Children were also born to Shem (the elder brother of Japheth), the father of all the children of Eber. The sons of Shem were: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram. The sons of Aram were: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash. Arpachshad became the father of Shelah. Shelah became the father of Eber. To Eber were born two sons. The name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided. His brother’s name was Joktan.
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Genesis 10:21-25 sits inside this longer paragraph.
Children were also born to Shem (the elder brother of Japheth), the father of all the children of Eber. The sons of Shem were: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram. The sons of Aram were: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash. Arpachshad became the father of Shelah. Shelah became the father of Eber. To Eber were born two sons. The name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided. His brother’s name was Joktan. Joktan became the father of Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, Obal, Abimael, Sheba, Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these were the sons of Joktan. Their dwelling extended from Mesha, as you go toward Sephar, the mountain of the east. These are the sons of Shem, by their families, according to their languages, lands, and nations.
Parallel Translations
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Children were also born to Shem (the elder brother of Japheth), the father of all the children of Eber.
The sons of Shem were: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram.
The sons of Aram were: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash.
Arpachshad became the father of Shelah. Shelah became the father of Eber.
To Eber were born two sons. The name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided. His brother’s name was Joktan.
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Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born.
The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram.
And the children of Aram; Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash.
And Arphaxad begat Salah; and Salah begat Eber.
And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided; and his brother’s name was Joktan.
Show all 3 translations
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And unto Shem, the father of all the children of Eber, the elder brother of Japheth, to him also were children born.
The sons of Shem: Elam, and Asshur, and Arpachshad, and Lud, and Aram.
And the sons of Aram: Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash.
And Arpachshad begot Shelah; and Shelah begot Eber.
And unto Eber were born two sons; the name of the one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided; and his brother's name was Joktan.
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Cross-references (26)
- 1 Chronicles 1:19 (v25) To Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided; and his brother’s name was Joktan.
- Genesis 10:32 (v25) These are the families of the sons of Noah, by their generations, according to their nations. The nations divided from these in the earth…
- Deuteronomy 32:8 (v25) When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the children of men, he set the bounds of the peoples according…
- Job 1:1 (v23) There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job. That man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God, and turned away from…
- Luke 3:35-36 (v25) the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of…
Show all 26 cross-references
- Acts 17:26 (v25) He made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the surface of the earth, having determined appointed seasons, and the…
- Genesis 11:16-19 (v25) Eber lived thirty-four years, and became the father of Peleg. Eber lived four hundred thirty years after he became the father of Peleg, and…
- Isaiah 66:19 (v22) “I will set a sign among them, and I will send those who escape of them to the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, who draw the bow, to…
- Jeremiah 25:20 (v23) and all the mixed people, and all the kings of the land of Uz, all the kings of the Philistines, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of…
- Genesis 10:21 (v25) Children were also born to Shem (the elder brother of Japheth), the father of all the children of Eber.
- Genesis 11:12-15 (v24) Arpachshad lived thirty-five years and became the father of Shelah. Arpachshad lived four hundred three years after he became the father of…
- Numbers 24:24 (v21) But ships shall come from the coast of Kittim. They shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber. He also shall come to destruction.”
- Luke 3:35 (v24) the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah,
- Genesis 9:26 (v22) He said, “Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Shem. Let Canaan be his servant.
- Genesis 11:10-26 (v21) This is the history of the generations of Shem: Shem was one hundred years old when he became the father of Arpachshad two years after the…
- Genesis 14:1-9 (v22) In the days of Amraphel, king of Shinar; Arioch, king of Ellasar; Chedorlaomer, king of Elam; and Tidal, king of Goiim, they made war with…
- Numbers 23:7 (v22) He took up his parable, and said, “From Aram has Balak brought me, the king of Moab from the mountains of the East. Come, curse Jacob for…
- 2 Kings 15:19 (v22) Pul the king of Assyria came against the land, and Menahem gave Pul one thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to…
- 1 Chronicles 1:17-27 (v22) The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, Aram, Uz, Hul, Gether, and Meshech. Arpachshad became the father of Shelah, and Shelah…
- Job 1:17 (v22) While he was still speaking, there came also another, and said, “The Chaldeans made three bands, and swept down on the camels, and have…
- Isaiah 11:11 (v22) It will happen in that day that the Lord will set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant that is left of his people from…
- Isaiah 21:2 (v22) A grievous vision is declared to me. The treacherous man deals treacherously, and the destroyer destroys. Go up, Elam; attack! I have…
- Isaiah 22:6 (v22) Elam carried his quiver, with chariots of men and horsemen; and Kir uncovered the shield.
