Genesis 10

Gen 10:1 Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. And sons were born to them after the flood.

The genealogy traces the origin of the tribes which were scattered over the earth; the confusion of tongues (chapter 11) shows the cause of the division of the one human race into many different tribes with peculiar languages. The genealogy of the tribes is not an ethnographical myth, nor the attempt of an ancient Hebrew to trace the connection of his own people with the other nations of the earth by means of uncertain traditions and subjective combinations, but a historical record of the genesis of the nations, founded upon a tradition handed down from the fathers, which, to judge from its contents, belongs to the time of Abraham, and was inserted by Moses in the early history of the kingdom of God on account of its universal importance in connection with sacred history. For it not only indicates the place of the family which was chosen as the recipient of divine revelation among the rest of the nations, but traces the origin of the entire world, with the prophetical intention of showing that the nations, although they were quickly suffered to walk in their own ways, Acts 14:16 who in past generations allowed all nations to walk in their own ways, were not intended to be for ever excluded from the counsels of eternal love. In this respect the genealogies prepare the way for the promise of the blessing, which was one day to spread from the chosen family to all the families of the earth Genesis 12:2-3 And I will make you a great nation. And I will bless you and make your name great. And you shall be a blessing. And I will bless those that bless you and curse the one who curses you. And in you shall all families of the earth be blessed.

The historical character of the genealogy is best attested by the contents themselves, since no trace can be detected, either of any pre-eminence given to the Shemites, or of an intention to fill up gaps by conjecture or invention. It gives just as much as had been handed down with regard to the origin of the different tribes. Hence the great diversity in the lists of the descendants of the different sons of Noah. Some are brought down only to the second, others to the third or fourth generation, and some even further; and whilst in several instances the founder of a tribe is named, in others we have only the tribes themselves; and in some cases we are unable to determine whether the names given denote the founder or the tribe.

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 (Genesis 10:21), the true rendering of that passage.

Moses does not always give the name of the first settler in a country, but rather that of the people from whom the country afterwards derived its name. Thus Mizraim is the plural of Mezer, and could never be the name of an individual. The like may be said of Kittim, Dodanim, Ludim, Ananim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim, Pathrusim, Casluhim, Philistim, and Caphtorim, which are all plurals, and evidently not the names of individuals, but of families or tribes. (Ending of “im” is a plural form of a word in Hebrew.) In the posterity of Canaan we find whole nations reckoned in the genealogy, instead of the individuals from whom they sprang; thus the Jebusite, Amorite, Girgasite, Hivite, Arkite, Sinite, Arvadite, Zemarite, and Hamathite, Gen_10:16-18, were evidently whole nations or tribes which inhabited the promised land, and were called Canaanites from Canaan, the son of Ham, who settled there. Moses also, in this genealogy, seems to have introduced even the name of some places that were remarkable in the sacred history, instead of the original settlers. Such as Hazarmaveth, Gen_10:26; and probably Ophir and Havilah, Gen_10:29. But this is not infrequent in the sacred writings, as may be seen 1Ch_2:51, where Salma is called the father of Bethlehem, which certainly never was the name of a man, but of a place sufficiently celebrated in the sacred history; and in 1Ch_4:14, where Joab is called the father of the valley of Charashim, which no person could ever suppose was intended to designate an individual, but the society of craftsmen or artificers who lived there.

The present chapter signalizes a new step in the development of the human race. They pass from the one family to the seventy nations. This great process covers the space of time from Noah to Abraham. During this period the race was rapidly increasing under the covenant made with Noah. From Shem to Abraham were ten generations inclusive; and, therefore, if we suppose the same rate of increase after as we have supposed before, there would be about fifteen million inhabitants when Abraham was thirty years of age. If, however, we take eight as the average of a family, and suppose eleven generations after Shem at the one hundredth year of Abraham’s life, we have about thirty million people on the earth. The average of the three sons of Noah is higher than this; for they had sixteen sons, and we may suppose as many daughters, making in all thirty-two, and, therefore, giving ten children to each household. The present chapter does not touch on the religious aspect of human affairs: it merely presents a table of the primary nations, from which all subsequent nationalities have been derived.

Gen 10:2 The sons of Japheth: Gomer and Magog and Madai and Javan and Tubal and Meshech and Tiras.

Moses begins with Japhet's family, and mentions that race very briefly; hastening to give account of the posterity of Ham, who were Israel's enemies, and of Shem, who were Israel's ancestors.

The sons of Japheth - The general description of their territory is “the isles of the nations.” From these seven sons of Japheth are descended the goyim, or Gentile, nations, translated, "heathen" 148 times in the A.V. The name implies nothing concerning religion, meaning simply, non-Israelite, or "foreigner." These were evidently maritime countries, or such as were reached by sea. These coastlands were pre-eminently, but not exclusively, the countries bordering on the north side of the Mediterranean and its connected waters.

Gomer - Supposed by some to have peopled Galatia; so Josephus, who says that the Galatians were anciently named Gomerites. From him the Cimmerians or Cimbrians are supposed to have derived their origin.

Gomer - Progenitor of the ancient Cimerians and Cimbri, from whom are descended the Celtic family.

Magog - Supposed by many to be the father of the Scythians and Tartars, or Tatars, whose descendants predominate in the modern Russia, as the word should be written; and in great Tartary many names are still found which bear such a striking resemblance to the Gog and Magog of the Scriptures, as to leave little doubt of their identity. Ezekiel 38:2 Son of man, set your face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief ruler of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him. Ezekiel 39:6 And I will send a fire on Magog, and on the secure inhabitants of the coasts. And they shall know that I am Jehovah. Revelation 20:8 And he will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle. The number of them is as the sand of the sea.

Magog - mentioned by Ezekiel Ezekiel 38:6 Gomer and all his bands; the house of Togarmah from the recesses of the north, and all his bands; and many peoples with you, as the people of which Gog was the prince. It is introduced in the Apocalypse Rev_20:8, as a designation of the remote nations who had penetrated to the ends or corners of the earth. This indicates a continually progressing people, occupying the north of Europe and Asia, and crossing, it may be, over into America. They seem to have been settled north of the Caspian, and to have wandered north and east from that point. They are accordingly identified by Josephus (Ant. 1:6.1) with the Skyths, and include the Mongols among other Skythic tribes.

Madai - Generally supposed to be the progenitor of the Medes; but Joseph Mede makes it probable that he was rather the founder of a people in Macedonia called Maedi, and that Macedonia was formerly called Emathia, a name formed from Ei, an island, and Madai, because he and his descendants inhabited the maritime coast on the borders of the Ionian Sea. On this subject nothing certain can be advanced. Madai has given name to the Medes, who occupied the southern shore of the Caspian. From this region they penetrated southward to Hindostan.

Javan - It is almost universally agreed that from him sprang the Ionians, of Asia Minor; but this name seems to have been anciently given to the Macedonians, Achaians, and Baeotians. Progenitor of those who peopled Greece, Syria, etc.

