Genesis
Chapter 10
Noah’s Descendants
These are the descendants of Noah’s sons. Shem, Ham, and Japheth are the sons born to him after the flood.
Japheth’s sons are Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras.
Gomer’s sons include Ashkenaz, Diphath, and Togarmah.
Javan’s sons are Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittim, and the Rodanim.
These groups dispersed and populated the islands of the nations.
These were the sons of Japheth, organized by their countries, languages, tribes, and nations.
Ham’s sons: Cush, Mizraim, Put, and Canaan.
Cush’s sons: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. Raamah’s sons are Sheba and Dedan.
Cush became the father of Nimrod, who was the first great ruler on earth.
He was a mighty hunter in the eyes of the LORD; hence the saying, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter in the eyes of the LORD.”
The beginning of his empire was Babel, with Erech and Accad, all located in the land of Shinar.
From this country came Ashur, the builder of Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, Calah,
and Resen, situated between Nineveh and Calah (this is the great city).
Mizraim became the father of the Ludim people, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim,
Pathrusim, Casluhim, and Caphtorim, from which the Philistines descended.
Canaan became the father of Sidon, his firstborn, and of Heth,
and the Jebusites, the Amorites, and the Girgashites,
Hivites, Arkites, and Sinites,
Arvadites, Zemarites, and Hamathites; later, the Canaanite tribes scattered.
The Canaanite frontier stretched from Sidon toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, and extended as far as Lasha.
These were the sons of Ham, organized by their tribes, languages, countries, and nations.
There were also children born to Shem, the ancestor of all the sons of Eber, who are the Hebrews, and the older brother of Japheth.
Shem’s sons: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram.
Aram’s sons: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash.
Arpachshad became the father of Shelah, and Shelah became the father of Eber.
To Eber were born two sons: the first was called Peleg because it was during his time that the earth was divided, and his brother was named Joktan.
Joktan became the father of Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah,
Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah,
Obal, Abimael, Sheba,
Ophir, Havilah, Jobab; all these are sons of Joktan.
They inhabited a region stretching from Mesh to Sephar, in the eastern mountain range.
These were the sons of Shem, categorized by their tribes and languages, as well as by their countries and nations.
These were the tribes of Noah’s sons according to their descendants and nations. From these, the nations dispersed across the earth after the flood.
Commentaries
Noah’s Descendants.
This “genealogy” aims to establish the connections of Noah’s descendants with all the peoples of the world. Like the case of the sons of Cain (4:17-24), this is not about biological descent. The names refer to people, islands, and nations that originate from a common trunk, Noah, who represents life amidst the panorama of death depicted by the flood. Their mission and purpose in the world were to grow, multiply, populate the earth, and manage it (cf. 9:7). Yet, they were never faithful to the mission that God had entrusted to them.
Note that the writers do not divide the world into four parts, as is customary, but instead divide it into three to illustrate Israel’s relations with other peoples: one third of the world, the descendants of Japheth, are maritime peoples (5), distant, unknown, and therefore neutral in their relationship with Israel. Another third consists of the descendants of Ham, the son who incurred the curse for failing to respect his father. The relations he establishes with the descendants of Ham, representing the nations that stem from this cursed lineage, are negative. This includes the countries that inflicted the most pain and death upon Israel: Babylon, Egypt, Assyria, and the Canaanites. The remaining third of the world is made up of the descendants of Shem, the Semites. They are the desert people who share a common historical background that, in one way or another, unites them. They are people bound by blood and their shared historical fate.
The total number of people and nations descended from the three sons of Noah is seventy, a perfect number in the Hebrew mindset. This does not mean that the world and its history are flawless; instead, it seeks to console and encourage people by suggesting that, despite the pains and tragedies they face, everything is in God’s hands. This is the essence of perfection: that God watches over his people, accompanies them, and saves them.