10: 2 The 102sons of 103Japheth: 104Gomer, and 105Magog, and 106Madai, and 107Javan, and 108Tubal, and 109Meshech, and 110Tiras.111
102Or, tribes who broke off from Japheth: And similarly many places.
103Associated with Jupiter? Lands to the North.
104Or, Cimmer or, Kimmer (in Herodotus). Great kingdom destroyed by Scythians ca. BC 640.
105Ma – Gog = greater region of – the high people or, – Saka, hence Ma-Saka-Ta (=Massagetae) greater region of – the Gog – hordes: ancient homeland around the Caspian Sea, incl. Volga River Valley; capital in the Caucasus mountains. Includes the Mongol, Kazakh (=Ka-Saka, English Cossack), Uzbek, Scythian, Sogdian (=Saka-Ta), Samoyed, Korean, Yakut (Sakha), Eskimo tribes. Anciently famous for breeding horses, especially for war.
106Mede: ancient homeland S. of Caucasus Mts. Includes the Mitanni, Mede, Persian (“Division” of the Medes) tribes.
107Ionia. The original Greeks.
108Kart'velian (Kara – Tubal, the Rocky mountains of Warm Springs): S. side of Caucasus Mts.; capital Tbilisi, or, Tiflis. Anciently famous for metallurgy. Includes the Tibarene, Ibere, Alan (went to Spain).
109 Armenia. Modern Kayseri = ancient Caesaria Mazaca. The Moschi, Armenian tribe. [Josephus says Cappadocia, SW of Caucasus Mts.]
110Or, Thrace. Includes Troy, Troas; Etruscan, Tyrhennian Sea, Roman tribes; also colonized Tyre.
111TargJ adds And the names of their provinces: Phrygia, Germania, Media, Macedonia, Bithynia, Asia, and Thrace [Thracia]. So M. Maher.
10: 3 And the sons of Gomer: 112Ashkenaz, and 113Riphath, and 114Togarmah.
112Germanic tribes (Scanza, Scandanavia). Includes the German (Allemani), Anglo-Saxon, Frank, Burgundian, Visigoth, Sueve, Vandal; Herule, Ostrogoth, Lombard subtribes. Went upstream along the Danube River to the Elbe, Rhine basins.
113Slavic tribes. Ancient homeland Kara – Riphath (Rocky Mts. of Riphath, or, Carpathian Mts.) Includes Byelorussian; Pole, Czech, Slovak; Serbian, Croatian (Josephus adds Paphlagonian) tribes. Went upstream along the Dniepr, Dniestr, and Prut rivers even to the Vistula.
114Tocharian (Turkic) tribes. (Sept. Thorgama = Turk.) Includes Turkey, Turkestan; Turk, Finn, Phrygian. Tocharian is an East European language, which died out in Sinkiang (NW China) in the 9th century.
10: 4 And the sons of Javan: 115Elishah, and 116Tarshish, 117Kittim, and 118Dodanim.
115Aeolian.
116Keltic (Celtic) tribes. Went to westernmost Europe, but also colonized Tarsus in Cilicia. Includes Belgae, Britons, Celtiberians, Gauls (some of whom conquered Galatia in central Turkey) and Gaels.
117Macedonia. Ma – Kittim – Na = greater – Kittim – homeland; colonized Cyprus. [The goat was their emblem; whence the name, Aegean (Goat) Sea.]
118Dorians, or, Spartans. (Rodanim in 1Chr 1:7, whence the name, Rhodes.)
10: 5 Of these were the coastlands of the 119nations divided in their lands, every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.
119Hb. Goyim (both times) And in vss. 20 and 31.
10: 6 And the sons of 120Ham: 121Cush, and 122Mizraim, and 123Put, and 124Canaan.
120Lands to the South.
121Black Africa and S. India (Dravidian tribes). The most numerous of Hamitic peoples.
122Lit. the two Egypts (the Nile Delta, and upstream Nile to the First Cataract), and NE to Gaza.
123N. Africa, west of Egypt: Berber, Moor.
124E. coast of Mediterranean Sea.
