Genesis 1

The Beginning

1In the beginninga God createdb the heavensc and the earth.d 2Now the earth was formlesse and empty,f darkness was over the surface of the deep,g and the Spirit of Godh was hoveringi over the waters. Article: The Biblical Account of Creation Article: Creation in the Bible and the Ancient Near East

Genesis 2

1Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.a

Adam and Eve

4This is the accountg of the heavens and the earth when they were created,h when the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.

5Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth1 and no plant had yet sprung up,i for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earthj and there was no one to work the ground, 6but streams2 came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. 7Then the LORD God formedk a man3^,l from the dustm of the groundn and breathed into his nostrils the breatho of life,p and the man became a living being.q

8Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden;r and there he put the man he had formed. 9The LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—treess that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of lifet and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.u

10A riverv watering the garden flowed from Eden;w from there it was separated into four headwaters. 11The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah,x where there is gold. 12(The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin4^,y and onyx are also there.) 13The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush.5 14The name of the third river is the Tigris;z it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.a

15The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Edenb to work it and take care of it. 16And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;c 17but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,d for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”e

18The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”f Article: “Suitable Helper”

19Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the wild animalsg and all the birds in the sky.h He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man calledi each living creature,j that was its name. 20So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.

But for Adam6 no suitable helperk was found. 21So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep;l and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs7 and then closed up the place with flesh. 22Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib8^,m he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.

23The man said,

24That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is unitedq to his wife, and they become one flesh.r

25Adam and his wife were both naked,s and they felt no shame.

Genesis 3

The Fall

1Now the serpenta was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?b”

2The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,c 3but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ”d

4“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman.e 5“For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God,f knowing good and evil.”

6When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirableg for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband,h who was with her, and he ate it.i 7Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked;j so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.k

8Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walkingl in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hidm from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”n

10He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraido because I was naked;p so I hid.”

11And he said, “Who told you that you were naked?q Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?r”

12The man said, “The woman you put here with mes—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

13Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”

The woman said, “The serpent deceived me,t and I ate.”

14So the LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,

16To the woman he said,

17To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’b

20Adam3 named his wife Eve,4^,l because she would become the mother of all the living.

21The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.m 22And the LORD God said, “The man has now become like one of us,n knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of lifeo and eat, and live forever.” 23So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Edenp to work the groundq from which he had been taken. 24After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side5 of the Garden of Edenr cherubims and a flaming swordt flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.u

Genesis 4

Cain and Abel

1Adam1 made love to his wifea Eve,b and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.2^,c She said, “With the help of the LORD I have brought forth3 a man.” 2Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.d

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil.e 3In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offeringf to the LORD.g 4And Abel also brought an offering—fat portionsh from some of the firstborn of his flock.i The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering,j 5but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

6Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry?k Why is your face downcast? 7If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door;l it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.m”

8Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”4 While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.n

9Then the LORD said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”o

“I don’t know,p” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

10The LORD said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.q 11Now you are under a curser and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you.s You will be a restless wanderert on the earth.u”

13Cain said to the LORD, “My punishment is more than I can bear. 14Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence;v I will be a restless wanderer on the earth,w and whoever finds me will kill me.”x

15But the LORD said to him, “Not so5; anyone who kills Cainy will suffer vengeancez seven times over.a” Then the LORD put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. 16So Cain went out from the LORD’s presenceb and lived in the land of Nod,6 east of Eden.c

17Cain made love to his wife,d and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city,e and he named it after his sonf Enoch. 18To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.

19Lamech marriedg two women,h one named Adah and the other Zillah. 20Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. 21His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instrumentsi and pipes.j 22Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forgedk all kinds of tools out of7 bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.

23Lamech said to his wives,

25Adam made love to his wifep again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth,8^,q saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.”r 26Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.s

At that time people began to call on9 the name of the LORD.t

Genesis 5

From Adam to Noah

1This is the written accounta of Adam’s family line.b

When God created mankind, he made them in the likeness of God.c 2He created themd male and femalee and blessed them. And he named them “Mankind”1 when they were created.

3When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image;f and he named him Seth.g 4After Seth was born, Adam lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. 5Altogether, Adam lived a total of 930 years, and then he died.h Article: Lifespan Before the Flood

6When Seth had lived 105 years, he became the father2 of Enosh.i 7After he became the father of Enosh, Seth lived 807 years and had other sons and daughters. 8Altogether, Seth lived a total of 912 years, and then he died.

9When Enosh had lived 90 years, he became the father of Kenan.j 10After he became the father of Kenan, Enosh lived 815 years and had other sons and daughters. 11Altogether, Enosh lived a total of 905 years, and then he died.

12When Kenan had lived 70 years, he became the father of Mahalalel.k 13After he became the father of Mahalalel, Kenan lived 840 years and had other sons and daughters. 14Altogether, Kenan lived a total of 910 years, and then he died.

15When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he became the father of Jared.l 16After he became the father of Jared, Mahalalel lived 830 years and had other sons and daughters. 17Altogether, Mahalalel lived a total of 895 years, and then he died.

18When Jared had lived 162 years, he became the father of Enoch.m 19After he became the father of Enoch, Jared lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. 20Altogether, Jared lived a total of 962 years, and then he died.

21When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah.n 22After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with Godo 300 years and had other sons and daughters. 23Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years. 24Enoch walked faithfully with God;p then he was no more, because God took him away.q

25When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he became the father of Lamech.r 26After he became the father of Lamech, Methuselah lived 782 years and had other sons and daughters. 27Altogether, Methuselah lived a total of 969 years, and then he died.

28When Lamech had lived 182 years, he had a son. 29He named him Noah3^,s and said, “He will comfort us in the labor and painful toil of our hands caused by the ground the LORD has cursed.t” 30After Noah was born, Lamech lived 595 years and had other sons and daughters. 31Altogether, Lamech lived a total of 777 years, and then he died.

