Bible in 90 Days
The Creation
1 In the beginning, God created the universe.[a] 2 When the earth[b] was as yet unformed and desolate, with the surface of the ocean depths shrouded[c] in darkness, and while the Spirit of God was hovering[d] over the surface of the waters, 3 God said, “Let there be light!” So there was light.
4 God saw that the light was beautiful.[e] He[f] separated the light from the darkness, 5 calling the light “day,” and the darkness[g] “night.” The twilight and the dawn were day one.
6 Then God said, “Let there be a canopy[h] between bodies of water,[i] separating bodies of water[j] from bodies of water!”[k] 7 So God made a canopy[l] that separated the water beneath the canopy[m] from the water above it.[n] And that is what happened:[o] 8 God called the canopy[p] “sky.”[q] The twilight and the dawn were the second day.
9 Then God said, “Let the water beneath the sky come together into one area, and let dry ground appear!” And that is what happened:[r] 10 God called the dry ground “land,”[s] and he called the water that had come together “oceans.” And God saw how good it was.
11 Then God said, “Let vegetation sprout all over the earth, including[t] seed-bearing plants and fruit trees, each kind containing its own seed!” And that is what happened:[u] 12 Vegetation sprouted all over the earth, including seed-bearing plants and fruit trees, each kind containing its own seed. And God saw that it was good. 13 The twilight and the dawn were the third day.
14 Then God said, “Let there be lights across[v] the sky to distinguish day from night, to act as signs for seasons,[w] days, and years, 15 to serve as lights in[x] the sky, and to shine on the earth!” And that is what happened:[y] 16 God fashioned two great lights—the larger light to shine during[z] the day and the smaller light to shine during[aa] the night—as well as stars. 17 God placed them in space[ab] to shine on the earth, 18 to differentiate between[ac] day and night, and to distinguish[ad] light from darkness. And God saw how good it was. 19 The twilight and the dawn were the fourth day.
20 Then God said, “Let the oceans swarm[ae] with living creatures, and let flying creatures soar above the earth throughout[af] the sky!” 21 So God created every kind of magnificent marine creature, every kind of living marine crawler[ag] with which the waters swarmed, and every kind of flying creature.[ah] And God saw how good it was. 22 God blessed them by saying, “Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the oceans. Let the birds multiply throughout the earth!” 23 The twilight and the dawn were the fifth day.
24 Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth each kind of living creature, each kind of livestock and crawling thing, and each kind of earth’s animals!”[ai] And that is what happened:[aj] 25 God made each kind of the earth’s animals, along with every kind of livestock and crawling thing.[ak] And God saw how good it was.
26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, to be like us.[al] Let them be masters over the fish in the ocean, the birds that fly,[am] the livestock, everything that crawls on the earth, and over the earth itself!”
27 So God created mankind in his own image;
in his own image God created them;[an]
he created them male and female.
28 God blessed the humans by saying to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it! Be masters over the fish in the ocean, the birds that fly, and every living thing that crawls on the earth!”
29 God also told them,[ao] “Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant that grows throughout[ap] the earth, along with every tree that grows seed-bearing fruit. They will produce your food. 30 I have given all green plants as food for every wild animal[aq] of the earth, every bird that flies, and to every living thing[ar] that crawls on the earth.” And that is what happened.[as]
31 Now God saw all that he had made, and indeed, it was very good! The twilight and the dawn were the sixth day.
The Seventh Day
2 With this, the universe[at] was[au] completed, including all of its vast array.[av] 2 By the seventh day, God had completed the work he had been doing, so on the seventh day he stopped working on[aw] everything that he had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God stopped working on[ax] everything that he had been creating.
Humans in the Garden
4 These are the records of the universe at its[ay] creation. On the day that the Lord God made the universe,[az] 5 no shrubs had yet grown in the meadows of the earth and no vegetation had sprouted,[ba] because the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth and there were no human beings[bb] to work the ground. 6 Instead, an underground stream[bc] would arise out of the earth and water the surface of the ground. 7 So the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground, breathed life into his lungs,[bd] and the man became a living being.
8 The Lord God planted a garden in Eden, toward[be] the east, where he placed the man whom he had formed. 9 The Lord God caused every tree that is both beautiful[bf] and suitable for food to spring up out of the ground. The tree of life was also in the middle of the garden, along with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 10 A river flows from Eden to water the garden, and from there it divides, becoming four branches. 11 The name of the first one is Pishon—it winds through the entire land of Havilah,[bg] where there is gold. 12 The gold of that land is pure;[bh] bdellium[bi] and onyx are also found[bj] there. 13 The name of the second river is Gihon—[bk] it winds through the entire land of Cush.[bl] 14 The third river is named the Tigris— it flows to the east of Assyria. The fourth river is the Euphrates.
15 The Lord God took the man and placed him in the Garden of Eden in order to have him work it and guard[bm] it. 16 The Lord God commanded the man: “You may freely eat from every tree of the garden, 17 but you are not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, because you will certainly die during the day that you eat from it.”
