Genesis 10

Genesis 9 closes with the covenant after the Flood and the death of Noah. Chapter 10 sets out the descendants of Noah's three sons and serves as a bridge to the account of the Tower of Babel and the genealogy of Shem in chapter 11.

Outline

• Verse 1 An introductory heading stating that sons were born to Shem, Ham, and Japheth after the Flood.
• Verses 2-5 The seven sons of Japheth are listed, along with the sons of Gomer and Javan. These spread out over the coastlands, each according to his tongue and family.
• Verses 6-12 The sons of Ham are Cush, Mizraim, Phut, and Canaan. Nimrod, the son of Cush, began his kingdom at Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh in the land of Shinar, and went into Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth, Calah, and Resen.
• Verses 13-14 The descendants of Mizraim follow, and the text notes that the Philistines came from the Casluhim.
• Verses 15-20 The descendants of Canaan are listed: Sidon, Heth, and various tribes. The borders of Canaan are then given, running from Sidon to Gaza, past Sodom and Gomorrah, and as far as Lasha.
• Verses 21-31 Shem is the father of all the children of Eber. Shem's line descends through Arphaxad, Salah, and Eber. In the days of Peleg, the son of Eber, the earth was divided; his brother Joktan had thirteen sons.
• Verse 32 A concluding statement that from these the nations of the earth were divided.

Key Verses

• Genesis 10:5 "every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations" — The same expression recurs in verses 20 and 31 and provides the framework for the chapter.
• Genesis 10:8-9 "he began to be a mighty one in the earth" — With Nimrod, the beginnings of great kingdoms such as Babel and Assyria appear for the first time.
• Genesis 10:32 "by these were the nations divided in the earth" — The chapter portrays all peoples as descended from the single family of Noah.

People and Places

• Shem, Ham, and Japheth, the three sons of Noah
• Nimrod — A son of Cush, introduced as "a mighty hunter" and the founder of a kingdom.
• Eber — A descendant of Shem. Some connect his name with the term Hebrews.
• Peleg and Joktan — The two sons of Eber.
• Mizraim — The Hebrew name for Egypt.
• Javan — Commonly identified with the Greek peoples.
• Canaan — Both a son of Ham and the name of the land his descendants inhabited.
• Shinar — An ancient name for the region of Babylon. Other peoples and places mentioned include Assyria and Aram.

Points for Reflection

• The order relative to chapter 11. Chapter 10 already depicts the nations divided by language, while chapter 11 narrates the Tower of Babel as the cause. For this reason, many interpreters read the two chapters as arranged thematically rather than chronologically.
• The "seventy nations" tradition. Jewish tradition reportedly counted the names in this list as seventy, taking that number to represent all the nations of the world.
• Nimrod and the Tower of Babel. The text states only that Nimrod began his kingdom at Babel. The idea that he led the building of the tower is a later tradition, found in Josephus and others. Interpretations of the phrase "before the LORD" also differ: some read it as commendation, others as indicating defiance of God.
• The "curse of Ham" misconception. In chapter 9 the one cursed is not Ham but Canaan (Genesis 9:25). In the past, some interpreters used this genealogy to justify racial discrimination, but most churches today reject such readings.
• Connections with the New Testament. Paul declares that God "hath made of one blood all nations of men" (Acts 17:26). The scene at Pentecost in Acts 2, where people of many nations heard the gospel in their own languages, is also sometimes read as a regathering of the scattered nations.