Genesis · chapter 10 of 50
Updated on
Genesis 10 is the table of nations: it lists the descendants of Noah's three sons after the flood. From Japheth come the coastland peoples, from Ham among others Cush, Egypt and Canaan, with the mighty Nimrod, and from Shem the line that leads to Eber. The chapter ends by saying that from them the nations spread out over the earth.
After the flood and the blessing of Genesis 9, God had told Noah and his sons to fill the earth. Genesis 10 shows how that command is carried out: the families multiply and spread into peoples and territories. It is a list, but its message is clear: all humanity comes from one origin and God rules over the nations.
The chapter presents the generations of Noah's sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, to whom sons were born after the flood. First come the descendants of Japheth, among them Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech and Tiras. From them the coastlands of the nations were populated, each with its own language, by families and by nations.
Then come the sons of Ham: Cush, Egypt, Put and Canaan. From Cush is born Nimrod, the first mighty man on earth, a mighty hunter before the Lord, whose kingdom began in Babel, Erech, Accad and Calneh, in the land of Shinar; from that land he went to Assyria and built Nineveh. The sons of Canaan, among them Sidon and Heth, gave rise to peoples such as the Jebusites and Amorites, and their territory reached as far as Sodom and Gomorrah.
Finally the sons of Shem are listed, among them Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud and Aram. From Arpachshad comes Eber, father of all the children of Eber, and to Eber are born Peleg, in whose days the earth was divided, and Joktan. The chapter closes by saying that these are the families of the sons of Noah, by their generations and nations, and that from them the nations spread over the earth after the flood.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
From the sons of Japheth the coastlands of the nations were populated, each by its language, families and nations. It is the fulfillment of the command to fill the earth and shows from the start the diversity of peoples and languages.
Nimrod, son of Cush, becomes the first mighty man on earth, a mighty hunter before the Lord. His figure joins power and political pride and sets the stage for Babel in the next chapter.
Two sons are born to Eber, and the name of the first, Peleg, recalls that in his days the earth was divided. The text does not explain the event, but it anticipates what Genesis 11 will tell about the scattering of the peoples.
These are the families of the sons of Noah by their generations and nations, and from them the nations spread over the earth after the flood. All peoples share one origin, which gives dignity to every culture.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: Shem, Ham and Japheth. — Genesis 10:1
Answer: Cush, Egypt, Put and Canaan. — Genesis 10:6
Answer: As the first mighty man on earth and a mighty hunter before the Lord. — Genesis 10:8-9
Answer: Babel, Erech, Accad and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. — Genesis 10:10
Answer: In his days the earth was divided. — Genesis 10:25
Answer: That from the sons of Noah the nations spread over the earth. — Genesis 10:32
Genesis 10 reminds us that all the peoples of the earth share one origin and that God knows them and counts them by name. In a group you can reflect on how we see people of other cultures and languages, and how the church can show God's love for all nations.
It also shows that God works through the concrete history of nations. The list includes peoples who will later be enemies of Israel, but also the line of Shem, which leads to Abraham. Ask where you recognize God's hand in the history of your own people and what responsibility that gives you.
Genesis 10 ends with the nations spread over the earth. Genesis 11 goes back to tell how that scattering happened at the tower of Babel, and then follows the line of Shem down to Abram.
Because it connects all of humanity to Noah and prepares for the story of Abraham: God does not choose one people because the others do not matter to him, but so that through him all the families of the earth would be blessed, as Genesis 12:3 will say.
Nimrod was a son of Cush, a descendant of Ham, described as a mighty hunter and king whose kingdom began in Babel and reached Assyria. The Bible tells no more, though his link to Babel leads many to see him as a symbol of human power that defies God.
The text does not explain. Many connect it with the scattering of the peoples at Babel, told in Genesis 11; others think of a division of territories among families. In any case, the name Peleg means division.