10: 7 And the sons of Cush: Seba, and 125Havilah, and Sabtah, and 126Raamah, and Sabteca; and the sons of Raamah: 127Sheba and 128Dedan.
125Possibly along the Araxes River. Cf. ch. 2:11.
126Likely along the Red Sea.
127Yemen. The greenest part of Arabia, in the SW. Some of Sheba and Dedan were descendants of Abraham. Ge 25:1-3.
128Likely N. Arabia, from the Red Sea to Persian Gulf.
10: 8 And Cush begat Nimrod: he was first to be a mighty one in the earth.
10: 9 He was a 129mighty hunter before Jehovah: wherefore it is said, Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before Jehovah.
129TargN reads giant in sin TargJ reads mighty man of rebellion
10: 10 And the beginning of his kingdom was 130Babel, and 131Erech, and 132Accad, and Calneh, in the land of 133Shinar.
130Near the ancient great city of Kish (Cush), to which it appears to be closely related. TargJ reads Babylon the Great, Edessa, Nisibis, and Ctesiphon,
131Uruk (sometimes the ruling city). Modern Warka.
132Or, Akkad.
133Sumer (archaeology).
10: 11 Out of that land 134he went forth into Assyria, and builded Nineveh, and Rehoboth-Ir, and 135Calah,
134Or, went forth Asshur, Might imply Asshur was driven out.
135Probably on the site of the ruins called Nimrud.
10: 12 and Resen between Nineveh and Calah (the same is the great city).
10: 13 And Mizraim begat 136Ludim, and 137Anamim, and 138Lehabim, and 139Naphtuhim,
136Speculation: Colonized the coasts of Turkey; later subjected by, and absorbed into, Lydia. Cf. vs. 22.
137Possibly Cyrene in NW Libya.
138Libya.
139Possibly Noph (= Menfre, Gk. Memphis) and most of the Nile Delta (called Lower Egypt).
10: 14 and 140Pathrusim, and 141Casluhim 142(whence went forth the 143Philistines), and 144Caphtorim.
140Pathros, whose dominant city was Thebes, or Luxor.
141Meaning Fortified (so Wm. Smith). Possibly the E. Delta. Bochart/Gesenius think they also colonized Colchis, on the E. coast of the Black Sea.
142Or, (whence went forth the Philistines and Caphtorim). per Rotherham and Companion Bible. T.J. Meek says and Caphtorim, from whom the Philistines sprang. (though A.R. Gordon differs in 1Chr 1:12; An American Translation, 1931).
143Hb. Pelishtim), Meaning sojourners, immigrants (so Wm. Smith). Already independent in Ge 26:1.
144Crete. Meaning a crown (so Wm. Smith). The Minoan civilization. The Peoples of the Sea, who came to Philistia and may have been absorbed. See Dt 2:23, Jr 47:4, Am 9:7.
10: 15 And Canaan begat 145Sidon his firstborn, and 146Heth,
145Modern Saida, in Lebanon.
146Hatti Land (archaeology). The Hittite. (Not related to the misnamed Anatolian “Hittite.”)
10: 16 and the 147Jebusite, and the 148Amorite, and the 149Girgashite,
147Jebus, later renamed Jerusalem.
148In the hill-country W. of the Dead Sea, and Gilead and Bashan E. of the Jordan River; also Amurru in N. Lebanon (archaeology).
149Probably on the S. and E. of the Sea of Galilee. Compare footnotes of GNT for Lk 8:26, 37.
10: 17 and the 150Hivite, and the 151Arkite, and the Sinite,
150In the hill country N. of Jerusalem, toward Hamath. Includes Gibeon; see Josh 9:3-15, 11:19.
151Arce, or, Acre, in Lebanon.
10: 18 and the 152Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the 153Hamathite: and afterward were the families of the Canaanite spread abroad.
152Ruad Island, 4 km off SW Syrian coast, S. of Tartus.
153Hamath. Modern Hama, Syria.
10: 19 And the border of the Canaanite was from Sidon, as thou goest toward Gerar, unto Gaza; as thou goest toward 154Sodom and Gomorrah and Admah and Zeboiim, unto 155Lasha.
