Genesis 10:1

This is the account of Noah’s sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, who also had sons after the flood.

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — The narrator introduces this genealogical heading immediately after the flood narrative, marking the transition from Noah’s immediate family to the broader repopulation of the earth. It functions as a structural divider preceding the detailed listing of national origins.

The words — The text opens with תּוֹלְדֹת (tol-dot), literally "accounts" or "generations," paired with וְ/אֵ֙לֶּ֙ה֙ (ve./'E.leh), meaning "and these." This combination operates as a formal literary marker to initiate a new historical record.

The thread — This structural formula mirrors Genesis 2:4 and Genesis 5:1, where תּוֹלְדֹת similarly introduces a foundational lineage. The genealogy directly operationalizes the post-flood command in Genesis 9:7 to "spread out across the earth and multiply."

Why it lands — The text explicitly records that human history continues through three named sons who fathered additional children after the flood. It requires the reader to trace the documented origins of nations without assigning spiritual significance to the list itself.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

וְאֵ֙לֶּה֙ve./'E.lehand/ these תּוֹלְדֹ֣תtol.Dot[are] [the] accounts of בְּנֵי־be.nei-[the] sons of נֹ֔חַNo.achNoah שֵׁ֖םshemShem חָ֣םchamHam וָיָ֑פֶתva./Ya.fetand/ Japheth וַיִּוָּלְד֥וּva/i.yi.val.Duand/ they were bornלָהֶ֛םla./Hemto <the>/ themבָּנִ֖יםba.Nimsons אַחַ֥ר'a.Charafter הַמַּבּֽוּל׃ha./ma.Bulthe/ flood

King James Version

Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood.

Cross-references

Genesis 2:4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made them.
Genesis 9:7 But as for you, be fruitful and multiply; spread out across the earth and multiply upon it.”
Genesis 5:1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in His own likeness.
Genesis 6:9 This is the account of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation; Noah walked with God.
Genesis 9:1 And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.
Genesis 9:19 These three were the sons of Noah, and from them the whole earth was populated.
Matthew 1:1 This is the record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham:

People named

NoahShemJaphethHam