The KJV Audio Bible

Genesis 11

Genesis 11 consists of two main sections:
The Tower of Babel (verses 1-9)
At this time, all people on earth spoke the same language.
People settled in the plain of Shinar (Babylonia).
They decided to build a city with a tower reaching to the heavens to make a name for themselves and avoid being scattered.
God came down to see the city and tower.
God was concerned about what humans might achieve if they remained united with one language.
God confused their language so they couldn't understand each other.
This caused people to scatter across the earth.
The city was called Babel because God confused (Hebrew: balal) the language of the world there.
The Genealogy of Shem to Abram (verses 10-32)
Records the descendants of Shem (one of Noah's sons)
Traces the lineage from Shem to Terah, the father of Abram (later renamed Abraham)
Shows the gradual decrease in human lifespan after the flood
Ends with Terah taking his family, including Abram, from Ur of the Chaldees toward Canaan
They settled in Haran, where Terah died
This chapter bridges the historical record from the post-flood world to the beginning of the patriarchal stories with Abraham, setting the stage for God's covenant with Abraham in the following chapters.

Genesis 12

Genesis 12 marks a pivotal turning point in the Bible with the call of Abram (later renamed Abraham) and God's covenant with him. Here's a summary:
God's Call to Abram (verses 1-3): God commands Abram to leave his country, his relatives, and his father's house to go to a land that God will show him. God promises to make Abram into a great nation, bless him, make his name great, and make him a blessing to others. God further promises to bless those who bless Abram and curse those who curse him, declaring that all peoples on earth will be blessed through him.
Abram's Journey (verses 4-9): At 75 years old, Abram obeys God's call and departs from Haran with his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all their servants and possessions. They travel to Canaan, where God appears to Abram and promises to give this land to his descendants. Abram builds altars to the Lord at Shechem and Bethel before continuing his journey toward the Negev.
Abram in Egypt (verses 10-20): A severe famine strikes Canaan, forcing Abram to seek refuge in Egypt. Fearing that the Egyptians might kill him to take his beautiful wife Sarai, Abram instructs her to say she is his sister (she was his half-sister). As anticipated, Pharaoh's officials notice Sarai's beauty and take her into Pharaoh's palace, while Pharaoh rewards Abram with livestock and servants. But, God afflicts Pharaoh and his household with serious diseases because of Sarai. When Pharaoh discovers the truth, he confronts Abram, returns Sarai, and orders them to leave Egypt.
This chapter establishes the Abrahamic covenant and entails themes of faith, obedience, God's promises, and human fallibility.

Genesis 13

Genesis 13 is the account of Abram (later renamed Abraham) and his nephew Lot separating due to conflicts between their herdsmen.
After returning from Egypt to Canaan with his wife Sarai and Lot, Abram was very wealthy with livestock, silver, and gold. They traveled to Bethel where Abram had previously built an altar.
Both Abram and Lot had accumulated so many possessions and livestock that the land couldn't support them living together. Their herdsmen began quarreling over grazing land and water resources.
To resolve this conflict, Abram generously offered Lot the choice of land. Lot chose the well-watered plain of Jordan near Sodom, which is described as being like "the garden of the LORD," while Abram remained in Canaan.
After their separation, God spoke to Abram and renewed His promise, telling him to look in all directions — north, south, east, and west — promising to give all the land he could see to him and his descendants forever. God also promised that Abram's offspring would be as numerous as the dust of the earth.
Abram then moved his tents to live near the great trees of Mamre at Hebron, where he built another altar to the Lord.