154Four cities now underwater in the SE Dead Sea. Compare ch. 14:8, 19:24-25.
155Possibly Laish (later Dan), SE of Sidon.
10: 20 These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, in their nations.
10: 21 And unto Shem, the father of all the children of Eber, the 156brother of Japheth the elder, to him also were children born.
156Or, the elder brother of Japheth, But compare ch. 5:32; 7:6; 9:22, 24; 11:10. Thus Shem appears to be the middle son in age two years younger than Japheth.
10: 22 The sons of 157Shem: 158Elam, and 159Asshur, and 160Arpachshad, and 161Lud, and 162Aram.
157Territory between Japheth and Ham.
158Like Hb. olam (per Encycl. Judaica), meaning to a vanishing point; hence the most distant of peoples. Chinese (the most numerous of Semites), with a smaller contingent remaining in SW Iran.
159Assyria, with its capital Ninevah along the Tigris R. Compare. vs. 11, and Jonah 3:3-4.
160Chaldeans, both W. of Assyria and S. in Sumer.
161Lydia, in W. Turkey.
162In Syria and SE Turkey. Aram Naharaim (Aram between the two Rivers) and Padan Aram (Field of Aram) are the portion N. of the Euphrates.
10: 23 And the sons of Aram: 163Uz, and 164Hul, and 165Gether, and 166Mash.
163Damascus and Trachonitis (per Josephus). Compare Job 1:1.
164Possibly around Lake Huleh, in the upper Jordan R.
165Probably Gedrosia and Bactria.
166Meshech in 1Chr 1:17. Likely absorbed by the Armenian Kingdom.
10: 24 And Arpachshad begat Shelah; and Shelah begat 167Eber.
167From which the word Hebrew, meaning crossed over [the River]; i.e., W. of the Euphrates River. The word Hebrew can include more Semites than the word Israelite ( from Jacob alone).
10: 25 And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was 168Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided; and his brother’s name was 169Joktan.
168That is, Division;
169Meaning small. Oceanic islands and coastlands from S. Africa to the Americas.
10: 26 And Joktan begat Almodad, and Sheleph, and 170Hazarmaveth, and 171Jerah,
170Hadramawt. Aden or, S. Yemen.
171In S. Arabia (per Gesenius and Wm. Smith).
10: 27 and 172Hadoram, and 173Uzal, and 174Diklah,
172 Possibly in S. Arabia (per Gesenius).
173Awzál. Modern San’a in Yemen.
174Meaning palm grove (per Wm. Smith).
10: 28 and 175Obal, and Abimael, and 176Sheba,
175Meaning stripped bare (per Wm. Smith). Likely desert land therefore. In 1Chr 1:22, Ebal,
176Probably one of three ethnic groups comprising Sheba (N. Yemen). Cf. vs. 7; ch. 25:3.
10: 29 and 177Ophir, and 178Havilah, and 179Jobab: all these were the sons of Joktan.
177S. Africa which was originally Semitic (Nama or, Hottentot). Cf. 1Ki 9:28; 1Chr 29:4.
178Same nation as in vs. 7. Two ethnic groups. Possibly identified with Chwalla by the Caspian Sea.
179Meaning a desert (per Wm. Smith).
10: 30 And their dwelling was from 180Mesha, as thou goest toward 181Sephar, a 182mountain of the east.
180In Greek, Josephus says Cophen, a river in India. (Antiquities of the Jews I, vi, 4.) Major Semitic ethnic and linguistic groups not yet identified with names above include: Austroasiatic, Polynesian, Amerind, and Na-Dene (incl. Navajo).
181Possibly the Himalaya mountains.
182Or, hill-country of the east.
10: 31 These are the sons of Shem, after their families, 183after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations.
183The Semitic languages appear to best preserve word meanings and phonetics, although Indo-European has slightly better preserved meanings, and Georgian (Gruzian, Kart'velian) preserves phonetics almost as well. See V. Shevoroshkin and P.J. Sidwell, Historical Linguistics & Lexicostatistics; Melbourne: Association for the History of Language, 1999; p. 105-110.
10: 32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and of these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.
