# Genesis 11.10-12.3 **Book:** [Genesis](/codex/genesis/) · NASB95 ## Immediate context (±2 verses) **ASV** ([ASV](/codex/asv/)) > 8. So Jehovah scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off building the city. 9. Therefore was the name of it called Babel; because Jehovah did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did Jehovah scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth. > > **10. These are the generations of Shem. Shem was a hundred years old, and begat Arpachshad two years after the flood: 11. and Shem lived after he begat Arpachshad five hundred years, and begat sons and daughters. 12. And Arpachshad lived five and thirty years, and begat Shelah: 13. and Arpachshad lived after he begat Shelah four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters. 14. And Shelah lived thirty years, and begat Eber: 15. and Shelah lived after he begat Eber four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters. 16. And Eber lived four and thirty years, and begat Peleg: 17. and Eber lived after he begat Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters. 18. And Peleg lived thirty years, and begat Reu: 19. and Peleg lived after he begat Reu two hundred and nine years, and begat sons and daughters. 20. And Reu lived two and thirty years, and begat Serug: 21. and Reu lived after he begat Serug two hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters. 22. And Serug lived thirty years, and begat Nahor: 23. and Serug lived after he begat Nahor two hundred years, and begat sons and daughters. 24. And Nahor lived nine and twenty years, and begat Terah: 25. and Nahor lived after he begat Terah a hundred and nineteen years, and begat sons and daughters. 26. And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran. 27. Now these are the generations of Terah. Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot. 28. And Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees. 29. And Abram and Nahor took them wives: the name of Abram's wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah. 30. And Sarai was barren; she had no child. 31. And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his son's son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there. 32. And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years: and Terah died in Haran. 12:1. Now Jehovah said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto the land that I will show thee: 12:2. and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make they name great; and be thou a blessing: 12:3. and I will bless them that bless thee, and him that curseth thee will I curse: and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed.** > > 12:4. So Abram went, as Jehovah had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. 12:5. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came. (Genesis 11:8-12:5, ASV) **WEB** ([WEB](/codex/web/)) > 8. So Yahweh scattered them abroad from there on the surface of all the earth. They stopped building the city. 9. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there Yahweh confused the language of all the earth. From there, Yahweh scattered them abroad on the surface of all the earth. > > **10. This is the history of the generations of Shem: Shem was one hundred years old when he became the father of Arpachshad two years after the flood. 11. Shem lived five hundred years after he became the father of Arpachshad, and became the father of more sons and daughters. 12. Arpachshad lived thirty-five years and became the father of Shelah. 13. Arpachshad lived four hundred three years after he became the father of Shelah, and became the father of more sons and daughters. 14. Shelah lived thirty years, and became the father of Eber. 15. Shelah lived four hundred three years after he became the father of Eber, and became the father of more sons and daughters. 16. Eber lived thirty-four years, and became the father of Peleg. 17. Eber lived four hundred thirty years after he became the father of Peleg, and became the father of more sons and daughters. 18. Peleg lived thirty years, and became the father of Reu. 19. Peleg lived two hundred nine years after he became the father of Reu, and became the father of more sons and daughters. 20. Reu lived thirty-two years, and became the father of Serug. 21. Reu lived two hundred seven years after he became the father of Serug, and became the father of more sons and daughters. 22. Serug lived thirty years, and became the father of Nahor. 23. Serug lived two hundred years after he became the father of Nahor, and became the father of more sons and daughters. 24. Nahor lived twenty-nine years, and became the father of Terah. 25. Nahor lived one hundred nineteen years after he became the father of Terah, and became the father of more sons and daughters. 26. Terah lived seventy years, and became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. 27. Now this is the history of the generations of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Haran became the father of Lot. 28. Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldees. 29. Abram and Nahor married wives. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran who was also the father of Iscah. 30. Sarai was barren. She had no child. 31. Terah took Abram his son, Lot the son of Haran, his son’s son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife. They went from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan. They came to Haran and lived there. 32. The days of Terah were two hundred five years. Terah died in Haran. 12:1. Now Yahweh said to Abram, “Leave your country, and your relatives, and your father’s house, and go to the land that I will show you. 12:2. I will make of you a great nation. I will bless you and make your name great. You will be a blessing. 