genesis

WHO WROTE Some scholars debate about who wrote Genesis,

THIS BOOK? though many believe Moses is the author.

WHY WAS THIS Genesis tells us how God created the universe and
BOOK WRITTEN? human beings. It also covers the special promises God
made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

WHAT DO WE LEARN God created all things. He loves people, but he will
ABOUT GOD IN THIS BOOK? punish sin. God promises to save people who trust him.

WHO ARE THE KEY PEOPLE Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and
IN THIS BOOK? Rebekah, Jacob and Rachel, and Joseph

WHERE DID THIS HAPPEN? Genesis 111 happened in Mesopotamia.

Genesis1236 took place in Canaan, which is also
called the promised land. The rest of Genesis took
place in Egypt. (See the map at the back of this Bible
tofind Mount Sinai.)

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE God creates the universe Genesis 1

STORIES IN THIS BOOK?
God creates Adam and Eve Genesis 2
Adam and Eve sin Genesis 3
Noah builds an ark Genesis 6
God sends a flood to punish sin Genesis 78
God gives promises to Abraham Genesis 12
Abraham prays for a city Genesis 18
Jacob steals Esaus blessing Genesis 27
Jacobs name is changed Genesis 32
Josephs brothers sell him into slavery Genesis 37

In the beginning God Joseph becomes a ruler Genesis 3941

created the heavens and
the earth (Gen1:1).
PhotoDisc
2 genesis 1:1
1:1
God was the only one
in the beginning.
Although everything else has a
beginning, God has always been
around. The Bible describes him as
everlasting or eternal. That means
he has no beginning, and he has
no end.
1:331
There was an order
to creation.
On the first three days, God formed
creation with light, water and sky,
land and vegetation. On the final
three days, God filled creation with
light givers, fish and birds, and
animals and humans.
1:5
Creation took six days.
Each day could have been 24hours,
just like we understand a day to
beor the word day could have
represented a very long period of
time.
1:21,2425
God created all kinds of
animals and plants.
God created plants and animals
with distinct looks and patterns
for each family and species. Thats
why the Bible says he created them
according to their kinds.
1:24
God created dinosaurs.
Although Genesis doesnt mention
dinosaurs specifically, they were
probably created on the sixth day.
Several places in the Bible describe
creatures that may be dinosaurs,
such as a monster (Psalm 74:13),
dragon (Revelation 12:3) or
behemoth (Job 40:1519).
T H E B E G I NN I N G
1 In the beg inning God created the heavens and the
earth. 2Now the e arth was formless and empt y, dark
ness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of
God was hovering over the waters.
3 And God said, Let there be l ight, and there was l ight.
4G od saw that the l ight was good, and he sepa rat
ed the light from the darkness. 5God called the light
day, and the darkness he c alled night. And t here
was evening, and there was morningthe f irst day.
6 And God said, Let t here be a v ault bet ween the waters
to separate water from water. 7So God made the vault
and sepa rated the water under the v ault from the wa
ter above it. And it was so. 8God called the vault sky.
And there was evening, and there was morningthe
second day.
9 And God said, Let the water under the sky be gathered
to one place, and let dry g round appear. And it was
so. 10God called the dry g round land, and the gath
ered waters he called seas. And God saw that it was
good.
11Then God said, Let the land produce vegetation:
seed-bearing p lants and trees on the land that bear
fruit with seed in it, according to their various k inds.
And it was so. 12 T he land produced vegetation: plants
bearing seed according to their k inds and trees bear
ing fruit with seed in it according to t heir k inds. And
God saw that it was good. 13A nd there was evening,
and there was morningthe third day.
14 And God said, Let there be lights in the vault of the sky
to sepa rate the day from the night, and let them serve
as signs to mark sacred times, and days and y ears,
15a nd let them be l ights in the v ault of the sky to give
light on the earth. And it was so. 16God made two
g reat lightsthe greater light to govern the day and
the lesser l ight to govern the night. He also made the
stars. 17God set them in the v ault of the sky to give
light on the earth, 18to govern the day and the n ight,
and to sepa rate light from darkness. And God saw
that it was good. 19A nd there was evening, and there
was morning the fourth day.
20 And God said, Let the water teem with living crea
tures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault
of the sky. 21So God created the g reat creat ures of
the sea and every living t hing with which the water
teems and that moves about in it, according to t heir
k inds, and every w inged bird according to its kind.
And God saw that it was good. 22God blessed them
and said, Be fruitf ul and increase in number and fill
the water in the seas, and let the b irds increase on the
earth. 23A nd there was evening, and there was morn
ing the f ifth day.
24 And God said, Let the land produce living creat ures ac
cording to their k inds: the livestock, the creat ures that
 genesis 2:3 3