Tubal - Tubal's descendants peopled the region south of the black Sea, from whence they spread north and south. A branch of this race peopled Spain. Some think be was the father of the Iberians, and that a part at least of Spain was peopled by him and his descendants; and that Meshech, who is generally in Scripture joined with him, was the founder of the Cappadocians, from whom proceeded the Muscovites.

Meshech - Progenitor of a race mentioned in connection with Tubal, Magog, and other northern nations. Broadly speaking, Russia, excluding the conquests of Peter the Great and his successors, is the modern land of Magog, Tubal, and Meshech.

Tubal and Meshek are generally associated. (Eze_27:13; 38; 39) connects them, on the one hand, with Magog, and on the other, with Javan. Josephus (Ant. 1:6.1) finds Tubal in Iberia, and Meshek in Cappadocia, tracing the name in Mazaca. Their names are seemingly detected in the Tibareni and Moschi, and their seat was probably between the Euxine and the Caspian, whence they spread themselves northward and westward. The names of the rivers Tobal and Mosqua bear a strong resemblance to these patriarchal names.

Tiras - From this person, the Thracians derived their origin. Tiras is referred by Josephus to Thrace. The name is perhaps discernible in the Tyras or Dniester. The seat of the nation was east of the Euxine, whence it spread to the north. Thus, we have the original starting-points of these seven nations about the Caspian, the Euxine, and the Aegean Seas.

Gen 10:3 And the sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz and Riphath and Togarmah.

Ashkenaz - is supposed to have lain south of the Euxine, and to be traceable in its original name, and in the Ascanius and Ascania of Bithynia, perhaps in Scandinavia. Part of the nation may have migrated to Germany, which is called Ashkenaz by the Jews, and where the word Sachsen (Saxon) occurs. It perhaps contains the root of the name Asia.

Ashkenaz - Probably gave his name to Sacagena, a very excellent province of Armenia. Pliny mentions a people called Ascanitici, who dwelt about the Tanais and the Palus Maeotis; and some suppose that from Ashkenaz the Euxine Sea derived its name, but others suppose that from him the Germans derived their origin.

Riphath - seems to have travelled north, and left his name in the Rhipaean mountains. Josephus, however, places him in Paphlagonia, where the name Tobata occurs. Riphath is also called Diphath, the founder of the Paphlagonians, which were anciently called Riphataei.

Togarmah - said to have been settled in Armenia. By a tradition in Moses Chorenensis, Haik, the ancestor of the Armenians, is the son of Thorgom, the son of Gomer. At all events, the Black Sea might convey colonies from Gomer to Asia Minor and Armenia. The Sauromates, or inhabitants of Turcomania.

Gen 10:4 And the sons of Javan: Elishah and Tarshish and Kittim and Dodanim.

Javan - traced to the Iones, who settled in the coasts of the Aegean, in Peloponnesus, Attica, and subsequently on the coast of Asia Minor, and accordingly denotes the Greeks in the language of the Old Testament Isaiah 66:19 And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those who escape from them to the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, drawers of the bow; to Tubal, and Javan, to the far away coasts that have not heard My fame, nor have seen My glory. And they will declare My glory among the nations. Ezekiel 27:13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech were your merchants. They traded the souls of men and vessels of bronze for your goods. The name Yunau is found in the cuneiform inscriptions of the times of Sargon, referring to a western people. The Aeolians, the oldest of the Thessalian tribes, whose culture was Ionian in its origin.

Elishah - noted by Ezekiel Ezekiel 27:7 Your sail was of fine linen with embroidered work from Egypt, an ensign for you; violet and purple from the coasts of Elishah was your covering as a nation whose maritime country produced purple, which agrees with the coast of Laconia or the Corinthian Gulf.

Tarshish - conjectured by Josephus to be the people of Cilicia; which, he affirms, was anciently called Tharsus, and the capital of which was Tarsus. But whether this be the primitive seat of Tarshish or not, it is almost certain that Spain retains the name, if not in Tarraco, at least in Tartessus.

Kittim - discovered, by Josephus, in Cyprus, with the town of Kition. He adds, however, that all the islands and the greater part of the seacoasts are called Chedim by the Hebrews. We may therefore presume that the Kittim spread into northern Greece, where we have a Kition in Macedonia, and ultimately into Italy, which is designated as “the isles of Kittim” Numbers 24:24 And ships shall come from the coast of Cyprus, and shall afflict Assyria and shall afflict Eber, and he also shall perish forever. Isaiah 23:1 The burden against Tyre: Howl, ships of Tarshish! For it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in. From the land of Chittim it is revealed to them. Jerermiah 2:10 For pass over the coasts of Kittim, and see; and send to Kedar, and carefully consider, and see if there is such a thing. Ezekiel 27:6 They have made the oaks of Bashan your oars; the daughter of Assyria has made your deck of ivory from the coasts of Kittim. Daniel 11:30 For the ships of Kittim shall come against him. And he shall be grieved and return, and have fury against the holy covenant. So he shall do; he shall even return and give heed to those who forsake the holy covenant.

Dodanim - leaves a trace, perhaps, in Dodona, an ancient site of the Hellenes in Epirus, and perhaps in Dardania, a district of Illyricum.

Gen 10:5 By these were the coasts of the nations divided in their lands, every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.

By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands - by "isles" are meant, not countries surrounded with water, but it is usual with the Hebrews to call all places beyond the Mediterranean sea, or whatsoever they went to by sea, or that were upon the sea coasts, islands, as Greece, Italy, &c. Moreover, the word sometimes signifies countries, as it does in Job 22:30 and so should be rendered here "the countries of the Gentiles"; so called, because in the times of Moses, and at the writing of this history, those countries were inhabited by Heathens and idolaters, strangers to the true religion: and this division was not made at random, and at the pleasure of a rude company of men, but in an orderly regular manner, with the consent, and by the advice and direction of the principal men of those times; and especially it was directed by the wise providence of the most High, who divided to the nations their inheritance, and set the bounds of the people, Deuteronomy 32:8 When the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when He separated the sons of Adam, He set the bounds of the people according to the number of the sons of Israel.

everyone after his tongue - this shows by way of anticipation, this was not done till after the confusion of languages, since the partition was made according to the different languages of men; those that were of the same language went and dwelt together, the several nations of them, and the several families in those nations; by which it appears that this was done by consultation, with great care and wisdom, ranging the people according to their tongues; of which nations were formed, and with them were taken the several families they consisted of.

the isles of the Gentiles--a phrase by which the Hebrews described all countries which were accessible by sea. 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. Europe, of which this is allowed to be a general epithet. Calmet supposes that it comprehends all those countries to which the Hebrews were obliged to go by sea, such as Spain, Gaul, Italy, Greece, and Asia Minor. All places beyond the sea, from Judea, are called isles, and this directs us to understand that promise, Isaiah 42:4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged until He has set judgment in the earth; and the coasts shall wait for His Law. The isles shall wait for his law, of the conversion of the Gentiles to the faith of Christ.

Gen 10:6 And the sons of Ham: Cush and Mizraim and Phut and Canaan.