Genesis 14

Genesis 14 is an account of a regional war and Abram's rescue of his nephew Lot. Here's what happens:
Four kings wage war against five kings from the region of Sodom and Gomorrah.
The five kings had been subject to Chedorlaomer for 12 years but rebelled in the thirteenth year. In the fourteenth year, Chedorlaomer and his allies attack and defeat several peoples in the region before confronting the five kings in the Valley of Siddim.
The kings of Sodom and Gomorrah flee and fall into tar pits, while the rest escape to the hills. The victorious four kings plunder Sodom and Gomorrah, taking their possessions and food supplies.
Lot, Abram's nephew who was living in Sodom, is captured along with his possessions.
When Abram learns of Lot's capture, he gathers 318 trained men from his household and pursues the four kings, defeating them near Damascus and recovering all the captives and goods.
After Abram's victory, two significant encounters occur:
Melchizedek, king of Salem and "the priest of the most high God," brings out bread and wine and blesses Abram. Abram gives Melchizedek a tenth of everything.
The king of Sodom offers Abram the goods while requesting the return of his people. Abram refuses to take anything except what his men have eaten and a share for his allies.
This chapter is noteworthy for introducing Melchizedek, a somewhat mysterious figure who appears briefly but is referenced later in the Bible as a symbol of the everlasting King and Priest.

Genesis 15

Genesis 15 centers on God's covenant with Abram (later renamed Abraham). In this pivotal chapter:
God appears to Abram in a vision, telling him not to fear and promising to be his shield and very great reward.
Abram expresses concern about remaining childless, noting that his servant Eliezer stands to inherit his household.
God reassures Abram that his heir will come from his own body. God takes Abram outside and tells him to count the stars, promising his descendants will be just as numerous.
Abram believes God's promise, and this faith is credited to him as righteousness.
God then identifies Himself as the Lord who brought Abram from Ur of the Chaldees to give him the land of Canaan.
When Abram asks for assurance regarding the promised land, God instructs him to bring specific animals for a covenant ceremony.
Abram prepares the animals by cutting them (except the birds) in half, and he drives away birds of prey that attempt to eat the carcasses.
As the sun sets, Abram falls into a deep sleep. God reveals that Abram's descendants will be strangers and slaves in a foreign land before returning to Canaan.
After darkness falls, a smoking fire pot and flaming torch (representing God's presence) pass between the animal pieces, formally establishing the covenant.
God defines the boundaries of the land promised to Abram's descendants, from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates.
This chapter establishes two key promises from God to Abram: countless descendants and the gift of the land of Canaan, both formalized through a solemn covenant ceremony.

Genesis 16

Genesis 16 provides an account of Sarai (Abram's wife), her Egyptian servant Hagar, and the birth of Ishmael.
After ten years in Canaan with no children, Sarai suggests that Abram have a child with her servant Hagar, following a common custom of that time. Abram agrees, and Hagar becomes pregnant.
Once pregnant, Hagar begins to look down on Sarai, who then treats Hagar harshly in response. Hagar runs away to the desert, where an angel of the LORD finds her near a spring. The angel tells her to return to Sarai and submit to her authority.
The angel also gives Hagar a promise: She will have many descendants through her son, whom she should name Ishmael ("God hears"), because the LORD has heard her affliction. The angel prophesies that Ishmael will be "a wild man" whose hand will be against everyone — and everyone's hand will be against him.
Hagar returns and gives birth to Ishmael when Abram is 86 years old.

Genesis 17

Genesis 17 depicts God's covenant with Abram when he was 99 years old. God appears to Abram, identifies Himself as "the Almighty God" (El Shaddai), and establishes a covenant with several key elements:
God changes Abram's name to Abraham ("father of many nations") and promises that kings will come from his line.
The covenant is established as an "everlasting covenant" between God and Abraham's descendants.
God promises the land of Canaan as an everlasting possession.
God institutes circumcision as the sign of the covenant — every male must be circumcised on the eighth day of their life.
God changes Sarai's name to Sarah ("noblewoman" or "princess") and promises she will bear a son despite being 90 years old.
Abraham laughs at the idea of having a child at his age, but God confirms Sarah will have a son named Isaac.
Abraham asks God to bless Ishmael (his son with Hagar), and God promises to make him fruitful as well.
Abraham, Ishmael, and all the males in Abraham's household are circumcised that same day.
This chapter is significant as it establishes the Abrahamic covenant, including the promise of many descendants and land and circumcision as the physical sign of the covenant relationship.

