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10. The Table of Nations

¹ This is the account of Shem, Ham and Japheth, Noah’s sons, who themselves had sons after the flood.

The Japhethites

² The sons Sons may mean descendants or successors or nations; also in verses 3, 4, 6, 7, 20-23, 29 and 31. of Japheth:
Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshek and Tiras.

³ The sons of Gomer:
Ashkenaz, Riphath and Togarmah.

⁴ The sons of Javan:
Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittites and the Rodanites. Some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text and Samaritan Pentateuch (see also Septuagint and 1 Chron. 1:7); most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text Dodanites ⁵ (From these the maritime peoples spread out into their territories by their clans within their nations, each with its own language.)

The Hamites

⁶ The sons of Ham:
Cush, Egypt, Put and Canaan.

⁷ The sons of Cush:
Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabteka.

The sons of Raamah:
Sheba and Dedan.

⁸ Cush was the father Father may mean ancestor or predecessor or founder; also in verses 13, 15, 24 and 26. of Nimrod, who became a mighty warrior on the earth. ⁹ He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD.” ¹⁰ The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Uruk, Akkad and Kalneh, in Or Uruk and Akkad—all of them in Shinar. That is, Babylonia ¹¹ From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Or Nineveh with its city squares Calah ¹² and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah—which is the great city.

¹³ Egypt was the father of
the Ludites, Anamites, Lehabites, Naphtuhites, ¹⁴ Pathrusites, Kasluhites (from whom the Philistines came) and Caphtorites.

¹⁵ Canaan was the father of
Sidon his firstborn, Or of the Sidonians, the foremost and of the Hittites, ¹⁶ Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, ¹⁷ Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, ¹⁸ Arvadites, Zemarites and Hamathites.

Later the Canaanite clans scattered ¹⁹ and the borders of Canaan reached from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboyim, as far as Lasha.

²⁰ These are the sons of Ham by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations.

The Semites

²¹ Sons were also born to Shem, whose older brother was Or Shem, the older brother of Japheth; Shem was the ancestor of all the sons of Eber.

²² The sons of Shem:
Elam, Ashur, Arphaxad, Lud and Aram.

²³ The sons of Aram:
Uz, Hul, Gether and Meshek. See Septuagint and 1 Chron. 1:17; Hebrew Mash.

²⁴ Arphaxad was the father of Hebrew; Septuagint father of Cainan, and Cainan was the father of Shelah,
and Shelah the father of Eber.

²⁵ Two sons were born to Eber:
One was named Peleg, Peleg means division. because in his time the earth was divided; his brother was named Joktan.

²⁶ Joktan was the father of
Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, ²⁷ Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, ²⁸ Obal, Abimael, Sheba, ²⁹ Ophir, Havilah and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan.

³⁰ The region where they lived stretched from Mesha toward Sephar, in the eastern hill country.

³¹ These are the sons of Shem by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations.

³² These are the clans of Noah’s sons, according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earth after the flood.

21. Unto Shem also , the father of all the children of Eber. Moses, being about to speak of the sons of Shem, makes a brief introduction, which he had not done in reference to the others. Nor was it without reason; for since this was the race chosen by God, he wished to sever it from other nations by some special mark. This also is the reason why he expressly styles him the ‘father of the sons of Eber,’ and the elder brother of Japheth.³²⁰³²⁰ In the English translation it is, ‘The brother of Japheth the elder.’ The balance of proof seems to lie in favor of the English translation, and gives the seniority to Japheth. Shem is supposed to be placed first, not on account of his age, but because his was the chosen seed. — Ed. For the benediction of Shem does not descend to all his grandchildren indiscriminately, but remains in one family. And although the grandchildren themselves of Eber declined from the true worship of God, so that the Lord might justly have disinherited them; yet the benediction was not extinguished, but only buried for a season, until Abraham was called, in honor of whom this singular dignity is ascribed to the race and name of Eber. For the same cause, mention is made of Japheth, in order that the promise may be confirmed, ‘God shall speak gently unto Japheth, that he may dwell in the tents of Shem.’ Shem is not here called the brother of Ham, inasmuch as the latter was cut off from the fraternal order, and was debarred his own right. Fraternity remained only between them and Japheth; because, although they were separated, God had engaged that he would cause them to return from this dissension into union. As it respects the name Eber, they who deny it to be a proper name, but deduce it from the word which signifies to pass over, are more than sufficiently refuted by this passage alone.