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Genesis 10 Commentary

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Genesis 10:1-5

After the flood, the world begins to repopulate. Japheth had seven sons. His eldest Gomer had three sons and Javan had four sons. These families moved north, some settling in coastlands.

Genesis 10:6-8

Ham fathered four sons. Cush had six sons, including Nimrod. Raamah had two sons. Nimrod was a great leader.

Genesis 10:9-14

Nimrod was a mighty hunter. He built the kingdom of Babel and in Assyria, he built the city of Nineveh. Mizraim had seven sons.

Genesis 10:15-20

Canaan was the father of eleven sons. The land of the Canaanites was called Canaan which later was conquered by the Jews. Ham had a total of 30 descendants.

Genesis 10:21-24

Shem had five sons. Aram was the father of four sons. Arpachshad was the grandfather of Eber and an ancestor of Abraham.

Genesis 10:25-29

Eber had two sons. Joktan had thirteen sons. Peleg fathered two sons, one of them was Abraham.

Genesis 10:30-32

Shem had twenty-six descendants listed in the table of nations. A total of seventy nations were credited to Noah by his descendants.

Additional Resources

Genesis is a book about many beginnings. The beginnings of the world, the human race, sin and redemption, and the nation of Israel to name a few. In fact, the word Genesis from the Greek means “origin,” and in Hebrew it means “beginning.” The book of Genesis contains the events of the flood, tower of Babel, Sodom and Gomorrah, and the lives of the Patriarchs.

In the beginning, God created everything by simply speaking, “God said…and it was so” (Genesis 1:6-7, 9, 11, 14-15). This is not a scientific technical account of creation, but it shows a loving God creating a universe and mankind to rule it and fellowship with God. Man was formed especially from the ground and given the breath of life from God. The woman was made from the man’s rib (Genesis 2:7).

After man fell into sin, things began to spin out of control quickly. Cain murdered his brother Abel and the human race became so violent that God decided to destroy them all with a flood. God saved one righteous man (Noah) and his family in an ark filled with animals to deliver the human race from extinction. God chose Abraham and blessed a special group of people named “Israel.” God began to unfold a plan of salvation from a coming famine by sending Joseph to rule in Egypt. The failure of man in every circumstance is met by the salvation of God. We fail, but the good news is God saves us.

Chapter Context

In chapter 10, the flood account is over and the descendants of Noah are repopulating the earth as God instructed them to “be fruitful and multiply.” From Noah’s three sons, all the nations of the world were established. For instance, from the seven sons of Japheth, the Gentile nations descended. This chapter is sometimes called the Table of Nations. It is arranged in three divisions according to the three sons of Noah. It is a list of major people groups, tribes, and regions. This list does not cover all the nations of the earth, only the most relevant for biblical history and most relevant to Israel. There is a total of seventy descendants listed for Shem, Ham, and Japheth (Noah’s sons). From these seventy, we have approximately three thousand languages and one hundred fifty nations today.