12:3. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you.”** > > 12:4. So Abram went, as Yahweh had told him. Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 12:5. Abram took Sarai his wife, Lot his brother’s son, all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people whom they had acquired in Haran, and they went to go into the land of Canaan. They entered into the land of Canaan. (Genesis 11:8-12:5, WEB) **KJV** ([KJV](/codex/kjv/)) > 8. So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. 9. Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth. Babel: that is, Confusion > > **10. These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood: 11. And Shem lived after he begat Arphaxad five hundred years, and begat sons and daughters. 12. And Arphaxad lived five and thirty years, and begat Salah: 13. And Arphaxad lived after he begat Salah four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters. 14. And Salah lived thirty years, and begat Eber: 15. And Salah lived after he begat Eber four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters. 16. And Eber lived four and thirty years, and begat Peleg: Peleg: Gr. Phalec 17. And Eber lived after he begat Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters. 18. And Peleg lived thirty years, and begat Reu: 19. And Peleg lived after he begat Reu two hundred and nine years, and begat sons and daughters. 20. And Reu lived two and thirty years, and begat Serug: Serug: Gr. Saruch 21. And Reu lived after he begat Serug two hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters. 22. And Serug lived thirty years, and begat Nahor: 23. And Serug lived after he begat Nahor two hundred years, and begat sons and daughters. 24. And Nahor lived nine and twenty years, and begat Terah: Terah: Gr. Thara 25. And Nahor lived after he begat Terah an hundred and nineteen years, and begat sons and daughters. 26. And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran. 27. Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot. 28. And Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees. 29. And Abram and Nahor took them wives: the name of Abram's wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah. 30. But Sarai was barren; she had no child. 31. And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there. 32. And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years: and Terah died in Haran. 12:1. Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: 12:2. And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: 12:3. And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.** > > 12:4. So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. 12:5. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came. (Genesis 11:8-12:5, KJV) **YLT** ([YLT](/codex/ylt/)) > 8. And Jehovah doth scatter them from thence over the face of all the earth, and they cease to build the city; 9. therefore hath [one] called its name Babel, for there hath Jehovah mingled the pronunciation of all the earth, and from thence hath Jehovah scattered them over the face of all the earth. > > **10. These [are] births of Shem: Shem [is] a son of an hundred years, and begetteth Arphaxad two years after the deluge. 11. And Shem liveth after his begetting Arphaxad five hundred years, and begetteth sons and daughters. 12. And Arphaxad hath lived five and thirty years, and begetteth Salah. 13. And Arphaxad liveth after his begetting Salah four hundred and three years, and begetteth sons and daughters. 14. And Salah hath lived thirty years, and begetteth Eber. 15. And Salah liveth after his begetting Eber four hundred and three years, and begetteth sons and daughters. 16. And Eber liveth four and thirty years, and begetteth Peleg. 17. And Eber liveth after his begetting Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and begetteth sons and daughters. 18. And Peleg liveth thirty years, and begetteth Reu. 19. And Peleg liveth after his begetting Reu two hundred and nine years, and begetteth sons and daughters. 20. And Reu liveth two and thirty years, and begetteth Serug. 21. And Reu liveth after his begetting Serug two hundred and seven years, and begetteth sons and daughters. 22. And Serug liveth thirty years, and begetteth Nahor. 23. And Serug liveth after his begetting Nahor two hundred years, and begetteth sons and daughters. 24. And Nahor liveth nine and twenty years, and begetteth Terah. 25. And Nahor liveth after his begetting Terah an hundred and nineteen years, and begetteth sons and daughters. 26. And Terah liveth seventy years, and begetteth Abram, Nahor, and Haran. 27. And these [are] births of Terah: Terah hath begotten Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran hath begotten Lot; 28. and Haran dieth in the presence of Terah his father, in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldees. 29. And Abram and Nahor take to themselves wives; the name of Abram's wife [is] Sarai, and the name of Nahor's wife [is] Milcah, daughter of Haran, father of Milcah, and father of Iscah. 30. And Sarai is barren, she hath no child. 31. And Terah taketh Abram his son, and Lot, son of Haran, his son's son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, wife of Abram his son, and they go out with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go towards the land of Canaan; and they come unto Charan, and dwell there. 32. And the days of Terah are two hundred and five years, and Terah dieth in Charan. 12:1. And Jehovah saith unto Abram, 'Go for thyself, from thy land, and from thy kindred, and from the house of thy father, unto the land which I shew thee. 12:2. And I make thee become a great nation, and bless thee, and make thy name great; and be thou a blessing. 