- Jeremiah 25:25 (v22) and all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of the Medes;
- Jeremiah 49:34-39 (v22) Yahweh’s word that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying, “Yahweh…
- Acts 2:9 (v22) Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia,
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On v21 21. Unto Shem also, the father of all the…
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. 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.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv21, 25 Of whom came the Hebrews or Jews.
Of whom came the Hebrews or Jews.
In his stock the Church was preserved: therefore Moses leaveth off speaking of Japheth and Ham, and entreateth of Shem more at large.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv21–25 Gen 10:21 Unto Shem also, the father of all…
Gen 10:21 Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were [children] born.
Ver. 21. Unto Shem also.] His issue is set down last, because to be most insisted on in the holy history.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv21, 22, 25 Of all the children of Eber, i.e. of the…
Of all the children of Eber, i.e. of the Hebrews, the only church and people of God when Moses wrote, who are called
Eber, Num 24:24, as here, the children of Eber. And he is here called the father of them peculiarly, though he had other children, because he was their father not only by natural generation, but also in respect of the promise of God, which was conveyed to them through Shem’s hands, and of that faith and holiness wherein he was their predecessor and eminent pattern; even as Ham, though he had other sons, is specially called the father of Canaan, Gen 9:22, because his father’s curse rested upon him, Gen 10:25.
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Object. Eber had many other children here recorded, and therefore in that sense Shem was not the father of all the children of Eber.
Answ. Though Eber had other children, yet none are called in Scripture the children of Eber, or, which is all one, the Hebrews, but Abraham’s posterity; even as though Abraham had divers other children, yet the Israelites are in many places peculiarly called the children of Abraham. And the ungodly Jews, when they degenerate from God and godliness, God takes away their name, and denieth them to be Jews, Rom 2:28, and calls them Sodomites, Isa 1:10. And therefore no wonder if Joktan and his posterity, having, as it is probable, forsaken their father’s God, and turned idolaters, be here disowned as bastards, and blotted out of the honourable catalogue of the children of Eber: see Rom 9:8.
Japheth alone is here mentioned as his brother, and not Ham, because he was deservedly shut out from Shem’s blessing pronounced by Noah, and was accursed of God, whereas Japheth was partaker with Shem, both in the piety exercised towards their father, and the blessing thereupon pronounced; the word brother being often applied to persons alike in condition, disposition, or manners: see Gen 49:5.
The elder. Though the words in Hebrew may seem ambiguous, yet other texts make it probable that Japheth was the elder. For Noah began to beget children in his five hundredth year, Gen 5:32. And Shem was but a hundred years old two years after the flood, Gen 11:10. Therefore he was not the eldest. And Ham is concluded not to be the eldest, from Gen 9:24; of which see Poole "Gen 9:24"; if so, Japheth must be the eldest. And Shem is generally named first, not because he was the first-born, but because he had the privileges of the first-born, and was chief in dignity and authority in the church of God.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v21 Two things especially are observable in this account of…
Two things especially are observable in this account of the posterity of Shem: -
I. 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: -
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1. 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, etc.? Probably because Abraham and his seed, God's covenant-people, not only descended from Heber, but from him were called Hebrews; Gen 14:13, Abram the Hebrew. Paul looked upon it as his privilege that he was a Hebrew of the Hebrews, Phi 3:5. Eber himself, we may suppose, was a man eminent for religion in a time of general apostasy, and a great example of piety to his family; and, the holy tongue being commonly called from him the Hebrew, it is probable that he retained it in his family, in the confusion of Babel, as a special token of God's favour to him; and from him the professors of religion were called the children of Eber. Now, when the inspired penman would give Shem an honourable title, he calls him the father of the Hebrews. Though when Moses wrote this, they were a poor despised people, bond-slaves in Egypt, yet, being God's people, it was an honour to a man to be akin to them. As Ham, though he had many sons, is disowned by being called the father of Canaan, on whose seed the curse was entailed (Gen 9:22), so Shem, though he had many sons, is dignified with the title of the father of Eber, on whose seed the blessing was entailed. Note, a family of saints is more truly honourable than a family of nobles, Shem's holy seed than Ham's royal seed, Jacob's twelve patriarchs than Ishmael's twelve princes, Gen 17:20. Goodness is true greatness.