The Creation of the Woman
18 Later, the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make the woman[bn] to be an authority[bo] corresponding[bp] to him.” 19 After the Lord God formed from the ground every wild animal[bq] and every bird that flies, he brought each of them[br] to the man to see what he would call it. Whatever the man called each living creature became its name. 20 The man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds that fly, and to each of earth’s animals,[bs] but there was not found a strength[bt] corresponding[bu] to him, 21 so the Lord God caused a deep sleep to overshadow the man.
When the man[bv] was asleep, he removed one of the man’s[bw] ribs and closed up the flesh where it had been. 22 Then the Lord God formed the rib that he had taken from the man into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 So the man exclaimed,
“At last! This is
bone from my bones
and flesh from my flesh.
This one will be called ‘Woman,’
because she was taken from Man.”[bx]
24 (Therefore a man will leave his father and his mother and cling to his wife, and they will become one flesh.) 25 Even though both the man and his wife were naked, they were not ashamed about it.[by]
The Temptation and Fall
3 Now the Shining One[bz] was more clever than any animal of the field that the Lord God had made. He[ca] asked the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You are not to eat from any tree of the garden’?”
2 “We may eat from the trees of the garden,” the woman answered the Shining One,[cb] 3 “but as for the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You are not to eat from it, nor are you to touch it, or you will die.’”
4 “You certainly will not die!” the Shining One[cc] told the woman. 5 “Even God knows that on the day you eat from it, your eyes will be opened and you’ll become like God,[cd] knowing good and evil.”
6 When the woman saw that the tree produced good food, was attractive in appearance,[ce] and was desirable for making one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate it.[cf] Then she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate some, too.[cg] 7 As a result, they both understood what they had done,[ch] and they became aware that they were naked. So they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.
8 When they heard the voice of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden during the breeze of the day, the man and his wife concealed themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 So the Lord God called out to the man, asking him, “Where are you?”
10 “I heard your voice in the garden,” the man[ci] answered, “and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid from you.”[cj]
11 “Who told you that you are naked?” God[ck] asked. “Did you eat fruit[cl] from the tree that I commanded you not to eat?”
12 The man answered, “The woman whom you provided for[cm] me gave me fruit[cn] from the tree, and I ate some of it.”[co]
13 Then the Lord God asked the woman, “What did you do?”[cp]
“The Shining One[cq] misled me,” the woman answered, “so I ate.”
The Penalty of Sin
14 The Lord God told the Shining One,[cr]
“Because you have done this,
you are more cursed than all the livestock,
and more than all the earth’s animals,[cs]
You’ll crawl on your belly
and eat dust
as long as you live.
15 “I’ll place hostility between you and the woman,
between your offspring and her offspring.
He’ll strike you on the head,
and you’ll strike him on the heel.”
16 He told the woman,
“I’ll greatly increase the pain of your labor during childbirth.
It will be painful for you to bear children,
“since your trust is turning[ct] toward your husband,
and he will dominate you.”
17 He told the man,
“Because you have listened to what your wife said,[cu]
and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you,[cv]
‘You are not to not eat from it,’
cursed is the ground because of you.
You’ll eat from it through pain-filled labor
for the rest of your life.
18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you’ll eat the plants from the meadows.
19 You will eat food by the sweat of your brow
until you’re buried in[cw] the ground,
because you were taken from it.
You’re made from dust
and you’ll return to dust.”
20 Now Adam[cx] had named his wife “Eve,”[cy] because she was to become the mother of everyone who was living. 21 The Lord God fashioned garments from animal skins for Adam and his wife, and clothed them.
22 Later, the Lord God said, “Look! The man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, so he won’t reach out, also take from the tree of life, eat, and then live forever—” 23 therefore the Lord God expelled the man[cz] from the garden of Eden so he would work the ground from which he had been taken. 24 After he had expelled the man, the Lord God[da] placed winged angels[db] at the eastern end of the garden of Eden, along with a fiery, turning sword, to prevent access to[dc] the tree of life.
Cain and Abel
4 Later, Adam[dd] had sexual relations with[de] his wife Eve. She became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “I have given birth to[df] a male child—the Lord.”[dg] 2 And she did it again, giving birth to his brother Abel. Abel shepherded flocks and Cain became a farmer.[dh]
3 Later, after a while, Cain brought an offering to the Lord from the fruit that he had harvested,[di] 4 while Abel brought the best parts[dj] of some of the firstborn from his flock. The Lord looked favorably upon Abel and his offering, 5 but he did not look favorably upon Cain and his offering.
When Cain became very upset and[dk] depressed, 6 the Lord asked Cain, “Why are you so upset? Why are you[dl] depressed? 7 If you do what is appropriate,[dm] you’ll be accepted, won’t you? But if you don’t do what is appropriate,[dn] sin is crouching near your doorway, turning toward you. Now as for you, will you take dominion over it?”[do]
8 Instead, Cain told his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the wilderness.”[dp] When they were outside in the fields, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.
9 Later, the Lord asked Cain, “Where’s your brother Abel?”
“I don’t know,” he answered. “Am I my brother’s guardian?”