12:3. And I bless those blessing thee, and him who is disesteeming thee I curse, and blessed in thee have been all families of the ground.'** > > 12:4. And Abram goeth on, as Jehovah hath spoken unto him, and Lot goeth with him, and Abram [is] a son of five and seventy years in his going out from Charan. 12:5. And Abram taketh Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they have gained, and the persons that they have obtained in Charan; and they go out to go towards the land of Canaan; and they come in to the land of Canaan. (Genesis 11:8-12:5, YLT) ## Setting - **Speaker:** _TBD_ - **Audience:** _TBD_ - **Location:** _TBD_ - **Time period:** _TBD_ ## Theological reading _Patristic / early-church-father exegesis, to be added._ ## Key words _Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word._ - _TBD_ - _TBD_ - _TBD_ - _TBD_ ## Quoted in **Arguments and defeaters:** - [Cumulative Case for the Deity of Christ](/codex/cumulative-case-for-the-deity-of-christ/), via [Genesis 11.7](/codex/genesis-11-7/) - [Genetic Entropy Argument](/codex/genetic-entropy-argument/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [God Is Surprised Objection Defeater](/codex/god-is-surprised-objection-defeater/), via [Genesis 11.5](/codex/genesis-11-5/) - [God Lied About the 120 Year Lifespan Objection Defeater](/codex/god-lied-about-the-120-year-lifespan-objection-defeater/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [God Showed No Love in Eden Objection Defeater](/codex/god-showed-no-love-in-eden-objection-defeater/), via [Genesis 11.7-8](/codex/genesis-11-7-8/) - [Jesus is Jacobs Ladder](/codex/jesus-is-jacobs-ladder/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [Patriarchal Historicity Objection Defeater](/codex/patriarchal-historicity-objection-defeater/), via [Genesis 11.28](/codex/genesis-11-28/) - [Pyramids Predate the Flood Objection Defeater](/codex/pyramids-predate-the-flood-objection-defeater/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [Tower of Babel Objection Defeater](/codex/tower-of-babel-objection-defeater/) - [Trinity Violates the Shema Objection Defeater](/codex/trinity-violates-the-shema-objection-defeater/), via [Genesis 11.6](/codex/genesis-11-6/), [Genesis 11.7](/codex/genesis-11-7/) - [Yahweh Borrowed From the Canaanites Objection Defeater](/codex/yahweh-borrowed-from-the-canaanites-objection-defeater/), via [Genesis 11.10-26](/codex/genesis-11-10-26/) **Concepts:** - [Anthropomorphism](/codex/anthropomorphism/), via [Genesis 11.5](/codex/genesis-11-5/) - [Atheism](/codex/atheism/), via [Genesis 11.4](/codex/genesis-11-4/), [Genesis 11.6](/codex/genesis-11-6/) - [Ebla Tablets](/codex/ebla-tablets/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [Genesis 11 Chronology](/codex/genesis-11-chronology/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/), [Genesis 11.10-26](/codex/genesis-11-10-26/) - [Genesis ANE Myth Borrowing Objection](/codex/genesis-ane-myth-borrowing-objection/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [Genesis Flood](/codex/genesis-flood/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [Global Flood Evidence](/codex/global-flood-evidence/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [God Is Surprised Objection](/codex/god-is-surprised-objection/), via [Genesis 11.5](/codex/genesis-11-5/) - [Mission Geography (Acts 1-8)](/codex/mission-geography-acts-1-8/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [Old Testament Witness to the Deity of Christ](/codex/old-testament-witness-to-the-deity-of-christ/), via [Genesis 11.7](/codex/genesis-11-7/) - [Origins and Cosmology](/codex/origins-and-cosmology/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [Pentecost](/codex/pentecost/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [Population Genetics YEC](/codex/population-genetics-yec/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [Tower of Babel Objection](/codex/tower-of-babel-objection/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/), [Genesis 11.1-9](/codex/genesis-11-1-9/), [Genesis 11.4](/codex/genesis-11-4/), [Genesis 11.6](/codex/genesis-11-6/) - [Trinity](/codex/trinity/), via [Genesis 11.7](/codex/genesis-11-7/) - [Trinity Plural-Hebrew-Noun Stack](/codex/trinity-plural-hebrew-noun-stack/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) **People:** - [Augustine](/codex/augustine/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [John Currid](/codex/john-currid/), via [Genesis 11.27-50.26](/codex/genesis-11-27-50-26/) - [Michael Heiser](/codex/michael-heiser/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) **Lexicon:** - [H0120 - adam](/codex/h0120-adam/), via [Genesis 11](/codex/genesis-11/) - [H0259 - echad](/codex/h0259-echad/), via [Genesis 11.6](/codex/genesis-11-6/) - [H0430 - elohim](/codex/h0430-elohim/), via [Genesis 11.7](/codex/genesis-11-7/) - [H7218 - rosh](/codex/h7218-rosh/), via [Genesis 11.4](/codex/genesis-11-4/) - [H8034 - shem](/codex/h8034-shem/), via [Genesis 11.1-9](/codex/genesis-11-1-9/), [Genesis 11.4](/codex/genesis-11-4/) ## Notes _Your annotations._ ## Why these four translations ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the **most literal English translations available** (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the **public domain in the United States**, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance. The four: - **[ASV](/codex/asv/)** (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition. - **[WEB](/codex/web/)** (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English. - **[KJV](/codex/kjv/)** (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base. - **[YLT](/codex/ylt/)** (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff. See [Bibles](/codex/bibles/) for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.