And the sons of Ham - Next to the sons of Japheth, the sons of Ham are reckoned; these, Josephus says, possessed the land from Syria, and the mountains of Amanus and Lebanon; laying hold on whatever was towards the sea, claiming to themselves the countries unto the ocean, whose names, some of them, are entirely lost, and others so greatly changed and deflected into other tongues, that they can scarcely be known, and few whose names are preserved entire; and the same observation will hold good of others. Four of the sons of Ham are mentioned,

Cush - Who peopled the Arabic nome near the Red Sea in Lower Egypt. Some think the Ethiopians descended from him.

Mizraim - This family certainly peopled Egypt; and both in the East and in the West, Egypt is called Mezr and Mezraim. Mizraim is the ordinary name for Egypt in the Hebrew scriptures. The singular form, Mazor, is found in later books.

Phut - Who first peopled an Egyptian nome or district, bordering on Libya. Put has been placed beyond Egypt, in the north of the continent of Africa. He is mentioned along with Lubim as the helper of Nineveh, and with Kush, as forming part of the army of Neko. His descendants penetrated far westward. A river bearing the name of Phutes has been mentioned in Mauretania, and an inland country is designated by the name of Futa. The name may be preserved also in Buto, the capital of lower Egypt, on the Sebennytic mouth of the Nile.

Canaan - He who first peopled the land so called, known also by the name of the Promised Land.

And the sons of Ham. - Egypt. This country is also called the land of Ham in Scripture Psalms 78:51 and struck all the first-born in Egypt, the first of the strong in the tents of Ham; Psalms 105:23 Israel also came into Egypt, and Jacob resided in the land of Ham. Psalms 105:27 They showed His signs among them, and wonders in the land of Ham. Psalms 106:22 wonderful works in the land of Ham, fearful things by the Red Sea. But this term was of more comprehensive import, as we find some ancient inhabitants of a region in the south of Judah, said to have come from Ham 1Chronicles 4:40 And they found fertile and good pasture, for the land was wide and quiet and peaceable. For some of the sons of Ham had lived there of old. Thirty nations sprang from Ham. Of these, only four were immediate descendants.

Ham - Ham signifies burnt or black; and this name was peculiarly significant of the regions allotted to his family. To the Cushites, or descendants of Cush, were allotted the hot southern regions of Asia, along the shores of the Persian Gulf, Susiana or Chusistan, etc.; to the sons of Canaan, Palestine and Syria; to the sons of Mizraim, Egypt and Libya, in Africa.

Gen 10:7 And the sons of Cush: Seba and Havilah and Sabtah and Raamah and Sabtecha. And the sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan.

Seba - the founder of the Sabaeans, according to Josephus, a people seated in Arabia Deserta, which seem to be the Sabaeans brought from the wilderness and very probably the same that plundered Job of his cattle, Job 1:15 And the Sabeans fell on and took them away. Yea, they have killed the servants with the edge of the sword. And I only have escaped alone to tell you. Seba is associated with Kush Isa_43:3; Isa_45:14. Josephus places him in Meroe, a country almost insulated by the Nile and its branches, the Astapus (Blue Nile) and Astaboras (Atbarah).

Havilah - who, as Josephus says, was the father of the Evilaeans, now called Getuli; but the posterity of Havilah seem to be the Chaulotaeans, a people near Arabia Felix; and elsewhere called Chavelaeans, and placed to the east of the Arabian Scenites. Havilah occurs as the name of a country in the antediluvian times. The present Havilah may refer to a tribe in Africa, called Avalitae, lying south of Bab-el-mandeb, which corresponds very well with the situation of Kush and Seba.

Sabtah - from him, Josephus says, came the Sabathenes, who, by the Greeks, are called Astabari; the posterity of this man seemed to have settled in some part of Arabia Felix, since Ptolemy makes mention of Sabbatha as the metropolis of that country, called Sabotale, or rather Sabota, as it should be read; Ptolemy places another city in this country he calls Saphtha, which seems to have its name from this man. Sabtah, Josephus finds in the Astaborans of Ethiopia, others in Sabota, a town in southwest Arabia.

Raamah - or Ragmas, as Josephus calls him, from whom sprung the Ragmaeans he says; and most of the ancients call him Rhegmah, the letter e being pronounced as a "G," as in Gaza and Gomorrah: his posterity were also seated in Arabia Felix, near the Persian Gulf, where Ptolemy places the city Rhegama, or as it is in the Greek text, Regma.

Sabtecha - whom some make to be the father of a people in the same country, Arabia Felix, near the Persian Gulf, called Sachalitae; possibly Sabtaceni, which name might be afterwards softened into Saraceni, by which name it is well known the people of the northern parts of Arabia.

And the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan - no account is given of any of the posterity of the other sons of Cush, only of this his fourth son Raamah, who is said to have two sons; the first is called Sheba, from whom came the Sabaeans, according to Josephus; not the Sabaeans before mentioned in Arabia Deserta, but those in Arabia Felix, where live a people called Sabaeans, and whose country abounded with frankincense, myrrh, and cinnamon. The other son, Dedan, is called by Josephus Judadas, whom he makes to be founder of the Judadaeans, a nation of the western Ethiopians;

Gen 10:8 And Cush fathered Nimrod. He began to be a mighty one in the earth.

Besides the tribes already named, there sprang from Cush Nimrod, the founder of the first imperial kingdom, the origin of which is introduced as a memorable event into the genealogy of the tribes, just as on other occasions memorable events are interwoven with the genealogical tables (cf. 1Ch_2:7, 1Ch_2:23; 1Ch_4:22-23, 1Ch_4:39-41).

And Cush begat Nimrod - Besides the other five sons before mentioned. In the Greek version he is called Nebrod, and by Josephus, Nebrodes; though the name of Nimrod is usually derived from drm, "to rebel," because he was a rebel against God, and because he caused all the world to rebel against God, by the advice he gave to the generation of the division, or confusion of languages, the builders of Babel: he seems to be the same with Belus, the founder of Babel and of the Babylonian empire.

a mighty man in the earth - that is, he was the first that formed a plan of government, and brought men into subjection to it; and so the Jews make him to be the first king after God.

Nimrod - Of this person little is known, as he is not mentioned except here and in 1Ch_1:10, which is evidently a copy of the text in Genesis. He is called a mighty hunter before the Lord; and from Gen_10:10, we learn that he founded a kingdom which included the cities Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. Though the words are not definite, it is very likely he was a very bad man. His name Nimrod comes from marad, he rebelled; and the Targum, on 1Ch_1:10, says: Nimrod began to be a mighty man in sin, a murderer of innocent men, and a rebel before the Lord. The Jerusalem Targum says: “He was mighty in hunting (or in prey) and in sin before God, for he was a hunter of the children of men in their languages; and he said unto them, Depart from the religion of Shem (the Lord), and cleave to the institutes of Nimrod.” The Targum of Jonathan ben Uzziel says: “From the foundation of the world none was ever found like Nimrod, powerful in hunting, and in rebellions against the Lord.” The Syriac calls him a warlike giant. The word tsayid, which we render hunter, signifies prey; and is applied in the Scriptures to the hunting of men by persecution, oppression, and tyranny. Hence it is likely that Nimrod, having acquired power, used it in tyranny and oppression; and by rapine and violence founded that domination which was the first distinguished by the name of a kingdom on the face of the earth

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 Genesis 10:10.

