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Genesis 10
New Catholic Bible
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
New International Version
Genesis 10
New International Version
The Table of Nations
10 This is the account(A) of Shem, Ham and Japheth,(B) Noah’s sons,(C) who themselves had sons after the flood.
The Japhethites(D)
2 The sons[a] of Japheth:
Gomer,(E) Magog,(F) Madai, Javan,(G) Tubal,(H) Meshek(I) and Tiras.
3 The sons of Gomer:
Ashkenaz,(J) Riphath and Togarmah.(K)
4 The sons of Javan:
Elishah,(L) Tarshish,(M) the Kittites(N) and the Rodanites.[b] 5 (From these the maritime peoples spread out into their territories by their clans within their nations, each with its own language.)(O)
The Hamites(P)
6 The sons of Ham:
Cush,(Q) Egypt, Put(R) and Canaan.(S)
7 The sons of Cush:
Seba,(T) Havilah,(U) Sabtah, Raamah(V) and Sabteka.
The sons of Raamah:
8 Cush was the father[c] of Nimrod,(Y) who became a mighty warrior on the earth. 9 He was a mighty(Z) hunter(AA) before the Lord; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the Lord.” 10 The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon,(AB) Uruk,(AC) Akkad and Kalneh,(AD) in[d] Shinar.[e](AE) 11 From that land he went to Assyria,(AF) where he built Nineveh,(AG) Rehoboth Ir,[f] Calah 12 and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah—which is the great city.
13 Egypt was the father of
the Ludites, Anamites, Lehabites, Naphtuhites, 14 Pathrusites, Kasluhites (from whom the Philistines(AH) came) and Caphtorites.(AI)
15 Canaan(AJ) was the father of
Sidon(AK) his firstborn,[g](AL) and of the Hittites,(AM) 16 Jebusites,(AN) Amorites,(AO) Girgashites,(AP) 17 Hivites,(AQ) Arkites, Sinites, 18 Arvadites,(AR) Zemarites and Hamathites.(AS)
Later the Canaanite(AT) clans scattered 19 and the borders of Canaan(AU) reached from Sidon(AV) toward Gerar(AW) as far as Gaza,(AX) and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboyim,(AY) as far as Lasha.
20 These are the sons of Ham by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations.
The Semites(AZ)
21 Sons were also born to Shem, whose older brother was[h] Japheth; Shem was the ancestor of all the sons of Eber.(BA)
22 The sons of Shem:
Elam,(BB) Ashur,(BC) Arphaxad,(BD) Lud and Aram.(BE)
23 The sons of Aram:
Uz,(BF) Hul, Gether and Meshek.[i]
24 Arphaxad was the father of[j] Shelah,
and Shelah the father of Eber.(BG)
25 Two sons were born to Eber:
One was named Peleg,[k] because in his time the earth was divided; his brother was named Joktan.
26 Joktan was the father of
Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 27 Hadoram, Uzal,(BH) Diklah, 28 Obal, Abimael, Sheba,(BI) 29 Ophir,(BJ) Havilah and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan.
30 The region where they lived stretched from Mesha toward Sephar, in the eastern hill country.
31 These are the sons of Shem by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations.
32 These are the clans of Noah’s sons,(BK) according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earth(BL) after the flood.
Footnotes
- Genesis 10:2 Sons may mean descendants or successors or nations; also in verses 3, 4, 6, 7, 20-23, 29 and 31.
- Genesis 10:4 Some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text and Samaritan Pentateuch (see also Septuagint and 1 Chron. 1:7); most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text Dodanites
- Genesis 10:8 Father may mean ancestor or predecessor or founder; also in verses 13, 15, 24 and 26.
- Genesis 10:10 Or Uruk and Akkad—all of them in
- Genesis 10:10 That is, Babylonia
- Genesis 10:11 Or Nineveh with its city squares
- Genesis 10:15 Or of the Sidonians, the foremost
- Genesis 10:21 Or Shem, the older brother of
- Genesis 10:23 See Septuagint and 1 Chron. 1:17; Hebrew Mash.
- Genesis 10:24 Hebrew; Septuagint father of Cainan, and Cainan was the father of
- Genesis 10:25 Peleg means division.
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