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Genesis 4-7
Contemporary English Version
Genesis 4-7
Contemporary English Version
Cain Murders Abel
4 Adam[a] and Eve had a son. Then Eve said, “I'll name him Cain because I got[b] him with the help of the Lord.” 2 Later she had another son and named him Abel.
Abel became a sheep farmer, but Cain farmed the land. 3 One day, Cain gave part of his harvest to the Lord, 4 (A) and Abel also gave an offering to the Lord. He killed the first-born lamb from one of his sheep and gave the Lord the best parts of it. The Lord was pleased with Abel and his offering, 5 but not with Cain and his offering. This made Cain so angry that he could not hide his feelings.
6 The Lord said to Cain:
What's wrong with you? Why do you look so angry? 7 If you had done the right thing, you would be smiling.[c] But you did the wrong thing, and now sin is waiting to attack you like a lion. Sin wants to destroy you, but don't let it!
8 (B) Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let's go for a walk.”[d] And when they were out in a field, Cain attacked and killed him.
9 Afterwards the Lord asked Cain, “Where is Abel?”
“How should I know?” he answered. “Am I supposed to look after my brother?”
10 (C) Then the Lord said:
Why have you done this terrible thing? You killed your own brother, and his blood flowed onto the ground. Now his blood is calling out for me to punish you. 11 And so, I'll put you under a curse. Because you killed Abel and made his blood run out on the ground, you will never be able to farm it again. 12 When you try to farm the land, it won't produce anything for you. From now on, you'll be without a home, and you'll spend the rest of your life wandering from place to place.
13 “This punishment is too hard!” Cain said. 14 “You're making me leave my home and live far from you.[e] I will have to wander about without a home, and just anyone could kill me.”
15 “No!”[f] the Lord answered. “Anyone who kills you will be punished seven times worse than I am punishing you.” So the Lord put a mark on Cain to warn everyone not to kill him. 16 But Cain had to go far from the Lord and live in the Land of Wandering,[g] which is east of Eden.
More and More People
17 Later, Cain and his wife had a son named Enoch. At the time Cain was building a town, and so he named it Enoch after his son. 18 Then Enoch had a son named Irad, who had a son named Mehujael, who had a son named Methushael, who had a son named Lamech.
19 Lamech married Adah, then Zillah. 20-21 Lamech and Adah had two sons, Jabal and Jubal. Their son Jabal was the first to live in tents and raise sheep and goats. Jubal was the first to play harps and flutes.
22 Lamech and Zillah had a son named Tubal Cain who made tools out of bronze and iron. They also had a daughter, whose name was Naamah.
23 One day, Lamech said to his two wives, “A young man wounded me, and I killed him. 24 Anyone who tries to get even with me will be punished ten times more than anyone who tries to get even with Cain.”
25 Adam and his wife had another son. They named him Seth, because they said, “God has given[h] us a son to take the place of Abel, who was killed by his brother Cain.” 26 Later, Seth had a son and named him Enosh.
About this time people started worshiping the Lord.[i]
Descendants of Adam
5 1-2 (D) God created men and women to be like himself. He gave them his blessing and called them human beings. The following is a list of the descendants of Adam, the first man:
3-4 When Adam was 130, he had a son who was just like him, and he named him Seth. Adam had more children 5 and died at the age of 930.
6 When Seth was 105, he had a son named Enosh. 7 Seth had more children 8 and died at the age of 912.
9 When Enosh was 90, he had a son named Kenan. 10 Enosh had more children 11 and died at the age of 905.
12 When Kenan was 70, he had a son named Mahalalel. 13 Kenan had more children 14 and died at the age of 910.
15 When Mahalalel was 65, he had a son named Jared. 16 Mahalalel had more children 17 and died at the age of 895.
18 When Jared was 162, he had a son named Enoch. 19 Jared had more children 20 and died at the age of 962.
21 When Enoch was 65, he had a son named Methuselah, 22 and during the next 300 years he had more children. Enoch truly loved God, 23-24 (E) and God took him away at the age of 365.
25 When Methuselah was 187, he had a son named Lamech. 26 Methuselah had more children 27 and died at the age of 969.
28 When Lamech was one 182, he had a son. 29 Lamech said, “I'll name him Noah because he will give us comfort,[j] as we struggle hard to make a living on this land that the Lord has put under a curse.” 30 Lamech had more children 31 and died at the age of 777.
32 After Noah was 500 years old, he had three sons and named them Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
The Lord Will Send a Flood
6 1-2 (F) More and more people were born, until finally they spread all over the earth. Some of their daughters were so beautiful that supernatural beings[k] came down and married the ones they wanted. 3 Then the Lord said, “I won't let my life-giving breath remain in anyone forever.[l] No one will live for more than 120 years.”[m]
4 (G)(H) The children of the supernatural beings who had married these women became famous heroes and warriors. They were called Nephilim and lived on the earth at that time and even later.
5 (I) The Lord saw how bad the people on earth were and that everything they thought and planned was evil. 6 He was sorry that he had made them, 7 and he said, “I'm going to destroy every person on earth! I'll even wipe out animals, birds, and reptiles. I'm sorry I ever made them.”
