The descendants of Shem were Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram.
Parallel translations
- WEB The sons of Shem were: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram.
- KJV The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram.
- BSB The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram.
- NKJV The sons of Shem were Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram.
- NASB The sons of Shem were Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram.
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
The sons of Shem are listed, including Asshur, Arpachshad, and Aram. These ancestors stand behind several Near Eastern peoples.
Overview
Shem's descendants include peoples associated with Mesopotamia and the surrounding regions, and the line of Arpachshad leads toward Abraham. The naming of these sons advances the genealogy of promise. Among Shem's descendants, the line of Arpachshad is traced because through it God will bring the Messiah.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Isa 66:19“I will set a sign among them, and I will send those who escape of them to the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to far-away islands, who have not heard my fame, nor have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations.
- Gen 14:1–9In the days of Amraphel, king of Shinar, Arioch, king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, and Tidal, king of Goiim,
- 1 Chr 1:17–27The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, Aram, Uz, Hul, Gether, and Meshech.
- Isa 21:2A grievous vision is declared to me. The treacherous man deals treacherously, and the destroyer destroys. Go up, Elam; attack! I have stopped all of Media’s sighing.
- Jer 25:25and all the kings of Zimri, and all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of the Medes;
- Num 23:7He took up his parable, and said, “From Aram has Balak brought me, the king of Moab from the mountains of the East. Come, curse Jacob for me. Come, defy Israel.
- Job 1:17While he was still speaking, there came also another, and said, “The Chaldeans made three bands, and swept down on the camels, and have taken them away, yes, and killed the servants with the edge of the sword; and I alone have escaped to tell you.”
- 2 Kgs 15:19Pul the king of Assyria came against the land, and Menahem gave Pul one thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand.
- Gen 9:26He said, “Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Shem. Let Canaan be his servant.
- Isa 11:11It will happen in that day that the Lord will set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant that is left of his people from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.
- Isa 22:6Elam carried his quiver, with chariots of men and horsemen; and Kir uncovered the shield.
- Acts 2:9Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia,
- Jer 49:34–39Yahweh’s word that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 10:22 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.