Genesis 11:2 – ‘from the east’ or ‘eastward?’
At Genesis 11:2, our Bible translation reads:
‘Then, as they migrated from the east, they found a flat area of land in Shinar and they started living there.’
However, other Bibles read:
‘As men moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there.’ –New International Version
‘As the people migrated to the east, they found a plain in the land of Babylonia and settled there.’ –New Living Translation
So, did men migrate to the east or to the west after the Chest (Ark) came to rest on Mt. Ararat?
In the Greek text, the words are:
‘apo anatolon,’
‘from the/east.’
However the current Hebrew texts read:
‘miq-qe-dem be-na-se-am,’
‘east journeyed.’
We believe that the Greek text is probably correct here, because if you go eastward from Mt. Ararat you end up in Persia, not Shinar. However, you can go south from Ararat and then move south-west to descend onto the flat plain where the land of Shinar is located.
In other words, you must come from the north-east. You cannot get to Shinar by going east from Ararat.