Genesis 4:1-11:9

New International Version

Cain and Abel

4 Adam^[a] made love to his wife^(A) Eve,^(B) and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.^[b](C) She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth^[c] a man.” ² Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.^(D)

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil.^{(E) 3} In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering^(F) to the Lord.^{(G) 4} And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions^(H) from some of the firstborn of his flock.^(I) The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering,^{(J) 5} but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

⁶ Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry?^(K) Why is your face downcast? ⁷ If 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)”

⁸ Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”^[d] While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.^(N)

⁹ Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”^(O)

“I don’t know,^(P)” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

¹⁰ The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.^{(Q) 11} Now you are under a curse^(R) and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. ¹² When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you.^(S) You will be a restless wanderer^(T) on the earth.^(U)”

¹³ Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is more than I can bear. ¹⁴ Today 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)

¹⁵ But the Lord said to him, “Not so^[e]; anyone who kills Cain^(Y) will suffer vengeance^(Z) seven times over.^(AA)” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. ¹⁶ So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence^(AB) and lived in the land of Nod,^[f] east of Eden.^(AC)

¹⁷ Cain made love to his wife,^(AD) and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city,^(AE) and he named it after his son^(AF) Enoch. ¹⁸ To 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.

¹⁹ Lamech married^(AG) two women,^(AH) one named Adah and the other Zillah. ²⁰ Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. ²¹ His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments^(AI) and pipes.^{(AJ) 22} Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged^(AK) all kinds of tools out of^[g] bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.

²³ Lamech said to his wives,

²⁵ Adam made love to his wife^(AP) again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth,^[h](AQ) saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.”^{(AR) 26} Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.^(AS)

At that time people began to call on^[i] the name of the Lord.^(AT)

From Adam to Noah

5 This is the written account^(AU) of Adam’s family line.^(AV)

When God created mankind, he made them in the likeness of God.^{(AW) 2} He created them^(AX) male and female^(AY) and blessed them. And he named them “Mankind”^[j] when they were created.

³ When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image;^(AZ) and he named him Seth.^{(BA) 4} After Seth was born, Adam lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. ⁵ Altogether, Adam lived a total of 930 years, and then he died.^(BB)

⁶ When Seth had lived 105 years, he became the father^[k] of Enosh.^{(BC) 7} After he became the father of Enosh, Seth lived 807 years and had other sons and daughters. ⁸ Altogether, Seth lived a total of 912 years, and then he died.

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

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

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

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

²¹ When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah.^{(BH) 22} After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God^(BI) 300 years and had other sons and daughters. ²³ Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years. ²⁴ Enoch walked faithfully with God;^(BJ) then he was no more, because God took him away.^(BK)

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

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

³² After Noah was 500 years old,^(BO) he became the father of Shem,^(BP) Ham and Japheth.^(BQ)

Wickedness in the World

6 When human beings began to increase in number on the earth^(BR) and daughters were born to them, ² the sons of God^(BS) saw that the daughters^(BT) of humans were beautiful,^(BU) and they married^(BV) any of them they chose. ³ Then the Lord said, “My Spirit^(BW) will not contend with^[m] humans forever,^(BX) for they are mortal^[n];^(BY) their days will be a hundred and twenty years.”

⁴ The Nephilim^(BZ) were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans^(CA) and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.^(CB)

⁵ The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth,^(CC) and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.^{(CD) 6} The Lord regretted^(CE) that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. ⁷ So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth^(CF) 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.^(CG)” ⁸ But Noah^(CH) found favor in the eyes of the Lord.^(CI)

Noah and the Flood

⁹ This is the account^(CJ) of Noah and his family.