8 But the Lord was pleased with Noah, 9 (J) and this is the story about him. Noah was the only person who lived right and obeyed God. 10 He had three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
11-12 God knew that everyone was terribly cruel and violent. 13 So he told Noah:
Cruelty and violence have spread everywhere. Now I'm going to destroy the whole earth and all its people. 14 Get some good lumber and build a boat. Put rooms in it and cover it with tar inside and out. 15 Make it 133 meters long, 22 meters wide, and 13 meters high. 16 Build a roof[n] on the boat and leave a space of about 44 centimeters between the roof and the sides.[o] Make the boat three stories high and put a door on one side.
17 I'm going to send a flood that will destroy everything that breathes! Nothing will be left alive. 18 But I solemnly promise that you, your wife, your sons, and your daughters-in-law will be kept safe in the boat.[p]
19-20 Take into the boat with you a male and a female of every kind of animal and bird, as well as a male and a female of every reptile. I don't want them to be destroyed. 21 Store up enough food both for yourself and for them.
22 (K) Noah did everything God told him to do.
The Flood
7 The Lord told Noah:
Take your whole family with you into the boat, because you are the only one on this earth who pleases me. 2 Take seven pairs of every kind of animal that can be used for sacrifice[q] and one pair of all others. 3 Also take seven pairs of every kind of bird with you. Do this so there will always be animals and birds on the earth. 4 Seven days from now I will send rain that will last for 40 days and nights, and I will destroy all other living creatures I have made.
5-7 (L) Noah was 600 years old when he went into the boat to escape the flood, and he did everything the Lord had told him to do. His wife, his sons, and his daughters-in-law all went inside with him. 8-9 He obeyed God and took a male and a female of each kind of animal and bird into the boat with him. 10 Seven days later a flood began to cover the earth.
11-12 (M) The water under the earth started gushing out everywhere, the sky opened like windows, and rain poured down for 40 days and nights. All this began on the seventeenth day of the second month of the year. 13 On that day Noah and his wife went into the boat with their three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and their wives. 14 They took along every kind of animal, tame and wild, including the birds. 15 Noah took a male and a female of every living creature with him, 16 just as God had told him to do. And when they were all in the boat, the Lord closed the door.
17-18 For 40 days the rain poured down without stopping. And the water became deeper and deeper, until the boat started floating high above the ground. 19-20 Finally, the mighty flood was so deep that even the highest mountain peaks were about seven meters below the surface of the water. 21 Not a bird, animal, reptile, or human was left alive anywhere on earth. 22-23 (N) The Lord destroyed everything that breathed. Nothing was left alive except Noah and the others in the boat. 24 A hundred fifty days later, the water started going down.
Footnotes
- 4.1 Adam: See the note at 3.20.
- 4.1 Cain … got: In Hebrew “Cain” sounds like “got.”
- 4.7 you would be smiling: Or “I would have accepted your offering.”
- 4.8 Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let's … walk.” Most ancient translations; Hebrew “Cain spoke to his brother Abel.”
- 4.14 live … you: It was generally believed that the Lord was with his people only in their own land.
- 4.15 No: Three ancient translations; Hebrew “Very well!”
- 4.16 Wandering: The Hebrew text has “Nod,” which means “wandering.”
- 4.25 Seth … given: In Hebrew “Seth” sounds like “given.”
- 4.26 worshiping the Lord: Or “worshiping in the name of the Lord.”
- 5.29 Noah … comfort: In Hebrew “Noah” sounds like “comfort.”
- 6.1,2 supernatural beings: Or “angels.”
- 6.3 I won't … forever: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 6.3 No one … years: Or “In fact, they will all be destroyed in about 100 years” (that is, at the time of the flood).
- 6.16 roof: Or “window.”
- 6.16 leave … sides: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 6.18 boat: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 18.
- 7.2 animal … for sacrifice: Hebrew “clean animals.” Animals that could be used for sacrifice were called “clean,” and animals that could not be used were called “unclean.”
Genesis 4-7
New International Version
Genesis 4-7
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,
“Adah and Zillah, listen to me;
wives of Lamech, hear my words.
I have killed(AL) a man for wounding me,
a young man for injuring me.
24 If Cain is avenged(AM) seven times,(AN)
then Lamech seventy-seven times.(AO)”
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)
Footnotes
- Genesis 4:1 Or The man
- Genesis 4:1 Cain sounds like the Hebrew for brought forth or acquired.
- Genesis 4:1 Or have acquired
- Genesis 4:8 Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Masoretic Text does not have “Let’s go out to the field.”
- Genesis 4:15 Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Hebrew Very well
- Genesis 4:16 Nod means wandering (see verses 12 and 14).
- Genesis 4:22 Or who instructed all who work in
- Genesis 4:25 Seth probably means granted.
- Genesis 4:26 Or to proclaim
- Genesis 5:2 Hebrew adam
- Genesis 5:6 Father may mean ancestor; also in verses 7-26.
- Genesis 5:29 Noah sounds like the Hebrew for comfort.
- Genesis 6:3 Or My spirit will not remain in
- Genesis 6:3 Or corrupt
- Genesis 6:14 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
- Genesis 6:15 That is, about 450 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high or about 135 meters long, 23 meters wide and 14 meters high
- Genesis 6:16 That is, about 18 inches or about 45 centimeters
- Genesis 6:16 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain.
- Genesis 7:20 That is, about 23 feet or about 6.8 meters
- Genesis 7:20 Or rose more than fifteen cubits, and the mountains were covered
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