2. He was the brother of Japheth the elder, by which it appears that, though Shem is commonly put first, he was not Noah's first-born, but Japheth was older. But why should this also be put as part of Shem's title and description, that he was the brother of Japheth, since it had been, in effect, said often before? And was he not as much brother to Ham? Probably this was intended to signify the union of the Gentiles with the Jews in the church. The sacred historian had mentioned it as Shem's honour that he was the father of the Hebrews; but, lest Japheth's seed should therefore be looked upon as for ever shut out from the church, he here reminds us that he was the brother of Japheth, not in birth only, but in blessing; for Japheth was to dwell in the tents of Shem. Note, (1.) Those are brethren in the best manner that are so by grace, and that meet in the covenant of God and in the communion of saints. (2.) God, in dispensing his grace, does not go by seniority, but the younger sometimes gets the start of the elder in coming into the church; so the last shall be first and the first last.
II. The reason of the name of Peleg (Gen 10:25): Because in his days (that is, about the time of his birth, when his name was given him), was the earth divided among the children of men that were to inhabit it; either when Noah divided it by an orderly distribution of it, as Joshua divided the land of Canaan by lot, or when, upon their refusal to comply with that division, God, in justice, divided them by the confusion of tongues: whichsoever of these was the occasion, pious Heber saw cause to perpetuate the remembrance of it in the name of his son; and justly may our sons be called by the same name, for in our days, in another sense, is the earth, the church, most wretchedly divided.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv21–25 Unto Shem also, the father of all the children…
Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber,.... And for the sake of those Shem is particularly said to be the father of, is this genealogy given, and indeed the whole book of Genesis wrote: 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, among whom the church of God and the true religion were preserved, and from whom the Messiah was to come, as he did: the word Eber, Jarchi interprets, "beyond the river, Euphrates" or "Tigris", or both, as describing the seat of the posterity of Shem; but as this too much straitens them, since they inhabited on both sides, Dr. Hyde (d) has shown that the word used may refer to both, to those beyond these rivers, and to those on this side; see Num 24:24.
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, in the Christian church state: and from hence we learn that Japheth was the eldest of Noah's sons, though some render the words, "the elder brother of Japheth" (e); and so make Shem to be the eldest; but as this is contrary to the accents, so to the history: for Noah was five hundred years old when he began to beget sons, Gen 5:32 he was six hundred when he went into the ark, Gen 7:11 two years after the flood Shem begat Arphaxad, when he was one hundred years old, and Noah six hundred and two, Gen 11:10 so that Shem must be born when Noah was five hundred and two years old; and since he begot children, there must be one two years older than Shem, which can be no other than Japheth, since Ham is called his younger son, Gen 9:24.
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even to him were children born, who are reckoned as follow.
(d) Hist. Relig. Pers. c. 2. p. 47, 48. (e) "fratre Japheth majore". V. L. Samar. Syr. Ar. "frater major natu ipsius Japheth", Tigurine version; "fratri Japheti majori", Cocceius; so some in Vatablus.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On v21 Two things especially are observable in this account of…
Two things especially are observable in this account of the posterity of Shem. The description of Shem, ver. 21, we have not only his name, Shem, which signifies a name; but two titles to distinguish him by.
1. 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 Hebser, but from him were called Hebrews. Eber himself, we may suppose, was a man eminent for religion in a time of general apostasy; and the holy tongue being commonly called from him the Hebrew, it is probable he retained it in his family in the confusion of Babel, as a special token of God's favour to him.
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2. He was the brother of Japheth the elder; by which it appears, that though Shem be commonly put first, yet he was not Noah's first-born, but Japheth was elder. But why should this also be put as part of Shem's description, that he was the brother of Japheth, since that had been said before? Probably this is intended to signify the union of the Gentiles with the Jews in the church. He had mentioned it as Shem's honour, that he was the father of the Hebrews; but lest Japheth's seed should therefore be looked upon as shut out from the church, he here minds us, that he was the brother of Japheth, not in birth only, but in blessing, for Japheth was to dwell in the tents of Shem. The reason of the name of Peleg, ver. 25, because, in his days, (that is, about the time of his birth) was the earth divided among the children of men that were to inhabit it; either when Noah divided it, by an orderly distribution of it, as Joshua divided the land of Canaan by lot, or when, upon their refusal to comply with that division, God, in justice, divided them by the confusion of tongues.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv21–25 Verse 21. Shem also, the father of all the…
Verse 21. Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber] It is generally supposed that the Hebrews derived their name from Eber or Heber, son of Shem; but it appears much more likely that they had it from the circumstance of Abraham passing over (for so the word עבר abar signifies) the river Euphrates to come into the land of Canaan. See the history of Abraham, Ge 14:13.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv21, 25 Gen 10:21. Unto Shem, &c. — The word Shem…
Gen 10:21. Unto Shem, &c. — The word Shem signifies a name; but two titles are also added whereby to distinguish him: 1st, 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, from Eber, were called Hebrews. Eber himself, we may suppose, was a man eminent for religion in a time of general apostacy; and the holy tongue being commonly called from him the Hebrew, was retained in his family in the confusion of Babel, as a special token of God’s favour to him. 2d, He is styled the brother of Japheth, perhaps to signify the union of the Gentiles and Jews in the church.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On v21 - XXXIII. Shem
- XXXIII. Shem
21. אבר 'eber, “‘Eber, yonder side; verb: pass, cross.”
