Genesis 10:17

And the Hivite,.... These dwelt in Hermon, a part of Mount Lebanon from Mount Baal Hermon unto the entering in of Hamath, Joshua 11:3 to the east of the land of Canaan; hence they were sometimes

And the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite, The Hivite - [ ha-Chiwiy (H2340), singular; Septuagint, ton Euaion, denoting nomadic villagers].

Genesis 10:17 And the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite, Ver 17.

(15-18) Canaan.—The meaning of this name is uncertain, as, most probably, it is a Hamitic word: if derived from a Semitic root, it may mean the lowland. Though the Canaanites spoke a Semitic tongue at the time when we find them in Palestine, yet the assertion of the Bible that they were Hamites is confirmed by the testimony of profane writers, who say that their original home was on the Indian Ocean. They had probably been driven thence by the pressure of Semitic races, with whose language they had thus already become familiar; and when, farther, they found a Semitic people thinly spread over Palestine, they may, while absorbing them, have been confirmed in the use of their tongue. So, subsequently, Abraham gave up Syriac for Hebrew; and though these are kindred dialects, yet they are often remote enough from one another (see Genesis 31:47). On the other hand, the whole character of the Canaanite religion and thought was Hamitic, and while they Were active in commercial pursuits, and in culture far in advance of the Greeks, to whom they gave their alphabet, they were intensely sensuous in their worship and voluptuous in their manners. They are divided into eleven tribes, namely:— 1. Sidon.—This is remarkable as being the only town mentioned in the account either of Mizraim or of Canaan. All the rest are apparently the names of tribes still wandering about; and thus we gain a clearer idea both of the antiquity of this early record, and also of the great advance made by Nimrod in founding so many cities. Sidon, situated on the sea-shore, about thirty miles north of Tyre, became thus early a settled community and the seat of social life, because of its advantages for fishing (whence its name is derived), and also for commerce.2. Heth.—The Kheta, or Hittites, a powerful race, whose language and monuments have recently become the object of careful study. They seem subsequently to have possessed not only Syria, but a large portion of Asia Minor. (See Note on Genesis 23:3; Genesis 23:5.) 3. The Jebusite.—This race held the territory afterwards occupied by Benjamin, and retained Jerusalem until the time of David (2 Samuel 5:6-9. See Note on Genesis 14:18.) 4. The Amorite.—Or rather, Emorite, that is, mountaineer. Next to the Kheta, or Hittites, they were the most powerful race in Palestine, holding the hill country of Judea, where they had five kings (Joshua 10:5), and a large district on the eastern side of the Jordan (2 Samuel 9:10). 5. The Girgasite.—Mentioned in Joshua 24:11, but otherwise unknown. 6. The Hivite.—At Sichern (Genesis 34:2), at Gibeon (Joshua 9:7), and near Hermon and Lebanon (Joshua 11:3; Judges 3:3). 7. The Arkite.—Also in Lebanon. 8. The Sinite.—A small tribe in the same neighbourhood. 9. The Arvadite.—A more important people, inhabiting the island Aradus. 10. The Zemarite.—An obscure people, inhabiting Samyra, in Phœnicia. 11. The Hamathite whose city, Hamath, was the capital of Northern Syria. It was situated on the river Orontes, and though called Epiphaneia by the Macedonians, still retains its ancient name.

17. the Hivite] The Hivites, dwellers in the country about Gibeon (Joshua 9:7) and Sichem (Genesis 34:2); while Joshua 11:3 and Judges 3:3 speak of the Hivites as dwelling near Mount Hermon and Mount Lebanon, though in neither passage is the reading (? Hittites) certain. the Arkite] A Phoenician tribe represented by the modern Tell Arḳ ?a, some 80 miles north of Zidon, and not far from Tripolis. the Sinite] Jerome mentions a town Sini near Arka.

15-18. Eleven Canaanitish nations are here enumerated. The first two names are probably personal, the last nine are certainly national.