move a long the g round, and the wild animals, each

according to its kind. And it was so. 25God made the
wild animals accord ing to t heir k inds, the livestock
according to their k inds, and all the creatures that
move a long the g round according to their k inds. And
God saw that it was good.
26T hen God said, Let us make mank ind in our
image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the
fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the live
stock and all the wild animals,a and over all the crea
tures that move a long the ground. 1:27
27 So
God created mankind in his own image, Humans are special.
in the image of God he created them; People are different from
male and female he created them. everything else God made because
they are made in his image. That
28God blessed them and said to them, Be fruit means we share some of Gods
ful and increase in number; fill the e arth and subdue characteristics, such as intelligence,
it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the b irds in the love and creativity. Since each
sky and over every living creat ure that moves on the person is made in Gods image,
ground. everyone is important to God.
29T hen God said, I give you every seed-bearing
plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree
that has f ruit with seed in it. They will be yours for 1:28
food. 30A nd to all the beasts of the earth and all the God told humans to take
birds in the sky and all the creat ures that move along care of the earth.
the g roundeverything that has the breath of life in When God told people to fill the
itI give every g reen plant for food. And it wasso. earth and subdue it, he meant to
31God saw all that he had made, and it was very care for all of creation and use its
good. And t here was even ing, and t here was morn resources wisely.
ing the sixth day.
2:23
2 Thus the heavens and the e arth were completed in
all their vast array. God rested on the seventh
day.
2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had God did not need to rest because
been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all he was tired. He rested because he
his work. 3T hen God b lessed the seventh day and was finished creating the world and
made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work everything in it. God also rested
of creating that he had done. so we would know its important
a26 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text (see Syriac); Masoretic to take a break from work one day
Text the earth each week and worship him.

Parallel Days
Genesis 1
Day 1: Light Day 4: Sun and moon
Day 2: Water and sky Day 5: Fish and birds
Day 3: Plant life Day 6: Animals and people

Beautiful! Gods power, wisdom and sense of order are

revealed in the parallels between days 13 and 46.
4 genesis 2:4
2:7
God made the first man
out of dust.
Both animals and people were
created out of the ground with
Gods breath of life.
2:8,1014
The location of Eden
Eden was probably in the country
we know today as Iraq. The location
of the rivers tells us that Eden also
could have been an area through
Egypt and Ethiopia.
2:9
The tree of life
This tree was in the middle of the
Garden of Eden. It had special
fruit. Anyone who ate it would live
forever. God gave Adam and Eve
access to the tree of life because he
wanted them to have eternal life.
annat zisovich/Shutterstock
2:17
Good and evil
God warned Adam and Eve not to
eat from the tree of the knowledge
of good and evil. Adam and Eve
already knew right from wrong.
But they hadnt seen evil. God was
testing if they would obey.
2:18,20
Adam needed a helper.
All of Gods other creatures had
been created in pairs, but Adam was
alone. Eve would provide friendship
and help for Adam, and together
they would carry on the human race.
ADA M AND E VE
4T his is the account of the heavens and the earth when
they were created, when the Lord God made the e arth
and the heavens.
5Now no shrub had yet app eared on the eartha and no
lant had yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not sent
p
rain on the e arth and t here was no one to work the g round,
6 but s treams b came up from the earth and watered the
whole surface of the g round. 7T hen the Lord God formed
a manc from the dust of the g round and b reathed into his
nostrils the b reath of life, and the man became a living
being.
8Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in
Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9The Lord
God made all k inds of trees grow out of the g roundtrees
that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the mid
dle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil.
10A river watering the garden f lowed from Eden; from
there it was sepa rated into four headwaters. 11T he name of
the f irst is the Pishon; it w inds through the entire land of
Hav i lah, where t here is gold. 12( The gold of that land is
good; aromatic resin d and onyx are also there.) 13T he name
of the second river is the Gihon; it w inds through the entire
land of Cush.e 14T he name of the third river is the Tig ris;
it runs a long the east side of Ashu r. And the fourth river
is the Euphrates.
15T he Lord God took the man and put him in the Gar
den of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16A nd the Lord
God commanded the man, You are free to eat from any
tree in the garden; 17but you must not eat from the tree of
the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it
you will certainly die.
18T he Lord God said, It is not good for the man to be
a lone. I will make a helper suitable for him.
19Now the Lord God had f ormed out of the g round all
the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought
them to the man to see what he would name them; and
whatever the man called each living creat ure, 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 Adamf no suitable helper was found. 21So the
Lord God c aused the man to fall into a deep s leep; and
while he was sleeping, he took one of the mans ribsg and
then c losed up the p lace with f lesh. 22T hen the Lord God
made a woman from the ribh he had taken out of the man,
and he brought her to the man.
23T he man said,
This is now bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
a5Or land; also in verse6 b6Or mist c7 The Hebrew for man
(adam) sounds like and may be related to the Hebrew for ground (adamah);
it is also the name Adam (see verse20). d12Or good; pearls
e13Possibly southeast Mesopotamia f20Or the man g21Or took
part of the mans side h22Or part
 genesis 3:15 5

she shall be called woman,

for she was taken out of man.
24T hat is why a man leaves his father and mother and is
united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
25Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no 3:1
shame. The serpent
Satan, or the devil, took the form of
T H E FA L L a snake to tempt Adam and Eve.