Began to be mighty on the earth - That is, whereas those that went before him were content to stand upon the same level with their neighbours, Nimrod could not rest in this parity, but he would top his neighbours, and lord over them. The same spirit that the giants before the flood were acted by, Gen_6:4, now revived in him; so soon was that tremendous judgment, which the pride and tyranny of those mighty men brought upon the world, forgotten.

a mighty one in the earth – the word used here, as in Gen_6:4, denotes a man who makes himself renowned for bold and daring deeds. Nimrod was mighty in hunting, and that in opposition to Jehovah; not before Jehovah in the sense of, according to the purpose and will of Jehovah. The name itself, Nimrod “we will revolt,” points to some violent resistance to God. It is so characteristic that it can only have been given by his contemporaries, and thus have become a proper name. In addition to this, Nimrod as a mighty hunter founded a powerful kingdom; and the founding of this kingdom is shown to have been the consequence or result of his strength in hunting, so that the hunting was most intimately connected with the establishment of the kingdom. Hence, if the expression “a mighty hunter” relates primarily to hunting in the literal sense, we must add to the literal meaning the figurative signification of a “hunter of men” (“trapper of men by stratagem and force”); Nimrod the hunter became a tyrant, a powerful hunter of men. This course of life gave occasion to the proverb, “like Nimrod, a mighty hunter against the Lord,” which immortalized not his skill in hunting beasts, but the success of his hunting of men in the establishment of an imperial kingdom by tyranny and power. But if this be the meaning of the proverb, “in the face of Jehovah” can only mean in defiance of Jehovah. And the proverb must have arisen when other daring and rebellious men followed in Nimrod's footsteps, and must have originated with those who saw in such conduct an act of rebellion against the God of salvation, in other words, with the possessors of the divine promises of grace.

Gen 10:9 He was a mighty hunter before Jehovah. Therefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before Jehovah.

Nimrod was a mighty hunter - This he began with, and for this became famous to a proverb. Some think he did good with his hunting, served his country by ridding it of wild beasts, and so insinuated himself into the affections of his neighbours, and got to be their prince. And perhaps, under pretence of hunting, he gathered men under his command, to make himself master of the country. Thus he became a mighty hunter, a violent invader of his neighbour's rights and properties.

He was a mighty hunter before the Lord - literally true; for, from the time of the flood to his days, wild beasts might increase very much, and greatly annoy men who dwelt very likely for the most part in tents scattered up and down in divers places: so that he did a good office in hunting and destroying them, however, it may be observed, that in this way by hunting he arrived to the power and dominion over men he afterwards had; for not only he ingratiated himself into their favour by hunting down and destroying the wild beasts which molested them, but by these means he might gather together a large number of young men, strong and robust, to join him in hunting; whereby they were inured to hardships, and trained up to military exercises, and were taught the way of destroying men as well as beasts; and by whose help and assistance he might arrive to the government he had over men; However, besides his being in a literal sense an hunter, he was in a figurative sense one, a tyrannical ruler and governor of men. The Targum of Jonathan is; "he was a powerful rebel before the Lord;" and that of Jerusalem, "he was powerful in hunting in sin before the Lord," and another Jewish writer says, he was called a mighty hunter, because he was all his days taking provinces by force, and spoiling others of their substance; and that he was "before the Lord," truly so, and he seeing and taking notice of it, openly and publicly, and without fear of him, and in a bold and impudent manner, in despite of him, see Genesis 6:11. The Septuagint render it, "against the Lord"; he intended, as Jarchi's note is, to provoke him to his face:

wherefore it is said - in a proverbial way, when any man is grown mighty and powerful, or is notoriously wicked, or is become a tyrant and an oppressor of the people, that he is even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord. This was a proverb used in the times of Moses, as it is common now with us to call a hunter Nimrod.

And that, before the Lord - Carrying all before him, and endeavouring to make all his own by force and violence. He thought himself a mighty prince; but before the Lord, that is, in God's account, he was but a mighty hunter. Nimrod was a mighty hunter against the Lord, so the seventy; that is, he set up idolatry, as Jeroboam did, for the confirming of his usurped dominion; that he might set up a new government, he set up a new religion upon the ruin of the primitive constitution of both.

Gen 10:10 And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.

And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel - The city of Babel, or Babylon, which was built by his direction. This was the head of the kingdom of Nimrod, his chief city, or where he first began to reign. Here he set up his kingdom, which he enlarged and extended afterwards to other places; and from hence it appears, that what is related in this context, concerning Nimrod, is by way of anticipation; for it was not a fact that he was a mighty man, or a powerful prince possessed of a kingdom, until after the building of Babel, and the confusion of languages there; when those that continued on the spot either chose him for their ruler, or he, by power or policy, got the dominion over them.

And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel - the well-known city of Babylon on the Euphrates, which from the time of Nimrod downwards has been the symbol of the power of the world in its hostility to God; babel signifies confusion; and it seems to have been a very proper name for the commencement of a kingdom that appears to have been founded in apostasy from God, and to have been supported by tyranny, rapine, and oppression.

Erech, and Accad, and Calneh - for of these cities with Babel, which were all in the same country, did the kingdom of Nimrod consist; they all, either by force or by consent, were brought into subjection to him, and were under one form of government, and is the first kingdom known to be set up in the world. The site of Babel (Babylon) has been discovered in certain ruins near Hillah, chiefly on the opposite or eastern bank of the Euphrates, where there is a square mound called Babil by the natives. Erek has been traced also on the east bank of the Euphrates, about one hundred miles southeast of Babil, or half way between the city and the confluence of the rivers. It is the Orchoe of the Greeks, and the ruins now bear the name of Urka, or Warka. This name appears as Huruk on the cuneiform inscriptions of the place. Akkad, in the Septuagint. Archad, Col. Taylor finds in Akkerkoof, north of Babel, and about nine miles west of the Tigris, where it approaches the Euphrates. Here there is a hill or mound of ruins called Tel Nimrud. Rawlinson finds the name Akkad frequent in the inscriptions, and mentions Kingi Akkad as part of the kingdom of Urukh, but without identifying the site. Kalneh, Kalno, Isa_10:9; Kanneh, Eze_27:23, is regarded by Jerome, and the Targum of Jonathan, as the same with Ktesiphon on the Tigris, in the district of Chalonitis. Its ruins are near Takti Kesra. Rawlinson identifies it with Niffer, but without assigning satisfactory grounds. The sites of these towns fix that of Shinar, which is evidently the lower part of Mesopotamia, or, more precisely, the country west of the Tigris, and south of Is, or Hit, on the Euphrates, and Samara on the Tigris. It is otherwise called Babylonia and Chaldaea.