32After Noah was 500 years old,u he became the father of Shem,v Ham and Japheth.w

Genesis 6

Wickedness in the World

1When human beings began to increase in number on the eartha and daughters were born to them, 2the sons of Godb saw that the daughtersc of humans were beautiful,d and they marriede any of them they chose. 3Then the LORD said, “My Spiritf will not contend with1 humans forever,g for they are mortal2;h their days will be a hundred and twenty years.”

4The Nephilimi were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humansj and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.k

5The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth,l and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.m 6The LORD regrettedn that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. 7So the LORD said, “I will wipe from the face of the eartho the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.p” 8But Noahq found favor in the eyes of the LORD.r

Noah and the Flood

9This is the accounts of Noah and his family.

Noah was a righteous man, blamelesst among the people of his time,u and he walked faithfully with God.v 10Noah had three sons: Shem,w Ham and Japheth.x

11Now the earth was corrupty in God’s sight and was full of violence.z 12God saw how corrupta the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways.b 13So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroyc both them and the earth.d 14So make yourself an ark of cypress3 wood;e make rooms in it and coat it with pitchf inside and out. 15This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.4 16Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit5 high all around.6 Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks. 17I am going to bring floodwatersg on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish.h 18But I will establish my covenant with you,i and you will enter the arkj—you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you. 19You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you.k 20Twol of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kindm of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive.n 21You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.” Article: The Flood

22Noah did everything just as God commanded him.o

Genesis 7

1The LORD then said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and your whole family,a because I have found you righteousb in this generation. 2Take with you seven pairs of every kind of cleanc animal, a male and its mate, and one pair of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate, 3and also seven pairs of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alived throughout the earth. 4Seven days from now I will send raine on the earthf for forty daysg and forty nights,h and I will wipe from the face of the earth every living creature I have made.i”

5And Noah did all that the LORD commanded him.j

6Noah was six hundred years oldk when the floodwaters came on the earth. 7And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the arkl to escape the waters of the flood. 8Pairs of clean and uncleanm animals, of birds and of all creatures that move along the ground, 9male and female, came to Noah and entered the ark, as God had commanded Noah.n 10And after the seven dayso the floodwaters came on the earth.

11In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life,p on the seventeenth day of the second monthq—on that day all the springs of the great deepr burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavenss were opened. 12And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.t

13On that very day Noah and his sons,u Shem, Ham and Japheth, together with his wife and the wives of his three sons, entered the ark.v 14They had with them every wild animal according to its kind, all livestock according to their kinds, every creature that moves along the ground according to its kind and every bird according to its kind,w everything with wings. 15Pairs of all creatures that have the breath of life in them came to Noah and entered the ark.x 16The animals going in were male and female of every living thing, as God had commanded Noah.y Then the LORD shut him in.

17For forty daysz the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth. 18The waters rose and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the water. 19They rose greatly on the earth, and all the high mountains under the entire heavens were covered.a 20The waters rose and covered the mountains to a depth of more than fifteen cubits.1^,2^,b 21Every living thing that moved on land perished—birds, livestock, wild animals, all the creatures that swarm over the earth, and all mankind.c 22Everything on dry land that had the breath of lifed in its nostrils died. 23Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; people and animals and the creatures that move along the ground and the birds were wiped from the earth.e Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.f

24The waters flooded the earth for a hundred and fifty days.g

Genesis 8

1But God remembereda Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth,b and the waters receded. 2Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavensc had been closed, and the raind had stopped falling from the sky. 3The water receded steadily from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty dayse the water had gone down, 4and on the seventeenth day of the seventh monthf the ark came to rest on the mountainsg of Ararat.h 5The waters continued to recede until the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible.

6After forty daysi Noah opened a window he had made in the ark 7and sent out a raven,j and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth.k 8Then he sent out a dovel to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. 9But the dove could find nowhere to perch because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. 10He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. 11When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth.m 12He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him.

13By the first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and first year,n the water had dried up from the earth. Noah then removed the covering from the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry. 14By the twenty-seventh day of the second montho the earth was completely dry.

15Then God said to Noah, 16“Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives.p 17Bring out every kind of living creature that is with you—the birds, the animals, and all the creatures that move along the ground—so they can multiply on the earth and be fruitful and increase in number on it.”q

18So Noah came out, together with his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives.r 19All the animals and all the creatures that move along the ground and all the birds—everything that moves on land—came out of the ark, one kind after another.

20Then Noah built an altar to the LORDs and, taking some of all the clean animals and cleant birds, he sacrificed burnt offeringsu on it. 21The LORD smelled the pleasing aromav and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the groundw because of humans, even though1 every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood.x And never again will I destroyy all living creatures,z as I have done.

Genesis 9

God’s Covenant With Noah

1Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.a 2The fear and dread of you will fall on all the beasts of the earth, and on all the birds in the sky, on every creature that moves along the ground, and on all the fish in the sea; they are given into your hands.b 3Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you.c Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.d Chart: Major Covenants in the Old Testament

4“But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it.e 5And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting.f I will demand an accounting from every animal.g And from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of another human being.h

7As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it.”k

8Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: 9“I now establish my covenant with youl and with your descendants after you 10and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you—every living creature on earth. 11I establish my covenantm with you:n Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.o”

12And God said, “This is the sign of the covenantp I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come:q 13I have set my rainbowr in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbows appears in the clouds, 15I will remember my covenantt between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life.u 16Whenever the rainbowv appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenantw between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”

17So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenantx I have established between me and all life on the earth.”