10 “What did you do?” God[dq] asked. “Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground. 11 Now you’re more cursed than the ground, which has opened[dr] to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12 Whenever you work the ground, it will no longer yield its produce to you, and you’ll wander throughout the earth as a fugitive.”
13 “My punishment is too great to bear,” Cain told the Lord. 14 “You’re driving me from the soil[ds] today. I’ll be hidden from you, and I’ll wander throughout the earth as a fugitive. In the future,[dt] whoever finds me will kill me.”
15 The Lord told him, “This won’t happen, because whoever kills you[du] will suffer seven times the vengeance.” Then the Lord placed a sign on Cain so that no one finding him would kill him. 16 After this, Cain left the presence of the Lord and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden.
From Cain to Lamech
17 Later, Cain had sexual relations with[dv] his wife. She became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain[dw] founded a city and named it after[dx] his son Enoch. 18 Irad was born to Enoch. Irad fathered Mehujael, and Mehujael fathered Methushael, and Methushael fathered Lamech. 19 Later, Lamech married two wives. One was named Adah and the other was named[dy] Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal, who became the ancestor of those who live in tents and herd[dz] livestock. 21 His brother was named Jubal; he became the ancestor of all those who play the lyre and the flute. 22 Zillah gave birth to Tubal-cain, who became a forger of bronze and iron work. Tubal-cain’s sister was Naamah. 23 Lamech told his wives,
“Adah and Zillah, listen to what I have to say:
You wives of Lamech, hear what I’m announcing!
I’ve killed a man for wounding me,
a young man for bruising me.
24 For if Cain is being avenged seven times,
then Lamech will be avenged[ea] 77 times.”
25 Later on, after Adam had sexual relations with[eb] his wife, she gave birth to a son and named him[ec] Seth, because
“God granted[ed] me another offspring to replace Abel,
since Cain murdered him.”
26 Seth also fathered a son, whom he named Enosh. At that time, profaning[ee] the name of the Lord began.
From Adam to Noah
5 This is the historical record[ef] of Adam’s[eg] generations.
When[eh] God created mankind,[ei]
he made them in his own likeness.[ej]
2 Creating them male and female,
he blessed them
and called them humans[ek]
when[el] he created them.
3 After Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son just like him,[em] that is,[en] according to his own likeness, and named him Seth. 4 Adam lived another 800 years, fathering other[eo] sons and daughters after he had fathered Seth. 5 Adam lived a total[ep] of 930 years, and then died.
6 When Seth had lived 105 years, he fathered Enosh. 7 After he fathered Enosh, Seth lived 807 years, fathering other sons and daughters. 8 Seth lived a total of 912 years, and then died.
9 When Enosh had lived 90 years, he fathered Kenan. 10 After he fathered Kenan, Enosh lived 815 years, fathering other sons and daughters. 11 Enosh lived a total of 905 years, and then died.
12 When Kenan had lived 70 years, he fathered Mahalalel. 13 After he fathered Mahalalel, Kenan lived 840 years, fathering other sons and daughters. 14 Kenan lived a total of 910 years, and then died.
15 When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he fathered Jared. 16 After he fathered Jared, Mahalalel lived 830 years, fathering other sons and daughters. 17 Mahalalel lived a total of 895 years, and then died.
18 When Jared had lived 162 years, he fathered Enoch. 19 After he fathered Enoch, Jared lived 800 years, fathering other sons and daughters. 20 Jared lived a total of 962 years, and then died.
21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. 22 After he fathered Methuselah, Enoch communed[eq] with God for 300 years and fathered other sons and daughters. 23 Enoch lived a total of 365 years, 24 communing[er] with God—and then he was there no longer, because God had taken him.
25 When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he fathered Lamech. 26 After he fathered Lamech, Methuselah lived 782 years, fathering other sons and daughters. 27 Methuselah lived a total of 969 years, and then died.
28 When Lamech had lived 182 years, he fathered a son, 29 whom he named Noah,[es] because he said, “May this one comfort us from our work, from pain that is caused by our manual labor, and from the ground that the Lord has cursed.” 30 After he fathered Noah, Lamech lived 595 years, fathering other sons and daughters. 31 Lamech lived a total of 777 years, and then died.
32 After Noah had lived 500 years, he fathered Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Human Corruption
6 Now after the population of human beings had increased throughout the[et] earth, and daughters had been born to them, 2 some divine beings[eu] noticed how attractive human women[ev] were, so they took wives for themselves from a selection that pleased them.[ew] 3 So the Lord said, “My Spirit won’t remain[ex] with human beings forever, because they’re truly mortal.[ey] Their lifespan[ez] will be 120 years.”
4 The Nephilim[fa] were on the earth at that time[fb] (and also immediately afterward), when those divine beings[fc] were having sexual relations with[fd] those human women,[fe] who gave birth to children for them. These children[ff] became the heroes and legendary figures of ancient times.[fg]
God Decides to Destroy the World
5 The Lord saw that human evil was growing more and more throughout the earth, with every inclination of people’s thoughts[fh] becoming only evil on a continuous basis. 6 Then the Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and he was deeply grieved about that.[fi] 7 So the Lord said, “I will annihilate these human beings whom I’ve created from the[fj] earth, including people, animals, crawling things, and flying creatures, because I’m grieving that I made them.” 8 However, the Lord was pleased with Noah.
