1 Chronicles 1:4 — Word Study
WLCנֹ֥חַ שֵׁ֖ם חָ֥ם וָיָֽפֶת׃ ס
BSA[The sons of] NoahNôach [children, descendants, the patriarch who built the ark] ShemShêm [the eldest son, Sem] HamChâm [the father of hot southern lands] and JaphethYepheth [the ancestor of many nations]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| נֹ֥חַ | Noah | Noun proper masculine |
| שֵׁ֖ם | Shem | Noun proper masculine |
| חָ֥ם | Ham | Noun proper masculine |
| וָיָֽפֶת׃ ס | and Japheth | Conjunction, noun proper masculine |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | The sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. |
| KJV | Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. |
| ASV | Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. |
| YLT | Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. |
| WEB | Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. |
| BBE | Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. |
All translations agree on the names of Noah's sons.
The sentence is structured simply, with a main clause followed by a list of the sons.
5 commentators on this verse
Jamieson, Poole, Trapp, Ellicott & 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 1:4
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 Noahgenerated
1 Chronicles 1:4 provides a brief account of Noah's sons, establishing their significance in biblical history. This genealogy is part of a larger record that traces the lineage of the Israelites back to their patriarchs, emphasizing the importance of these figures in the unfolding story of God's people.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Genesis 5:32 | After Noah was 500 years old, he became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth. |
| 2 | Genesis 6:8–9 | Noah, however, found favor in the eyes of the LORD. |
| 3 | Genesis 7:1 | Then the LORD said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and all your family, because I have found you righteous in this generation. |
| 4 | Genesis 9:29 | So Noah lived a total of 950 years, and then he died. |
| 5 | Isaiah 54:9–10 | “For to Me this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So I have sworn that I will not be angry with you or rebuke you. |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 14 references, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — נֹחַ, No.achgenerated
The name נֹחַ (Noach) refers to Noah, a pivotal figure known for surviving the Flood. His name is associated with the concept of 'rest' and signifies his role as the patriarch who built the ark. Noah is first introduced in Genesis 5:29.
Noah's legacy is foundational in biblical history, as he is the father of three significant lineages through his sons. The parsing as a noun proper masculine confirms his identity as a key historical figure.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
All translations agree on the names of Noah's sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The structure of this verse is straightforward, with a noun phrase serving as the subject: בְּנֵי נֹחַ, the sons of Noah, followed by a predicate listing the sons. This simple structure emphasizes the importance of lineage in biblical genealogies.
The arrangement highlights Noah as the central figure, with his sons listed directly after him, establishing their roles in the narrative.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
In the Septuagint, נֹחַ is rendered as νωε, which maintains the name's significance. This choice reflects the translators' intent to preserve the identity of Noah as a foundational patriarch.
The consistency in names between the Hebrew and Greek texts indicates a shared understanding of these figures in the biblical tradition.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
1 Chronicles 1:4 tells us about the three sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. These names are significant as they represent the ancestors of various nations and peoples in biblical history.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
The sons of Noah were Shem, Ham, and Japheth, each of whom became the ancestor of different nations.
Noah is significant as the patriarch who built the ark and survived the Flood, representing God's covenant with humanity.
Genealogy is important as it establishes lineage and fulfills God's promises regarding the descendants of key figures.
The name 'Shem' means 'name' in Hebrew and is associated with the Semitic peoples.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- What can I learn from the legacy of Noah and his sons in terms of faith and obedience?
- How do the genealogies in the Bible help us understand God's plan through history?
- In what ways can I honor the heritage of faith passed down through generations?
- How does understanding the significance of these names deepen my appreciation for biblical narratives?
The early church on this verse — how the Fathers read it
Early commentators have noted the significance of Noah and his sons in the context of biblical history, emphasizing their roles in the unfolding narrative.
Sem, means “a name,” or being “named.” Who was the son of Noah, means “rest.”Early Church Fathers on 1 Chronicles 1 →
Commentators on this verse — 5 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on 1 Chronicles 1:4 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryNoah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. The three sons of this patriarch are enumerated, partly because they were the founders of the new world, and partly because the fulfillment
Read Robert Jamieson on 1 Chronicles 1 →Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy BibleFormerly he mentions only one son, but here he names and treats of Noah’ s three sons, partly because they were all the founders of the new world, and partly because the accomplishment of Noah’ s famous prophecy, , could not otherwise appear, but by the account of their several posterities.
Read Matthew Poole on 1 Chronicles 1 →John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New Testaments1 Chronicles 1:4 Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.Ver. 4. Shem, Ham, Japheth.] Of these three, Shem is supposed to have peopled the east, Ham the south, Japheth the north.
