1The whole earth was of one language and of one speech. 2It happened, as they traveled from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they settled there. 3And they said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly." They had brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar. 4They said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top reaches to the sky, and let us make ourselves a name, lest we be scattered abroad on the surface of the whole earth." 5And God came down to see the city and the tower, that humankind was building. 6And God said, "Look, they are one people, and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do. So now nothing which they plan to do will be too difficult for them. 7Come, let us go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech." 8Then God scattered them abroad from there on the surface of all the earth; so they ceased building the city. 9Therefore its name was called Babel, because there God confused the language of all the earth. From there he scattered them over the face of the whole earth.

10These are the generations of Shem. Shem was one hundred years old and became the father of Arpachshad two years after the flood. 11Shem lived five hundred years after he became the father of Arpachshad, and fathered sons and daughters.

12And Arpachshad lived one-hundred and thirty-five years and became the father of Kenan. 13And Arpachshad lived four hundred and thirty years after he became the father of Kenan, and fathered sons and daughters. And Kenan lived one hundred and thirty years and became the father of Shelah. And Kenan lived after he had become the father of Shelah three hundred and thirty years, and fathered sons and daughters.

14Shelah lived one hundred and thirty years, and became the father of Eber: 15and Shelah lived four hundred and three years after he became the father of Eber, and fathered sons and daughters.

16Eber lived one hundred and thirty-four years, and became the father of Peleg. 17Eber lived three hundred and seventy years after he became the father of Peleg, and fathered sons and daughters.

18Peleg lived one hundred and thirty years, and became the father of Reu. 19Peleg lived two hundred and nine years after he became the father of Reu, and fathered sons and daughters.

20Reu lived one hundred and thirty-two years, and became the father of Serug. 21Reu lived two hundred and seven years after he became the father of Serug, and fathered sons and daughters.

22Serug lived one hundred and thirty years, and became the father of Nahor. 23Serug lived two hundred years after he became the father of Nahor, and fathered sons and daughters.

24Nahor lived seventy-nine years, and became the father of Terah. 25Nahor lived one hundred and twenty-nine years after he became the father of Terah, and fathered sons and daughters.

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

27Now these are the generations of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot. 28And Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur Kasdim. 29And Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran who was also the father of Iscah. 30And Sarai was barren. She had no child.

31And Terah took Abram his son, Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife, and with them he set out from Ur Kasdim to go into the land of Canaan. But when they came to Haran, they settled there. 32And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years. And Terah died in Haran.