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22. עילם 'eylām, “‘Elam.” עוּל ‛ûl, “suckle.” עלם ‛ālam, “hide; be mature.” ארפכשׁד 'arpakshad, “Arpakshad.” כשׂד ארף 'arp keśed, “boundary of Kesed, or (von-Bohlen) Arjapakshata, beside Aria.” ארם 'ǎrām, “Aram, high; verb: be high.”
23. עוּץ ‛ûts, “‘Uts; verb: counsel; be firm, solid.” חוּל chûl, “Chul; verb: rub, twist, writhe, be strong, await.” גתר geter, “Gether, bridge?” משׁ meshek, “Mash; related: feel, touch.”
24. שׁלח shelach, “Shelach, missile, shoot.”
25. פלג peleg, “Peleg; noun: brook, canal; verb: divide.” יקטן yāqṭān, “Joctan, small.”
26. אלמודד 'almôdād, “Almodad.” למד lāmad, “learn.” מדד mādad, “measure.” שׁלף shelep, “Sheleph; verb: draw out or off.” חערמות chatsarmāvet, “Chatsarmaveth, court of death.” ירח yerach, “Jerach, moon, month.”
27. הדורם hadôrām, Hadoram, “majesty, beauty;” verb: “swell, honor.” אוּזל 'ûzāl, Uzal; verb: “go out or away.” דקלה dı̂qlâh Diclah, “palm.”
28. עובל ‛ôbāl, ‘Obal, “bare, bald.” אבימאל 'ǎbı̂ymā'ēl, Abimael, “father of Mael” (circumcision).
29. אופיר 'ôpı̂r, Ophir; verb: “break, veil.” יובב yôbāb, Jobab; verb: “cry, call.”
30. משׁא mēshā', Mesha, שׁאה shā'âh = שׁוא shô', “roar, crash.” ספר sepār Sephar, “counting. writing.”
From Japheth, who penetrated into the remotest regions, the writer proceeds to Ham, who came into close contact with Shem. From Ham, he passes to Shem, in whom the line of history is to be continued.
Gen 10:21
Shem is here distinguished by two characteristics - 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. This interpretation of the words is most agreeable to the Hebrew idiom, and is the only one which affords an important sense. 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.
Gen 10:22
Twenty-six of the primitive nations are descended from Shem, of which five are immediate.
(45) Elam was settled in a part of the modern Persia, to which he gave name. This name seems to be preserved in Elymais, a province of that country bordering on the Dijlah, and now included in Khusistan. It was early governed by its own kings Gen 14:1, and continued to occupy a distinct place among the nations in the time of the later prophets Isa 22:6; Jer 49:34; Eze 32:24. Its capital was Shushan or Susa Dan 8:2, now Shuster.
(46) Asshur seems to have originally occupied a district of Mesopotamia, which was bounded on the east by the Tigris Gen 2:14. The inviting plains and slopes on the east of the Tigris would soon occasion a migration of part of the nation across that river. It is possible there may have been an ancient Asshur occupying the same region even before the flood Gen 2:14.
(47) Arpakshad is traced in Ἀῤῥαπαχῖτις Arrapachitis, Arrhapachitis, a region in the north of Assyria. V. Bohlen and Benfey identify it with Ariapakshata, denoting a country beside Aria. Gesenius renders it border or stronghold of the Kasdim; but the components of the word are uncertain. The nations descended from Arpakshad are noted at the close on account of their late origin, as well as their import for the subsequent narrative.
(48) Lud is usually identified with the Lydians, Λυδοὶ Ludoi, who by migration at length reached and gave their name to a part of the west coast of Asia Minor.