3 Now the serpent 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?
2T he woma n said to the serpent, We may eat f ruit

from the t rees in the garden, 3but God did say, You
must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the midd le of
the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.
4 You will not certainly die, the serpent said to

the woman. 5For God k nows that when you eat

from it your eyes will be o pened, and you will
Eric Isselee/Shutterstock
be like God, knowing good and evil.
6W hen the woma n saw that the f ruit of the

tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and 3:16
also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate The conversation with the
it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, serpent
and he ate it. 7T hen the eyes of both of them were o pened, Eve was the one who talked to the
and they rea lized they were naked; so they sewed fig l eaves serpent. And it seems from verse six
together and made coverings for themselves. that Adam was with Eve. If he wasnt
8T hen the man and his wife h eard the sound of the there, then he made the decision to
Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool disobey without the pressure from
of the day, and they hid from the Lord God a mong the the serpent. They were both guilty
trees of the garden. 9But the Lord God c alled to the man, of disobeying God.
Where are you?
10He ans wered, I h eard you in the garden, and I was
a fraid because I was naked; so I hid.
3:4
11A nd he said, Who told you that you were na The serpents lies
ked?
Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not The serpent told Adam and Eve that
to eat from? their eyes would be opened and
12T he man said, The woma n you put here with me they would become like God. He
she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ateit. said they would know good from
13T hen the Lord God said to the woma n, What is this evil. Their eyes were opened, but
you have done? the result was different from what
The woman said, The serpent deceived me, and I ate. the serpent promised.
14S o the Lord God said to the serp ent, Bec ause you

have done this, 3:8

God visited Adam
Cursed are you above all livestock and Eve.
and all wild animals! God is a spirit, which means he
You will crawl on your belly doesnt have a body like humans.
and you will eat dust So we dont know if God actually
all the days of your life. walked in the gardenthe verse
15 And I will put enmity might say that just so humans can
between you and the woman, better understand. But it is clear that
and between your offspringa and hers; God was really there in the garden,
a15Or seed and he talked with Adam and Eve.
6 genesis 3:16
3:1213
Adam and Eve responded
to God.
Adam blamed Eve, and Eve
blamed the serpent. Neither took
responsibility for their actions.
3:1415
The meaning of Gods
curse
God cursed the serpent to crawl on
its belly and fight with humans. The
promise that Eves children would
crush the serpents head hints at
salvation through Jesus death on
the cross. (See Romans 16:20.)
3:1719
The meaning of Gods
words to Adam
God told Adam that because of sin,
it would be difficult and painful
work to get food. And God said that
when Adam died, his body would
go back to the dust of the ground.
4:35
Abels offering vs. Cains
offering
Both a plant offering and an animal
offering were acceptable to God,
but Cains offering was not made
with a pure heart. He did not give
his best. Abel pleased God because
he offered his best animals.
(left) PhotoDisc: Siede
Preis; (right) Eric Isselee/
Shutterstock
he will crusha your head,
and you will strike his heel.
16To the woman he said,
I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
with painful labor you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you.
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 fromit,
Cursed is the ground because of you;
through painful toil you will eat food from it
all the days of your life.
18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
and you will eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your brow
you will eat your food
until you return to the ground,
since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
and to dust you will return.
20A damb n
amed his wife Eve,c because she would be
come the mother of all the living.
21T he Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and
his wife and c lothed them. 22A nd the Lord God said,
The man has now become like one of us, knowing good
and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and
take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever. 23So
the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to
work the g round from which he had been taken. 24 A fter he
d rove the man out, he p laced on the east sided of the Gar
den of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back
and forth to g uard the way to the tree of life.
CAIN AND ABEL
4 Adamb made love to his wife Eve, and she
became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.e
She said, With the help of the Lord I have
brought forth f a man. 2Later she gave birth to his
brother Abel.
Now Abel kept f locks, and Cain worked the soil.
3I n the
course of time Cain brought some of the
fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. 4A nd
Abel also brought an offeringfat portions from
some of the firstborn of his f lock. The Lord looked
with favor on Abel and his offering, 5but on Cain and
his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very
ang ry, and his face was downcast.
6T hen the Lord said to Cain, Why are you ang ry?
a15Or strike b20,1Or The man c20 Eve probably means living.
d24Or placed in front e1 Cain sounds like the Hebrew for brought
forth or acquired. f1Or have acquired
 genesis 4:14 7

Why is your face downcast? 7If you do what is r ight, will

you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is r ight, sin
is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you
must rule overit.
8Now Cain said to his broth er Abel, Lets go out to
the f ield. a W hile they were in the f ield, Cain attacked his
brother Abel and k illed him.
9T hen the Lord said to Cain, Where is your brother

Abel?
I dont know, he replied. AmI my brothers keeper?
10T he Lord said, What have you done? Listen! Your 4:1112
brothers blood c ries out to me from the g round. 11Now Gods curse on Cain
you are under a curse and driven from the g round, which Cain had made his living as a
opened its mouth to receive your brothers blood from your farmer, growing food from the
hand. 12W hen you work the g round, it will no longer y ield ground. But now the ground was
its c rops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the soaked with his brothers blood,
earth. so God said the ground would no
13Cain said to the Lord, My punishment is more than
longer produce any crops for Cain.
I can bear. 14Today you are driving me from the land, and Instead of staying with his family,
a8 Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Masoretic Text Cain was forced to wander the
does not have Lets go out to the field. earth.

