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1 Chronicles 1:4

Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
1 Chronicles 1:4 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
  • BSB The sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
  • NKJV Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
  • NASB Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
  • NLT and Noah. The sons of Noah were Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Noah and his three sons stand at the hinge of history, the family through whom the whole human race was renewed after the flood.

Overview

With Noah, God preserved humanity through the waters of judgment, and from Shem, Ham, and Japheth the post-flood nations descend (Genesis 9-10). The Chronicler highlights this fresh beginning, showing that God's purposes survive even global judgment. Noah's deliverance through water foreshadows the salvation God brings to His people, a pattern the New Testament connects to baptism and Christ (1 Peter 3:20-21).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 12

  • Gen 5:32And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
  • Gen 9:18And the sons of Noah, that went forth of the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth: and Ham is the father of Canaan.
  • Ezek 14:14Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord GOD.
  • Luke 17:26And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.
  • Gen 6:8–10But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
  • Heb 11:7By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.
  • Isa 54:9–10For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.
  • Luke 3:36Which was the son of Cainan, which was the son of Arphaxad, which was the son of Sem, which was the son of Noe, which was the son of Lamech,
  • 2 Pet 2:5And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;
  • Gen 7:1And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.
  • Matt 24:37–38But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
  • Gen 9:29And all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years: and he died.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — 1 Chronicles videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on 1 Chronicles 1:4YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on 1 ChroniclesMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

The genealogies and the everlasting covenant with David trace the single thread of promise running through the generations straight to the Christ in whom the line reaches its goal.

How 1 Chronicles 1:4 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.