1. The Sons of Japheth

Genesis 10:1-5

1 Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood. 2 The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. 3 And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah. 4 And the sons of Javan; Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 5 By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.

“Japheth” is a Semitic name meaning “let him be spacious” or “wide.” [207]

He was born after Noah had reached about five hundred years of age (Genesis 5:32; Genesis 6:10). When his father became uncovered through drunkenness, he acted with wisdom and reverence together with his brother Shem. He received a blessing that may appear obscure (Genesis 9:27), announcing the movement of the non-Semitic peoples descended from Japheth to dwell in the tents of Shem. Some understand this as referring to the movements, occurring more than once, by which various nations and peoples came into the embrace of the Lord Christ or His Church. He came incarnate from the descendants of Shem and opened the doors of His Church to all peoples and nations.

Japheth represents the Indo-European peoples in general. [208]

Seven sons of Japheth are mentioned here. Several peoples were called by their names, and from these seven there branched seven other peoples whom there is no room to discuss here. His seven sons are as follows:

First: Gomer

The Hebrew word “Gomer” means “the end of perfection,” particularly completeness of failure. The wife of the prophet Hosea bore the same name: “Gomer the daughter of Diblaim.” [209]

Gomer’s descendants lived in the north, so that the Greek poet Homer called them “the people of the farthest north.” [210] Herodotus relates that they came into Asia from beyond the Caucasus, settled in Cappadocia, and threatened the Assyrian Empire, but Esarhaddon defeated them. Moving westward, they occupied Asia Minor and fought more than one battle against Gyges, king of Lydia, ending in his death. Perhaps he is the one called Gog in the Holy Bible. [212] Later they withdrew from Asia, that is, Lydia, through Alyattes. [211], [213]

Second: Magog

“Magog” is a Hebrew word meaning “the land of Gog.” The name Magog became associated with Gog, and the two names became symbols of opposition to the Christian faith (Revelation 20:7-9).

In the Middle Ages the Syrians called the land of the Tatars Magog, while the Arabs gave this name to the land between the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea. Most, however, considered the Scythians to be the people of Magog.

Third: Madai

From his descendants arose the Median Empire, which united with Persia. Their land was known as Madai or Media. They lived south and southwest of the Caspian Sea, in an area of about 150,000 square miles.

Fourth: Javan

He is the father of the Greeks. Thus the word Javan in the Holy Bible, as in Zechariah 9:13, denotes the Greek or Macedonian people. Their country was also called “Ionia.”

Fifth: Tubal

He is mentioned together with Javan (Isaiah 66:19), and with Meshech in connection with the slave trade (Ezekiel 27:13). Gog was chief over Meshech and Tubal, for the two peoples were associated. In Assyrian annals they appear under the names Mushbi and Tabali as stubborn opponents of Assyria in the twelfth century B.C.

The descendants of Tubal probably lived in the lands east of Asia Minor.

Sixth: Meshech

His descendants are thought to have inhabited the lands near the sources of the Euphrates and Tigris (Psalm 120:5; Ezekiel 32:26), and then moved to the vicinity of the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. His descendants traded with Tyre (Ezekiel 27:13).

Seventh: Tiras

From his descendants came the Tyrsenians, who inhabited the islands and coasts of the Aegean Sea. They may have been the Turusha pirates who invaded Egypt and Syria in the thirteenth century B.C. and are mentioned in the records of Rameses III. [214]

From these seven sons came descendants who formed other nations and peoples, whom there is no room to discuss now.

2. The Sons of Ham

Genesis 10:6-20

6 And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan. 7 And the sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtecha: and the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan. 8 And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth. 9 He was a mighty hunter before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even 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 Shinar. 11 Out of that land went forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah, 12 And Resen between Nineveh and Calah: the same is a great city. 13 And Mizraim begat Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim, 14 And Pathrusim, and Casluhim, (out of whom came Philistim,) and Caphtorim. 15 And Canaan begat Sidon his firstborn, and Heth, 16 And the Jebusite, and the Amorite, and the Girgasite, 17 And the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite, 18 And the Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the Hamathite: and afterward were the families of the Canaanites spread abroad. 19 And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon, as thou comest to Gerar, unto Gaza; as thou goest, unto Sodom, and Gomorrah, and Admah, and Zeboim, even unto Lasha. 20 These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations.

The word “Ham” means “warm” or “hot.” Hence the sun god was called “Hammu,” because of the sun’s heat and warmth.

Ham was born after Noah had reached five hundred years of age (Genesis 5:32; Genesis 6:10; Genesis 9:24-25). He and his youngest son Canaan acted unwisely toward Noah, and Canaan fell under the curse (Genesis 9:22-27).

