Genesis 10
About Genesis
Genesis means beginnings. It opens with “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Chapters 1 to 11 tell the story of the whole world: creation, the first sin, the flood and the tower of Babel. From chapter 12 the story narrows to one family, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph, and God promises that “all the families of the earth will be blessed through you.” The rest of the Bible grows out of that promise.
Before you read Genesis 10Written by AI
A map of peoples spreading out from Noah's three sons, Japheth, Ham and Shem. It reads like a list, but it shows the whole world as one family under God. Watch for names that return later, like Nimrod, Babylon, Canaan and Eber.
The Table of Nations
This is the account of Noah’s sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, who also had sons after the flood.
The Japhethites
The sons of Japheth:
Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras.
The sons of Gomer:
Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah.
And the sons of Javan:
Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittites, and the Rodanites. From these, the maritime peoples separated into their territories, according to their languages, by clans within their nations.
The Hamites
The sons of Ham:
Cush, Mizraim, Put, and Canaan.
The sons of Cush:
Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca.
And the sons of Raamah:
Sheba and Dedan.
Cush was the father of Nimrod, who began to be a mighty one on the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; so it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD.” His kingdom began in Babylon, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. From that land he went forth into Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth-Ir, Calah, and Resen, which is between Nineveh and the great city of Calah.
Mizraim was the father of the Ludites, the Anamites, the Lehabites, the Naphtuhites, the Pathrusites, the Casluhites (from whom the Philistines came), and the Caphtorites.
And Canaan was the father of Sidon his firstborn, and of the Hittites, the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites.
Later the Canaanite clans were scattered, and the borders of Canaan extended from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha.
These are the sons of Ham according to their clans, languages, lands, and nations.
The Semites
And sons were also born to Shem, the older brother of Japheth; Shem was the forefather of all the sons of Eber.
The sons of Shem:
Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram.
The sons of Aram:
Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash.
Arphaxad was the father of Shelah, and Shelah was the father of Eber.
Two sons were born to Eber: One was named Peleg, because in his days the earth was divided, and his brother was named Joktan.
And Joktan was the father of Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, Obal, Abimael, Sheba, Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan. Their territory extended from Mesha to Sephar, in the eastern hill country.
These are the sons of Shem, according to their clans, languages, lands, and nations.
All these are the clans of Noah’s sons, according to their generations and nations. From these the nations of the earth spread out after the flood.