The Sons of Noah

18The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham and Japheth.y (Ham was the father of Canaan.)z 19These were the three sons of Noah,a and from them came the people who were scattered over the whole earth.b

20Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded1 to plant a vineyard. 21When he drank some of its wine,c he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. 22Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father nakedd and told his two brothers outside. 23But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s naked body. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father naked.

24When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, 25he said,

26He also said,

28After the flood Noah lived 350 years. 29Noah lived a total of 950 years, and then he died.l

Genesis 10

The Table of Nations

1This is the accounta of Shem, Ham and Japheth,b Noah’s sons,c who themselves had sons after the flood. Map: Table of Nations

The Japhethites

10:2-5pp — 1Ch 1:5-7

The Hamites

10:6-20pp — 1Ch 1:8-16

8Cush was the father3 of Nimrod,w who became a mighty warrior on the earth. 9He was a mightyx huntery before the LORD; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD.” 10The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon,z Uruk,a Akkad and Kalneh,b in4 Shinar.5^,c 11From that land he went to Assyria,d where he built Nineveh,e Rehoboth Ir,6 Calah 12and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah—which is the great city.

Later the Canaaniter clans scattered 19and the borders of Canaans reached from Sidont toward Geraru as far as Gaza,v and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboyim,w as far as Lasha.

20These are the sons of Ham by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations.

The Semites

10:21-31pp — Ge 11:10-27; 1Ch 1:17-27

21Sons were also born to Shem, whose older brother was8 Japheth; Shem was the ancestor of all the sons of Eber.x

30The region where they lived stretched from Mesha toward Sephar, in the eastern hill country.

31These are the sons of Shem by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations.

32These are the clans of Noah’s sons,h according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earthi after the flood.

Genesis 11

The Tower of Babel

1Now the whole world had one languagea and a common speech. 2As people moved eastward,1 they found a plain in Shinar2^,b and settled there.

3They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricksc and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone,d and tare for mortar. 4Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens,f so that we may make a nameg for ourselves; otherwise we will be scatteredh over the face of the whole earth.”i

5But the LORD came downj to see the city and the tower the people were building. 6The LORD said, “If as one people speaking the same languagek they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7Come, let usl go downm and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”n

8So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth,o and they stopped building the city. 9That is why it was called Babel3^,p—because there the LORD confused the languageq of the whole world.r From there the LORD scattereds them over the face of the whole earth.

From Shem to Abram

11:10-27pp — Ge 10:21-31; 1Ch 1:17-27

10This is the accountt of Shem’s family line.

Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father4 of Arphaxad.u 11And after he became the father of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters.

12When Arphaxad had lived 35 years, he became the father of Shelah.v 13And after he became the father of Shelah, Arphaxad lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.5

14When Shelah had lived 30 years, he became the father of Eber.w 15And after he became the father of Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

16When Eber had lived 34 years, he became the father of Peleg.x 17And after he became the father of Peleg, Eber lived 430 years and had other sons and daughters.

18When Peleg had lived 30 years, he became the father of Reu.y 19And after he became the father of Reu, Peleg lived 209 years and had other sons and daughters.

20When Reu had lived 32 years, he became the father of Serug.z 21And after he became the father of Serug, Reu lived 207 years and had other sons and daughters.

22When Serug had lived 30 years, he became the father of Nahor.a 23And after he became the father of Nahor, Serug lived 200 years and had other sons and daughters.

24When Nahor had lived 29 years, he became the father of Terah.b 25And after he became the father of Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and had other sons and daughters.

26After Terah had lived 70 years, he became the father of Abram,c Nahord and Haran.e

Abram’s Family

27This is the accountf of Terah’s family line.

Terah became the father of Abram, Nahorg and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot.h 28While his father Terah was still alive, Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans,i in the land of his birth. 29Abram and Nahorj both married. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai,k and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milkah;l she was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milkah and Iskah. 30Now Sarai was childless because she was not able to conceive.m Photo

31Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lotn son of Haran, and his daughter-in-lawo Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeansp to go to Canaan.q But when they came to Harran,r they settled there.

32Terahs lived 205 years, and he died in Harran.

Genesis 12

The Call of Abram

1The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s householda to the landb I will show you.c Article: The Abrahamic Covenant Map: Abram’s Travels

4So Abram went, as the LORD had told him; and Loti went with him. Abram was seventy-five years oldj when he set out from Harran.k 5He took his wife Sarai,l his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulatedm and the peoplen they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan,o and they arrived there.

6Abram traveled through the landp as far as the site of the great tree of Morehq at Shechem.r At that time the Canaanitess were in the land. 7The LORD appeared to Abramt and said, “To your offspring3 I will give this land.u”v So he built an altar there to the LORD,w who had appeared to him.

8From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethelx and pitched his tent,y with Bethel on the west and Aiz on the east. There he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD.a

9Then Abram set out and continued toward the Negev.b

Abram in Egypt

12:10-20Ref — Ge 20:1-18; 26:1-11

10Now there was a famine in the land,c and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe.d 11As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai,e “I know what a beautiful womanf you are. 12When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me but will let you live. 13Say you are my sister,g so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you.” Chart: Integrated Chronology of the Patriarchs

14When Abram came to Egypt, the Egyptians saw that Sarai was a very beautiful woman.h 15And when Pharaoh’s officials saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into his palace. 16He treated Abram well for her sake, and Abram acquired sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels.i

17But the LORD inflictedj serious diseases on Pharaoh and his householdk because of Abram’s wife Sarai. 18So Pharaoh summoned Abram. “What have you done to me?”l he said. “Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife?m 19Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’n so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go!” 20Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had.

Genesis 13

Abram and Lot Separate

1So Abram went up from Egypta to the Negev,b with his wife and everything he had, and Lotc went with him. 2Abram had become very wealthyd in livestocke and in silver and gold.

