Genesis 11:27

Genesis 11:27, in plain English

This verse introduces Terah's family formally and adds that Haran became the father of Lot, who will be important in Abram's story.

Why it's here

The Hebrew phrase 'this is the account of' (toledot in Hebrew) signals a new section beginning—you're about to shift from pure genealogy into actual narrative. The verse reiterates the three sons and then adds that Haran fathered Lot. This matters because Lot will travel with Abram and features prominently in the stories ahead. Including Lot here connects him to the family line even though he's the grandson.

Who's speaking

The author of Genesis, signaling a transition in the narrative

Where it sits in the story

You're moving from genealogical list into the real drama of Abram's life. Lot is mentioned because he'll be part of that story. The transition from 'genealogy' to 'account' is the text's way of saying: now the real events begin.

The scholarly reading

This verse restates Terah's lineage and introduces Lot as the child of Haran, establishing the family structure that will undergird the following narrative.

Language and setting

The Hebrew phrase 'אֵלֶּה תוֹלְדוֹת תֶּרַח (ēlleh tôlĕdôt terach)—'these are the generations of Terah'—signals a formal narrative transition. In the Priestly source's structural scheme, each tôledôt ('generation account') marks a major section. The reiteration of names and the insertion of Lot's genealogy prepare readers for the family drama to unfold; Haran's absence is notable and will be immediately explained.

Voice

The Priestly genealogical compiler, utilizing the tôledôt formula to structure narrative progression.

Significance

We stand at the boundary between universal primordial history (Adam to Babel) and particular patriarchal narrative—the genealogy becomes biography, individuals emerge from abstraction.

25And after he had become the father of Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and had other sons and daughters.

26When Terah was 70 years old, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

27This is the account of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot.

28During his father Terah’s lifetime, Haran died in his native land, in Ur of the Chaldeans.

29And Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. Abram’s wife was named Sarai, and Nahor’s wife was named Milcah; she was the daughter of Haran, who was the father of both Milcah and Iscah.

Read all of Genesis 11 — Humanity builds upward in defiance. God scatters them — and then quietly begins a new plan through one family line.