SE T T I N G O F G ENES I S

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I R A Q Babel
ISRAEL
Bethel Shechem
Jerusalem
Ur of the
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Beersheba Ed e n?
JORDAN P
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S A U D I ul ia
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A R A B I A
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8 genesis 4:15
4:15
The mark on Cain
The Bible doesnt say what kind of
mark God placed on Cain, but it was
a warning sign to protect him from
anyone wanting to kill him.
4:19
Marrying more than one
woman
Having more than one wife was
common in ancient times, but God
created marriage to be between
one man and one woman, like
Adam and Eve. Having more
than one wife sometimes caused
problems for husbands in Old
Testament times.
5:532
People lived a long time.
Gods original plan was that people
would live forever. When Adam and
Eve sinned, death was a result, and
the length of human life gradually
shortened.
5:24
Enoch did not die.
Enoch had a very close relationship
with God. The Bible tells us that
Enochs life on earth ended in a
very unusual way: God took him
away without Enoch experiencing
death.
I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless
wanderer on the e arth, and whoever f inds me will killme.
15But the Lord said to him, Not soa; anyone who k ills
Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over. Then the
Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him
would kill him. 16So Cain went out from the Lords pres
ence and l ived in the land of Nod,b east of Eden.
17Cain made love to his wife, and she became pregnant
and gave b irth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city,
and he named it after his son Enoch. 18To Enoch was born
Irad, and Irad was the fat her of Mehujael, and Mehujael
was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the fa
ther of Lamech.
19L amech marr ied two women, one n amed Adah and
the other Zil lah. 20Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the
father of t hose who live in tents and r aise livestock. 21His
brothers name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play
stringed instruments and pipes. 22Zillah also had a son,
Tubal-Cain, who forged all k inds of tools out ofc bronze
and iron. Tubal-Cains sister was Naamah.
23L amech said to his wives,
Adah and Zillah, listen to me;
wives of Lamech, hear my words.
I have killed a man for wounding me,
a young man for injuring me.
24 If Cain is avenged seven times,
then Lamech seventy-seven times.
25Adam made love to his wife a gain, and she gave birth
to a son and n amed him Seth,d saying, God has granted
me another child in place of Abel, since Cain k illed him.
26S eth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.
At that time people began to call one the name of the
Lord.
FROM ADA M TO NOAH
5 This is the written account of Adams fami ly line.
When God created mank ind, he made them in the like
ness of God. 2He created them male and female and b lessed
them. And he named them Mank indf when they were
created.
3W hen Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his
own likeness, in his own image; and he named him Seth.
4A fter Seth was born, Adam l ived 800 years and had other
sons and daughters. 5A ltogether, Adam l ived a total of 930
years, and then he died.
6W hen Seth had lived 105 years, he became the fat herg
of Enosh. 7A fter he became the father of Enosh, Seth l ived
807 years and had other sons and daughters. 8A ltogether,
Seth l ived a total of 912 years, and then he died.
a15 Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew Very well b16 Nod means
wandering (see verses 12 and 14). c22Or who instructed all who work in
d25 Seth probably means granted. e26Or to proclaim f2Hebrew
adam g6 Father may mean ancestor; also in verses 7-26.
 genesis 6:3 9

9W hen Enosh had lived 90 years, he became

the father of Kenan. 10A fter he became the father

of Kenan, Enosh lived 815 years and had other Over a Year
sons and daughters. 11 A ltogether, Enosh l ived a
total of 905 years, and then he died. on the Ark
12W hen Kenan had l ived 70 years, he became

the fat her of Ma ha la lel. 13A fter he became the Genesis 68

fat her of Ma ha la lel, Kenan l ived 840 years and Noah spends 375 days on
had other sons and daughters. 14 A ltogether, Ke the ark; heres how those
nan l ived a total of 910 years, and then he died.
15
days break down:
W hen Mah alalel had lived 65 years, he
became the father of Jared. 16 A f ter he became 7 days
Noah enters
the fat her of Ja red, Ma ha l a lel l ived 830 years the ark one
and had other sons and daughters. 17 A ltogeth week before
er, Mahalalel l ived a total of 895 years, and then the flood
he died.
18W hen Jared had lived 162 y ears, he became 40 days
Springs surge
the father of E noch. 19A fter he became the father and rains fall for
of E noch, Jared lived 800 y ears and had other 40 days and 40
sons and daughters. 20 A ltogether, Ja red l ived a nights
total of 962 y ears, and then he died.
21W hen Enoch had lived 65 years, he became

the father of Methuselah. 22A fter he became the 150 days

The water
fat her of Met huselah, Enoch walked faithf ul recedes; the
ly with God 300 years and had other sons and ark rests on
daughters. 23 A ltogether, Enoch l ived a total of Mount Ararat
365 years. 24Enoch walked faithf ully with God;
then he was no more, because God took him away.
25W hen Met hus elah had lived 187 y ears, he
became the father of Lamech. 26 A fter he became 178 days
the fat her of Lamech, Met hus el ah l ived 782 The water
continues to
years and had other sons and daughters. 27A l recede; Noah
together, Met huselah l ived a total of 969 years, releases birds
and then he died. from the ark;
28W hen Lamech had lived 182 y ears, he had when the
a son. 29He named him Noaha and said, He birds do not
return, Noah
will comfort us in the labor and painf ul toil of leaves the ark
our hands caused by the g round the Lord has
c ursed. 30A fter Noah was born, Lamech lived
595 years and had other sons and daughters.
31 A ltogether, Lamech l ived a total of 777 years,

and then he died.