Gen 10:11 Out of that land he went forth to Asshur. And he built Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah,

From Shinar Nimrod went to Assyria, the country on the east of the Tigris, and there built four cities, or probably a large imperial city composed of the four cities, or probably a large imperial city composed of the four cities named. As three of these cities - Rehoboth-Ir, Chelach, and Resen - are not met with again, whereas Nineveh was renowned in antiquity for its remarkable size, the words “this is the great city” must apply not to Resen, but to Nineveh. Nimrod, went out into Assyria and built Nineveh; and hence Assyria is called the land of Nimrod, Micah 5:6 And they shall mar the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod at her own entrances. And He shall deliver us from Assyria when he comes into our land, and when he treads within our border. Thus did this mighty hunter extend his dominions in every possible way. The city of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, is supposed to have had its name from Ninus, the son of Nimrod; but probably Ninus and Nimrod are the same person.

and he built Nineveh - The first of these cities, Nineveh, the Greeks commonly call Ninus, who generally suppose it had its name from Ninus, the first king of the Assyrians. It was destroyed by the Medes and Babylonians, as foretold by Nahum. Nineveh was a well-known city of antiquity, situated opposite Mosul on the Tigris.

Asshur - a country intersected by the Tigris. It included the part of Mesopotamia north of Shinar, and the region between the Tigris and Mount Zagros. Its extension westward is undefined by any natural boundary, and seems to have varied at different times.

Rehoboth, and Calah - Rehoboth-ir, the city broadway or market, has not been identified. Kelah is said to be now marked by the ruin called Nimrud. It was about twenty miles south of Nineveh. It is possible, however, that Kelah may be Kileh Sherghat, about fifty miles south of Mosul, on the right bank of the Tigris. Resen (next verse) is placed by the text, between Nineveh and Kelah, and is therefore probably represented by Selamiyeh, a village about half way between Koyunjik and Nimrud. If Kelah, however, be Kileh Sherghat, Resen will coincide with Nimrud. “That is the great city.”

Gen 10:12 and Resen between Nineveh and Calah, which is a great city.

And Resen - This was another city built by Ashur, situated between those two cities mentioned: the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem call it Talsar, or Thalassar.

Gen 10:13 And Mizraim fathered Ludim and Anamim and Lehabim and Naphtuhim,

And Mizraim begat Ludim - Mizraim was the second son of Ham. Mizraim has seven sons, from whom are derived eight nations.

Ludim - he is said to beget, the word being plural, is not the name of a man, but of his descendents; and the sense is, that Mizraim begat the father of the Ludim, whose name very probably was Lud, which name is preserved in Isaiah 66:19 And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those who escape from them to the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, drawers of the bow; to Tubal, and Javan, to the far away coasts that have not heard My fame, nor have seen My glory. And they will declare My glory among the nations. These Ludim are the same with the Lydians, Jeremiah 46:9 Come up, horses; and rage chariots! And let the mighty men come forth; the Ethiopians and the Libyans who handle the shield, and the Lydians who handle and bend the bow and whose country is called Lydia, Ezekiel 30:5 Ethiopia, and Libya, and Lydia, and all the mixed people; and Chub, and the men of the land who are in covenant with them shall fall by the sword but to be distinguished from Lydia in Asia Minor, and the Lydians there who sprung from Lud, a son of Shem, Genesis 10:22 for, as these sprung from Mizraim, the founder of Egypt, they must be somewhere thereabout.

and Ananzim, and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim - the name of the father of the Anamim very probably was Anam, though we have no account of him elsewhere: the Anamim were called so from the pastoral life they led; The Anamim are not elsewhere mentioned. The word Lehabim, the name of another people from Mizraim, signifies "flames"; and were so called, as Jarchi observes, because their faces were like flames, see Isaiah 13:8 and they shall be afraid. Pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them. They shall be in pain like a woman who travails. They shall be amazed at one another, their faces like flames burnt with the heat of the sun, living near the torrid zone. The Lehabim are generally identified with the Lubim 2Ch_12:3; 2Ch_16:8; Dan_2:43; Nah_3:9, who are introduced in connection with the Kushim. They are probably the Libyans, who lay to the west of Egypt, and, extending from the Mediterranean indefinitely to the south, came into contact with the Kushites of Abyssinia.

Ludim - are probably mentioned in Isa_66:19, in connection with Tarshish and Put; in Jer_46:9, in connection with Kush and Put; and in Eze_27:10; Eze_30:5, in connection with Put. In all these instances the name is in the singular, but in our text in the plural, expressly denoting the nation of which Lud was the progenitor. The Ludim were distinguished for the use of the bow.

The focus of the rest of this chapter is on the Canaanites and the sons of Shem, who play z more prominent role in the narratives of the Book of Genesis and the Pentateuch.

Gen 10:14 and Pathrusim and Casluhim (from whom came the Philistines) and Caphtorim.

And Pathrusim - These are other descendants of Mizraim, the name of whose father very probably was Pathros, from whom the country of Pathros was called, and which is not only spoken of in Scripture along with Egypt, but as a part of it, Isaiah 11:11 And it shall be in that day, the Lord shall again set His hand, the second time, to recover the remnant of His people that remains, from Assyria and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Ethiopia, and from Persia, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the coasts of the sea and these Pathrusim were doubtless the inhabitants of it.

And Casluhim - these also were the descendents of Mizraim, by another son of his, from whence they had their name.

Out of whom came Philistim - or the Philistines, a people often spoken of in Scripture: these sprung from the Casluhim, or were a branch of that people.

and Caphtorim - and read the whole verse thus: "and Pathrusim, and Casluhim, and Caphtorim, out of whom came Philistim"; that is, they came out of the Caphtorim. What has led to such a transposition of the words in the text is Amos 9:7 Are you not like sons of the Ethiopians to Me, O sons of Israel, says the LORD? Have I not brought Israel up out of the land of Egypt? and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir? but though they are said to he brought from a place called Caphtor, yet did not spring from the Caphtorim: to one commentator it rather seems, that the two latter were brothers, and both sprung from the Casluhim; since the words may be rendered without a parenthesis: "and Caluhim, out of whom came Philistim and Caphtorim"; though perhaps it may be best of all to consider the two last as the same, and the words may be read, "out of whom came Philistim, even," or that is, "the Caphtorim"; for the Philistines, in the times of Jeremiah, are said to be the remnant of the country of Caphtor, Jeremiah 47:4 because of the day that comes to plunder all the Philistines and to cut off from Tyre and Sidon every survivor who helps. For the LORD will plunder the Philistines, the rest of the country of Caphtor and as in Amos the Philistines are said to come out of Caphtor, in Deuteronomy 2:23 And the Avvim who lived in villages as far as Azzah, the Caphtorites, who came forth out of Caphtor destroyed them, and lived in their place they are called Caphtorim, that came out of Caphtor, who destroyed the Avim, which dwelt in Hazerim, even unto Azzah, or Gaza, afterwards a principal city of the Philistines: for then, and not before their settlement in the land of Canaan, were they so called; for the word Philistim signifies strangers, people of another country; and the Septuagint version always so renders the word: their true original name seems to be Caphtorim.

