God said, "Let there be light!" So there was light.

Then God said, "Let there be a canopy between bodies of water, separating bodies of water from bodies of water!"

Then God said, "Let there be lights across the sky to distinguish day from night, to act as signs for seasons, days, and years,

With this the heavens and the earth were completed, including all of their vast array.

no shrubs had yet grown in the meadows of the earth and no vegetation had sprouted, because the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there were no human beings to work the ground.

A river flows from Eden to water the garden, and from there it divides, becoming four branches.

The name of the first one is Pishon it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold.

The gold of that land is pure; bdellium and onyx are also found there.

The name of the second river is Gihon it winds through the entire land of Cush.

The man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds that fly, and to each of earth's animals, but there was not found a strength corresponding to him,

He told the man, "Because you have listened to what your wife said, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, "You must not eat from it,' cursed is the ground because of you. You'll eat from it through pain-filled labor for the rest of your life.

communing with God and then he was there no longer, because God had taken him.

So the LORD said, "My Spirit won't remain with human beings forever, because they're truly mortal. Their lifespan will be 120 years."

Noah fathered three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

From birds according to their species, from domestic animals according to their species, and from everything that crawls on the ground according to their species two of everything will come to you so they may remain alive.

along with seven pairs of the flying birds, male and female, in order to keep their offspring alive on the surface of all the earth.

On that very day, Noah entered the ark with his sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, Noah's wife, his sons' three wives with them,

The dove returned to him in the evening, but in its beak there was an olive leaf that it had plucked! So Noah knew that the flood waters had decreased on the land.

I will establish my covenant with you: No living beings will ever be cut off again by flood waters, and there will never again be a flood that destroys the earth."

These three were Noah's sons, and from these men the whole earth was repopulated.

Then Shem and Japheth took their father's cloak, laid it across both their shoulders, and walking backwards, they both covered their father's genitals. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father's genitals.

from whom the coastal nations spread into their own lands and nations, each with their own language and family groups.

From there he went north to Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, and Calah,

These are Ham's descendants, listed by their families, each with their own lands, language, and family groups.

Their settlements extended from Mesha towards Sephar, the eastern hill country.

These are Shem's descendants, listed by their families, each with their own lands, language, and family groups.

These are the families of Noah's sons, according to their records, by their nations. From these people, the nations on the earth spread out after the flood.

There was a time when the entire earth spoke a common language with an identical vocabulary.

As people migrated westward, they came across a plain in the region of Shinar and settled there.

Come on! Let's go down there and confuse their language, so that they won't understand each other's speech."

So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the surface of the whole earth, so that they had to stop building the city.

Therefore it was called Babylon, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth, and from there the LORD scattered them over the surface of the entire earth.

Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot (Haran's son), and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram's wife, and they journeyed together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan. But when they had gone as far as Haran, they settled there,

I'll bless those who bless you, but I'll curse the one who curses you, and through you all the people of the earth will be blessed."

So Abram left there, as the LORD had directed him, and Lot accompanied him. Abram was 75 years old when he left Haran.

Abram traveled through the land to the place called Shechem, as far as the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land.

From there Abram traveled on to the hill country east of Bethel and set up his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD.

There was a famine in the land, so Abram went down to Egypt to live because the famine was so severe.

where he had first built an altar. There Abram called on the name of the LORD.

There was strife between the herdsmen in charge of Abram's livestock and the herdsmen in charge of Lot's livestock. Also, at that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were living in the land.

Now the men of Sodom were particularly evil and sinful in their defiance of the LORD.

Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, so when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some of their people fell into them, while the rest fled to the hill country.

The conquerors captured all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah, including their entire food supply, and then left.

I will take nothing except what my warriors have eaten. But as for what belongs to the men who were allied with me, including Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, let them take their share."

The LORD responded, "Bring me a three-year-old cow, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon."

Then the LORD told Abram, "You can be certain about this: Your descendants will be foreigners in a land that isn't theirs. They will be slaves there and will be oppressed for 400 years.

However, I will judge the nation that they serve, and later they will leave there with many possessions.

So Sarai told Abram, "You are well aware that the LORD has prevented me from giving birth to a child. Go have sex with my servant, so that I may possibly bear a son through her."

I'll give to you and to your descendants the land to which you have traveled all the land of Canaan as an eternal possession. I will be their God."

he glanced up and saw three men standing there, not far from him. As soon as he noticed them, Abraham ran from the tent entrance to greet them and bowed low to the ground.

Abraham hurried into the tent and told Sarah, "Quick! Take three measures of the best flour, knead it, and make some flat bread."

The men asked him, "Where is your wife Sarah?" "There, in the tent," he replied.

After this, the men set out from there and looked out over Sodom. Abraham went with them to send them off.

"since Abraham's descendants will become a great and powerful nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed through him?

The LORD also said, "How great is the disapproval of Sodom and Gomorrah! Their sin is so very serious!

Then two of the men turned away from there and walked toward Sodom, while Abraham remained standing in the presence of the LORD.