Noah Obeys God
9 These are the family records[fk] of Noah: Noah was a righteous man. Blameless during his times,[fl] Noah communed[fm] with God. 10 Noah fathered three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 11 By this time, the earth had become ruined in God’s opinion[fn] and filled with violence. 12 God looked at the earth, observing how corrupt its population had become, because the entire human race[fo] had corrupted itself.[fp] 13 So God announced to Noah, “I’ve decided to destroy every living thing on earth,[fq] because it has become filled with violence due to them. Look! I’m about to annihilate them, along with the earth. 14 So make yourself an ark out of cedar,[fr] constructing compartments in it, and cover it inside and out with tar. 15 Make the ark like this: 300 cubits[fs] long, 50 cubits[ft] wide, and 30 cubits[fu] high. 16 Make a roof[fv] for the ark, and finish the walls[fw] to within one cubit[fx] from the top.[fy] Place the entrance in the side of the ark, and build a lower, a middle, and an upper deck.
17 “For my part, I’m about to flood the earth with water and destroy every living thing[fz] that breathes. Everything on earth will die. 18 However, I will establish my own covenant with you, and you are to enter the ark—you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives. 19 You are to bring two of every living thing[ga] into the ark so they may remain alive with you. They are to be male and female. 20 From birds according to their species,[gb] from domestic animals according to their species,[gc] and from everything that crawls on the ground according to their species[gd]—two of everything will come to you so they may remain alive. 21 For your part, take some of the edible food and store it away—these stores will be food for you and the animals.”[ge]
22 Noah did all of this, precisely as[gf] God had commanded.
Entering the Ark
7 Then the Lord told Noah, “Come—you and all your household—into the ark, because I’ve seen that you alone are righteous[gg] in this generation. 2 You are to take with you seven pairs[gh] of every clean animal, a male and its mate, and two of the unclean animals, a male and its mate; 3 along with seven pairs[gi] of the flying birds, male and female, in order to keep their offspring alive on the surface of all the earth. 4 Seven days from now I’ll send rain on the earth for 40 days and 40 nights, and I’ll destroy every living creature that I’ve made.”
5 Noah did everything that the Lord commanded.
The Flood Begins
6 Noah was 600 years old when water began to flood the earth. 7 Noah, his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives entered the ark with him before the flood waters arrived.[gj] 8 From both clean and unclean animals, from birds, and from everything that crawls on the ground, 9 two by two, male and female, they entered the ark to join Noah, just as God had commanded.
10 Seven days later, the flooding started. 11 On the seventeenth day of the second month, when Noah was 600 years old, all the springs of the great deep burst open, the floodgates of the heavens were opened, 12 and it rained throughout the earth for 40 days and 40 nights. 13 On that very day, Noah entered the ark with his[gk] sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, Noah’s wife, his sons’ three wives with them, 14 along with every species of wild animal,[gl] livestock, crawling creature, bird, and every creature that has wings. 15 Two of each living creature[gm] entered the ark with Noah. 16 The males and females of each living creature[gn] entered the ark,[go] just as God had commanded. Then the Lord sealed them inside.
17 The flood continued throughout the earth for 40 days, while the flood waters increased, lifting the ark so that it rose above the surface of the[gp] earth. 18 The flood waters continued to surge, increasing throughout the earth, while the ark floated on the surface of the flood water. 19 The flood water surged even higher throughout the earth, until all the highest mountains under the sky were covered. 20 The flood waters rose 15 cubits[gq] above the mountains. 21 Every living thing[gr] on earth died—flying creatures, livestock, wildlife, all creatures that swarm over the earth, and all human beings. 22 Everything that breathed[gs] and everything that had lived on dry land died. 23 All existing creatures that had lived on the surface of the ground were annihilated, from humans to livestock, from crawling creatures to birds of the sky. They were wiped off the earth. Only Noah remained, along with those who were with him in the ark. 24 The flood waters surged over the earth for 150 days.
The Waters Recede
8 God kept Noah in mind, along with all the wildlife[gt] and livestock that were with him in the ark. God’s Spirit[gu] moved throughout the earth, causing the flood waters to subside. 2 The water sources from the ocean depths were blocked and the floodgates of the heavens were closed. 3 Then the flood waters steadily receded,[gv] diminishing completely by the end of the 150 days. 4 The ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat[gw] on the seventeenth day of the seventh month. 5 The flood water continued to recede until the tenth month, when, on the first of that month, the tops of the mountains could be seen.
6 After 40 days, Noah opened the window of the ark that he had built 7 and sent out a raven. It went back and forth as the flood water continued to evaporate throughout the earth. 8 Later, he sent a dove out from the ark[gx] to see whether the water that covered the land’s surface had completely[gy] receded, 9 but the dove could not yet find a place to rest,[gz] so it returned to Noah[ha] on the ark, since water still covered the land. Noah reached out his hand and took the dove back[hb] into the ark with him.
