Genesis 10:6

Context

Genesis 10 is a genealogy that records the descendants of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, the three sons of Noah, after the Flood. Because it lists the origins of many peoples, it is commonly called the "Table of Nations." After verse 1 introduces the three sons, the descendants of Japheth (vv. 2–5), Ham (vv. 6–20), and Shem (vv. 21–31) follow in turn. This verse opens the line of Ham and simply lists the names of Ham's four sons. It is not speech addressed by one person to another but a genealogical record from the narrator of Genesis. The same list appears again almost verbatim in 1 Chronicles 1:8.

The verses that follow introduce the descendants of the four sons: Nimrod, among the descendants of Cush (vv. 8–12); the Philistines, who came from Mizraim (vv. 13–14); and the descendants of Canaan and the boundaries of their land (vv. 15–19).

Interpretation

The four names are generally read as personal names that also serve as names of regions and peoples.

• Geographical and ethnic reading: Many commentators identify the four names as follows:
• Cush: the region of the upper Nile south of Egypt (the area of Nubia)
• Mizraim: the name used for Egypt in the Hebrew Bible
• Canaan: the land Israel would later enter, together with its inhabitants
• Phut: often identified with Libya, though other regions have also been proposed, and the identification remains uncertain.

On this reading, the line of Ham broadly groups together the regions to the south and southwest of Israel.

• Redemptive-historical reading: Evangelical and Reformed commentators read the Table of Nations as showing that all peoples descend from a common ancestor. They also see it as laying the groundwork for the Tower of Babel in chapter 11 and the call of Abraham in chapter 12. They further note that Egypt and Canaan, which become deeply intertwined with Israel's history, first take their place within the genealogy here.
• Historical-critical reading: Some scholars note that Canaan is placed in the line of Ham even though the language of the Canaanites belongs to the same Semitic family as Hebrew. On this basis they argue that the list reflects geographical and political relationships rather than lineage or language. Egypt's sphere of influence is cited as an example of such a relationship.

Controversies and Issues

The most widely noted problem associated with this verse is the interpretation known as the "curse of Ham."

• What the text says: In Genesis 9:25 the person Noah curses is not Ham but Ham's son Canaan.
• Modern misuse: Some Christians in the modern West regarded Ham as the ancestor of Africans and used this curse to justify the enslavement of Black people and racial discrimination.
• Present-day assessment: Today most commentators and many denominations regard this as a misuse that departs from the text. They also reject reading the Table of Nations as a racial classification based on skin color, explaining that the text is concerned with the geographical and historical relationships among the peoples surrounding Israel.

Related Passages

• Genesis 9:25 – Noah curses Canaan
• 1 Chronicles 1:8 – a repetition of the same genealogy
• Psalm 105:23 – Egypt called "the land of Ham"
• Acts 8:27 – the account of the baptism of the eunuch from Cush (Ethiopia)
• Acts 17:26 – Paul's statement that God "hath made of one blood all nations of men"