(49) Aram gave name to the upper parts of Mesopotamia and the parts of Syria north of Palestine. Hence, we read of Aram Naharaim (of the two rivers), Aram Dammesek (of Damascus), Aram Maakah on the southwest border of Damascus, about the sources of the Jordan, Aram Beth Rechob in the same neighborhood, and Aram Zoba to the north of Damascus. The name is perhaps varied in the Ἄριμοι Arimoi of Homer (Iliad 2:783) and Strabo (xiii. 4, 6). From Aram are descended four later nations.
Gen 10:23
(50) Uz (Ἀνσῖτις Ausitis, Septuagint.) the chief of a people having their seat in the north of Arabia Deserta, between Palestine and the Euphrates. From this Uz it is possible that the sons of Nahor and of Seir Gen 22:21; Gen 36:28 obtained their name. Job dwelt in this land.
(51) 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.
(52) Gether is of uncertain position, probably in Arabia.
(53) Mash may have left a trace of his name in Mons Masius, Karajah Dagh, south of Diarbekir, and perhaps also in the Mysians and Moesians, who may have wandered westward from under this mountain.
Gen 10:24
Arpakshad begat (54) Shelah. We know nothing of the nation of which he was the founder. He begat
(55) 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. It is probable that most of the diversified modes of speech retained the substance of the primeval speech of mankind. And it is not improbable, for various reasons, that this Hebrew tongue, taken in its largest sense, deviated less from the original standard than any other. The Shemites, and especially the Hebrews, departed less from the knowledge of the true God than the other families of man, and, therefore, may be presumed to have suffered less from the concussion given to the living speech of the race.
The knowledge previously accumulated of the true God, and of his will and way, would have been lost, if the terms and other modes of expressing divine things had been entirely obliterated. It is consonant with reason, then, to suppose that some one language was so little shaken from its primary structure as to preserve this knowledge. We know as a fact, that, while other nations retained some faint traces of the primeval history, the Hebrews have handed down certain and tangible information concerning former things in a consecutive order from the very first. This is a proof positive that they had the distinct outline and material substance of the primeval tongue in which these things were originally expressed. In keeping with this line of reasoning, while distinct from it, is the fact that the names of persons and things are given and explained in the Hebrew tongue, and most of them in that branch of it in which the Old Testament is composed. We do not enter further into the special nature of the Hebrew family of languages, or the relationship in which they are found to stand with the other forms of human speech than to intimate that such investigations tend to confirm the conclusions here enunciated.
Gen 10:25
This nation was very extensive, and accordingly branched out into several, of which the immediate ones are Peleg and Joctan.
(56) Peleg is remarkable on account of the origin assigned to his name. “In his days was the land divided.” Here two questions occur. What is the meaning of the earth being divided, and what is the time denoted by “his days?” The verb “divide” (פלג pālag) occurs only three times elsewhere in the Hebrew scriptures 1Ch 1:19; Job 38:25; Psa 55:9. 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. This affords a probable answer to our first question. The land was in his days divided among the representative heads of the various nations. But to what point of time are we directed by the phrase “in his days?” Was the land divided at his birth, or some subsequent period of his life? The latter is possible, as Jacob and Gideon received new names, and Joshua an altered name, in later life.
The phrase “in his days” seems to look the same way. And the short interval from the deluge to his birth appears scarcely to suffice for such an increase of the human family as to allow of a separation into nations. Yet, on the other hand, it is hard to find any event in later life which connected this individual more than any other with the dispersion of man. It is customary to give the name at birth. The phrase “in his days” may, without any straining, refer to this period. And if we suppose, at a time when there were only a few families on the earth, an average increase of ten children in each in four generations, we shall have a thousand, or twelve hundred full-grown persons, and, therefore, may have five hundred families at the birth of Peleg. We cannot suppose more than fifty-five nations distinguished from one another at the dispersion, as Heber is the fifty-fifth name, and all the others are descended from him.
And if three families were sufficient to propagate the race after the flood, nine or ten were enough to constitute a primeval tribe or nation. We see some reason, therefore, to take the birth of Peleg as the occasion on which he received his name, and no stringent reason for fixing upon any later date. At all events the question seems to be of no chronological importance, as in any case only four generations preceded Peleg, and these might have been of comparatively longer or shorter duration without materially affecting the number of mankind at the time of his birth. Peleg is also remarkable as the head of that nation out of which, at an after period, the special people of God sprang. Of the Palgites, as a whole, we hear little or nothing further in history.
(57) Joctan, if little or insignificant as an individual or a nation, is the progenitor of a large group of tribes, finding their place among the wandering races included afterward under the name Arabic. Cachtan, as the Arabs designate him in their traditions, may have given name to Cachtan, a town and province mentioned by Niebuhr.