3From the Negevf he went from place to place until he came to Bethel,g to the place between Bethel and Aih where his tent had been earlier 4and where he had first built an altar.i There Abram called on the name of the LORD.j

5Now Lot,k who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. 6But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together.l 7And quarrelingm arose between Abram’s herders and Lot’s. The Canaanitesn and Perizziteso were also living in the landp at that time.

8So Abram said to Lot,q “Let’s not have any quarreling between you and me,r or between your herders and mine, for we are close relatives.s 9Is not the whole land before you? Let’s part company. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left.”t

10Lot looked around and saw that the whole plainu of the Jordan toward Zoarv was well watered, like the garden of the LORD,w like the land of Egypt.x (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodomy and Gomorrah.)z 11So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company: 12Abram lived in the land of Canaan,a while Lotb lived among the cities of the plainc and pitched his tents near Sodom.d 13Now the people of Sodome were wicked and were sinning greatly against the LORD.f

14The LORD said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west.g 15All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring1 forever.h 16I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted.i 17Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land,j for I am giving it to you.”k

18So Abram went to live near the great trees of Mamrel at Hebron,m where he pitched his tents. There he built an altar to the LORD.n

Genesis 14

Abram Rescues Lot

1At the time when Amraphel was king of Shinar,1^,a Arioch king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomerb king of Elamc and Tidal king of Goyim, 2these kings went to war against Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboyim,d and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar).e 3All these latter kings joined forces in the Valley of Siddimf (that is, the Dead Sea Valleyg). 4For twelve years they had been subject to Kedorlaomer,h but in the thirteenth year they rebelled.

5In the fourteenth year, Kedorlaomeri and the kings allied with him went out and defeated the Rephaitesj in Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emitesk in Shaveh Kiriathaim 6and the Horitesl in the hill country of Seir,m as far as El Parann near the desert. 7Then they turned back and went to En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh),o and they conquered the whole territory of the Amalekites,p as well as the Amoritesq who were living in Hazezon Tamar.r

8Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah,s the king of Admah, the king of Zeboyimt and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar)u marched out and drew up their battle lines in the Valley of Siddimv 9against Kedorlaomerw king of Elam,x Tidal king of Goyim, Amraphel king of Shinar and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five. 10Now the Valley of Siddimy was full of tarz pits, and when the kings of Sodom and Gomorraha fled, some of the men fell into them and the rest fled to the hills.b 11The four kings seized all the goodsc of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food; then they went away. 12They also carried off Abram’s nephew Lotd and his possessions, since he was living in Sodom.

13A man who had escaped came and reported this to Abram the Hebrew.e Now Abram was living near the great trees of Mamref the Amorite, a brother2 of Eshkolg and Aner, all of whom were allied with Abram. 14When Abram heard that his relativeh had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trainedi men born in his householdj and went in pursuit as far as Dan.k 15During the night Abram divided his menl to attack them and he routed them, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus.m 16He recoveredn all the goodso and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people.

17After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomerp and the kings allied with him, the king of Sodomq came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley).r

18Then Melchizedeks king of Salemt brought out breadu and wine.v He was priest of God Most High,w 19and he blessed Abram,x saying,

Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.b

21The king of Sodomc said to Abram, “Give me the people and keep the goodsd for yourself.”

22But Abram said to the king of Sodom,e “With raised handf I have sworn an oath to the LORD, God Most High,g Creator of heaven and earth,h 23that I will accept nothing belonging to you,i not even a thread or the strap of a sandal, so that you will never be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich.’ 24I will accept nothing but what my men have eaten and the share that belongs to the men who went with me—to Aner, Eshkol and Mamre.j Let them have their share.”

Genesis 15

The LORD’s Covenant With Abram

1After this, the word of the LORD came to Abrama in a vision:b

2But Abram said, “Sovereign LORD,f what can you give me since I remain childlessg and the one who will inherit3 my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?h” 3And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servanti in my householdj will be my heir.”

4Then the word of the LORD came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.k” 5He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the starsl—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring4 be.”m

6Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.n

7He also said to him, “I am the LORD, who brought you outo of Ur of the Chaldeansp to give you this land to take possession of it.”q

8But Abram said, “Sovereign LORD,r how can I knows that I will gain possession of it?”t

9So the LORD said to him, “Bring me a heifer,u a goat and a ram, each three years old,v along with a dove and a young pigeon.w”

10Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other;x the birds, however, he did not cut in half.y 11Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses,z but Abram drove them away.

12As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep,a and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. 13Then the LORD said to him, “Know for certain that for four hundred yearsb your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslavedc and mistreated there. 14But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come outd with great possessions.e 15You, however, will go to your ancestorsf in peace and be buried at a good old age.g 16In the fourth generationh your descendants will come back here,i for the sin of the Amoritesj has not yet reached its full measure.”

17When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torchk appeared and passed between the pieces.l 18On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abramm and said, “To your descendants I give this land,n from the Wadi5 of Egypto to the great river, the Euphratesp— 19the land of the Kenites,q Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20Hittites,r Perizzites,s Rephaites,t 21Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.”u

Genesis 16

Hagar and Ishmael

1Now Sarai,a Abram’s wife, had borne him no children.b But she had an Egyptian slavec named Hagar;d 2so she said to Abram, “The LORD has kept me from having children.e Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”f

Abram agreed to what Sarai said. 3So after Abram had been living in Canaang ten years,h Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. 4He slept with Hagar,i and she conceived.

When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress.j 5Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the LORD judge between you and me.”k

6“Your slave is in your hands,l” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreatedm Hagar; so she fled from her.

7The angel of the LORDn found Hagar near a springo in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur.p 8And he said, “Hagar,q slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”r

“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.

