1
Now the whole earth had one language and one speech.
2
And it came to pass, as they journeyed eastward, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they settled there.
3
Then they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly.” So they used brick for stone, and tar for mortar.
4
And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top reaches to the heavens; and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”
5
Then the LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the children of men had built.
6
And the LORD said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them.
7
Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.”
8
So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city.
9
Therefore its name is 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.
10
This is the genealogy of Shem. Shem was one hundred years old, and begot Arphaxad two years after the flood.
11
After he begot Arphaxad, Shem lived five hundred years, and begot sons and daughters.
12
Arphaxad lived thirty-five years, and begot Shelah.
13
After he begot Shelah, Arphaxad lived four hundred and three years, and begot sons and daughters.
14
Shelah lived thirty years, and begot Eber.
15
After he begot Eber, Shelah lived four hundred and three years, and begot sons and daughters.
16
Eber lived thirty-four years, and begot Peleg.
17
After he begot Peleg, Eber lived four hundred and thirty years, and begot sons and daughters.
18
Peleg lived thirty years, and begot Reu.
19
After he begot Reu, Peleg lived two hundred and nine years, and begot sons and daughters.
20
Reu lived thirty-two years, and begot Serug.
21
After he begot Serug, Reu lived two hundred and seven years, and begot sons and daughters.
22
After Serug had lived thirty years, he became the father of Nahor.
23
Serug lived two hundred years after he became the father of Nahor, and he had sons and daughters.
24
After Nahor had lived twenty-nine years, he became the father of Terah.
25
Nahor lived one hundred nineteen years after he became the father of Terah, and he had sons and daughters.
26
After Terah had lived seventy years, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
27
Now these are the generations of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran became the father of Lot.
28
While his father Terah was still living, Haran died in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldeans.
29
Abram and Nahor both took wives. 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
Sarai was barren; she had no child.
31
Terah took Abram his son, Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, the wife of Abram his son; and they went out together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan. They came as far as Haran and settled there.
32
The days of Terah were two hundred five years; and Terah died in Haran.
🏗️ Summary of Genesis 11
Genesis 11 opens with the story of the Tower of Babel, an important event in human history after the flood. At that time, all humanity still spoke one language and lived in one place, in the land of Shinar.
People decided to build a city and a tower whose top would reach the heavens, with the aim of:
- Showing their greatness
- Preventing their spread over the whole earth
This action went against God’s command to be fruitful and fill the earth. So the Lord confused their language so that they could not understand one another. As a result, they were scattered throughout the earth, and the building of the tower stopped. That place was called Babel, which means “confusion.”
After that, the second part of this chapter records the genealogy from Shem to Abram (who would later be known as Abraham), linking the divine line to the next main figure in the biblical story.
📖 Main Lessons
- Human pride leads to ruin – wanting to “reach heaven” without God is a form of rebellion.
- God governs history and the boundaries of nations.
✨ Spiritual Meaning
- The Tower of Babel is a symbol of humanity’s desire to build life without God.
- Chaos is not merely a curse, but a way to fulfill God’s will.
- Different languages are God’s instrument to restrain unity in sin.
- Abram becomes the turning point — from chaos toward the plan of salvation.