Gen 10:26-29
The thirteen tribes of the Joctanites or primitive Arabs are enumerated here in Gen 10:26-29.
(58) 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. The Ἀλλουμαιῶται Alloumaiōtai of Ptolemy belonged to the interior of Arabia Felix.
(59) Sheleph is traced in the Σαλαπηνοὶ Salapeenoi of Ptolemy (vi. 7), belonging to the interior.
(60) Hazarmaveth gives name to a district on the Indian Ocean, abounding in spices, now called Hadramaut. This tribe is the Chatramitae of Greek writers.
(61) Jerah occupied a district where are the coast and mountain of the moon, near Hadramaut.
(62) Hadoram is preserved in the tribe called Ἀδραμῖται Adamitai Atramitae, placed by Pliny (vi. 28) between the Homerites and the Sachalites on the south coast of Arabia.
(63) Uzal perhaps gave the ancient name of Azal to Sana, the capital of Yemen, a place still celebrated for the manufacture of beautiful stuffs.
(64) Diclah settled possibly in the palm-bearing region of the Minaei in Hejaz.
(65) Obal is otherwise unknown.
(66) Abimael is equally obscure. Bochart supposes there is a trace of the name in Μάλι Mali, a place in Arabia Aromatifera.
(67) Sheba is the progenitor of the Sabaei in Arabia Felix, celebrated for spices, gold, and precious stones, and noted for the prosperity arising from traffic in these commodities. A queen of Sheba visited Solomon. The dominant family among the Sabaeans was that of Himjar, from whom the Himjarites (Homeritae) of a later period descended.
(68) Ophir gave name to a country celebrated for gold, precious stones, and almug wood, which seems to have lain on the south side of Arabia, where these products may be found. What kind of tree the almug is has not been clearly ascertained. Some suppose it to be the sandal wood which grows in Persia and India; others, a species of pine. If this wood was not native, it may have been imported from more distant countries to Ophir, which was evidently a great emporium. Others, however, have supposed Ophir to be in India, or Eastern Africa. The chief argument for a more distant locality arises from the supposed three years’ voyage to it from Ezion-geber, and the products obtained in the country so reached. But the three years’ voyage 1Ki 10:22; 2Ch 9:21 seems to be in reality to Tarshish, a very different region.
(69) Havilah here is the founder of a Joctanite tribe of Arabs, and therefore his territory must be sought somewhere in the extensive country which was occupied by these wandering tribes. A trace of the name is probably preserved in Khawlan, a district lying in the northwest of Yemen, between Sana and Mecca, though the tribe may have originally settled or extended further north.
(70) Jobab has been compared with the Ἰωβαρῖται Iōbaritai of Ptolemy (vi. 7). Bochart finds the name in the Arabic: yobab, a desert.
Gen 10:29
The situation of Mesha is uncertain. But it is obviously the western boundary of the settlement, and may have been in the neighborhood of Mecca and Medina. Sephar is perhaps the Arabic Zaphari, called by the natives Isfor, a town on the south coast near Mirbat. It seems, however, to be, in the present passage, the “mount of the east” itself, a thuriferous range of hills, adjacent, it may be, to the seaport so-called. Gesenius and others fix upon Mesene, an island at the head of the Persian Gulf, as the Mesha of the text. But this island may have had no existence at the time of the Joctanite settlement. These boundaries include the greater part of the west and south coast of the peninsula, and are therefore sufficient to embrace the provinces of Hejaz (in part), Yemen, and Hadramaut, and afford space for the settlements of the thirteen sons of Joctan. The limits thus marked out determine that all these settlers, Ophir among the rest, were at first to be found in Arabia, how far soever they may have wandered from it afterward.
Gen 10:31-32
Gen 10:31 contains the usual closing formula for the pedigree of the Shemite tribes; and Gen 10:32 contains the corresponding form for the whole table of nations.
From a review of these lands it is evident that Shem occupied a much smaller extent of territory than either of his brothers. The mountains beyond the Tigris, the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, the Levant, the Archipelago, and the Black Sea, bound the countries that were in part peopled by Shem. Arabia, Syria, and Assyria contained the great bulk of the Shemites, intermingled with some of the Hamites. The Kushites, Kenaanites, and Philistines trench upon their ground. The rest of the Hamites peopled Africa, and such countries as were supplied from it. The Japhethites spread over all the rest of the world.