9Then the angel of the LORD told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” 10The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.”s

11The angel of the LORDt also said to her:

13She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,a” for she said, “I have now seen3 the One who sees me.”b 14That is why the wellc was called Beer Lahai Roi4;d it is still there, between Kadeshe and Bered.

15So Hagarf bore Abram a son,g and Abram gave the name Ishmaelh to the son she had borne. 16Abram was eighty-six years oldi when Hagar bore him Ishmael.

Genesis 17

The Covenant of Circumcision

1When Abram was ninety-nine years old,a the LORD appeared to himb and said, “I am God Almighty1;c walk before me faithfully and be blameless.d 2Then I will make my covenant between me and youe and will greatly increase your numbers.”f

3Abram fell facedown,g and God said to him, 4“As for me, this is my covenant with you:h You will be the father of many nations.i 5No longer will you be called Abram2; your name will be Abraham,3^,j for I have made you a father of many nations.k 6I will make you very fruitful;l I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you.m 7I will establish my covenantn as an everlasting covenanto between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your Godp and the God of your descendants after you.q 8The whole land of Canaan,r where you now reside as a foreigner,s I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you;t and I will be their God.u”

9Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant,v you and your descendants after you for the generations to come.w 10This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised.x 11You are to undergo circumcision,y and it will be the sign of the covenantz between me and you. 12For the generations to comea every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised,b including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. 13Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised.c My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant.d 14Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcisede in the flesh, will be cut off from his people;f he has broken my covenant.g” Article: Circumcision

15God also said to Abraham, “As for Saraih your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah.i 16I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her.j I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations;k kings of peoples will come from her.”

17Abraham fell facedown;l he laughedm and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old?n Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?”o 18And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmaelp might live under your blessing!”q

19Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son,r and you will call him Isaac.4^,s I will establish my covenant with himt as an everlasting covenantu for his descendants after him. 20And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers.v He will be the father of twelve rulers,w and I will make him into a great nation.x 21But my covenanty I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to youz by this time next year.”a 22When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him.b

23On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his householdc or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him.d 24Abraham was ninety-nine years olde when he was circumcised,f 25and his son Ishmaelg was thirteen; 26Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that very day. 27And every male in Abraham’s householdh, including those born in his household or bought from a foreigner, was circumcised with him.

Genesis 18

The Three Visitors

1The LORD appeared to Abrahama near the great trees of Mamreb while he was sitting at the entrance to his tentc in the heat of the day. 2Abraham looked upd and saw three mene standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.f

3He said, “If I have found favor in your eyes,g my lord,1 do not pass your servanth by. 4Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feeti and rest under this tree. 5Let me get you something to eat,j so you can be refreshed and then go on your way—now that you have come to your servant.”

“Very well,” they answered, “do as you say.”

6So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. “Quick,” he said, “get three seahs2 of the finest flour and knead it and bake some bread.”k

7Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calfl and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it. 8He then brought some curdsm and milkn and the calf that had been prepared, and set these before them.o While they ate, he stood near them under a tree.

9“Where is your wife Sarah?”p they asked him.

“There, in the tent,q” he said.

10Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year,r and Sarah your wife will have a son.”s

Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. 11Abraham and Sarah were already very old,t and Sarah was past the age of childbearing.u 12So Sarah laughedv to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lordw is old, will I now have this pleasure?”

13Then the LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’x 14Is anything too hard for the LORD?y I will return to you at the appointed time next year,z and Sarah will have a son.”a

15Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”

But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”

Abraham Pleads for Sodom

16When the menb got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. 17Then the LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abrahamc what I am about to do?d 18Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation,e and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.3 19For I have chosen himf, so that he will direct his childreng and his household after him to keep the way of the LORDh by doing what is right and just,i so that the LORD will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”j

20Then the LORD said, “The outcry against Sodomk and Gomorrah is so greatl and their sin so grievousm 21that I will go downn and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.”

22The meno turned away and went toward Sodom,p but Abraham remained standing before the LORD.4^,q 23Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked?r 24What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare5 the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it?s 25Far be it from you to do such a thingt—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteousu and the wicked alike.v Far be it from you! Will not the Judgew of all the earth do right?”x

26The LORD said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.y”

27Then Abraham spoke up again: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes,z 28what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?”

“If I find forty-five there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.”

29Once again he spoke to him, “What if only forty are found there?”

He said, “For the sake of forty, I will not do it.”

30Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry,a but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found there?”

He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”

31Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?”

He said, “For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.”

32Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more.b What if only ten can be found there?”

He answered, “For the sake of ten,c I will not destroy it.”

33When the LORD had finished speakingd with Abraham, he left,e and Abraham returned home.f

Genesis 19

Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed

1The two angelsa arrived at Sodomb in the evening, and Lotc was sitting in the gateway of the city.d When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground.e 2“My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feetf and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.”

“No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”g

3But he insistedh so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house.i He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast,j and they ate.k 4Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodoml—both young and old—surrounded the house. 5They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”m

6Lot went outside to meet themn and shut the door behind him 7and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. 8Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”o

9“Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner,p and now he wants to play the judge!q We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.

10But the menr inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. 11Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindnesss so that they could not find the door.

12The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you?t Get them out of here, 13because weu are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the LORD against its people is so greatv that he has sent us to destroy it.”w

14So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry1 his daughters. He said, “Hurry and get out of this place, because the LORD is about to destroy the city!x” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.y

15With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept awayz when the city is punished.a”

16When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughtersb and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them.c 17As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives!d Don’t look back,e and don’t stop anywhere in the plain!f Flee to the mountainsg or you will be swept away!”

