1 Chronicles 1:24 — Word Study
WLCשֵׁ֥ם׀ אַרְפַּכְשַׁ֖ד שָֽׁלַח׃
BSA[So from] Shem [came]Shêm [the son of Noah, ancestor of many Semitic tribes] ArphaxadʼArpakshad [a son of Shem] ShelahShelach [a man who lived after the flood]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| שֵׁ֥ם׀ | Shem | Noun proper masculine |
| אַרְפַּכְשַׁ֖ד | Arphaxad | Noun proper masculine |
| שָֽׁלַח׃ | Shelah | Noun proper masculine |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | So from Shem came Arphaxad, Shelah, |
| KJV | ¶ Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah, |
| ASV | Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah, |
| YLT | Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah, |
| WEB | Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah, |
| BBE | Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah, |
Where they part company is in the names used, but all translations maintain the essential genealogy.
A single main clause presents the genealogy in a straightforward manner.
5 commentators on this verse
Jamieson, Poole, Ellicott, AdamClarke & more — read them ›
clause
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — 1 Chronicles 1:24
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — The Genealogy of the Sons of Noahgenerated
1 Chronicles 1:24 presents a brief genealogy tracing the descendants of Shem, a key figure in the biblical narrative. This verse connects Shem to his sons, Arphaxad and Shelah, emphasizing the importance of lineage in the history of Israel. The genealogies in Chronicles serve to establish the heritage of the Israelites and their connection to the promises made to their ancestors.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Genesis 11:10–26 | This is the account of Shem. Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father of Arphaxad. |
| 2 | Luke 3:35 | the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 2 references, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — שֵׁם, shemgenerated
The name שֵׁם (shem) refers to Shem, the eldest son of Noah, who is significant in biblical genealogy as the ancestor of many Semitic tribes. The name also means 'name' in Hebrew, indicating identity and reputation, which plays a crucial role in the context of genealogies.
Shem's lineage is foundational for understanding the development of nations and peoples in the biblical account. His descendants, including Arphaxad and Shelah, are directly linked to the unfolding narrative of God's covenant with humanity.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, so the BSB is the wording every comparison below is made against.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The main clause is governed by the verb בָּא, came, which indicates the origin of the descendants mentioned. The structure is straightforward, listing Shem as the source of Arphaxad and Shelah, which highlights the genealogical flow.
The sentence's simplicity emphasizes the continuity of the lineage, with the noun phrases שֵׁם, Shem, אַרְפַּכְשַׁד, Arphaxad, and שֶׁ֫לַח, Shelah clearly delineating the relationships.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
1 Chronicles 1:24 shows that Shem, the son of Noah, had two sons named Arphaxad and Shelah. This verse is part of a larger genealogy that traces the descendants of Noah and establishes the heritage of the Israelites.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
Shem was Noah's eldest son and the ancestor of many Semitic tribes, playing a significant role in biblical genealogies.
Arphaxad is a son of Shem and an important figure in the genealogies, linking to the lineage of Jesus.
The name Shelah means 'sprout' and refers to a post-flood patriarch who is also part of the genealogy leading to Jesus.
Genealogies establish the lineage and heritage of the Israelites, connecting them to God's promises and the unfolding narrative of salvation.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- What do you think is the importance of knowing our ancestry and heritage?
- How can understanding genealogies in the Bible enhance our knowledge of God's promises?
- In what ways can we reflect on our spiritual lineage and its impact on our faith today?
- What lessons can we learn from the lives of biblical figures like Shem, Arphaxad, and Shelah?
Commentators on this verse — 5 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on 1 Chronicles 1:24 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryShem, Arphaxad, Shelah, Shem ... This comprises a list of ten, inclusive of Abraham. No JFB commentary on these verses.
Read Robert Jamieson on 1 Chronicles 1 →Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy BibleArphaxad: having given a brief and general account of the original of the world, and the people in it, he now returns to a more large and particular account of the genealogy of Shem, from whom the Jews were descended.
Read Matthew Poole on 1 Chronicles 1 →Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English ReadersTEN FROM SHEM TO ABRAHAM; AN OF Genesis 11:10-26, ALL NOTICES (1 Chronicles 1:24-27). Between Arphaxad aud Shelah the LXX., at Genesis 11:12, insert Καίναν = Heb. Kκnan (1 Chronicles 1:2, above). The name is not contained in our present Hebrew text of Genesis. Kenan may have been dropped originally, in order to make Abraham the tenth from Shem, as Noah is tenth from Adam. The artificial symmetry of these ancient lists is evidently designed. Comp. the thrice fourteen generations in the genealogy of our Lord (Matthew 1). 1 Chronicles 1:28-42 enumerate a second series of seventy tribes or peoples, derived from Abraham through the three representative names of Ishmael, Keturah, and Isaac; just…
Read Charles John Ellicott on 1 Chronicles 1 →AdamClarkeAdam Clarke's Commentary on the BibleVerse 24. Shem] "The great priest." - T.
