Genesis 11:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: When Arpachshad had lived 35 years, he fathered Shelah.

NIV: When Arphaxad had lived 35 years, he became the father of Shelah.

NASB: Arpachshad lived thirty-five years, and fathered Shelah;

CSB: Arpachshad lived 35 years and fathered Shelah.

NLT: When Arphaxad was 35 years old, he became the father of Shelah.

KJV: And Arphaxad lived five and thirty years, and begat Salah:

NKJV: Arphaxad lived thirty-five years, and begot Salah.

The line from Noah to Abraham follows through Shem to Arpachshad and now to Shelah. This is a noteworthy point in Genesis due to the age of Arpachshad when he fathers Shelah: "only" 35 years old. This is a drastic reduction in the age of having children when compared to the pre-flood era (Genesis 5). Of course, the genealogies listed prior to the flood don't demand those children were the first-born, so those patriarchs might well have had other, earlier children. And yet, it's significant that the ages associated with children are decreasing, as are the lifespans.

Whether as a result of the world being damaged by the flood (Genesis 7:22–24), or by God's direct intervention (Genesis 6:3), humanity's lifespans will taper off very quickly in the generations following Noah. To multiply and fill the earth, people had to start having children at much younger ages.

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 5/8/2024 7:51:15 PM