18But Lot said to them, “No, my lords,2 please! 19Your3 servant has found favor in your4 eyes,h and you5 have shown great kindnessi to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains;j this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. 20Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”

21He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this requestk too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. 22But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar.6^,l)

23By the time Lot reached Zoar,m the sun had risen over the land. 24Then the LORD rained down burning sulfurn on Sodom and Gomorraho—from the LORD out of the heavens.p 25Thus he overthrew those citiesq and the entire plain,r destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land.s 26But Lot’s wife looked back,t and she became a pillar of salt.u

27Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the LORD.v 28He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.w

29So when God destroyed the cities of the plain,x he rememberedy Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophez that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.a

Lot and His Daughters

30Lot and his two daughters left Zoarb and settled in the mountains,c for he was afraid to stay in Zoar. He and his two daughters lived in a cave. 31One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man around here to give us children—as is the custom all over the earth. 32Let’s get our father to drink wine and then sleep with him and preserve our family lined through our father.”e

33That night they got their father to drink wine, and the older daughter went in and slept with him. He was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up.f

34The next day the older daughter said to the younger, “Last night I slept with my father. Let’s get him to drink wine again tonight, and you go in and sleep with him so we can preserve our family line through our father.”g 35So they got their father to drink wineh that night also, and the younger daughter went in and slept with him. Again he was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up.i

36So both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father.j 37The older daughter had a son, and she named him Moab7;k he is the father of the Moabitesl of today. 38The younger daughter also had a son, and she named him Ben-Ammi8; he is the father of the Ammonites9^,m of today.

Genesis 20

Abraham and Abimelek

20:1-18Ref — Ge 12:10-20; 26:1-11

1Now Abraham moved on from therea into the region of the Negevb and lived between Kadeshc and Shur.d For a whilee he stayed in Gerar,f 2and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.g” Then Abimelekh king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her.i

3But God came to Abimelekj in a dreamk one night and said to him, “You are as good as deadl because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.”m

4Now Abimelek had not gone near her, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation?n 5Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister,o’ and didn’t she also say, ‘He is my brother’? I have done this with a clear consciencep and clean hands.q”

6Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have keptr you from sinning against me.s That is why I did not let you touch her. 7Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet,t and he will pray for youu and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die.”v

8Early the next morning Abimelek summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid. 9Then Abimelek called Abraham in and said, “What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should never be done.w” 10And Abimelek asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?”

11Abraham replied, “I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of Godx in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’y 12Besides, she really is my sister,z the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. 13And when God had me wandera from my father’s household,b I said to her, ‘This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.” ’ ”

14Then Abimelekc brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham,d and he returned Sarah his wife to him. 15And Abimelek said, “My land is before you; live wherever you like.”e

16To Sarah he said, “I am giving your brother a thousand shekels1 of silver. This is to cover the offense against you before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated.”

17Then Abraham prayed to God,f and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, 18for the LORD had kept all the women in Abimelek’s household from conceiving because of Abraham’s wife Sarah.g

Genesis 21

The Birth of Isaac

1Now the LORD was gracious to Saraha as he had said, and the LORD did for Sarah what he had promised.b 2Sarah became pregnant and bore a sonc to Abraham in his old age,d at the very time God had promised him.e 3Abraham gave the name Isaac1^,f to the son Sarah bore him. 4When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him,g as God commanded him. 5Abraham was a hundred years oldh when his son Isaac was born to him.

6Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter,i and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” 7And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”j

Hagar and Ishmael Sent Away

8The child grew and was weaned,k and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. 9But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abrahaml was mocking,m 10and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave womann and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.”o

11The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son.p 12But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring2 will be reckoned.q 13I will make the son of the slave into a nationr also, because he is your offspring.”

14Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar.s He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba.t

15When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. 16Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she3 began to sob.u

17God heard the boy crying,v and the angel of Godw called to Hagar from heavenx and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid;y God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.z”

19Then God opened her eyesa and she saw a well of water.b So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.

20God was with the boyc as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. 21While he was living in the Desert of Paran,d his mother got a wife for hime from Egypt.

The Treaty at Beersheba

22At that time Abimelekf and Phicol the commander of his forcesg said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do.h 23Now sweari to me here before God that you will not deal falsely with me or my children or my descendants.j Show to me and the country where you now reside as a foreigner the same kindness I have shown to you.”k

24Abraham said, “I swear it.”

25Then Abraham complained to Abimelek about a well of water that Abimelek’s servants had seized.l 26But Abimelek said, “I don’t know who has done this. You did not tell me, and I heard about it only today.”

27So Abraham brought sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelek, and the two men made a treaty.m 28Abraham set apart seven ewe lambs from the flock, 29and Abimelek asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs you have set apart by themselves?”

30He replied, “Accept these seven lambs from my hand as a witnessn that I dug this well.o”

31So that place was called Beersheba,4^,p because the two men swore an oathq there.

32After the treatyr had been made at Beersheba,s Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forcest returned to the land of the Philistines.u 33Abraham planted a tamarisk treev in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the LORD,w the Eternal God.x 34And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistinesy for a long time.

Genesis 22

Abraham Tested

1Some time later God testeda Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”

“Here I am,”b he replied.

2Then God said, “Take your sonc, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah.d Sacrifice him there as a burnt offeringe on a mountain I will show you.f”

3Early the next morningg Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.h”

6Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac,i and he himself carried the fire and the knife.j As the two of them went on together, 7Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”

“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lambk for the burnt offering?”

8Abraham answered, “God himself will providel the lambm for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

9When they reached the place God had told him about,n Abraham built an altaro there and arranged the woodp on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar,q on top of the wood. 10Then he reached out his hand and took the knifer to slay his son.s 11But the angel of the LORDt called out to him from heaven,u “Abraham! Abraham!”v

“Here I am,”w he replied.

