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Genesis 10

1These are the generations of Noah's sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Sons were born to them after the flood. 2Japheth's sons: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. 3Gomer's sons: Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah. 4Javan's sons: Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 5From these the coastland peoples spread out in their lands, each with its language, by their clans in their nations.

6Ham's sons: Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan. 7Cush's sons: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. Raamah's sons: Sheba and Dedan. 8Cush fathered Nimrod. He was the first to become a mighty man on the earth. 9He was a mighty hunter before Yahweh; that is why people say, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before Yahweh.” 10The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Akkad, and Calneh in the land of Shinar. 11From that land he went out to Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, Calah, 12and Resen, between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city. 13Egypt fathered the Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim, 14Pathrusim, Casluhim—from whom the Philistines came—and Caphtorim.

15Canaan fathered Sidon his firstborn, and Heth, 16and the Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, 17Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, 18Arvadites, Zemarites, and Hamathites. Afterward the Canaanite clans spread out. 19The Canaanite boundary ran from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim as far as Lasha. 20These are Ham's sons, by their clans and languages, in their lands and nations.

21Children were also born to Shem, the father of all Eber's sons and the brother of Japheth the elder. 22Shem's sons: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram. 23Aram's sons: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash. 24Arpachshad fathered Shelah, and Shelah fathered Eber. 25Two sons were born to Eber. One was named Peleg, because in his days the earth was divided; his brother was named Joktan. 26Joktan fathered Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 27Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 28Obal, Abimael, Sheba, 29Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these were Joktan's sons. 30Their dwelling extended from Mesha toward Sephar, the eastern hill country. 31These are Shem's sons, by their clans and languages, in their lands, by their nations. 32These are the clans of Noah's sons, by their generations in their nations. From these the nations spread out on the earth after the flood.

Translation notes 4

10:1–7, 20–32 — Peoples and families. The table presents peoples, regions, and ancestors through kinship language. It is not a modern racial classification. Egypt represents the Hebrew name Mizraim; familiar English place names are used where their identity is clear. Many other names remain uncertain.

10:8–12 — Nimrod; Assyria. “Before Yahweh” can suggest prominence in Yahweh's sight; it does not expressly mean opposition to him. Verse 11 can instead mean “Asshur went out from that land,” with Asshur as the actor. The draft takes Nimrod as the continuing subject and Assyria as the destination. The exact extent of “the great city” is uncertain.

10:14 — Philistines. The parenthetical origin notice follows Casluhim in this Hebrew text. It is retained there without moving it beside Caphtorim to agree with other biblical origin traditions.

10:21, 25 — Elder; division. The grammar can describe Shem as the elder brother of Japheth instead of Japheth as elder. The draft adopts the latter construal provisionally. Peleg echoes the verb for dividing; the verse does not specify a geological division or date a particular event by itself.