10 Noah[hc] waited another seven days and sent the dove out from the ark again. 11 The dove returned to him in the evening, but in its beak there was an olive leaf that it had plucked! So Noah knew that the flood waters had decreased on the land. 12 He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but it did not return to him anymore.
13 In the six hundred and first year of Noah’s life,[hd] during the first month, the flood water began to evaporate from the land. Noah then removed the ark’s cover and saw that the surface of the land was drying. 14 By the twenty-seventh day of the second month, the ground was dry.
The Lord’s Covenant
15 God spoke to Noah, 16 “It’s time for you, your wife, your sons, and your sons’ wives who are with you to leave the ark. 17 Bring out with you every living creature—including the flying creatures, animals, and everything that crawls on the ground—so they may disperse throughout the land, be fruitful, and multiply throughout the earth.” 18 So Noah, his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives emerged. 19 Every animal, every crawling thing, every flying creature, and everything that moves on the earth emerged from the ark by groups.[he]
20 Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offerings on it[hf] from every clean animal and every clean bird. 21 When the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, he told himself, “I will never again curse the land because of human beings—even though human inclinations remain evil from youth—nor will I destroy every living being ever again, as I’ve done.
22 “Never[hg] again, as long as the earth exists,
will sowing and harvest,
cold and heat,
summer and winter,
and day and night ever cease.”
The Covenant with Noah
9 God blessed Noah and his sons and ordered them, “Be productive, multiply, and fill the earth. 2 All the living creatures of the earth will be filled with fear and terror of you from now on, including all the creatures that fly in the sky, everything that crawls on the ground, and all the fish of the ocean. They’ve been assigned to live under your dominion.[hh]
3 “Every living, moving creature will be food for you. Just as I gave you green plants before, so now you have everything. 4 However, you are not to eat meat with its life—that is, its blood—in it! 5 Also, I will certainly demand an accounting regarding bloodshed, from every animal and from every human being. I’ll demand an accounting from every human being for the life of another human being.
6 “Whoever sheds human blood,
by a human his own blood is to be shed;
because God made human beings
in his own image.
7 Now as for you, be productive
and multiply;
spread out over the land
and multiply throughout it.”
8 Later, God told Noah and his sons, 9 “Pay attention! I’m establishing my covenant with you and with your descendants after you, 10 and with every living creature that is with you—the flying creatures, the livestock, and all the wildlife of the earth that are with you—all the earth’s animals that came out of the ark. 11 I will establish my covenant with you: No living beings will ever be cut off again by flood waters, and there will never again be a flood that destroys the earth.”
The Sign of God’s Covenant
12 God also said, “Here’s the symbol that represents the covenant that I’m making between me and you and every living being with you, for all future generations: 13 I’ve set my rainbow in the sky[hi] to symbolize the covenant between me and the earth. 14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow becomes visible in the clouds, 15 I’ll remember my covenant between me and you and every living creature, so that water will never again become a flood to destroy all living beings. 16 When the rainbow is in the clouds, I will observe it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living beings on the earth.”
17 God also told Noah, “This is the symbol of the covenant that I’ve established between me and everything[hj] that lives on the earth.”
Noah and His Family
18 Noah’s sons who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. (Ham later fathered Canaan.) 19 These three were Noah’s sons, and from these men the whole earth was repopulated.
20 Noah, a man of the soil, was the first to plant and farm a vineyard. 21 He drank some of the wine, got drunk, and lay down naked[hk] right in the middle of his tent. 22 Ham, who fathered Canaan, saw his father’s genitals and told his two brothers outside. 23 Then Shem and Japheth took their father’s[hl] cloak, laid it across both their shoulders, and walking backwards, they both covered their father’s genitals. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father’s genitals. 24 When Noah sobered up and learned what his youngest son had done to him, 25 he said,
“Canaan is cursed!
He will be the lowest of slaves to his relatives.”
26 He also said,
“Blessed be the Lord God of Shem,
and may Canaan be his slave.
27 May God make room for[hm] Japheth;
may God[hn] live in Shem’s tents,
and may Canaan serve him.”
28 Noah lived 350 years after the flood. 29 After Noah had lived a total of 950 years, he died.
Descendants and Nations from Noah
10 These are the records[ho] of Noah’s sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, to whom descendants[hp] were born after the flood.
2 Japheth’s descendants included[hq] Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras.
3 Gomer’s descendants included Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah.
4 Javan’s descendants included Elisha, Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim,[hr] 5 from whom the coastal nations[hs] spread into their own lands and nations, each with their own language and family groups.
Ham’s Descendants
6 Ham’s descendants included Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan.
7 Cush’s descendants included Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca.
Raamah’s descendants included Sheba and Dedan.
8 Cush fathered Nimrod, who became the first fearless[ht] leader throughout the land. 9 He became a fearless[hu] hunter in defiance of[hv] the Lord. That is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a fearless hunter in defiance of[hw] the Lord.” 10 His kingdom began in the region[hx] of Shinar[hy] with the cities of[hz] Babylon, Erech,[ia] Akkad, and Calneh. 11 From there[ib] he went north[ic] to Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, and Calah, 12 along with Resen, which was located between Nineveh and the great city of Calah.