Noah was a righteous man, blameless^(CK) among the people of his time,^(CL) and he walked faithfully with God.^{(CM) 10} Noah had three sons: Shem,^(CN) Ham and Japheth.^(CO)

¹¹ Now the earth was corrupt^(CP) in God’s sight and was full of violence.^{(CQ) 12} God saw how corrupt^(CR) the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways.^{(CS) 13} So 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 destroy^(CT) both them and the earth.^{(CU) 14} So make yourself an ark of cypress^[o] wood;^(CV) make rooms in it and coat it with pitch^(CW) inside and out. ¹⁵ This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.^{[p] 16} Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit^[q] high all around.^[r] Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks. ¹⁷ I am going to bring floodwaters^(CX) 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.^{(CY) 18} But I will establish my covenant with you,^(CZ) and you will enter the ark^(DA)—you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you. ¹⁹ You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you.^{(DB) 20} Two^(DC) of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind^(DD) of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive.^{(DE) 21} You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.”

²² Noah did everything just as God commanded him.^(DF)

7 The Lord then said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and your whole family,^(DG) because I have found you righteous^(DH) in this generation. ² Take with you seven pairs of every kind of clean^(DI) animal, a male and its mate, and one pair of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate, ³ and also seven pairs of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive^(DJ) throughout the earth. ⁴ Seven days from now I will send rain^(DK) on the earth^(DL) for forty days^(DM) and forty nights,^(DN) and I will wipe from the face of the earth every living creature I have made.^(DO)”

⁵ And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him.^(DP)

⁶ Noah was six hundred years old^(DQ) when the floodwaters came on the earth. ⁷ And Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives entered the ark^(DR) to escape the waters of the flood. ⁸ Pairs of clean and unclean^(DS) animals, of birds and of all creatures that move along the ground, ⁹ male and female, came to Noah and entered the ark, as God had commanded Noah.^{(DT) 10} And after the seven days^(DU) the floodwaters came on the earth.

¹¹ In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life,^(DV) on the seventeenth day of the second month^(DW)—on that day all the springs of the great deep^(DX) burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens^(DY) were opened. ¹² And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.^(DZ)

¹³ On that very day Noah and his sons,^(EA) Shem, Ham and Japheth, together with his wife and the wives of his three sons, entered the ark.^{(EB) 14} They 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,^(EC) everything with wings. ¹⁵ Pairs of all creatures that have the breath of life in them came to Noah and entered the ark.^{(ED) 16} The animals going in were male and female of every living thing, as God had commanded Noah.^(EE) Then the Lord shut him in.

¹⁷ For forty days^(EF) the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth. ¹⁸ The waters rose and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the water. ¹⁹ They rose greatly on the earth, and all the high mountains under the entire heavens were covered.^{(EG) 20} The waters rose and covered the mountains to a depth of more than fifteen cubits.^{[s][t] (EH) 21} Every living thing that moved on land perished—birds, livestock, wild animals, all the creatures that swarm over the earth, and all mankind.^{(EI) 22} Everything on dry land that had the breath of life^(EJ) in its nostrils died. ²³ Every 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.^(EK) Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.^(EL)

²⁴ The waters flooded the earth for a hundred and fifty days.^(EM)

8 But God remembered^(EN) Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth,^(EO) and the waters receded. ² Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens^(EP) had been closed, and the rain^(EQ) had stopped falling from the sky. ³ The water receded steadily from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days^(ER) the water had gone down, ⁴ and on the seventeenth day of the seventh month^(ES) the ark came to rest on the mountains^(ET) of Ararat.^{(EU) 5} The waters continued to recede until the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible.

⁶ After forty days^(EV) Noah opened a window he had made in the ark ⁷ and sent out a raven,^(EW) and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth.^{(EX) 8} Then he sent out a dove^(EY) to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. ⁹ But 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. ¹⁰ He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. ¹¹ When 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.^{(EZ) 12} He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him.

¹³ By the first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and first year,^(FA) 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. ¹⁴ By the twenty-seventh day of the second month^(FB) the earth was completely dry.

¹⁵ Then God said to Noah, ¹⁶ “Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives.^{(FC) 17} Bring 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.”^(FD)

¹⁸ So Noah came out, together with his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives.^{(FE) 19} All 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.

