Genesis 10:1

Genesis 10:1 says, Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood.  This chapter follows the genealogy of Noah's three sons.  Verse two says, The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras.  The next few verses follow the descendants of Japheth.  Verse three adds, And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah.  Verse four concludes, And the sons of Javan; Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim.  We are not given the descendants of all his son's but only of two.  Verse five says, By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.  The Gentiles were descendants of Japhath.  The next few verses follow the descendants of Ham.  Verse six says, And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan. Verse seven adds, And the sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtecha: and the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan. Verse eight states, And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth.  One of the son's of Cush, Nimrod, was singled out and declared to be one of the mighty men in the earth.  Verse nine declares, He was a mighty hunter before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD.  He was known to be a mighty hunter before the Lord.   Matthew Henry says that this does not mean that Nimrod followed God, but in fact Nimrod set himself up as the one to be followed.  Verse ten adds, And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.  Babel was a part of his kingdom, and we will later read of its significance.  Verse eleven says, Out of that land went forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah,  Then verse twelve adds, And Resen between Nineveh and Calah: the same is a great city.  Matthew Henry says that after the dispersion at Babel that Nimrod built these cities in Assyria.  Verse thirteen says, And Mizraim begat Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim,  Verse fourteen adds, And Pathrusim, and Casluhim, (out of whom came Philistim,) and Caphtorim.  Verse fifteen states, And Canaan begat Sidon his firstborn, and Heth,  Verse sixteen adds, And the Jebusite, and the Amorite, and the Girgasite,  Verse seventeen continues, And the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite,  Then verse eighteen concludes,  And the Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the Hamathite: and afterward were the families of the Canaanites spread abroad.  These were many of the people who would later fight against the Jews, and eventually they were spread abroad.  Verse nineteen states, And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon, as thou comest to Gerar, unto Gaza; as thou goest, unto Sodom, and Gomorrah, and Admah, and Zeboim, even unto Lasha.  This simply tells us the size of the land of the Canaanites.  Verse twenty says, These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations.  We will look at the sons of Shem separately.