Kaphtorim - From Jer_47:4, it appears that Kaphtor was a coastland. From Amo_9:7, we learn that the Philistines came from this land. Hence, the commentator concludes that the Kaphtorim dwelt on the coast of the Red Sea. The Kasluhim may have been their southern neighbors, and thus the Philistines may have occupied a part of Kaphtor, before their settlement on the coast of the Great Sea, within the borders of Kenaan. This account of these descendants of Mizraim agrees best with the hint of Josephus, that many of them bordered on the Ethiopians; and perished, or perhaps were forced to migrate, in the Ethiopic or other wars (i. 6, 3). Thus, it appears that the descendants of Mizraim were settled in Africa, with the exception of the Philistines, who migrated into the country to which they gave their name.

Philistim - The people called Philistines, the constant plagues and frequent oppressors of the Israelites, whose history may be seen at large in the books of Samuel, Kings, etc.

The Philistines dwelt on the coast of the Mediterranean, from the border of Egypt to Joppa. They had five principal cities, - Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron. They gave the name Pelesheth, to the whole of Kenaan, from which is derived the Greek name Palaestina. They are stated by the text to be a colony or offshoot of the Kasluhim.

Gen 10:15 And Canaan fathered Sidon, his first-born, and Heth,

The account of the posterity of Canaan, and the land they possessed is more particular than of any other in this chapter, because these were the nations that were to be subdued before Israel, and their land was to become Immanuel's land. And by this account, it appears that the posterity of Canaan was both numerous and rich, and very pleasantly seated, and yet Canaan was under a curse. Canaan here has a better land than either Shem or Japheth and yet they have a better lot, for they inherit the blessing.

And Canaan begat Sidon - Canaan is the fourth son of Ham; the firstborn of Canaan was Sidon, from whom the city of Sidon had its name, being either built by himself, who called it after his own name, or by some of his posterity, who called it so in memory of their ancestor: it was a very ancient city, more ancient than Tyre, for that was built by the Sidonians;

And Heth - the father of the Hittites, who dwelt about Hebron, on the south of the land of Canaan; for when Sarah died, the sons of Heth were in possession of it, Genesis 23:2 And Sarah died in Kirjath-arba; the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan. And Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her of this race were the Anakim, or giants, drove out from hence by Caleb, Numbers 13:22 And they went up by the south and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the sons of Anak were. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) These Hittites became terrible to men in later times, as appears from 2 Kings 7:6 For Jehovah had made the army of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots and a noise of horses, the noise of a great army. And they said to one another, Lo, the king of Israel has hired the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians against us, to come on us. hence it signifies to terrify, affright, and throw into a consternation. This tribe dwelt about Hebron and in the mountains around, and perhaps still further north in the districts extending toward the Euphrates Genesis 23:3 And Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spoke to the sons of Heth, saying, Numbers 13:29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south, and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea and by the coast of Jordan Joshua 1:4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon even to the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your border. Esau took wives from the Hittites Genesis 26:34-35 And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite; who were a grief of spirit to Isaac and to Rebekah, and some part of the nation existed even after the captivity Ezra9:1 And at the end of these things, the rulers came to me, saying, The people of Israel, and the priests and the Levites, have not separated themselves from the people of the lands. But they are doing according to their abominations, those of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites.

Gen 10:16 and the Jebusite and the Amorite, and the Girgashite,

The Jebusite - inhabitants of Jebus, afterwards called Jerusalem. The Jebusite has his chief seat in and around Jerusalem, which was called Jebus, from his chief; and the citadel of which was wrested from him only in the time of David 2Sa_5:7.

And the Jebusite - Who had their name from Jebus, a third son of Canaan, and from whom Jerusalem was called Jebus, Judges 19:10 But the man would not stay that night, but he rose up and left, and came over against Jebus, which is Jerusalem. And there were with him two saddled asses. His concubine also was with him and where his posterity continued to dwell when the land of Canaan was possessed by the Israelites; for they were so strong and powerful, that the men of Judah could not drive them out from thence, and here they remained until the times of David, who dispossessed them of it, Joshua 15:63 As for the Jebusites, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the sons of Judah could not drive them out. But the Jebusites live with the sons of Judah at Jerusalem to this day.

The Amorite - a branch of the Canaanites, descended from Emor (Amor), which was spread far and wide over the mountains of Judah and beyond the Jordan in the time of Moses, so that in Gen_15:16; Gen_48:22, all the Canaanites are comprehended by the name. The Amorite was one of the most important and extensive tribes of Canaan. Five kings of this nation dwelt in the mountains afterward occupied by Judah Genesis 14:7 And they returned, and came to En-mishpat, which is Kadesh, and struck all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar. Genesis 14:13 And there came one who had escaped. And he told Abram the Hebrew, for he lived in the plains of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and brother of Aner. And these had a covenant with Abram. Numbers 13:29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south, and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea and by the coast of Jordan. Joshua 10:5 And the five kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon, gathered themselves. And they went up, they and all their armies, and camped before Gibeon, and made war against it. and two on the east of the Jordon, in Heshbon and Bashan, north of Moab Numbers 21:13 From there they pulled up stakes and pitched on the other side of Arnon, in the wilderness that comes out of the borders of the Amorites; for Arnon is in the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites. Deuteronomy 4:47 And they possessed his land, and the land of Og king of Bashan, two kings of the Amorites, who were on this side Jordan toward the sunrise, The eastern Amorites were conquered under Moses, the western under Joshua. A remnant of them were made bondsmen by Solomon 1 Kings 9:20 And all the people who were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who were not of the sons of Israel, They survived the captivity Ezra 9:1 And at the end of these things, the rulers came to me, saying, The people of Israel, and the priests and the Levites, have not separated themselves from the people of the lands. But they are doing according to their abominations, those of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites.

And the Amorite - so called from Emor, the fourth son of Canaan, a people so strong and mighty, that they are compared to cedars for height, and to oaks for strength, Amos 2:9 Yet I destroyed the Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of the cedars, and he was strong as the oaks; yet I destroyed his fruit from above and his roots from below they dwelt both on this and the other side Jordan: Sihon, one of their kings, made war on the king of Moab, and took all his country from him unto Arnon, Numbers 21:26 and in the times of Joshua there were several kings of the Amorites, which dwelt on the side of Jordan westward, Joshua 5:1.

The Girgashites - are also mentioned in Deuteronomy 7:1 When Jehovah your God shall bring you into the land where you go to possess it, and has cast out many nations before you, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than you, Joshua 24:11 And you went over Jordan and came to Jericho. And the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And I delivered them into your hand. See also Gen_15:21 but their dwelling-place is unknown. Josephus states that their location is unknown in his time.

Gen 10:17 and the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite,

the Hivite - was found at Shalem, Gibeon, and also at the foot of Hermon and Antilibanus Gen_34:2; Jos_9:7; Jos_11:3; Jdg_3:3. The former were also classed under the Amorites Gen_48:22; 2Sa_21:2. With the exception of four cities of the Gibeonites, they were conquered by Joshua Jos_9:17; Jos_11:3, Jos_11:19. The Hivites” dwelt in Sichem (Gen_34:2), at Gibeon (Jos_9:7), and at the foot of Hermon (Jos_11:3); the meaning of the word is uncertain. These dwelt in Hermon, a part of Mount Lebanon from Mount Baal Hermon unto the entering in of Hamath, Joshua 11:3 to the east of the land of Canaan; hence they were sometimes called Kadmonites, or Easterlings, Genesis 15:19 and are thought to have their name from dwelling in holes and caves like serpents.

the Arkite - probably dwelt near a town called Arke or Caesarea Libani, lying some miles north of Tripolis, at the foot of Lebanon. Its ruins are still extant at Tel Arka.

the Sinite - is supposed to have dwelt in Sinna, a town mentioned by Strabo, called Sine by Jerome, and Syn in the fifteenth century a place in Lebanon not yet discovered.