Read John Trapp on 1 Chronicles 1 →Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(4) Shem, Ham, and Japheth.—There is no doubt that Ham means black, or sunburnt, and Japheth (Heb., Yepheth) is probably the fair-skinned. Shem has been compared with an Assyrian word meaning brownish (sa’mu). Thus the three names appear to allude to differences of racial complexion. 1 Chronicles 1:5-23 are an abridgment of Genesis 10. The proper names represent, not persons, but peoples and countries. By adding them all together, the old Jewish interpreters made a total of seventy nations for the world. The list is a classified summary of the ethnical and geographical knowledge of Hebrew antiquity.
Read Charles John Ellicott on 1 Chronicles 1 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and CollegesCh. 1. The Genealogies of the Peoples 1–4. A Genealogy from Adam to the Sons of Noah The history proper does not begin till the death of Saul, but the historian acts in accordance with Eastern custom in connecting his history with the remote past by means of genealogies. This first genealogy is taken from Genesis 5:3-32. The extremely concise form in which it is given is instructive as shewing how far the Chronicler could go in abbreviating his authorities.
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
The sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
The sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Tyndale line
Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Noah, She, Ham, and Iapheth.
Strictly literal
Noah; Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
The sons of Noah were Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
From the Latin
Noe, Sem, Cham, and Japheth.
Simplified
The sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
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 of Noah's sons, with no variations in the wording. This consistency across witnesses reinforces the importance of these genealogical records.
נֹ֥חַ שֵׁ֖ם חָ֥ם וָיָֽפֶת׃ ס
4 of the 4 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 1:4
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.
נֹחַ (Noach) refers to Noah, a significant biblical figure known for surviving the Flood. The name is associated with the concept of 'rest.' He is the son of Lamech and the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and is first mentioned in Genesis 5:29. The entries consistently identify him as the patriarch who built the ark.
נֹחַ 46 n.pr.m. Noah
base
H5146 נֹחַ Noah
5146 Noach no'-akh
the same as 5118; rest; Noach, the patriarch of the
flood:--Noah.
see HEBREW for 05118
נֹחַ (no.ach) — Noah.
A man living at the time before the Flood, first mentioned at Gen.5.29;
son of: Lamech (H3929H);
father of: Shem (H8035), Ham (H2526) and Japheth (H3315)
Also named: Nōe (Νῶε "Noah" G3575)
§ Noah = "rest"
son of Lamech, father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth; builder of the ark which saved his family from the destruction of the world which God sent on the world by the flood; became the new seminal head of mankind because his family were the only survivors of the flood
N-proper — Noun proper masculineHNpm
Noah
Rest, (Heb. Noah) the grandson of Methuselah (Gen. 5:25-29), who was for two hundred and fifty years contemporary with Adam, and the son of Lamech, who was about fifty years old at the time of Adam’s death. This patriarch is rightly regarded as the connecting link between the old and the new world. He is the second great progenitor of the human family.
The words of his father Lamech at his birth (Gen. 5:29) have been regarded as in a sense prophetical, designating Noah as a type of Him who is the true “rest and comfort” of men under the burden of life (Matt.11:28).
He lived five hundred years, and then there were born unto him three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth (Gen.…
(motion), one of the five daughters of Zelophehad. (Numbers 26:33; 27:1; 36:11; Joshua 17:3) (B.C. 1450.)
Rest, comfort, the name of celebrated patriarch who was preserved by Jehovah with his family, by means of the ark, through the deluge, and thus became the second founder of the human race. The history of Noah and the deluge is contained in Ge 5:1-9:29. He was the son of Lamech, and grandson of Methuselah lived six hundred years before the deluge, and three hundred and fifty after it, dying two years before Abram was born. His name may have been given to him by his parents in the hope that he would be the promised "seed of the woman" that should "bruise the serpent’s head." He was in the line of the patriarchs who feared God, and was himself a just man, Eze 14:14,20, and a "preacher of righteousness," 1Pe 3:19,20
that quavers or totters (Zelophehad's daughter)
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.
חָם (Cham) refers to Ham, the second son of Noah, and is associated with his descendants, including various peoples from southern lands. The name also serves as a collective term for Egyptians. The word is linked to the idea of heat, reflecting the tropical habitat of the region.
חָם n.pr.pers.m. and loc.
Ham, 2nd son of Noah
a name (coll.) for Egyptians
base
H2526 חָם . Ham, 2nd son of Noah
. a name (coll.) for Egyptians
2526 Cham khawm
the same as 2525; hot (from the tropical habitat); Cham, a
son of Noah; also (as a patronymic) his descendants or their
country:--Ham.
see HEBREW for 02525
חָם (cham) — Ham.
A man living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.5.32;
son of: Noah (H5146);
brother of: Shem (H8035) and Japheth (H3315);
father of: Canaan (H3667), Cush (H3568), Egypt (H4714) and Put (H6316)
§ Ham = "hot"
1) 2nd son of Noah, father of Canaan and of various peoples which were inhabitants of southern lands
2) in late usage, a collective name for Egyptians
n pr loc
חָם (cham) — Ham.
