Genesis 11:15 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And Shelah lived after he fathered Eber 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

NIV: And after he became the father of Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

NASB: and Shelah lived 403 years after he fathered Eber, and he fathered other sons and daughters.

CSB: After he fathered Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and fathered other sons and daughters.

NLT: After the birth of Eber, Shelah lived another 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

KJV: And Salah lived after he begat Eber four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters.

NKJV: After he begot Eber, Salah lived four hundred and three years, and begot sons and daughters.

After fathering Eber, Shelah lived another 403 years and had other children. Adding the numbers together, Shelah lived to be 433 years old. Patriarchs of the pre-flood world lived close to a thousand years (Genesis 5), and aren't directly said to have had children until having lived more than a century (Genesis 5:3). As mankind spreads after the flood, these lifespans rapidly decrease. By the time of Abram, a person would be lucky to live beyond a century. And, in stark contrast to the pre-flood world, the prospect of having children near the age of 100 would become incredible (Genesis 17:17). This might have been due to God's direct influence (Genesis 6:3), or simply as a consequence of living on a harsher, less-ideal planet after the flood.

Genesis 11:10–26 provides a direct genealogy from Noah to Abram, through Noah's blessed-by-God son, Shem. This record shows a direct genetic line from Noah and the flood, through Peleg and the dispersion of humanity at the Tower of Babel, to Terah, Abram's father.

Genesis 11 contains three sections: God confuses and scatters the people of the world to stop the building of Babel and its tower. A genealogy is provided showing the direct links between Noah and Abram. The ''generations'' of Terah are introduced, providing a description of the family out of which God will call Abram to become the father of His chosen people.

Genesis 10 provided a table of the nations, describing the peoples and tribes that descended from Noah's three sons and where they settled. Genesis 11 describes how God scattered the peoples of the world after confusing their languages to stop the building of Babel and its tower. The chapter also provides a direct genealogy from Noah to Abram and then introduces Abram by way of his father Terah. The following chapter will begin the story of Abram and God's chosen people, Israel.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.

Accessed 12/18/2024 9:40:37 AM