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| Of the Generations of the Three Sons of Noah
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Chapter 3.—Of the Generations of
the Three Sons of Noah.
We must therefore introduce into
this work an explanation of the generations of the three sons of
Noah, in so far as that may illustrate the progress in time of the
two cities. Scripture first mentions that of the youngest son,
who is called Japheth: he had eight sons,871
| 871 Augustin here follows the Greek
version, which introduces the name Elisa among the sons of Japheth,
though not found in the Hebrew. It is not found in the
Complutensian Greek translation, nor in the
Mss. used by Jerome. | and by two of these sons seven
grandchildren, three by one son, four by the other; in all, fifteen
descendants. Ham, Noah’s middle son, had four sons, and by one
of them five grandsons, and by one of these two great-grandsons; in
all, eleven. After enumerating these, Scripture returns to the
first of the sons, and says, “Cush begat Nimrod; he began to be a
giant on the earth. He was a giant hunter against the Lord God:
wherefore they say, As Nimrod the giant hunter against the Lord.
And the beginning of his kingdom was Babylon, Erech, Accad, and
Calneh, in the land of Shinar. Out of that land went forth Assur,
and built Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah, and Resen
between Nineveh and Calah: this was a great city.” Now this
Cush, father of the giant Nimrod, is the first-named among the sons
of Ham, to whom five sons and two grandsons are ascribed. But he
either begat this giant after his grandsons were born, or, which is
more credible, Scripture speaks of him separately on account of his
eminence; for mention is also made of his kingdom, which began with
that magnificent city Babylon, and the other places, whether cities
or districts, mentioned along with it. But what is recorded of
the land of Shinar which belonged to Nimrod’s kingdom, to wit,
that Assur went forth from it and built Nineveh and the other
cities mentioned with it, happened long after; but he takes
occasion to speak of it here on account of the grandeur of the
Assyrian kingdom, which was wonderfully extended by Ninus son of
Belus, and founder of the great city Nineveh, which was named after
him, Nineveh, from Ninus. But Assur, father of the Assyrian, was
not one of the sons of Ham, Noah’s son, but is found among the
sons of Shem, his eldest son. Whence it appears that among
Shem’s offspring there arose men who afterwards took possession
of that giant’s kingdom, and advancing from it, founded other
cities, the first of which was called Nineveh, from Ninus. From
him Scripture returns to Ham’s other son, Mizraim; and his sons
are enumerated, not as seven individuals, but as seven nations.
And from the sixth, as if from the sixth son, the race called the
Philistines are said to have sprung; so that there are in all
eight. Then it returns again to Canaan, in whose person Ham was
cursed; and his eleven sons are named. Then the territories they
occupied, and some of the cities, are named. And thus, if we
count sons and grandsons, there are thirty-one of Ham’s
descendants registered.
It remains to mention the sons of
Shem, Noah’s eldest son; for to him this genealogical narrative
gradually ascends from the youngest. But in the commencement of
the record of Shem’s sons there is an obscurity which calls for
explanation, since it is closely connected with the object of our
investigation. For we read, “Unto Shem also, the father of all
the children of Heber, the brother of Japheth the elder, were
children born.”872
This is
the order of the words: And to Shem was born Heber, even to
himself, that is, to Shem himself was born Heber, and Shem is the
father of all his children. We are intended to understand that
Shem is the patriarch of all his posterity who were to be
mentioned, whether sons, grandsons, great-grandsons, or descendants
at any remove. For Shem did not beget Heber, who was indeed in
the fifth generation from him. For Shem begat, among other sons,
Arphaxad; Arphaxad begat Cainan, Cainan begat Salah, Salah begat
Heber. And it was with good reason that he was named first among
Shem’s offspring, taking precedence even of his sons, though only
a grandchild of the fifth generation; for from him, as tradition
says, the Hebrews derived their name, though the other etymology
which derives the name from Abraham (as if Abrahews) may
possibly be correct.
But there can be little doubt
that the former is the right etymology, and that they were called
after Heber, Heberews, and then, dropping a letter, Hebrews;
and so was their language called Hebrew, which was spoken by none
but the people of Israel among whom was the city of God,
mysteriously prefigured in all the people, and truly present in the
saints. Six of Shem’s sons then are first named, then four
grandsons born to one of these sons; then it mentions another son
of Shem, who begat a grandson; and his son, again, or Shem’s
great-grandson, was Heber. And Heber begat two sons, and called
the one Peleg, which means “dividing;” and Scripture subjoins
the reason of this name, saying, “for in his days was the earth
divided.” What this means will afterwards appear. Heber’s
other son begat twelve sons; consequently all Shem’s descendants
are twenty-seven. The total number of the progeny of the three
sons of Noah is seventy-three, fifteen by Japheth, thirty-one by
Ham, twenty-seven by Shem. Then Scripture adds, “These are the
sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their
lands, after their nations.” And so of the whole number
“These are the families of the sons of Noah after their
generations, in their nations; and by these were the isles of the
nations dispersed through the earth after the flood.” From
which we gather that the seventy-three (or rather, as I shall
presently show, seventy-two) were not individuals, but nations.
For in a former passage, when the sons of Japheth were enumerated,
it is said in conclusion, “By these were the isles of the nations
divided in their lands, every one after his language, in their
tribes, and in their nations.”
But nations are expressly mentioned
among the sons of Ham, as I showed above. “Mizraim begat those
who are called Ludim;” and so also of the other seven nations.
And after enumerating all of them, it concludes, “These are the
sons of Ham, in their families, according to their languages, in
their territories, and in their nations.” The reason, then, why
the children of several of them are not mentioned, is that they
belonged by birth to other nations, and did not themselves become
nations. Why else is it, that though eight sons are reckoned to
Japheth, the sons of only two of these are mentioned; and though
four are reckoned to Ham, only three are spoken of as having sons;
and though six are reckoned to Shem, the descendants of only two of
these are traced? Did the rest remain childless? We cannot
suppose so; but they did not produce nations so great as to warrant
their being mentioned, but were absorbed in the nations to which
they belonged by birth. E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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