²⁰ Then Noah built an altar to the Lord^(FF) and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean^(FG) birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings^(FH) on it. ²¹ The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma^(FI) and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground^(FJ) because of humans, even though^[u] every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood.^(FK) And never again will I destroy^(FL) all living creatures,^(FM) as I have done.

God’s Covenant With Noah

9 Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.^{(FQ) 2} The 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.^{(FR) 3} Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you.^(FS) Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.^(FT)

⁴ “But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it.^{(FU) 5} And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting.^(FV) I will demand an accounting from every animal.^(FW) And from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of another human being.^(FX)

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

⁸ Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: ⁹ “I now establish my covenant with you^(GB) and with your descendants after you ¹⁰ and 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. ¹¹ I establish my covenant^(GC) with you:^(GD) Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.^(GE)”

¹² And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant^(GF) I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come:^{(GG) 13} I have set my rainbow^(GH) in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. ¹⁴ Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow^(GI) appears in the clouds, ¹⁵ I will remember my covenant^(GJ) between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life.^{(GK) 16} Whenever the rainbow^(GL) appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant^(GM) between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”

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

The Sons of Noah

¹⁸ The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham and Japheth.^(GO) (Ham was the father of Canaan.)^{(GP) 19} These were the three sons of Noah,^(GQ) and from them came the people who were scattered over the whole earth.^(GR)

²⁰ Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded^[v] to plant a vineyard. ²¹ When he drank some of its wine,^(GS) he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. ²² Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked^(GT) and told his two brothers outside. ²³ But 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.

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

²⁶ He also said,

²⁸ After the flood Noah lived 350 years. ²⁹ Noah lived a total of 950 years, and then he died.^(HB)

The Table of Nations

10 This is the account^(HC) of Shem, Ham and Japheth,^(HD) Noah’s sons,^(HE) who themselves had sons after the flood.

The Japhethites^(HF)

The Hamites^(HR)

⁸ Cush was the father^[z] of Nimrod,^(IA) who became a mighty warrior on the earth. ⁹ He was a mighty^(IB) hunter^(IC) before the Lord; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the Lord.” ¹⁰ The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon,^(ID) Uruk,^(IE) Akkad and Kalneh,^(IF) in^[aa] Shinar.^{[ab](IG) 11} From that land he went to Assyria,^(IH) where he built Nineveh,^(II) Rehoboth Ir,^[ac] Calah ¹² and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah—which is the great city.

Later the Canaanite^(IV) clans scattered ¹⁹ and the borders of Canaan^(IW) reached from Sidon^(IX) toward Gerar^(IY) as far as Gaza,^(IZ) and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboyim,^(JA) as far as Lasha.

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

The Semites^(JB)

²¹ Sons were also born to Shem, whose older brother was^[ae] Japheth; Shem was the ancestor of all the sons of Eber.^(JC)

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

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

³² These are the clans of Noah’s sons,^(JM) according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earth^(JN) after the flood.

The Tower of Babel

11 Now the whole world had one language^(JO) and a common speech. ² As people moved eastward,^[ai] they found a plain in Shinar^[aj](JP) and settled there.

³ They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks^(JQ) and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone,^(JR) and tar^(JS) for mortar. ⁴ Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens,^(JT) so that we may make a name^(JU) for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered^(JV) over the face of the whole earth.”^(JW)

⁵ But the Lord came down^(JX) to see the city and the tower the people were building. ⁶ The Lord said, “If as one people speaking the same language^(JY) they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. ⁷ Come, let us^(JZ) go down^(KA) and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”^(KB)

⁸ So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth,^(KC) and they stopped building the city. ⁹ That is why it was called Babel^[ak](KD)—because there the Lord confused the language^(KE) of the whole world.^(KF) From there the Lord scattered^(KG) them over the face of the whole earth.