13 Egypt fathered the Ludites, the Anamites, the Lehabites, the Naphtuhites, 14 the Pathrusites, the Casluhites (from which came the Philistines), and the Caphtorites.
15 Canaan fathered Sidon his firstborn, along with the Hittites, 16 the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, 17 the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, 18 the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites.
Later, the Canaanite families were widely scattered. 19 The Canaanite border extended south[id] from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and east[ie] toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha.
20 These are Ham’s descendants, listed by their families, each with their own lands, language, and family groups.
Shem’s Descendants
21 Shem, Japheth’s older brother, also had descendants.[if] Shem was the father of the descendants of Eber. 22 Shem’s sons included Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram.
23 Aram’s descendants included Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash.
24 Arpachshad fathered Cainan, Cainan fathered Shelah, and Shelah fathered Eber.[ig] 25 To Eber were born two sons. One was named Peleg,[ih] because the earth was divided during his lifetime. His brother was named Joktan.
26 Joktan fathered Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 27 Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 28 Obal, Abimael, Sheba, 29 Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these were Joktan’s descendants. 30 Their settlements extended from Mesha towards Sephar, the eastern hill country.
31 These are Shem’s descendants, listed by their families, each with their own lands, language, and family groups.
32 These are the families of Noah’s sons, according to their records, by their nations. From these people, the nations on the earth spread out after the flood.
The Tower in Babylon
11 There was a time when the entire earth spoke a common language with an identical vocabulary. 2 As people[ii] migrated westward,[ij] they came across a plain in the region of Shinar[ik] and settled there. 3 They told each other, “Come on! Let’s burn bricks thoroughly.” They used bricks for stone and tar for mortar. 4 Then they said, “Come on! Let’s build ourselves a city and a tower, with its summit in the heavens, and let’s make a name for ourselves[il] so we won’t be scattered over the surface of the whole earth.”
5 However, the Lord descended to look over the city and the tower that the humans were building. 6 The Lord said, “Look! They are one people with the same language for all of them, and this is only the beginning of what they will do.[im] Nothing that they have a mind to do will be impossible for them! 7 Come on! Let’s go down there and confuse their language, so that they won’t understand each other’s speech.”
8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the surface of the whole earth, so that they had to stop building the city. 9 Therefore it was called Babylon,[in] because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth, and from there the Lord scattered them over the surface of the entire earth.
Descendants of Shem
10 These are the family records[io] of Shem. When Shem had lived 100 years, he fathered Arpachshad two years after the flood. 11 Shem lived 500 years after he fathered Arpachshad and had other[ip] sons and daughters.
12 When Arpachshad had lived 35 years, he fathered Cainan. 13 After he fathered Cainan, Arpachshad lived 430 years and had other[iq] sons and daughters, and then died.
Cainan lived 130 years and fathered Shelah. After he fathered Shelah, Cainan lived 330 years and had other[ir] sons and daughters, and then died.[is]
14 When Shelah had lived 30 years, he fathered Eber. 15 After he fathered Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and had other[it] sons and daughters.
16 When Eber had lived 34 years, he fathered Peleg. 17 After he fathered Peleg, Eber lived 430 years and had other[iu] sons and daughters.
18 When Peleg had lived 30 years, he fathered Reu. 19 After he fathered Reu, Peleg lived 209 years and had other[iv] sons and daughters.
20 When Reu had lived 32 years, he fathered Serug. 21 After he fathered Serug, Reu lived 207 years and had other[iw] sons and daughters.
22 When Serug had lived 30 years, he fathered Nahor. 23 After he fathered Nahor, Serug lived 200 years and had other[ix] sons and daughters.
24 When Nahor had lived 29 years, he fathered Terah. 25 After he fathered Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and had other[iy] sons and daughters.
26 When Terah had lived 70 years, he fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
Descendants of Terah
27 Now these are the family records[iz] of Terah: Terah fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran fathered Lot. 28 Haran died during his father’s lifetime in the land of his birth, that is, in Ur of the Chaldeans. 29 Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah. She was the daughter of Haran, who was the father of Milcah and Iscah. 30 Sarai was barren, so she had not borne children.
31 Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot (Haran’s son), and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram’s wife, and they journeyed together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan. But when they had gone as far as Haran, they settled there, 32 where Terah died at the age of 205 years.
God Calls Abram
12 The Lord told Abram, “You are to leave your land, your relatives, and your father’s house and go to the land that I’m going to show you. 2 I’ll make a great nation of your descendants, I’ll bless you, and I’ll make your reputation great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I’ll bless those who bless you, but I’ll curse the one who curses you, and through you all the people[ja] of the earth will be blessed.”
4 So Abram left there, as the Lord had directed him, and Lot accompanied him. Abram was 75 years old when he left Haran. 5 Abram took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated, and the servants[jb] he had acquired while living[jc] in Haran. Then they set out to go to the land of Canaan. When they arrived in the land of Canaan, 6 Abram traveled through the land to the place called Shechem, as far as the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land.