32A f ter Noah was 500 years old, he became
the father of Shem, Ham and Japheth.

W I C K E D NESS I N T H E W O R L D

6 When human beings beg an to inc rease in

numb er on the e arth and daughters were
born to them, 2the sons of God saw that the
daughters of humans were beautif ul, and they married any
of them they chose. 3T hen the Lord said, My Spirit will
not contend withb humans fore ver, for they are mortalc;
their days will be a hund red and twent y years.
a29 Noah sounds like the Hebrew for comfort. b3Or My spirit will not
remain in c3Or corrupt
10
6:4
Nephilim
Nephilim were people who were
very tall, strong and powerful. They
were known as heroes because of
their power as rulers.
6:7
God destroyed other
creatures beside humans
with the flood.
Human sin contaminated
everything God had made. So the
animal world also shared in Gods
judgment.
6:14
The ark
This ark is the ship God told Noah
to build. It was about 450feet long,
75feet wide and 45feet high.
genesis 6:4
4T he Nephilim were on the e arth in t hose daysa nd
also afterwardwhen the sons of God went to the daugh
ters of humans and had child ren by them. They were the
heroes of old, men of renown.
5T he Lord saw how g reat the wickedness of the human
race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of
the t houghts of the human heart was only evil all the time.
6T he Lord reg retted 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 earth the human race
I have createdand with them the animals, the birds and
the creat ures that move a long the groundfor I regret that
I have made them. 8But Noah found favor in the eyes of
the Lord.
N OAH AN D TH EFLO O D
9T his is the account of Noah and his fami ly.
Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people
of his time, and he walked faithf ully with God. 10Noah had
three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth.
11Now the e arth was corr upt in Gods sight and was full
of violence. 12God saw how corr upt the earth had become,
for all the people on earth had corr upted their ways. 13So
God said to Noah, I am going to put an end to all peo
ple, for the e arth is f illed with violence because of them. I
am surely going to destroy both them and the e arth. 14So
make yourself an ark of cypressa wood; make r ooms in it
and coat it with pitch inside and out. 15T his is how you are
to b
uildit: The ark is to be three hund red cubits long, fift y
cubits wide and thirt y cubits high.b 16Make a roof for it,
leaving below the roof an opening one cubitc
high all a round.d Put a door in the side of
the ark and make lower, midd le and
upp er decks. 17I am going to bring
floodwaters on the earth to destroy all
life under the heavens, every creat ure
that has the breath of life in it. Every
thing on earth will perish. 18But I will
establish my covenant with you, and you
will enter the arkyou and your sons
and your wife and your sons w ives
with you. 19You are to bring into the
ark two of all living creat ures, male
and female, to keep them a live with
you. 20Two of every kind of bird, of
every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that
moves a long the g round will come to you to be kept a live.
21You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and
store it away as food for you and for them.
22Noah did everyt hing just as God commanded him.
a14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain. b15That
is, about 450 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high or about 135 meters
long, 23 meters wide and 14 meters high c16 That is, about 18inches
or about 45 centimeters d16 The meaning of the Hebrew for this
clause is uncertain.
 genesis 7:24 11

7 The Lord then said to Noah, Go into the ark, you and
your whole family, because I have found you righteous
in this generation. 2Take with you seven pairs of every kind 7:2
of c lean animal, a male and its mate, and one pair of ev Clean and unclean animals
ery kind of unc lean animal, a male and its mate, 3and also God gave his people laws about
seven p airs of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep what to eat, and he said that some
their various k inds a live throughout the earth. 4 Seven days animals were unclean or impure.
from now I will send rain on the earth for fort y days and God knew which food was the best
fort y nights, and I will wipe from the face of the earth every for humans to eat at that time. The
living creat ure I have made. laws would have made sense then.
5A nd Noah did all that the Lord commanded him.
(See Leviticus 5:2and Leviticus 11.)
6Noah was six hund red years old when the floodwaters