Gen 10:18 and the Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the Hamathite. And afterward the families of the Canaanites were spread abroad.

The Arvadite - or Aradians, occupied from the eighth century before Christ, the small rocky island of Arados to the north of Tripolis. The Arvadite dwelt in Arvad, Aradus, now Ruad, a Phoenician town on an island of the same name.

The Zemarite - the inhabitants of Simyra in Eleutherus. The Zemarite has been traced in the town Simura, the ruins of which were found by Shaw at the western foot of Lebanon, under the name of Sumra.

The Hamathite - the inhabitants or rather founders of Hamath on the most northerly border of Palestine (Num_13:21; Num_34:8), afterwards called Epiphania, on the river Orontes, the present Hamâh, with 100,000 inhabitants. The Hamathite was the inhabitant of Hamath, called Hamath Rabbah (the great), by the Greeks Epiphaneia, and at present Hamah. It is situated on the Orontes, and held an important place in the history of Israel. The land of Hamath was of great extent, including the town of Riblab 2Ki_25:21 and reaching even to Antioch. The entrance of Hamath, the northern part of the valley between Lebanon and Antilibanus, formed the utmost boundary of Palestine to the north Num_13:21; Jos_13:5; 1Ki_8:65. Its king was in alliance with David 2Sa_8:10.

and afterward were the families of the Canaanites spread abroad - mean that they all proceeded from one local centre as branches of the same tribe, and spread themselves over the country, the limits of which are given in two directions, with evident reference to the fact that it was afterwards promised to the seed of Abraham for its inheritance, viz., from north to south, After the confusion of tongues were these nations formed; and after the formation of these Canaanic tribes occurred the dispersion spoken of in the text.

Gen 10:19 And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon (as you come to Gerar) to Gaza, as you go in towards Sodom and Gomorrah and Admah and Zeboim, even to Lasha.

And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon - This is a description of the bounds of the land of Canaan, as possessed by the people of Israel: the northern or north west border of it was Sidon, see Genesis 10:15 and is to be understood of the country which reached from that city towards the east almost as far as Jordan:

from Gerar unto Gaza - two cities of the Philistines, well known in Scripture, the former for being the place where Abraham and Isaac sometimes sojourned, and the latter for Samson's exploits in it; these were the southern or south west border of the land of Canaan:

Sodom and Gomorrah, and Admah and Zeboim - four cities destroyed by fire from heaven, as is after related in this book; these lay to the south or south east part of the land:

Gen 10:20 These were the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations.

in their nations - families of the same language joined together and dwelt in the same country.

Gen 10:21 And to Shem were born, even him, the father of all the sons of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder.

the father of all the children of Eber - Eber was the great-grandson of Shem, and is here spoken of by anticipation, and Shem is called not the father of either of his immediate sons, but of the posterity of this man; because the Hebrews sprung from him in his line, from whom the Messiah was to come.

the brother of Japheth the elder - he was the brother of Ham too, but he is not mentioned because of the behaviour towards his father, and because of the curse that was upon him and his; but Shem's relation to Japheth is expressed to show that they were alike in their disposition; and it may be to signify, that in times to come their posterity would unite in spiritual things, which has been fulfilled already in part, and will be more fully by the coalition of the Jews, the posterity of Shem, and of the Gentiles, the posterity of Japheth.

Shem is here distinguished by two characteristics - The description of Shem, Gen_10:21, we have not only his name, Shem, which signifies a name; but two titles to distinguish him by. The former referring to a subsequent, the latter to an antecedent event. He is “the father of all the sons of Heber.” It is evident from this that the sons of Heber cast luster on the family of Shem, and therefore on the whole human race. It is unnecessary to anticipate the narrative, except so far as to note that the sons of Heber include most of the Arabians, a portion of those who mingled with the race and inhabited the land of Aram, and, most probably, the original element of the population in the land of Kenaan. This characteristic of Shem shows that the table in which it is found was composed after the Hebrews had become conspicuous among the descendants of Shem. Shem is next distinguished as the “older brother of Japheth”; that is, older than Ham. That Shem was the second son appears from the facts that Ham was the youngest Gen_9:24, that Shem was born in the five hundred and third year of Noah Gen_11:10, and, therefore, Japheth must have been the one born when Noah was in his five hundredth year Gen_5:32. The reason for inserting this statement is to prevent the order in which the brothers are introduced in the pedigree from being taken as that of their age, instead of that of the historical relationship subsisting among the nations descended from them.

He was the father of all the children of Eber - Eber was his great grandson, but why should he be called the father of all his children, rather than of all Arphaxad's or Salah's? Probably because Abraham and his seed, not only descended from Heber, but from him were called Hebrews. Eber himself, we may suppose, was a man eminent for religion in a time of general apostasy.

Shem - Shem signifies name or renown; and his, indeed, was great both in a temporal and spiritual sense, inasmuch as he was destined to be the lineal ancestor of the promised Messiah.

Gen 10:22 The sons of Shem: Elam and Asshur and Arpachshad and Lud and Aram.

Elam - denotes the Elymaeans, who stretched from the Persian Gulf to the Caspian Sea, but who are first met with as Persians no longer speaking a Semitic language. His descendants are called Elamites, Acts 2:10 their country Elam, and is sometimes mentioned with Media, when the Persians and Medes are intended, Isaiah 21:2 see also Isaiah 22:6, &c. in Daniel's time, Shushan, in the province of Elam, was the seat of the kings of Persia.

Asshur - the Assyrians who settled in the country of Assyria, to the east of the Tigris, but who afterwards spread in the direction of Asia Minor.

Arphaxad - the inhabitants in northern Assyria.

Lud - the Lydians of Asia Minor, whose connection with the Assyrians is confirmed by the names of the ancestors of their kings.

Aram - the ancestor of the Aramaeans of Syria and Mesopotamia.

Gen 10:23 And the sons of Aram: Uz and Hul and Gether and Mash,

Uz - generally thought to be the founder of Damascus; so Josephus says. Usus founded Trachonitis and Damascus, which lies between Palestine and Coelesyria: the chief of a people having their seat in the north of Arabia Deserta, between Palestine and the Euphrates. This name which occurs among the Nahorides (Gen_22:21) and Horites (Gen_36:28.