7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “I’ll give this land to your descendants.”[jd] So Abram[je] built an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 8 From there Abram[jf] traveled on to the hill country east of Bethel and set up his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord. 9 Then Abram traveled on, continuing into the Negev.[jg]
Abram and Sarai in Egypt
10 There was a famine in the land, so Abram went down to Egypt to live because the famine was so severe. 11 When he was about to enter Egypt, he told his wife Sarai, “Look, I’m aware that you’re a beautiful woman. 12 When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘She is his wife.’ Then they’ll kill me, but allow you to live. 13 Please say that you are my sister, so things will go well for me for your sake. That way, you’ll be saving my life.”
14 As Abram was entering Egypt, the Egyptians noticed how beautiful Sarai[jh] was. 15 When Pharaoh’s officials saw her, they brought her to the attention of Pharaoh and took the woman to Pharaoh’s palace. 16 He treated Abram well because of her, so Abram acquired sheep, oxen, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels. 17 But the Lord afflicted Pharaoh and his household with severe plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. 18 Pharaoh summoned Abram and asked, “What have you done to me! Why didn’t you tell me that she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her as a wife for myself? Now, here is your wife! Take her and get out!”
20 So Pharaoh assigned men to Abram,[ji] and they escorted him, his wife, and all that he had out of the country.[jj]
Abram and Lot Part Ways
13 Abram traveled from Egypt, along with his wife and everyone who belonged to his household[jk]—including Lot—to the Negev.[jl]
2 Now Abram had become quite wealthy in livestock, silver, and gold. 3 He journeyed by stages from the Negev[jm] to Bethel, the place where his tent had formerly been, between Bethel and Ai, 4 where he had first built an altar. There Abram called on the name of the Lord.
5 Lot, who was traveling with Abram, also had flocks of sheep, herds, and tents. 6 But the land could not support them living together, because they had so many livestock that they could not stay together. 7 There was strife between the herdsmen in charge of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen in charge of Lot’s livestock. Also, at that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land.
8 So Abram told Lot, “Please, let’s not have strife between you and me, or between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, since we are relatives.[jn] 9 Isn’t the whole land available to you? Let’s separate: If you go[jo] to the left, then I will go to the right; if you go[jp] to the right, then I will go to the left.”
10 Lot looked around and noticed that the whole Jordan plain as far as Zoar was well-watered like the garden of the Lord or like the land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11 So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan plain. Then Lot traveled eastward, and they separated from each other.
12 So Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled in the cities of the plain, setting up his tent in the vicinity of Sodom. 13 Now the men of Sodom were particularly evil and sinful in their defiance of[jq] the Lord.
14 After Lot had separated from Abram, the Lord told Abram, “Look off to the north, south[jr], east, and west[js] from where you’re living, 15 because I’m going to give you and your descendants all of the land that you see—forever! 16 I’ll make your descendants as plentiful as[jt] the specks of[ju] dust of the earth, so that if one could count the specks of[jv] dust of the earth, then your descendants could also be counted. 17 Get up! Walk throughout the length and breadth of the land, because I’m going to give it to you.”
18 So Abram moved his tent and settled beside the oaks of Mamre that are by Hebron, where he built an altar to the Lord.
Abram Battles Kings for Lot
14 At the time when Amraphel was king of Shinar, Arioch was king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer was king of Elam, and Tidal was king of the Goiim, 2 they engaged in war against King Bera of Sodom, King Birsha of Gomorrah, King Shinab of Admah, King Shemeber of Zeboiim, along with the king of Bela (which was also known as Zoar). 3 All of this latter group of kings[jw] allied together in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea[jx]). 4 They were subject to Chedorlaomer for twelve years, but they rebelled in the thirteenth year.
5 In the fourteenth year, Chedorlaomer and the kings with him came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emites in Shaveh-kiriathaim, 6 and the Horites in the hill country of Seir, near El-paran by the desert. 7 Next they turned back and came to En-mishpat (which was also known as Kadesh) and conquered all the territory of the Amalekites, along with the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar.
8 Then the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela (which was also known as Zoar) prepared for battle in the Valley of Siddim 9 against King Chedorlaomer of Elam, King Tidal of Goiim, King Amraphel of Shinar, and King Arioch of Ellasar—four kings against five.
10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, so when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some of their people[jy] fell into them, while the rest fled to the hill country. 11 The conquerors[jz] captured all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah, including their entire food supply, and then left. 12 They also took Abram’s nephew Lot captive, and confiscated[ka] his possessions, since he was living in Sodom.
13 Someone escaped, arrived, and reported what had happened[kb] to Abram the Hebrew, who was living by the oaks belonging to Mamre the Amorite, whose brothers Eshcol and Aner were allied with Abram. 14 When Abram heard that his nephew[kc] had been taken prisoner, he gathered together 318 of his trained men, who had been born in his household, and they went out in pursuit as far as Dan. 15 During the night, Abram[kd] and his servants divided his forces,[ke] conquered his enemies,[kf] and pursued them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. 16 He recovered all the goods and brought back his nephew Lot, together with his possessions, the women, and the other[kg] people.