In this table there are 70 names, exclusive of Nimrod, of heads of families, tribes, or nations descended from the 3 sons of Noah - 14 from Japheth, 30 from Ham, and 26 from Shem. Among the heads of tribes descended from Japheth are 7 grandsons. Among those from Ham are 23 grandsons and 3 great-grandsons. Among those of Shem are 5 grandsons, one great-grandson, 2 of the fourth generation, and 13 of the fifth. Whence, it appears that the subdivisions are traced further in Ham and much further in Shem than in Japheth, and that they are pursued only in those lines which are of importance for the coming events in the history of Shem.
It is to be observed, also, that, though the different races are distinguished by the diversity of tongues, yet the different languages are much less numerous than the tribes. The eleven tribes of Kenaanites, and the thirteen tribes of Joctanites, making allowance for some tribal peculiarities, most probably spoke at first only two dialects of one family of languages, which we have designated the Hebrew, itself a branch of, if not identical with, what is commonly called the Shemitic. Hence, some Hamites spoke the language of Shem. A similar community of language may have occurred in some other instances of diversity of descent.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv21, 24 Of Heber. That is, of the nations beyond the…
Of Heber. That is, of the nations beyond the Euphrates. Hebrews, &c. (Calmet) --- The elder brother, fratre Japheth majore, may be rendered as well "Japheth being his elder brother," which, as we have already observed, was probably the case. By mentioning him alone, we may gather that Sem was elder than Cham, who is called the less or younger son. (Haydock) --- The Hebrew may be translated either way. But the Chaldean, Liranus, and many excellent interpreters, make Jepheth the eldest. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv21, 23, 24, 25 Unto Shem--The historian introduces him with marked distinction as…
Unto Shem--The historian introduces him with marked distinction as "the father of Eber," the ancestor of the Hebrews.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv21–25 THE SHEMITIC FAMILY, Gen_10:21-31.
THE SHEMITIC FAMILY, Gen_10:21-31.
21. Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born — That is, older than Ham, though younger than Japheth. Comp. note on Gen_5:32. This expression, “elder brother,” seems to be inserted here to remind the reader that, although Shem was mentioned after Ham, he was really older than he. Shem’s posterity is mentioned last, to form a more immediate and natural connexion with the following history, which pertains to them exclusively. Shem signifies name, that is, great or distinguished name; made illustrious as the line through which God shines on the world — the line in which arose the “NAME that is above every name.” Shem was the ancestor of the Persians, Assyrians, Arabians, and Lydians, (perhaps also of the Phenicians, see Gen_10:15,) all great nations of western Asia; but he is especially conspicuous in this history as father of the “children of Eber,” the Hebrew people, through whom came revelation and the Messiah. For the meaning of “Hebrew,” see Gen_10:24 and note. The names of most of these sons of Shem became early transferred to the countries they occupied.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv21–25 21–31. The Sons of Shem (J and P)
21–31. The Sons of Shem (J and P)
21. And unto Shem, &c.] The brief account in verse is from J.
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the father of all the children of Eber] This is the point in the description of Shem which would seem most honourable to Israelite readers. The names “Eber” and “Hebrew” are almost identical in the Hebrew language. “Eber” was accepted as the ancestor of the Hebrew-speaking peoples. In the widest sense of the word, “Hebrews” are a group of Semitic peoples who issued from the Arabian Peninsula. They are included among the descendants of Joktan and Peleg, as well as of Terah. For the ordinary derivation of the word “Hebrew,” as = “the man from the further side” of the river, see Gen_10:24 and Gen_14:13. The term “Hebrew” is racial, “Israelite” national; though ultimately used as synonyms.
the elder brother of Japheth] These words seem to be inserted, in order to remind the reader that Shem, though here mentioned last, was the eldest of Noah’s sons. The rendering of R.V. marg., the brother of Japheth the elder, is very improbable.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv21, 24, 25 (21-23) shem . . . the brother of Japheth…
(21-23) shem . . . the brother of Japheth the elder.—Really, the elder brother of Japheth. Though the rules of Hebrew grammar will admit of no other rendering, it is remarkable that both the Syriac and the Vulg. make the same mistake as our own version. In designating Shem as “the father of all the children of Eber,” attention is called to the fact that the descendants of Peleg, his elder son, are omitted from this table, and reserved for the Tôldôth Shem. (See Gen_11:10.)
The nations descended from Shem were:—
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1. Elam.—According to Mr. Sayce (Chald. Gen., p. 196), “the primitive inhabitants of Elam were a race closely allied to the Accadians, and spread over the whole range of country which stretched from the southern shores of the Caspian to the Persian Gulf.” But just as the Semitic Asshur expelled a Hamite race from Assyria, so another branch of this conquering family occupied Elymais. It is now called Chuzistan, and was the most easternly of the countries occupied by the Semites. But see Excursus to Genesis 14 on the conquests of the Elamite Chedorlaomer.