Hul - whom Josephus calls Ulus, according to him, founded Armenia; which notion may be strengthened by observing that Cholobotene is reckoned a part of Armenia; which is no other than Cholbeth, that is, the house or seat of Chol, the same with Hul; and there are several places in Armenia, which begin with Chol or Col, as Cholus, Cholua, Choluata, Cholima, Colsa, Colana, Colchis: but perhaps it may be better to place him in Syria, in the deserts of Palmyrene, as Junius and Grotius; since among the cities of Palmyrene, there is one called Cholle, according to Ptolemy. Hul is supposed to have his settlement about the sources of the Jordan in Huleh. Others trace this nation in the Hylatae (Pliny 5:19) near Emesa.

Gether - the third son, is made by Josephus to be the father of the Bactrians; but these were too far off to come from this man, and were not in the lot of Shem: Bochart finds the river Getri, which the Greeks call Centrites, between Armenia and the Carduchi, whereabout, he conjectures, might be the seat of this man; but perhaps it may be more probable, with Grotius and Junius, to place him in Coelesyria, where are the city Gindarus of Ptolemy, and a people called Gindareni, is probably that Gadara, the chief city of Peraea, placed by Ptolemy in the Decapolis of Coelesyria, had its name from this man: Gether is of uncertain position, probably in Arabia.Supposed by Calmet to have been the founder of the Itureans, who dwelt beyond the Jordan, having Arabia Desert on the east, and the Jordan on the west.

Mash - is called Meshech, in 1 Chronicles 1:17 and here the Septuagint version calls him Masoch; his posterity are supposed to settle in Armenia, about the mountain Masius, thought to be the same with Ararat, and which the Armenians call Masis; perhaps the people named Moscheni, mentioned by Pliny as dwelling near Armenia and Adiabene, might spring from this man.

Gen 10:24 And Arpachshad fathered Salah; and Salah fathered Eber.

Salah - Or Shelach which signifies "a sending forth"; that is, of waters: it is part of the name of Methuselah, given him by his father, as prophetic of the flood, see Genesis 5:21 and Arphaxad, who was born two years after the flood, gives this name to his first born, as commemorative of it. We know nothing of the nation of which he was the founder.

Eber - from whom, Josephus says, the Jews were called Hebrews from the beginning; and which, perhaps, is as good a derivation of their name as can be given, and seems to be confirmed by Numbers 24:24 though some derive it from Abraham's passing over the rivers in his way from Chaldea into Syria. Heber. He is the progenitor of the Hebrews, the race to which Abraham belonged. He is marked out very prominently for reasons partly unknown to us at this distance of time, but partly no doubt because he was the ancestor of the chosen race who immediately preceded the confusion of tongues, and to whom belonged that generic Hebrew tongue, which afterward branched into several dialects, of which the Hebrew, now strictly so called, was one.

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.

Gen 10:25 And two sons were born to Eber. The name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided. And his brother's name was Joktan.

for in his days was the earth divided - among the three sons of Noah, and their respective posterities; their language was divided, and that obliged them to divide and separate in bodies which understood one another; hence that age, in which was this event, was usually called by the Jews the age of division; this name was given him to perpetuate the memory of it.

and his brother's name was Joktan - whom the Arabs call Cahtan, and claim him as their parent, at least, of their principal tribes; and say he was the first that reigned in Yaman, and put a diadem on his head; and there is a city in the territory of Mecca, about seven furlongs or a mile to the south of it, and one station from the Red sea, called Baisath Jektan, the seat of Jektan, which manifestly retains his name; and there are a people called Catanitae, placed by Ptolemy in Arabia Felix.

the land divided - The verb “divide” pālag occurs only three times elsewhere in the Hebrew scriptures 1Chronicles 1:19 And to Eber were born two sons. The name of the one was Peleg (because in his days the earth was divided), and the name of his brother was Joktan. Job 38:25 Who hath divided a watercourse for the overflowing of waters, or a way for the lightning of thunder;(KJV). Psalms 55:9 Swallow up, O Jehovah, and divide their tongues; for I have seen violence and fighting in the city. The connection in which this rare word is used in the Psalm, “divide their tongues,” seems to determine its reference in the present passage to the confusion of tongues and consequent dispersion of mankind recorded in the following chapter.

Joctan - is the progenitor of a large group of tribes, finding their place among the wandering races included afterward under the name Arabic. Joktan is called Kachtan by the Arabians, and is regarded as the father of all the primitive tribes of Arabia.

Peleg - From palag, to divide, because in his days, which is supposed to be about one hundred years after the flood, the earth was divided among the sons of Noah.

Gen 10:26 And Joktan fathered Almodad and Sheleph and Hazarmaveth and Jerah,

Nothing certain has been ascertained about Almodad or Jerah, which signifies the moon.

Almodad is usually referred to Yemen. The first syllable may be the Arabic article. Mudad is the name of one celebrated in Arab story as the stepfather of Ishmael and chief of the Jurhum tribe of Joctanites.

Jerah possibly occupied a district where are the coast and mountain of the moon, near Hadramaut.

Sheleph is identical with Salif or Sulaf, an old Arabian tribe, also a district of Yemen. Sheleph, the Targum of Jonathan adds, "who drew out the water of the rivers;

Hazarmaveth (forecourt of death) is the Arabian Hadhramaut in South-eastern Arabia on the Indian Ocean, whose name Jauhari is derived from the unhealthiness of the climate. Hazarmaveth, or Hasermoth, is thought to give name to a people in Arabia, called by Pliny Chatramotitae, and by Ptolemy Cathramonitae, whose country, Strabo says, produces myrrh.

And Joktan begat Almodad - And twelve more mentioned later: the Targum of Jonathan adds, "who measured the earth with ropes," as if he was the first inventor and practiser of geometry:

Gen 10:27 and Hadoram and Uzal and Diklah,

Nothing certain has been ascertained about Diklah. Diklah signifies a palm tree, in the Chaldee or Syriac language.

Uzal: one of the most important towns of Yemen, south-west of Mareb.

Gen 10:28 and Obal and Abimael and Sheba,

Nothing certain is known about Abimael or his descendents.

Sheba: the Sabaeans, with the capital Saba or Mareb, Mariaba regia, whose connection with the Cushite (Gen_10:7) and Abrahamite Sabaeans (Gen_25:3) is quite in obscurity Sheba gave name to the Sabaeans, a numerous people in Arabia; their country was famous for frankincense; the nations of them reached both seas, that is, extended from the Arabian to the Persian Gulf; one part of them, was called Atramitae, and the capital of their kingdom Sabota, on a high mountain, eight mansions from which was their frankincense country, called Saba; their capital was called Sobotale, including sixty temples within its walls; but the royal seat was Mariabe;.

Obal – possibly in the straits of the Arabian Gulf, is Abalite bay (or Avalite), which carries in it some trace of this man's name, and a people called Avalites and also Adulites.

Gen 10:29 and Ophir and Havilah, and Jobab. All these were the sons of Joktan.

Nothing certain has been ascertained about these 3.

Gen 10:30 And their dwelling was from Mesha, as you go to Sephar, a mountain of the east.

Mesha is still unknown.

Sepher is supposed by Mesnel to be the ancient Himyaritish capital, Shafâr, on the Indian Ocean; and the mountain of the East, the mountain of incense, which is situated still farther to the east.

Gen 10:31 These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, and after their nations.

Gen 10:32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations. And from these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.