The Blessing of Melchizedek
17 After Abram’s return[kh] from defeating Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with them, the king of Sodom went out to meet with him in the Shaveh Valley (that is, the King’s Valley). 18 King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine, since he was serving as[ki] the priest of God Most High. 19 Melchizedek[kj] blessed Abram[kk] and said,
“Abram is blessed by God Most High,
Creator of heaven and earth,
20 and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies
into your control.”
Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.
Conversation with the King of Sodom
21 The king of Sodom told Abram, “Return the people to me, and you take the possessions for yourself.”
22 But Abram answered the king of Sodom, “I have made an oath to the Lord God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, 23 that I will not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that belongs to you, so you won’t be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24 I will take nothing except what my warriors have eaten. But as for what belongs to the men who were allied[kl] with me, including Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, let them take their share.”
The Abrahamic Covenant
15 Some time later, a message came from the Lord to Abram in a vision. “Stop being afraid, Abram.” he said. “I myself—your shield—am your very great reward.”
2 But Abram replied, “Lord God, what can you give me since I continue to be childless, and the heir of my household is Eliezer from Damascus? 3 Look!” Abram said, “You haven’t given me any offspring, so a servant born in[km] my house is going to be my heir.”
4 A message came from the Lord to him again: “This one will not be your heir. Instead, the child who will be born to you[kn] will be your heir.” 5 Then the Lord[ko] took him outside. “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if you can!” he said. “Your descendants will be that numerous.”[kp] 6 Abram believed the Lord, and it was credited to him as righteousness.
7 The Lord[kq] spoke to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land as an inheritance.”
8 But he replied, “Lord God, how will I know that I will inherit it?”
9 The Lord responded, “Bring me a three-year-old cow, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
10 So Abram brought him all these animals and cut each of them in half, down the middle, placing the pieces opposite each other, but he did not cut the birds in half. 11 When birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. 12 As the sun began to set, Abram was overcome with deep sleep, and suddenly a frightening and terrifying darkness descended on him.
13 Then the Lord told Abram, “You can be certain about this: Your descendants will be foreigners in a land that isn’t theirs. They will be slaves there and will be oppressed for 400 years. 14 However, I will judge the nation that they serve, and later they will leave there with many possessions. 15 Now as for you, you’ll die peacefully, join your ancestors, and be buried at a good old age. 16 Your descendants[kr] will return here in the fourth generation, since the iniquity of the Amorites has not yet run its course.”
17 When the sun had fully set and it was dark, a smoking fire pot and a fiery torch passed between the animal pieces.[ks] 18 That very day the Lord made this covenant with Abram: “I’m giving[kt] this land to your descendants, from the river of Egypt to the great Euphrates River— 19 including the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, 21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
Sarai, Hagar, and Ishmael
16 Now Abram’s wife Sarai had not borne a child for him. She had an Egyptian servant girl whose name was Hagar. 2 So Sarai told Abram, “You are well aware that the Lord has prevented me from giving birth to a child. Go have sex with my servant, so that I may possibly bear a son[ku] through her.”
Abram listened to Sarai’s suggestion, 3 so Abram’s wife Sarai took her Egyptian servant, Hagar, and gave her as a wife to her husband Abram. This took place[kv] ten years after Abram had settled in the land of Canaan. 4 He had sex with Hagar, and she became pregnant. When she realized that she was pregnant, she looked with contempt on her mistress.
5 Then Sarai told Abram, “My suffering is your fault! I gave you my servant so you could have sex with her,[kw] and when she discovered that she was pregnant, she looked on me with contempt. May the Lord judge between you and me!”
6 Abram answered Sarai, “Look, your servant is under your control, so do to her as you wish.”[kx] So Sarai dealt so harshly with Hagar[ky] that she ran away from Sarai.[kz]
7 The angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the desert on the road to Shur. 8 “Hagar, servant of Sarai,” he asked, “Where are you coming from and where are you going?”
She answered, “I am running away from my mistress Sarai.”
9 The angel of the Lord told her, “You must go back to your mistress and submit to her authority.” 10 The angel of the Lord also told her, “I will greatly multiply your offspring, who will be too many to count.
11 “Look, you are pregnant and will give birth to a son,” the angel of the Lord continued to say to her. “You will name him Ishmael,[la] because the Lord has heard your cry of[lb] misery. 12 As a man, he’ll be uncontrollable.[lc] He’ll[ld] be against everyone, everyone will be against him,[le]and he’ll live in conflict with[lf] all of his relatives.”
13 So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are ‘God who sees,’ because I have truly seen the one who looks after me.”
14 That’s why the spring was called, “The Well of the Living One who Looks after Me.” It was between Kadesh and Bered.
15 Hagar eventually gave birth to Abram’s son. Abram named his son whom Hagar bore Ishmael. 16 Abram was 86 years old when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael for Abram.
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