1 Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: these are the sons which they had after the great flow of waters
2 The sons of Japheth: Gomer and Magog and Madai and Javan and Tubal and Meshech and Tiras.
3 And the sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz and Riphath and Togarmah.
4 And the sons of Javan: Elishah and Tarshish, the Kittim and the Dodanim.
5 From these came the nations of the sea-lands, with their different families and languages.
6 And the sons of Ham: Cush and Mizraim and Put and Canaan.
7 And the sons of Cush: Seba and Havilah and Sabtah and Raamah and Sabteca; and the sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan.
8 And Cush was the father of Nimrod, who was the first of the great men of the earth.
9 He was a very great bowman, so that there is a saying, Like Nimrod, a very great bowman.
10 And at the first, his kingdom was Babel and Erech and Accad and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.
11 From that land he went out into Assyria, building Nineveh with its wide streets and Calah,
12 And Resen between Nineveh and Calah, which is a very great town.
13 And Mizraim was the father of the Ludim and Anamim and Lehabim and Naphtuhim;
14 And Pathrusim and Casluhim and Caphtorim, from whom came the Philistines.
15 And Canaan was the father of Zidon, who was his oldest son, and Heth,
16 And the Jebusite and the Amorite and the Girgashite,
17 And the Hivite and the Arkite and the Sinite,
18 And the Arvadite and the Zemarite and the Hamathite; after that the families of the Canaanites went far and wide in all directions;
19 Their country stretching from Zidon to Gaza, in the direction of Gerar; and to Lasha, in the direction of Sodom and Gomorrah and Admah and Zeboiim.
20 All these, with their different families, languages, lands, and nations, are the offspring of Ham.
21 And Shem, the older brother of Japheth, the father of the children of Eber, had other sons in addition.
22 These are the sons of Shem: Elam and Asshur and Arpachshad and Lud and Aram.
23 And the sons of Aram: Uz and Hul and Gether and Mash.
24 And Arpachshad became the father of Shelah; and Shelah became the father of Eber.
25 And Eber had two sons: the name of the one was Peleg, because in his time the peoples of the earth became separate; and his brother's name was Joktan.
26 And Joktan was the father of Almodad and Sheleph and Hazarmaveth and Jerah
27 And Hadoram and Uzal and Diklah
28 And Obal and Abimael and Sheba
29 And Ophir and Havilah and Jobab; all these were the sons of Joktan.
30 And their country was from Mesha, in the direction of Sephar, the mountain of the east.
31 These, with their families and their languages and their lands and their nations, are the offspring of Shem.
32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, in the order of their generations and their nations: from these came all the nations of the earth after the great flow of waters.
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Commentary on Genesis 10 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 10
Ge 10:1-32. Genealogies.
1. sons of Noah—The historian has not arranged this catalogue according to seniority of birth; for the account begins with the descendants of Japheth, and the line of Ham is given before that of Shem though he is expressly said to be the youngest or younger son of Noah; and Shem was the elder brother of Japheth (Ge 10:21), the true rendering of that passage.
generations, &c.—the narrative of the settlement of nations existing in the time of Moses, perhaps only the principal ones; for though the list comprises the sons of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, all their descendants are not enumerated. Those descendants, with one or two exceptions, are described by names indicative of tribes and nations and ending in the Hebrew im, or the English "-ite."
5. the isles of the Gentiles—a phrase by which the Hebrews described all countries which were accessible by sea (Isa 11:11; 20:6; Jer 25:22). Such in relation to them were the countries of Europe, the peninsula of Lesser Asia, and the region lying on the east of the Euxine. Accordingly, it was in these quarters the early descendants of Japheth had their settlements.
6. sons of Ham—emigrated southward, and their settlements were: Cush in Arabia, Canaan in the country known by his name, and Mizraim in Egypt, Upper and Lower. It is generally thought that his father accompanied him and personally superintended the formation of the settlement, whence Egypt was called "the land of Ham" [Ps 105:23, 27; 106:22].
8. Nimrod—mentioned as eclipsing all his family in renown. He early distinguished himself by his daring and successful prowess in hunting wild beasts. By those useful services he earned a title to public gratitude; and, having established a permanent ascendancy over the people, he founded the first kingdom in the world [Ge 10:10].
10. the beginning of his kingdom—This kingdom, of course, though then considered great, would be comparatively limited in extent, and the towns but small forts.
11. Out of that land went forth Asshur—or, as the Margin has it, "He [Nimrod] at the head of his army went forth into Assyria," that is, he pushed his conquests into that country.
and builded Nineveh—opposite the town of Mosul, on the Tigris, and the other towns near it. This raid into Assyria was an invasion of the territories of Shem, and hence the name "Nimrod," signifying "rebel," is supposed to have been conferred on him from his daring revolt against the divine distribution.
21. Unto Shem—The historian introduces him with marked distinction as "the father of Eber," the ancestor of the Hebrews.
23. Aram—In the general division of the earth, the countries of Armenia, Mesopotamia, and Syria, fell to his descendants.
24. Arphaxad—The settlement of his posterity was in the extensive valley of Shinar, on the Tigris, towards the southern extremity of Mesopotamia, including the country of Eden and the region on the east side of the river.
25. Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided—After the flood (Ge 11:10-16) the descendants of Noah settled at pleasure and enjoyed the produce of the undivided soil. But according to divine instruction, made probably through Eber, who seems to have been distinguished for piety or a prophetic character, the earth was divided and his son's name, "Peleg," was given in memory of that event (see De 32:8; Ac 17:26).
32. These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations, &c.—This division was made in the most orderly manner; and the inspired historian evidently intimates that the sons of Noah were ranged according to their nations, and every nation ranked by its families, so that every nation had its assigned territory, and in every nation the tribes, and in every tribe the families, were located by themselves.