12“Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God,x because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.y”

13Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram1 caught by its horns.z He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.a 14So Abraham calledb that place The LORDc Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.d”

15The angel of the LORDe called to Abraham from heavenf a second time 16and said, “I swear by myself,g declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,h 17I will surely bless youi and make your descendantsj as numerous as the stars in the skyk and as the sand on the seashore.l Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies,m 18and through your offspring2 all nations on earth will be blessed,3^,n because you have obeyed me.”o

19Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba.p And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.

Nahor’s Sons

20Some time later Abraham was told, “Milkah is also a mother; she has borne sons to your brother Nahor:q 21Uzr the firstborn, Buzs his brother, Kemuel (the father of Aram), 22Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph and Bethuel.t” 23Bethuel became the father of Rebekah.u Milkah bore these eight sons to Abraham’s brother Nahor.v 24His concubine,w whose name was Reumah, also had sons: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash and Maakah.

Genesis 23

The Death of Sarah

1Sarah lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old. 2She died at Kiriath Arbaa (that is, Hebron)b in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep over her.c

3Then Abraham rose from beside his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites.1^,d He said, 4“I am a foreigner and strangere among you. Sell me some property for a burial site here so I can bury my dead.f”

5The Hittites replied to Abraham, 6“Sir, listen to us. You are a mighty princeg among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will refuse you his tomb for burying your dead.”

7Then Abraham rose and bowed down before the people of the land, the Hittites. 8He said to them, “If you are willing to let me bury my dead, then listen to me and intercede with Ephron son of Zoharh on my behalf 9so he will sell me the cave of Machpelah,i which belongs to him and is at the end of his field. Ask him to sell it to me for the full price as a burial site among you.”

10Ephron the Hittite was sitting among his people and he replied to Abraham in the hearing of all the Hittitesj who had come to the gatek of his city. 11“No, my lord,” he said. “Listen to me; I give2^,l you the field, and I give3 you the cave that is in it. I give4 it to you in the presence of my people. Bury your dead.”

12Again Abraham bowed down before the people of the land 13and he said to Ephron in their hearing, “Listen to me, if you will. I will pay the price of the field. Accept it from me so I can bury my dead there.”

14Ephron answered Abraham, 15“Listen to me, my lord; the land is worth four hundred shekels5 of silver,m but what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.”

16Abraham agreed to Ephron’s terms and weighed out for him the price he had named in the hearing of the Hittites: four hundred shekels of silver,n according to the weight current among the merchants.o

17So Ephron’s field in Machpelahp near Mamreq—both the field and the cave in it, and all the trees within the borders of the field—was deeded 18to Abraham as his propertyr in the presence of all the Hittitess who had come to the gatet of the city. 19Afterward Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelahu near Mamre (which is at Hebronv) in the land of Canaan.w 20So the field and the cave in it were deededx to Abraham by the Hittites as a burial site.y

Genesis 24

Isaac and Rebekah

1Abraham was now very old,a and the LORD had blessedb him in every way.c 2He said to the senior servantd in his household, the one in charge of all that he had,e “Put your hand under my thigh.f 3I want you to swearg by the LORD, the God of heavenh and the God of earth,i that you will not get a wife for my sonj from the daughters of the Canaanites,k among whom I am living,l 4but will go to my country and my own relativesm and get a wife for my son Isaac.n” Map: Mesopotamia

5The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land?o Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?p”

6“Make sure that you do not take my son back there,”q Abraham said. 7“The LORD, the God of heaven,r who brought me out of my father’s household and my native lands and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring1^,t I will give this land’u—he will send his angel before youv so that you can get a wife for my son from there. 8If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oathw of mine. Only do not take my son back there.”x 9So the servant put his hand under the thighy of his masterz Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter.

10Then the servant left, taking with him ten of his master’s camelsa loaded with all kinds of good thingsb from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim2^,c and made his way to the town of Nahor.d 11He had the camels kneel down near the welle outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water.f

12Then he prayed, “LORD, God of my master Abraham,g make me successfulh today, and show kindnessi to my master Abraham. 13See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water.j 14May it be that when I say to a young woman, ‘Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink,k and I’ll water your camels too’l—let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac.m By this I will known that you have shown kindness to my master.”

15Before he had finished praying,o Rebekahp came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuelq son of Milkah,r who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor.s 16The woman was very beautiful,t a virgin;u no man had ever slept with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again.

17The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.”v

18“Drink,w my lord,” she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink.

19After she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camelsx too,y until they have had enough to drink.” 20So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels.z 21Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the LORD had made his journey successful.a

22When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ringb weighing a beka3 and two gold braceletsc weighing ten shekels.4 23Then he asked, “Whose daughter are you?d Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?e”

24She answered him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milkah bore to Nahor.f” 25And she added, “We have plenty of straw and fodder,g as well as room for you to spend the night.”

26Then the man bowed down and worshiped the LORD,h 27saying, “Praise be to the LORD,i the God of my master Abraham,j who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulnessk to my master. As for me, the LORD has led me on the journeyl to the house of my master’s relatives.”m

28The young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things.n 29Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban,o and he hurried out to the man at the spring. 30As soon as he had seen the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s arms,p and had heard Rebekah tell what the man said to her, he went out to the man and found him standing by the camels near the spring. 31“Come, you who are blessed by the LORD,”q he said. “Why are you standing out here? I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.”

32So the man went to the house, and the camels were unloaded. Straw and fodderr were brought for the camels, and water for him and his men to wash their feet.s 33Then food was set before him, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told you what I have to say.”

“Then tell us,” Laban said.