§ Ham = "hot"
southern lands continaing the descendants of Ham
N-proper — Noun proper masculineHNpm
Ham
Warm, hot, and hence the south; also an Egyptian word meaning “black”, the youngest son of Noah (Gen. 5:32; comp. 9:22,24). The curse pronounced by Noah against Ham, properly against Canaan his fourth son, was accomplished when the Jews subsequently exterminated the Canaanites.
One of the most important facts recorded in Gen. 10 is the foundation of the earliest monarchy in Babylonia by Nimrod the grandson of Ham (6, 8, 10). The primitive Babylonian empire was thus Hamitic, and of a cognate race with the primitive inhabitants of Arabia and of Ethiopia. (See ACCAD.)
The race of Ham were the most energetic of all the descendants of Noah in the early times of the post-diluvian world.
(hot; sunburnt). The name of one of the three sons of Noah, apparently the second in age. (B.C. 2448.) Of the history of Ham nothing is related except his irreverence to his father and the curse which that patriarch pronounced. The sons of Ham are stated, to have been "Cush and Mizraim and Phut and Canaan." (Genesis 10:6) comp. 1Chr 1:8 Egypt is recognized as the "land of Ham" in the Bible. (Psalms 78:51; 105:23; 106:22) The other settlements of the sons of Ham are discussed under their respective names. The three most illustrious Hamite nations--the Cushites, the Phoenicians and the Egyptians--were greatly mixed with foreign peoples. Their architecture has a solid grandeur that we look for in vain elsewhere. According to the…
1. Burnt, swarthy, black, A son of Noah, Ge 5:32 7:13 9:18 10:1. The impiety revealed in his conduct towards his father, drew upon him, or rather, according to the Bible statement, on his son Canaan, a prophetic malediction, Ge 9:20-27. Ham was the father of Cush, Mizraim, Phut, and Canaan, that is, the ancestor of the Canaanites, Southern Arabians, Ethiopians, Egyptians, and the Africans in general, Ge 10:6-20.
2. A poetical name for Egypt, Ps 78:51 106:22.
3. An unknown place of the Zuzim, Ge 14:5.
hot; heat; brown
יֶ֫פֶת (Yepheth) is the name of the third son of Noah, whose descendants are said to have settled in coastal regions of the Mediterranean and parts of Europe and Asia. The name may imply 'expansion' or 'opened.' He is first mentioned in Genesis 5:32 and is the brother of Shem and Ham, and father to several nations.
יֶ֫פֶת n.pr.m. third son of Noah
base
H3315 יֶ֫פֶת third son of Noah
3315 Yepheth yeh'-feth
from 6601; expansion; Jepheth, a son of Noah; also his
posterity:--Japheth.
see HEBREW for 06601
יֶ֫פֶת (ye.phet) — Japheth.
A man living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.5.32;
son of: Noah (H5146);
brother of: Shem (H8035) and Ham (H2526);
father of: Gomer (H1586), Magog (H4031), Madai (H4074), Javan (H3120), Tubal (H8422), Meshech (H4902) and Tiras (H8494)
§ Japheth = "opened"
the 3rd son of Noah whose descendants after the flood settled on the coastal lands of the Mediterranean spreading north into Europe and parts of Asia
Conj | N-proper — Conjunction · noun proper masculineHC/Npm
Japheth
Wide spreading: “God shall enlarge Japheth” (Heb. Yaphat Elohim le-Yephet, Gen. 9:27. Some, however, derive the name from yaphah, “to be beautiful;” hence white), one of the sons of Noah, mentioned last in order (Gen. 5:32; 6:10; 7:13), perhaps first by birth (10:21; comp. 9:24). He and his wife were two of the eight saved in the ark (1 Pet. 3:20). He was the progenitor of many tribes inhabiting the east of Europe and the north of Asia (Gen. 10:2-5). An act of filial piety (9:20-27) was the occasion of Noah’s prophecy of the extension of his posterity.
(enlargement), one of the three sons of Noah. The descendants of Japheth occupied the "isles of the Gentiles," (Genesis 10:5) --i.e. the coast lands of the Mediterranean Sea in Europe and Asia Minor-- whence they spread northward over the whole continent of Europe and a considerable portion of Asia.
Enlargement, the eldest of Noah’s three sons, Ge 9:24 10:21, born one hundred years before the flood. He was perhaps the Iapetos, whom Greek legends represent as the progenitor of the Greek race. His seven sons, Ge 10:2-5 1Ch 1:5, occupied with their posterity the north of Asia and most of Europe. The probable location of each of the seven is described in its place. In later years the Greeks and Romans subdued large portions of Southern and Western Asia, in accordance with the prediction of Noah, Ge 9:27. The "enlargement" of Japheth now extends over America also.