came on the earth. 7A nd Noah and his sons and his wife
and his sons w ives entered the ark to escape the waters of
7:23
the f lood. 8Pairs of c lean and unc lean animals, of b irds and
Noah brought more clean
of all creat ures that move a long the g round, 9male and fe animals on the ark.
male, came to Noah and entered the ark, as God had com In addition to repopulating the
manded Noah. 10A nd after the seven days the floodwaters earth after the flood, the clean
came on the earth. animals were also used as food
11I n the six hund redth year of Noa hs life, on the sev while on the ark, and afterward as
enteenth day of the second monthon that day all the sacrifices to God.
springs of the g reat deep b urst forth, and the floodgates of
the heavens were o pened. 12A nd rain fell on the e arth fort y 7:89
days and fort y nights. How Noah got all those
13On that very day Noah and his sons, Shem, Ham and animals on board the ark
Japheth, together with his wife and the w ives of his three The Bible tells us the animals came
sons, entered the ark. 14T hey had with them every wild to Noah. We dont know for sure,
animal according to its kind, all livestock according to but maybe God gave the animals
their k inds, every creature that m oves a long the g round instincts to know that a disaster was
according to its kind and every bird according to its kind, coming.
every t hing with w ings. 15Pairs of all creat ures that have
the breath of life in them came to Noah and entered the
ark. 16T he animals going in were male and female of ev
ery living thing, as God had commanded Noah. Then the
Lord shut himin.
17For fort y days the f lood kept coming on the earth, and

as the waters increased they lifted the ark high a bove the
earth. 18The waters rose and increased greatly on the earth,
and the ark floated on the surface of the water. 19T hey rose
greatly on the earth, and all the high mountains under the
entire heavens were covered. 20The waters rose and covered
the mountains to a d epth of more than fifteen cubits.a,b
21 Every living t hing that moved on land perished birds,

livestock, wild animals, all the creat ures that swarm over
the earth, and all mank ind. 22Everything on dry land that
had the breath of life in its nostrils died. 23 Every living 7:23
t hing on the face of the e arth was w iped out; people and Fish and other sea animals
animals and the creat ures that move a long the g round and were safe during the
the birds were w iped from the earth. Only Noah was left, flood.
and those with him in the ark. The Bible says only animals that
24T he waters flooded the earth for a hund red and fift y
lived on land and birds were
days. destroyed.
a20 That is, about 23feet or about 6.8 meters b20Or rose more than
fifteen cubits, and the mountains were covered
12
8:1
The story changed after
the flood.
Before this point, the flood story
has been about Gods judgment.
Now the story becomes one of
redemption. When the Bible says
that God remembered Noah,
it doesnt mean that God had
forgotten him. Instead, it means
that God honored his promise to
Noah.
8:4
Location of the mountains
of Ararat
This mountain range was north of
Mesopotamia and east of modern
Turkey.
8:612
Noah sent out birds.
First, Noah sent out a raven, but it
didnt give him a clear answer. The
dove ate only leaves, so it could
better tell Noah that land and
vegetation had reappeared.
Epitavi/Shutterstock
8:11
Why an olive leaf is special
Olive trees grow at lower elevation.
The fresh leaf from the dove told
Noah that the water was low
enough for olive trees to grow
again.
genesis 8:1
8 But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals
and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he
sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded. 2Now the
springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens had
been closed, and the rain had stopped falling from the sky.
3T he water receded steadily from the earth. At the end of
the hundred and fift y days the water had gone down, 4and
on the seventeenth day of the seventh month the ark came
to rest on the mountains of Ararat. 5The waters continued
to recede until the tenth month, and on the f irst day of the
tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible.
6A fter fort y days Noah o pened a window he had made
in the ark 7and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and
forth unt il the water had d ried up from the e arth. 8T hen
he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the
surface of the g round. 9But the dove c ould find nowhere
to perch because there was water over all the surface of the
earth; so it ret urned to Noah in the ark. He r eached 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. 11W hen the dove ret urned to him
in the evening, t here in its beak was a freshly plucked olive
leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the
earth. 12He waited seven more days and sent the dove out
again, but this time it did not ret urn to him.
13By the f irst day of the f irst month of Noa hs six hun
dred and f irst year, the water had d ried up from the e arth.
Noah then removed the covering from the ark and saw that
the surface of the g round was dry. 14 By the twent y-seventh
day of the second month the earth was completely dry.
15T hen God said to Noah, 16Come out of the ark, you
and your wife and your sons and t heir w ives. 17Bring out
every kind of living creat ure that is with youthe birds,
the animals, and all the creatures that move a long the
g roundso they can multiply on the earth and be fruitf ul
and increase in number onit.
18S o Noah came out, together with his sons and his wife
and his sons w ives. 19A ll the animals and all the creat ures
that move a long the g round and all the birdseverything
that m oves on landcame out of the ark, one kind after
another.
20T hen Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking
some of all the c lean animals and c lean birds, he sacrif iced
burnt offerings on it. 21T he Lord smelled the pleasing
aroma and said in his heart: Never again will I curse the
g round because of humans, even thougha every inc lination
of the human h eart is evil from childhood. And never again
will I destroy all living creat ures, as I have done.
22 As long as the earth endures,
seedtime and harvest,
cold and heat,
summer and winter,
day and night
will never cease.
a21Or humans, for
 genesis 9:22 13

