Genesis 10
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 10
The Human Family.[a] 1 These are the descendants of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham and Japheth, to whom sons were born after the flood.
2 The sons of Japheth were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meschech, and Tiras.
3 The sons of Gomer were Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah.
4 The sons of Javan were Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittim, and the Rodanim.
5 From these came the peoples of the islands and their territories, each clan in the nations with their own language.
6 The sons of Ham were Cush, Mizraim, Put, and Canaan.
7 The sons of Cush were Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca.
The sons of Raamah were Sheba and Dedan.
8 Cush gave birth to Nimrod. He was the first of the mighty ones upon the earth. 9 He was a great hunter before the Lord, for it is said, “Just like Nimrod, a great hunter before the Lord.” 10 The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, and Accad, all of them in the land of Shinar. 11 From that land he went to Asshur where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, Calah, 12 and Resen between Nineveh and Calah, which is the main city.
13 Mizraim gave birth to the Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim, 14 Pathrusim, Casluhim, and Caphtorim (from whom came the Philistines).
15 Canaan gave birth to Sidon, his firstborn, and Heth, 16 and the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, 17 the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, 18 the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites.
Afterward the clans of the Canaanites spread outward. 19 The boundaries of the Canaanites stretch from Sidon in the area of Gerar up to Gaza, and then go toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, up to Lasha.
20 These were the sons of Ham according to their clans and their languages, in their various territories and according to their peoples.
21 Shem, the ancestor of all of the sons of Eber and the older brother of Japheth, also had children.
22 The sons of Shem were Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram.
23 The sons of Aram were Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash.
24 Arpachshad gave birth to Shelah, and Shelah gave birth to Eber. 25 Eber had two sons: one named Peleg (for in his days the earth was divided) and the other named Joktan.
26 Joktan gave birth to Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 27 Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 28 Obal, Abimael, Sheba, 29 Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these were the sons of Joktan.
30 They lived in the mountain region in the east, from Mesha on toward Sephar.
31 These were the sons of Shem according to their clans and their languages, in their various territories and according to their languages.
32 These were the families of the sons of Noah in their various generations and clans. These divided up to become all the nations on the earth after the flood.
Footnotes
- Genesis 10:1 For the ancient Semites, a person’s genealogy was not a strictly historical document, but a juridical one, meant to show the transmission of rights. For this reason, physical generation often serves as an image pointing to a legal generation, as, for example, adoption. The genealogical tree had, of course, to be composed of historical persons so as to determine a juridical succession.
The genealogy of peoples or cities is an image derived from the preceding and can signify ties of derivation or affinity between one people and another on the ethnic, geographical, historical, political, sociological, cultural, and other planes. Since the whole matter was flexible and since we are dealing only with an image, it is obvious that one and the same people could locate themselves, from different points of view, in various genealogical lineages, including some far removed from modern-day scientific genealogies.
On the basis of historical and geographical data, the Priestly tradition, here incorporating Yahwist features, in this chapter compiles a genealogical tree for peoples known in the second millennium B.C. The picture, in which an historical and religious intention is at work, asserts the substantial unity of the human race, which is divided into various peoples and languages. All human beings are brothers and sisters, sons and daughters of the same Creator God and heirs of his blessings, and all are meant to be saved.
Given its purpose, the picture does not provide a basis for resolving the anthropological question of monogenism or polygenism, nor the historical question of the extent of the flood. In this “list of peoples” the Semites come in last place because the writer takes them as his starting point for the continuation of his story, while from this point on the descendants of Japheth and Ham cease to be of direct concern to the biblical story.
Genesis 10
1599 Geneva Bible
10 1 The increase of mankind by Noah and his sons. 10 The beginning of cities, countries, and nations.
1 Now these are the [a]generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham and Japheth: unto whom sons were born after the flood.
2 The sons of Japheth were Gomer, and Magog, and [b]Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras.
3 And the sons of Gomer, Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah.
4 Also the sons of Javan, Elishah and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim.
5 Of these were the [c]isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands, every man after his tongue, and after their families in their nations.
6 ¶ Moreover, the sons of Ham were [d]Cush, and Mizraim, and Put, and Canaan.
7 And the sons of Cush, Seba and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtechah: also the sons of Raamah were Sheba and Dedan.
8 And Cush begat Nimrod, who began to be [e]mighty in the earth.
9 He was a mighty hunter before the Lord. Wherefore it is said, [f]As Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord.
10 And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of [g]Shinar.
11 Out of that land came Assyria, and built Nineveh, and the [h]city Rehoboth, and Calah:
12 Resen also between Nineveh and Calah: this is a great city.
13 And Mizraim begat [i]Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim.
14 Pathrusim also, and Casluhim (out of whom came the Philistines) and [j]Caphtorims.
15 Also Canaan begat Sidon his firstborn, and Heth,
16 And Jebusi, and Emori, and Girgashi,
17 And Hivi, and Arki, and Sini,
18 And Arvadi, and Zemari, and Hamathi: and afterward were the families of the Canaanites spread abroad.
19 Then the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon, as thou comest to Gerar until Gaza, and as thou goest unto Sodom and Gomorrah, and Admah, and Zeboiim, even unto Lasha.
20 These are the sons of Ham according to their families, according to their tongues in their countries, and in their nations.
21 ¶ Unto [k]Shem also the father of all the sons of [l]Eber, and elder brother of Japheth were children born.
22 (A)The sons of Shem were Elam and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram.
23 And the sons of Aram, Uz and Hul, and Gether, and Mash.
24 Also Arphaxad begat Salah, and Salah begat Eber.
25 Unto Eber also were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg: for in his days was the earth [m]divided: and his brother’s name was Joktan.
26 Then Joktan begat Almodad, and Sheleph, and Hazarmaveth, and Jerah,
27 And Hadoram, and Uzal, and Diklah,
28 And Obal, and Abimael, and Sheba,
29 And Ophir, and Havilah, and Jobab: all these were the sons of Joktan.
30 And their dwelling was from Mesha, as thou goest up to Sephar, a mount of the East.
31 These are the sons of Shem, according to their families, according to their tongues in their countries and nations.
32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations among their people: and [n]out of these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.
Footnotes
- Genesis 10:1 These generations are here recited, partly to declare the marvelous increase in so small a time, and also to set forth their great forgetfulness of God’s grace towards their fathers.
- Genesis 10:2 Of Madai and Javan came the Medes, and Greeks.
- Genesis 10:5 The Jews so call all countries which are separated from them by sea, as Greece, Italy, etc, which were given to the children of Japheth, of whom came the Gentiles.
- Genesis 10:6 Of Cush and Mizraim came the Ethiopians and Egyptians.
- Genesis 10:8 Meaning, a cruel oppressor and tyrant.
- Genesis 10:9 His tyranny came into a proverb as hated both of God and man: for he passed not to commit cruelty even in God’s presence.
- Genesis 10:10 For there was another city in Egypt, called also Babel.
- Genesis 10:11 Or, the streets of the city.
- Genesis 10:13 Of Lud came the Lydians.
- Genesis 10:14 Or, the Cappadocians.
- Genesis 10:21 In his stock the Church was preserved: therefore Moses leaveth off speaking of Japheth and Ham, and entreateth of Shem more at large.
- Genesis 10:21 Of whom came the Hebrews or Jews.
- Genesis 10:25 This division came by the diversity of languages, as appeareth, Gen. 11:9.
- Genesis 10:32 Or, of these came divers nations.
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