Read AdamClarke on 1 Chronicles 1 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges24–27. The Descent of Abraham from Shem These verses are compressed within the smallest limits from Genesis 11:10-26. For another example of this extreme compression compare 1 Chronicles 1:1-4.
Read Cambridge on 1 Chronicles 1 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
So from Shem came Arphaxad, Shelah,
Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah,
So from Shem came Arphaxad, Shelah,
Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah,
Tyndale line
¶ Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah,
Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah,
Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah;
Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah,
Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah,
Strictly literal
Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah,
Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah,
Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah,
Shem, Arpachshad, Shelach,
Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah,
From the Latin
Sem, Arphaxad, Sale,
Simplified
Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah,
Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah,
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text and the Septuagint agree on the names presented in this verse, confirming the lineage from Shem to Arphaxad and Shelah without any variations.
שֵׁ֥ם׀ אַרְפַּכְשַׁ֖ד שָֽׁלַח׃
3 of the 3 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in 1 Chronicles 1:24
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
שֵׁם (shem) refers to Shem, the first son of Noah, and is associated with his descendants, the Semitic tribes. The word also means 'name' in Hebrew. It appears in the context of the genealogies in Genesis, specifically noted in Genesis 5:32.
שֵׁם n.pr.m. first son of Noah
base
H8035 שֵׁם first son of Noah
8035 Shem shame
the same as 8034; name; Shem, a son of Noah (often includ.
his posterity):--Sem, Shem.
see HEBREW for 08034
שֵׁם (shem) — Shem.
A man living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.5.32;
son of: Noah (H5146);
brother of: Ham (H2526) and Japheth (H3315);
father of: Asshur (H0804H), Elam (H5867C), Arpachshad (H0775), Lud (H3865) and Aram (H0758)
Also named: Sēm (Σήμ "Shem" G4590)
§ Shem = "name"
the eldest son of Noah and progenitor of the Semitic tribes
N-proper — Noun proper masculineHNpm
shem (shem; Sem):
1. Position in Noah's Family: His Name:
The eldest son of Noah, from whom the Jews, as well as the Semitic ("Shemitic") nations in general have descended. When giving the names of Noah's three sons, Shem is always mentioned first (Ge 9:18; 10:1, etc.); and though "the elder" in "Shem the brother of Japheth the elder" (Ge 10:21 margin) is explained as referring to Shem, this is not the rendering of Onkelos. His five sons peopled the greater part of West Asia's finest tracts, from Elam on the East to the Mediterranean on the West. Though generally regarded as meaning "dusky" (compare the Assyr-Babylonian samu--also Ham--possibly = "black," Japheth, "fair"), it is considered possible that Shem may be the usual Hebrew word for "name" (shem), given him because he was…
Shem
A name; renown, the first mentioned of the sons of Noah (Gen. 5:32; 6:10). He was probably the eldest of Noah’s sons. The words “brother of Japheth the elder” in Gen. 10:21 are more correctly rendered “the elder brother of Japheth,” as in the Revised Version. Shem’s name is generally mentioned first in the list of Noah’s sons. He and his wife were saved in the ark (7:13). Noah foretold his preeminence over Canaan (9:23-27). He died at the age of six hundred years, having been for many years contemporary with Abraham, according to the usual chronology. The Israelitish nation sprang from him (Gen. 11:10-26; 1 Chr. 1:24-27).
(name), the eldest son of Noah. (Genesis 5:32) He was 98 years old, married, and childless at the time of the flood. After it, he, with his father, brothers, sisters-in-law and wife, received the blessing of God, (Genesis 9:1) and entered into the covenant. With the help of his brother Japheth, he covered the nakedness of their father and received the first blessing. (Genesis 9:25-27) He died at the age of 630 years. The portion of the earth occupied by the descendants of Shem, (Genesis 10:21,31) begins at its northwestern extremity with Lydia, and includes Syria (Aram), Chaldaea (Arphaxad), parts Of Assyria (Asshur), of Persia (Elam), and of the Arabian peninsula (Joktan).…
A son of Noah, Ge 5:32 6:10, always named before Ham and Japheth, as the eldest son; or, as some think, because he was the forefather of the Hebrews. In Ge 10:21, the word elder may be applied to Shem, instead of Japheth. He received a blessing from his dying father, Ge 9:26, and of his line the Messiah was born. He had five sons, and their posterity occupied the central regions between Ham and Japheth, and peopled the finest provinces of the East. The languages of some of these nations are still called the Shemitic languages, including the Hebrew, Chalee, Syriac, Arabic, Ethiopic, etc.; but in this general class are found several languages spoken by nations descended from Ham.