Genesis 18

Genesis 18 is the account of Abraham's encounter with three visitors at the oaks of Mamre and God's revelation about the coming judgment on Sodom.
The chapter begins with the LORD appearing to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance of his tent during the heat of the day. Abraham sees three men approaching, rushes to meet them, and offers generous hospitality. He has Sarah prepare bread while he selects a choice calf to be prepared, and he serves them under a tree.
During the meal, the visitors ask about Sarah's whereabouts and then announce that, when they return in a year, Sarah will have a son. Sarah, listening from the tent entrance, laughs to herself in disbelief because both she and Abraham are elderly. The LORD questions why Sarah laughed and reminds them that nothing is too difficult for the LORD. Sarah denies laughing (out of fear), but the LORD confirms she did just that.
As the men prepare to leave toward Sodom, the LORD decides to reveal His plans to Abraham. The LORD tells Abraham about the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah due to their grave sin, and says that He is going to investigate the situation.
This leads to a remarkable negotiation between Abraham and the LORD. Abraham approaches and asks if the LORD would destroy the righteous with the wicked. He begins by asking if the LORD would spare the city if 50 righteous people were found there. When God agrees, and Abraham progressively lowers the number — from 50 to 45, to 40, to 30, to 20, and finally to 10. Each time, the LORD agrees to spare the city if that number of righteous people can be found. The chapter ends with the LORD leaving after this conversation and Abraham returning to his place.
The chapter highlights themes of hospitality, divine visitation, God's promise of a son to Abraham and Sarah despite their old age, and Abraham's intercessory role as he pleads for mercy on behalf of any righteous inhabitants of Sodom.

Genesis 19

Genesis 19 recounts the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, focusing on the rescue of Lot and his family.
The chapter begins with two angels arriving in Sodom, where Lot insists they stay at his house. Before they retire, the men of Sodom surround Lot's house, demanding to "know" the visitors. Lot refuses and offers his daughters instead, but the angels strike the men with blindness and warn Lot to flee with his family because God plans to destroy the city for its wickedness.
At dawn, the angels urge Lot to leave immediately. When he hesitates, they take him, his wife, and two daughters by the hand and lead them outside the city, instructing them to flee to the mountains and not look back. Lot negotiates to go to the small town of Zoar instead.
As Lot reaches Zoar, God rains sulfur and fire upon Sodom and Gomorrah, destroying the cities and all inhabitants. Lot's wife looks back — and is turned into a pillar of salt.
The chapter concludes with Lot and his daughters living in a cave. Believing they are the only survivors, the daughters get their father drunk on successive nights and sleep with him to preserve their family line. Each daughter bears a son — Moab (father of the Moabites) and Benammi (father of the Ammonites).

Genesis 20

Genesis 20 provides an account of Abraham's sojourn in Gerar. In this chapter:
Abraham moves to the region of Gerar, where he tells people that his wife Sarah is his sister (similar to his earlier deception in Egypt).
King Abimelech of Gerar takes Sarah into his harem, not knowing she is already married.
God appears to Abimelech in a dream, warning him that Sarah is a married woman and that he is as good as dead for taking her.
Abimelech, who had not yet approached Sarah, protests his innocence to God, saying he acted with a clear conscience since Abraham claimed she was his sister.
God acknowledges Abimelech's innocence but instructs him to return Sarah to Abraham, who is a prophet who will pray for him.
Abimelech confronts Abraham about the deception. Abraham explains he feared for his life because he thought there was no fear of God in Gerar — and technically Sarah is his half-sister.
Abimelech gives Abraham livestock, servants, and silver as compensation, and he invites him to dwell wherever he pleases in his land.
Abraham prays to God, and God heals Abimelech, his wife, and female servants so they can bear children again (God had closed all the wombs in Abimelech's household because of Sarah).