34So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant.t 35The LORD has blessedu my master abundantly,v and he has become wealthy.w He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys.x 36My master’s wife Sarah has borne him a son in her old age,y and he has given him everything he owns.z 37And my master made me swear an oath,a and said, ‘You must not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live,b 38but go to my father’s family and to my own clan, and get a wife for my son.’c

39“Then I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not come back with me?’d

40“He replied, ‘The LORD, before whom I have walked faithfully,e will send his angel with youf and make your journey a success,g so that you can get a wife for my son from my own clan and from my father’s family.h 41You will be released from my oath if, when you go to my clan, they refuse to give her to you—then you will be released from my oath.’i

42“When I came to the spring today, I said, ‘LORD, God of my master Abraham, if you will, please grant successj to the journey on which I have come. 43See, I am standing beside this spring.k If a young womanl comes out to draw water and I say to her, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar,”m 44and if she says to me, “Drink, and I’ll draw water for your camels too,” let her be the one the LORD has chosen for my master’s son.’n

45“Before I finished praying in my heart,o Rebekah came out, with her jar on her shoulder.p She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’q

46“She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too.’r So I drank, and she watered the camels also.s

47“I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’t

“She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuelu son of Nahor, whom Milkah bore to him.’v

“Then I put the ring in her nosew and the bracelets on her arms,x 48and I bowed down and worshiped the LORD.y I praised the LORD, the God of my master Abraham,z who had led me on the right road to get the granddaughter of my master’s brother for his son.a 49Now if you will show kindness and faithfulnessb to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so I may know which way to turn.”

50Laban and Bethuelc answered, “This is from the LORD;d we can say nothing to you one way or the other.e 51Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the LORD has directed.f”

52When Abraham’s servant heard what they said, he bowed down to the ground before the LORD.g 53Then the servant brought out gold and silver jewelry and articles of clothingh and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave costly giftsi to her brother and to her mother. 54Then he and the men who were with him ate and drank and spent the night there.

When they got up the next morning, he said, “Send me on my wayj to my master.”

55But her brother and her mother replied, “Let the young woman remain with us ten days or so;k then you5 may go.”

56But he said to them, “Do not detain me, now that the LORD has granted successl to my journey. Send me on my waym so I may go to my master.”

57Then they said, “Let’s call the young woman and ask her about it.”n 58So they called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?”

“I will go,”o she said.

59So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way,p along with her nurseq and Abraham’s servant and his men. 60And they blessedr Rebekah and said to her,

61Then Rebekah and her attendantsu got ready and mounted the camels and went back with the man. So the servant took Rebekah and left.

62Now Isaac had come from Beer Lahai Roi,v for he was living in the Negev.w 63He went out to the field one evening to meditate,6^,x and as he looked up,y he saw camels approaching. 64Rebekah also looked up and saw Isaac. She got down from her camelz 65and asked the servant, “Who is that man in the field coming to meet us?”

“He is my master,” the servant answered. So she took her veila and covered herself.

66Then the servant told Isaac all he had done. 67Isaac brought her into the tentb of his mother Sarah,c and he married Rebekah.d So she became his wife, and he loved her;e and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.f

Genesis 25

The Death of Abraham

25:1-4pp — 1Ch 1:32-33

1Abraham had taken another wife, whose name was Keturah. 2She bore him Zimran,a Jokshan, Medan, Midian,b Ishbak and Shuah.c 3Jokshan was the father of Shebad and Dedan;e the descendants of Dedan were the Ashurites, the Letushites and the Leummites. 4The sons of Midian were Ephah,f Epher, Hanok, Abida and Eldaah. All these were descendants of Keturah.

5Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac.g 6But while he was still living, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubinesh and sent them away from his son Isaaci to the land of the east.j

7Abraham lived a hundred and seventy-five years.k 8Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age,l an old man and full of years; and he was gathered to his people.m 9His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried himn in the cave of Machpelaho near Mamre,p in the field of Ephronq son of Zohar the Hittite,r 10the field Abraham had bought from the Hittites.1^,s There Abraham was buried with his wife Sarah. 11After Abraham’s death, God blessed his son Isaac,t who then lived near Beer Lahai Roi.u

Ishmael’s Sons

25:12-16pp — 1Ch 1:29-31

12This is the accountv of the family line of Abraham’s son Ishmael, whom Sarah’s slave, Hagarw the Egyptian, bore to Abraham.x

13These are the names of the sons of Ishmael, listed in the order of their birth: Nebaiothy the firstborn of Ishmael, Kedar,z Adbeel, Mibsam, 14Mishma, Dumah,a Massa, 15Hadad, Tema,b Jetur,c Naphish and Kedemah. 16These were the sons of Ishmael, and these are the names of the twelve tribal rulersd according to their settlements and camps.e 17Ishmael lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. He breathed his last and died, and he was gathered to his people.f 18His descendantsg settled in the area from Havilah to Shur,h near the eastern border of Egypt, as you go toward Ashur. And they lived in hostility toward2 all the tribes related to them.i

Jacob and Esau

19This is the accountj of the family line of Abraham’s son Isaac.

Abraham became the father of Isaac, 20and Isaac was forty years oldk when he married Rebekahl daughter of Bethuelm the Aramean from Paddan Aram3^,n and sister of Labano the Aramean.p

21Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was childless.q The LORD answered his prayer,r and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the LORD.s

23The LORD said to her,

24When the time came for her to give birth,v there were twin boys in her womb.w 25The first to come out was red,x and his whole body was like a hairy garment;y so they named him Esau.4^,z 26After this, his brother came out,a with his hand grasping Esau’s heel;b so he was named Jacob.5^,c Isaac was sixty years oldd when Rebekah gave birth to them.

27The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter,e a man of the open country,f while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. 28Isaac, who had a taste for wild game,g loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.h

29Once when Jacob was cooking some stew,i Esau came in from the open country,j famished. 30He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew!k I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.6)l

31Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.m”

32“Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”

33But Jacob said, “Swearn to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthrighto to Jacob.

34Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew.p He ate and drank, and then got up and left.

So Esau despised his birthright.