G O D S C O V EN A N T W I T H N O A H
8:2122
9 Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them,
Be fruitf ul and increase in number and fill the e arth.
2T he fear and d read of you will fall on all the beasts of the
God promised to never
again destroy all living
things.
earth, and on all the birds in the sky, on every creat ure that
God was pleased with Noahs
moves a long the g round, and on all the fish in the sea; they
sacrifice, but he knew that humans
are given into your hands. 3 Every thing that lives and moves
would continue to sin. He was
about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the g reen
plants, I now give you everything. showing forgiveness and grace
4 But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in for life on earth. He promised that
it. 5A nd for your lifeblood I will surely demand an account the normal cycles of nature would
ing. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And continue until the end of time.
from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting
for the life of another human being. 9:1,7
6 Whoever Gods instructions to
sheds human blood,
Noah and his family
by humans shall their blood be shed;
for in the image of God God told Noah and his family to be
has God made mankind. fruitful and multiply and take care
of the earth, just like he had told
7A s for you, be fruitf ul and increase in number; multiply on Adam and Eve. (See Genesis 1:28.)
the earth and increase uponit.
9:23
8T hen God said to Noah and to his sons with him: 9 I

now establ ish my covenant with you and with your descen
dants after you 10a nd with every living creat ure that was Why animals feared
with youthe birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, humans
all those that came out of the ark with youevery living Sin brought violence into the
creat ure on earth. 11I establ ish my covenant with you: Nev world. God made humankind to
er again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a f lood; rule over all creation, including
never again will there be a f lood to destroy the earth. the animal world. God also gave
12A nd God said, This is the sign of the cov enant I Noah permission to eat animal
am making between me and you and every living crea meat.
ture with you, a covenant for all generat ions to come: 13I
have set my rainbow in the c louds, and it will be the sign 9:4
of the covenant bet ween me and the earth. 14 W henever I Why bloody meat was not
bring c louds over the e arth and the rainbow appears in the okay to eat
clouds, 15I will remember my covenant bet ween me and you The blood of the animal
and all living creat ures of every kind. Never again will the represented its life. Since life is a
waters become a f lood to destroy all life. 16 W henever the gift from God, it must be honored.
rainbow appears in the c louds, I will see it and remember To honor that life, people were
the everlasting covenant bet ween God and all living crea required to drain the blood from
tures of every kind on the earth. the meat they were eating.
17S o God said to Noah, This is the sign of the covenant

I have establ ished bet ween me and all life on the earth.
9:56
T H E S O NS O F N O A H Gods judgment for
18
T he sons of Noah who came out of the ark were murder
Shem, Ham and Japheth. (Ham was the father of Canaan.) God created human beings in
19T hese were the t hree sons of Noah, and from them came his own image, so human life is
the people who were scattered over the whole earth. precious and valuable.
20Noah, a man of the soil, proceededa to p
lant a vine
yard. 21W hen he d rank some of its wine, he became d runk
and lay uncovered inside his tent. 22Ham, the father of
Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers
a20Or soil, was the first
14
9:1216
The sign of the rainbow
God knows that people tend to
forget things, even important
things like his faithfulness. God
said the rainbow is a reminder
to people that he will keep his
promise to never destroy the world
again with a flood.
Digital Stock
9:22
Ham mistreats Noah.
Ham did not show respect for his
father, Noah. Instead of covering
his fathers nakedness as his
brothers did, Ham told others
about his fathers drunkenness and
nakedness.
genesis 9:23
o utside. 23But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it
across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and
covered their fathers naked body. Their faces were t urned
the other way so that they w ould not see t heir father naked.
24W hen Noah awoke from his wine and found out what
his youngest son had done to him, 25he said,
Cursed be Canaan!
The lowest of slaves
will he be to his brothers.
26He also said,
Praise be to the Lord, the God of Shem!
May Canaan be the slave of Shem.
27 May God extend Japhethsa territory;
may Japheth live in the tents of Shem,
and may Canaan be the slave of Japheth.
28A fter the f lood Noah lived 350 years. 29Noah lived a
total of 950 years, and then he died.
T H E TA B L E O F N AT I O NS
10 This is the account of Shem, Ham and Japheth, No
ahs sons, who themselves had sons after the flood.
THE JAPHETHITES
2 The sonsb of Japheth:
Gomer, Magog, Mada i, Javan, Tubal, Meshek and
Tiras.
3 The sons of Gomer:
Ashkenaz, Riphath and Togarmah.
4 The sons of Javan:
Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittites and the Rodanites.c
5( From t hese the marit ime peoples spread out into
their territor ies by their c lans within their nations,
each with its own lang uage.)
THE HAMITES
6 The sons of Ham:
Cush, Egypt, Put and Canaan.
7 The sons of Cush:
Seba, Havi lah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabtek a.
The sons of Raamah:
Sheba and Dedan.
8Cush was the fat herd of Nimrod, who became a m ighty
warrior on the earth. 9He was a mighty hunter before the
Lord; that is why it is said, Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter
before the Lord. 10T he f irst centers of his kingdom were
Babylon, Uruk, Akk ad and Kalneh, ine Shinar. f 11From
that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nine veh,
a27 Japheth sounds like the Hebrew for extend. b2 Sons may mean
descendants or successors or nations; also in verses 3, 4, 6, 7, 20-23, 29 and31.
c4 Some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text and Samaritan Pentateuch
(see also Septuagint and 1Chron. 1:7); most manuscripts of the Masoretic
Text Dodanites d8 Father may mean ancestor or predecessor or founder;
also in verses 13, 15, 24 and 26. e10Or Uruk and Akkadall of
themin f10That is, Babylonia
 genesis 10:19 15