Through his sons, Ham gave rise to the peoples who inhabited southern Arabia, Nubia, Ethiopia, Egypt, and the land of Canaan. The name Ham was sometimes applied to Egypt in poetic passages (Psalm 78:51; Psalm 105:23, 27; Psalm 106:22).

First: Cush

The Hebrew word “Cush” means “black.”

Cush, Ham’s firstborn, had five sons who gave rise to five peoples: Seba, meaning “a human being”; Havilah, “a circle” or “district”; Sabtah, “a striker”; Raamah, “trembling”; and Sabtecha, “a striker.” These peoples inhabited central and southern Arabia, but Seba migrated to Africa, to Ethiopia. Thus Cush in the Old Testament usually means Ethiopia and Nubia, south of Egypt, and sometimes the southern and central Arabian Peninsula. Many Bible dictionaries identify Cush only with Ethiopia.

In general, Ham’s descendants gave rise to nations and peoples who opposed God’s work and His people in the Old Testament. The Old Testament therefore announces divine punishment upon these peoples as bearers of symbols of evil: Cush represented the darkness of ignorance, Egypt the love of the world that enslaves the soul, and Canaan the work of the devil, and so on. Yet the Old Testament prophecies did not leave these peoples without hope. They announced the rejection of faith by God’s people and the entrance of these nations into the divine covenant. Thus the nations that had been under the curse because of their idolatry and abominations became the holy bride preparing for eternal life in the embrace of the heavenly Father.

Just as the Holy Bible reveals God’s work through Shem’s descendants, from whom God the Word would come incarnate through the line of Abraham, so it also reveals the work of the enemy of goodness, particularly through Cush’s descendants, who brought forth Nimrod, and through Canaan’s descendants, who brought forth the Canaanite peoples opposing God’s work. Of Nimrod the son of Cush it is said: “he began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD” (Genesis 10:8-9). He was a mighty hunter and founded the ruling dynasty in Babel, Shinar, and Accad. Perhaps he was the Akkadian or Babylonian Gilgamesh himself. In any event, Babylon later became a symbol of defiance of God and pride, as well as of spiritual fornication (Revelation 14:8; Revelation 16:19; Revelation 17:1-5). [215] Babylon came to signify the company of the wicked, as Saint Augustine says, [216] and also the kingdom of the Antichrist. [217]

The word “Nimrod” means “mighty” or “rebellious.” The expression “a mighty hunter before the LORD” may mean that he was obstinate and rebellious, boasting of himself, of his skill in hunting, and of his opposition to the Lord. It is striking that many of those who opposed the Lord, such as Esau, were hunters of wild animals. For this reason Saint Jerome says:

“Esau also was a hunter, and he was a sinner. In all the Scriptures we do not find a hunter who was a faithful servant; rather, we find faithful fishermen. [218]”

Nimrod’s kingdom was in the land of Shinar, meaning “two rivers,” perhaps because it lay between the Tigris and Euphrates. It comprised the plains of Babylonia. This kingdom contained four principal cities at that time: Babel, meaning “the gate of God” (Bab-ilu); Erech, meaning “enduring”; Accad or Akkad, meaning “upright”; and Calneh, meaning “a fortress.”

Later Nimrod or his tribe did not remain content with this region, but went out into Assyria and Nineveh, “the dwelling of the god Nin”; Rehoboth-ir, “the broad city”; Calah, “old age”; and Resen, “the head of a spring.”

Second: Mizraim

The word “Mizraim” is dual in Hebrew. Some therefore think that it was so called because of the existence of Lower and Upper Egypt, or because the Nile divides it into eastern and western banks. The more probable view, however, is that the Arabic name “Misr” derives from the Hebrew Mizraim, for he and his sons lived there, although his descendants also spread to neighboring lands. His sons were:

Ludim: From him came the people of Lud, or the Ludim. These are different from the people of Lud descended from Shem (Genesis 10:22). Those descended from Mizraim lived west of the Nile toward Libya.

Anamim: The tribe descended from him appears to have lived in Libya.

Lehabim: The tribe of Lehabim appears to be the same as the Lubim or Libyans. They were Africans and originally arose in Egypt.

Naphtuhim: His descendants were inhabitants of Middle Egypt near Memphis, the center of worship of the god Ptah. Some of them may have migrated to Ethiopia.

Pathrusim: They lived in Pathros in Upper Egypt. The word “Pathros” means “the land of the south.”

Casluhim: The name means “fortified.” His descendants probably lived in Casiotis, a mountainous region east of Pelusium on Egypt’s border toward Palestine. From Casluhim came Philistim, whose descendants migrated to Palestine, where the ancient Philistine people arose. Perhaps the word Palestine derives from “Philistim,” meaning “a sojourner” or “an emigrant.” From Casluhim also came Caphtorim, meaning “crowns.” His descendants lived in Asia Minor. Others identify their home as Cyprus or the island of Crete, while still others locate it in the Egyptian Delta near Memphis, where a city called “Kabt-hor” has been found, probably identifiable with Caphtor.