אַרְפַּכְשַׁד (Arpakshad) is the name of a biblical figure, specifically the third son of Shem, mentioned in Genesis 10:22. He is also referred to as Arphaxad in some contexts, including the New Testament. The name may have foreign origins and is associated with a region settled by him.
אַרְפַּכְשַׁד n.pr.m. 3rd son of Shem
base
H775 אַרְפַּכְשַׁד 3rd son of Shem
775 'Arpakshad ar-pak-shad'
probably of foreign origin; Arpakshad, a son of Noah; also
the region settled by him:--Arphaxad.
אַרְפַּכְשַׁד (ar.pakh.shad) — Arpachshad.
A man living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.10.22;
son of: Shem (H8035);
brother of: Asshur (H0804H), Elam (H5867C), Lud (H3865) and Aram (H0758);
father of: Cainan (G2536); also called Arphaxad at Luk.3.36;
Also named: Arphaxad (Ἀρφαξάδ "Arphaxad" G0742)
§ Arphaxad = "I shall fail as the breast: he cursed the breast-bottle"
third son of Shem
N-proper — Noun proper masculineHNpm
Arphaxad
Son of Shem, born the year after the Deluge. He died at the age of 438 years (Gen. 11:10-13; 1 Chr. 1:17, 18; Luke 3:36). He dwelt in Mesopotamia, and became, according to the Jewish historian Josephus, the progenitor of the Chaldeans. The tendency is to recognize in the word the name of the country nearest the ancient domain of the Chaldeans. Some regard the word as an Egypticized form of the territorial name of Ur Kasdim, or Ur of the Chaldees.
(stronghold of the Chaldees). The son of Shem and ancestor of Eber. (Genesis 10:22,24; 11:10) Arphaxad, a king "who reigned over the Medes in Ecbatana," Judith 1:1-4; perhaps the same as Phraortes, who fell in a battle with the Assyrians, 633 B.C.
A son of Shem, two years after the flood, Ge 10:22; 11:10. Seven generations followed him before Abraham, while he lived till after the settlement of Abraham in the land of promise and the rescue of Lot from the four kings. He died A. M. 2096, aged four hundred and thirty-eight.
שֶׁ֫לַח (Shelach) refers to a postdiluvian patriarch, specifically the son of Arphachshad and father of Eber. The name is associated with the meaning "sprout" and is mentioned in Genesis 10:24. It is also noted that Shelach is equivalent to the name Salah in some translations.
שֶׁ֫לַח n.pr.m. son of Arphachshad
base
H7974 שֶׁ֫לַח son of Arphachshad
7974 Shelach sheh'-lakh
the same as 7973; Shelach, a postdiluvian patriarch:--Salah,
Shelah. Compare 7975.
see HEBREW for 07973
see HEBREW for 07975
שֶׁ֫לַח (she.lach) — Shelah.
A man living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.10.24;
son of: Cainan (G2536);
father of: Eber (H5677)
Also named: Sala (Σαλά "Shelah" G4527H)
§ Salah or Shelah = "sprout"
son of Arphaxad and father of Eber
N-proper — Noun proper masculineHNpm
she'-la (shelah; Sala):
(1) The youngest son of Judah and the daughter of Shua the Canaanite (Ge 38:5,11,14,26; 46:12; Nu 26:20 (16); 1Ch 2:3; 4:21). He gave his name to the family of the Shelanites (Nu 26:20 (16)). Probably "the Shelanite" should be substituted for "the Shilonite" of Ne 11:5; 1Ch 9:5.
(2) (shelach): The son or (Septuagint) grandson of Arpachshad and father of Eber (Ge 10:24; 11:13 (12),14,15; 1Ch 1:18,24;
(a petition). The youngest son of Judah. (Genesis 38:5,11,14,26; 46:10; Numbers 26:20; 1 Chronicles 2:3; 4:21) (B.C. before 1706.) The proper form of the name of Salah. (1 Chronicles 1:18,24)
that breaks; that unties; that undresses