Perhaps there are 50 righteous ones within the city. Will you actually destroy it and not forgive the place for the sake of the 50 righteous that are found there?

The LORD said, "If I find 50 righteous people within Sodom, I'll forgive the whole place for their sake."

What if there are five less than 50 righteous ones? Will you bring destruction upon the city because of those five?" The LORD said, "I won't destroy it if I find 45 there."

Abraham continued to speak to him, asking, "What if 40 are found there?" The LORD replied, "I won't do it for the sake of those 40."

Abraham then asked, "I hope my LORD will not be angry if I speak. What if 30 are found there?" The LORD answered, "I won't do it for the sake of those 30."

"Look," Abraham said, "I've presumed to speak to my LORD" so what if 20 are found there?" "For the sake of those 20," the LORD responded, "I won't destroy it."

Finally, Abraham inquired, "I hope my LORD will not be angry if I speak only once more. What if ten are found there?" He replied, "For the sake of those ten I won't destroy it."

because we're going to destroy it. Their outcry has come to the attention of the LORD, so he sent us here to destroy it!"

Look, there is a town nearby where I can flee, and it's a small one. Let me escape there! It's a small one, isn't it? That way I'll stay alive!"

Hurry up and flee there, because I cannot do anything until you get to that town." Therefore the name of the town was called Zoar.

Later on, Lot and his two daughters abandoned Zoar and settled in the hills because Lot was afraid to live in Zoar. He lived there in a cave, along with his two daughters.

One day the firstborn told the younger one, "Our father is old, and there's no man in the land to have sex with us, as everybody else throughout all the earth does.

So they had their father drink wine that night, and the older one had sexual relations with her father, but he was not aware when she lay down or when she got up.

So they made their father drink wine that night as well, so he was not aware when she lay down or when she got up.

That's how both of Lot's daughters became pregnant by their father.

Abraham traveled from there to the Negev and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While he was living in Gerar as an outsider,

"I thought that there's no fear of God in this place," Abraham replied, "and that they would kill me because of my wife.

The child grew and eventually was weaned, so Abraham threw a tremendous banquet on the very day Isaac was weaned.

she told Abraham, "Throw out this slave girl, along with her son, because this slave's son will never be a co-heir with my son Isaac!"

but God told Abraham, "Don't be troubled about the youth and your slave girl. Pay attention to Sarah in everything she tells you, because your offspring are to be named through Isaac.

Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beer-sheba, and there he called on the name of the LORD God Everlasting.

God said, "Please take your son, your unique son whom you love Isaac and go to the land of Moriah. Offer him as a burnt offering there on one of the mountains that I will point out to you."

Abraham ordered his two servants, "Both of you are to stay here with the donkey. Now as for the youth and me, we'll go up there, we'll worship, and then we'll return to you."

The two of them went on together and came to the place about which God had spoken. Abraham built an altar there, arranged the wood, tied up his son Isaac, and placed him on the altar on top of the wood.

I will certainly bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in heaven and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the gates of their enemies.

Furthermore, through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed my command."

Now since Ephron the Hittite had taken a seat there among the Hittites, he responded publicly to Abraham where the Hittites and everyone who was entering the gate of his city could hear him:

and then addressed Ephron so all the people of the land could hear him: "Please listen to me! I'm willing to pay the price of the field. Accept it from me, so I may bury my dead there."

"Make sure not to take my son there," Abraham replied.

"The LORD God of heaven, who brought me from my father's house and from my family's land, who spoke to me and promised me "I will give this land to your descendants,' will send his angel ahead of you, and you are to acquire a wife for my son from there.

If the woman isn't willing to follow you, then you'll be free from this oath to me. Just don't take my son back there!"

He asked her, "Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room in your father's house for us to spend the night?"

Instead, you are to go to my father's household, to my relatives, and choose a wife for my son there.'

So they sent off their sister Rebekah, along with her personal assistant, Abraham's servant, and his men.

Then Rebekah and her young servant women got up, mounted their camels, and followed Abraham's servant, who took Rebekah and went on his way.

Isaac went out walking in a field. He looked up, and all of a sudden there were some camels coming.

Here's a list of the names of Ishmael's sons, recorded by their names and descendants: Nebaioth was the firstborn, followed by Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam,

These were Ishmael's children, listed by their names according to their villages and their camps. There were a total of twelve tribal chiefs, according to their clans.

Later on, a famine swept through the land. This famine was different from the previous famine that had occurred earlier, during Abraham's lifetime. So Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, at Gerar.

I'll cause you to have as many descendants as the stars of the heavens, and I'll certainly give all these lands to your descendants. Later on, through your descendants all the nations of the earth will bless one another.

After he had been there awhile, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, looked out through a window and saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah.

So Isaac moved from there and encamped in the Gerar Valley, where he settled.

Later on, he left there and went to Beer-sheba,

In response, Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of the LORD. He also pitched his tents there and his servants dug a well.