Rehoboth Ir, a Calah 12and Resen, w

hich is bet ween Nine
veh and Calahwhich is the g reat city.
10:132
Why the Bible includes
13 Egypt was the fatherof lists of names
the Lud ites, Anam ites, Lehabites, Napht uh ites, A family tree was important in
14 Path r usites, Kaslu h ites (from whom the Phi l is
ancient times as a way to record
tines came) and Caphtorites. peoples history and show how
15 Canaan was the fatherof families were connected to the
Sidon his firstborn, b and of the Hittites, 16 Jebu community. People were identified
sites, Amor ites, Girg ashites, 17 H iv ites, Ark ites, by their relatives. Many family
Sinites, 18 A r vadites, Zemarites and Hamathites. trees in the Bible point forward and
Later the Canaanite c lans scattered 19and the borders of backwardforward to Jesus and
Canaan reached from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, backward to the people from whom
and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboy he descended.
im, as far as Lasha.
a11Or Nineveh with its city squares b15Or of the Sidonians, the
foremost

Age of Early Ancestors

The book of Genesis records the long lives of the early
ancestors of faith; here are some of the better-known examples:
Ancestor Bible Reference from Genesis Age at Death
Adam 5:5 930
Seth 5:8 912
Methuselah 5:27 969
Noah 9:29 950
Shem 11:1011 600
Eber 11:1617 464
Peleg 11:1819 239
Nahor 11:2425 148
Terah 11:32 205
Sarah 23:1 127
Abraham 25:7 175
Isaac 35:2829 180
Jacob 47:28 147
Joseph 50:26 110
16
10:25
How countries formed
The earth was divided into separate
nations, probably when God
confused the languages at the
Tower of Babel (11:89).
11:1
Everyone used to speak
the same language.
Before the Tower of Babel, there
was one language. No one knows
what that language was for sure.
Although people could understand
each other, the grandchildren and
great-grandchildren from Noahs
three sons may have had their own
unique words and pronunciations.
(See Genesis 10:5,20,31.)
11:4
The Tower of Babel
Ancient cities were built around a
temple. The typical Mesopotamian
temple tower, called a ziggurat, had
a square base and sloping sides,
with steps that led to a shrine on
the top. Ziggurats were meant to
serve as staircases from earth to
heaven. A god could come down
to the shrine and receive worship
from the people who had climbed
to the shrine. God probably saw this
tower as a symbol of human pride
rather than of glory to God.
genesis 10:20
20T hese are the sons of Ham by t heir c lans and lang uag
es, in their territories and nations.
THE SEMITES
21Sons were also born to Shem, w
hose older brother wasa
Japheth; Shem was the ancestor of all the sons of Eber.
22 The sons of Shem:
Elam, Ashur, Arphaxad, Lud and Aram.
23 The sons of Aram:
Uz, Hul, Gether and Meshek.b
24 Arphaxad was the father ofc Shelah,
and Shelah the father of Eber.
25 Two sons were born to Eber:
One was named Peleg,d because in his time the
earth was div ided; his brother was named Joktan.
26 Joktan was the fatherof
Almod ad, Sheleph, Haz armaveth, Jer ah, 27Ha
dor am, Uzal, Dik l ah, 28 Obal, Abimael, Sheba,
29O phir, Havi lah and Jobab. All t hese were sons of
Joktan.
30T he reg ion where they lived stretched from Mesha to
ward Sephar, in the eastern hill country.
31T hese are the sons of Shem by t heir c lans and lang uag
es, in their territories and nations.
32T hese are the c lans of Noa hs sons, according to t heir
lines of descent, within their nations. From these the na
tions spread out over the earth after the flood.
THE TOWER OF BABEL
11 Now the w hole world had one lang uage and a com
mon speech. 2 As people moved eastward, e they f ound
a plain in Shinarf and sett led there.
3T hey said to each other, Come, lets make bricks and
bake them thoroughly. They used b rick instead of stone,
and tar for mortar. 4T hen they said, Come, let us b uild
ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so
that we may make a name for ourselves; otherw ise we will
be scattered over the face of the whole earth.
5But the Lord came down to see the city and the tow
er the people were building. 6T he Lord said, If as
one people speaking the same lang uage they have
beg un to do this, then nothing they plan to do will
be impossible for them. 7Come, let us go down and
conf use their lang uage so they will not understand
each other.
8S o the Lord scattered them from t here over
all the earth, and they s topped building the city.
9T hat is why it was called Babelg because t here
the Lord confused the lang uage of the whole
a21Or Shem, the older brother of b23 SeeSeptuagint and 1Chron.
1:17; Hebrew Mash. c24 Hebrew; Septuagint father of Cainan, and
Cainan was the father of d25 Peleg means division. e2Or from the
east; or in the east f2That is, Babylonia g9 That is, Babylon; Babel
sounds like the Hebrew for confused.