2. Asshur.—This Semitic stock seems to have been the first to settle on the Tigris, as the Hamites were the first to settle on the Euphrates. Finally, as we have seen (Gen_10:11), they conquered the whole country.
3. Arphaxad.—Heb., Arpachshad. We may dismiss the idea that he was connected with the region called Arrapachitis, for this correctly is Aryapakshata, “the land next the Aryans.” Really he appears as the ancestor of Eber and the Joktanite Arabs.
4. Lud.—Probably the Lydians, who, after various wanderings, settled in Asia Minor.
5. Aram.—As Asshur means plain, so Aram means highland. It was originally the name of the Lebanon ranges, and thus Damascus is called Aram in 2Sa_8:5. Subsequently the race so extended itself as to possess Mesopotamia, a lowland country, but called, as early as Gen_24:10, “Aram of the two rivers.” The greatness of Aram will be best seen by examining those places in our version where Syria and Syrian are spoken of, and which, in the Hebrew, are really Aram.
To the Aramæan stock belonged also four outlying dependencies—(1) Uz, the land of Job, a district in the northern part of Arabia Deserta; (2) Hul and (3) Gether, regions of which nothing is known; and (4) Mash, a desert region on the western side of the Euphrates (Chald. Gen., p. 276).
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv21–25 Unto Shem also, the father of all the children…
Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, as Ham of Canaan (Gen_9:22; vide ver. 24) the brother of Japheth the elder. Either the eldest brother of Japheth (Syriac, Arabic, Vulgate, Gesenius, Rosenm Kalisch); or the brother of Japheth who was older (LXX, Symmachus, Onkelos, Raschi, Aben Ezra, Luther, Clerieus, Michaelis, Dathe); or the elder of Japheth"s brothers, as distinguished from Ham the younger, i.e. the son who was older than Ham, But younger than Japheth. (Murphy, Quarry; vide. Gen_5:32) Even to him were children born.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v21 The Sons of Shem
The Sons of Shem
v. 21. Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born. Shem is here called the father of all the children of Eber, the Hebrews in the wider sense of the word, because Eber, through his sons Peleg and Joktan, was the progenitor of two distinct series of peoples, the Joktanites of Arabia and the Abrahamites, afterward the children of Israel.
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v. 22. The children of Shem: Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram. The nations, or tribes, which descended from them were afterward found in the Persian country of Elymais, in Assyria, in Chaldea, in Lydia in Asia Minor, and in Syria, respectively.
v. 23. And the children of Aram: Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash. These names, as found in various accounts, point to the fact that the tribes descending from Aram gradually moved toward the east and northeast.
v. 24. And Arphaxad begat Salah; and Salah begat Eber. The two names Salah (sending forth) and Eber (passing over) may indicate that the emigration of tribes in one large movement, as spoken of in the next Chapter, took place at this time.
v. 25. And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided; and his brother’s name was Joktan. Eber probably took part in the great Babylonian emigration, or he named his older son Peleg (division), with reference, undoubtedly, to the division and confusion brought about in consequence of the interference of God.
v. 26. And Joktan begat Almodad, and Sheleph, and Hazarmaveth, and Jerah,
v. 27. and Hadoram, and Uzal, and Diklah,
v. 28. and Obal, and Abimael, and Sheba,
v. 29. and Ophir, and Havilah, and Jobab: all these were the sons of Joktan.
v. 30. And their dwelling was from Mesha, as thou goest unto Sephar, a mount of the east. of the thirteen names in this list several have been preserved in various parts of Arabia, and so the Arabians are the Joktanites, descendants of Shem.
v. 31. These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations.
v. 32. These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and by these were the nations divided in the earth after the Flood. This is the Lord’s own genealogical table, and it has not yet been superseded. The most careful work on the part of archeologists has rather confirmed the Biblical account in every item. All the nations of men that dwell on the earth have come from one blood, Act 17:26.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv21, 24
translationWords
Shem
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Japheth
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv21–25 10:21 Shem, the older brother of Japheth, was the…
10:21 Shem, the older brother of Japheth, was the father of the Semitic peoples. The descendants listed represent countries east of Israel (modern Iraq, Iran, and Syria). The narrator lists these locations within Mesopotamia since Abram, the father of Israel, originated from this area (see 11:27-32). • Eber receives special attention because of his connection with Abram (see study note on 10:24).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.