Third: Canaan

He was Ham’s youngest son. From his descendants arose the Canaanite tribes. We have spoken briefly about some of these tribes in the introduction to the Book of Joshua. [219]

3. The Sons of Shem

Genesis 10:21-32

21 Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born. 22 The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram. 23 And the children of Aram; Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash. 24 And Arphaxad begat Salah; and Salah begat Eber. 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. 26 And 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 unto Sephar a mount of the east. 31 These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations. 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.

“Shem” is a Hebrew name meaning “exalted.”

When their father Noah became drunk and uncovered himself, Shem acted wisely together with Japheth and received a blessing from his father’s mouth.

His five sons lived in the land extending from Elam in western Asia to the eastern Mediterranean. From his descendants came the Jews, Arameans, Assyrians, and Arabs. Thus the languages spoken by Shem’s descendants, such as Arabic and Hebrew, are called Semitic languages. Shem’s five sons are:

Elam

In Akkadian the word “Elam” means “highlands.” The Elamites and Persians are traced to him. The land of Elam extends beyond the Tigris, east of the kingdom of Babylon, south of Assyria and Media, north of the Persian Gulf, and southwest of the Persian kingdom. Its capital was Shushan or Susa, and the Elamites were therefore called Susianians. Elam was the center of an ancient empire with an active political role in the history of the ancient eastern empires. Although Elam helped to overthrow the Babylonian state (Isaiah 21:2), the Medes incorporated it into their empire of Persia and Media and made it a province. They also established Shushan as their capital (Daniel 8:2). We hear of some Elamites on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:9). It now forms part of Iran, called the province of Khuzestan.

Asshur

He is the father of the Assyrians. The land of Assyria lies on the upper Tigris. The kingdom’s capital was Asshur, now called Qal‘at Sharqat, on the western bank of the Tigris; afterward they made Nineveh their capital. Assyria was in continual conflict with the Babylonians to the south and the Hittites to the northwest. Israel submitted to Assyria, as did Judah, whose kings paid tribute. Israel fell into Assyrian captivity, as Amos prophesied (Amos 5:27; Amos 6:14), and Hosea also (Hosea 10:6; Hosea 11:5). God fought on behalf of Hezekiah king of Judah when Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked him (Isaiah 36-37). Finally the Medes and Babylonians fought against the Assyrians and defeated them as the kingdom of Babylon arose.

Arphaxad

He is the ancestor of the Joktanite Arabian tribes. Josephus also regards him as the ancestor of the Chaldeans. The homeland of the Chaldeans is the southern region of Mesopotamia.

Lud

He is the ancestor of the Lydians, distinct from the people of Lud or Ludim descended from Mizraim. The latter lived west of the Nile in North Africa, whereas those descended from Shem probably lived in Lydia in western Asia Minor.

Aram

The name means “the high land.” Aramaic is the ancient Syrian language. Aram was a collection of small states or districts, including Aram-naharaim, or Aram of the two rivers (Genesis 24:10); Aram-Damascus; Aram-Zobah (1 Samuel 14:47); Aram-Maachah (Joshua 12:5); and Aram-Beth-rehob (Joshua 19:28), and others.

Moses took care to mention Arphaxad’s descendants: he begat Salah; Salah begat Eber; Eber begat Peleg; Peleg begat Reu; Reu begat Serug; Serug begat Nahor; Nahor begat Terah; and Terah begat Abram, who married Sarai. Thus he began with the first emergence of the people through the appearance of Abram, or Abraham, the father of the patriarchs. The prophet Moses also explained Lot’s relationship to Abram: he was his nephew, the son of Haran the son of Terah.

Saint Augustine explains the words “the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided” (Genesis 10:25) as referring to the multiplication of languages. In Peleg’s days more than one language began to appear on earth, after everyone had spoken what was later called Hebrew. [220]

Notes and References

[206] Archdeacon Naguib Girgis: The Book of Genesis, 1973, p. 161.

[207] New Westminster Dictionary of the Bible, p. 446; McKenzie: Dictionary of the Bible, p. 413.

[208] New Westminster Dictionary of the Bible, p. 446.

[209] Hosea, p. 20.

[210] Odyssey 11:14.

[211] Herodotus 4:11-12.

[212] See Ezekiel, 1981, pp. 260-261.

[213] Herodotus 1:16.

[214] New Westminster Dictionary of the Bible, p. 951.

[215] Archdeacon Naguib Girgis: The Book of Genesis, 1973, pp. 166-167.

[216] On Psalm 26.

[217] See The Revelation of John the Theologian, 1979, pp. 163-164.

[218] Homilies on the Psalms, homily 20.

[219] Joshua, 1982, pp. 23-30.

[220] The City of God 16:10-11.