattered them abroad over the surface of all the earth.

10These were the descendants of Shem. Shem was a hundred years old, and he became the father of Arphaxad two years after the flood.

11Shem lived five hundred years after he became the father of Arphaxad. He also became the father of other sons and daughters.

12When Arphaxad had lived thirty-five years, he became the father of Shelah.

13Arphaxad lived 403 years after he became the father of Shelah. He also became the father of other sons and daughters.

14When Shelah had lived thirty years, he became the father of Eber.

15Shelah lived 403 years after he became the father of Eber. He also became the father of other sons and daughters.

16When Eber had lived thirty-four years, he became the father of Peleg.

17Eber lived 430 years after he became the father of Peleg. He also became the father of other sons and daughters.

18When Peleg had lived thirty years, he became the father of Reu.

19Peleg lived 209 years after he became the father of Reu. He also became the father of other sons and daughters.

20When Reu had lived thirty-two years, he became the father of Serug.

21Reu lived 207 years after he became the father of Serug. He also became the father of other sons and daughters.

22When Serug had lived thirty years, he became the father of Nahor.

23Serug lived two hundred years after he became the father of Nahor. He also became the father of other sons and daughters.

24When Nahor had live twenty-nine years, he became the father of Terah.

25Nahor lived 119 years after he became the father of Terah. He also became the father of other sons and daughters.

26After Terah had lived seventy years, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

27Now these were the descendants of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran, and Haran became the father of Lot.

28Haran died in the presence of his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldeans.

29Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai and the name of Nahor's wife was Milkah, a daughter of Haran, who was the father of Milkah and Iskah.

30Now Sarai was barren; she had no child.

31Terah took Abram his son, Lot the son of his son Haran, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram's wife, and together they left Ur of the Chaldeans, to go into the land of Canaan. But they came to Haran and stayed there.

32Terah lived 205 years and then died in Haran.