translation_id: net-engnet

book_id: GEN

label: NET translator note

text: The title אֵלֶּה תּוֹלְדֹת (’ elle tolÿdot , here translated as “This is the account”) here covers 10:1 – 11:9 , which contains the so-called Table of Nations and the account of how the nations came to be dispersed.


text: It appears that the Table of Nations is a composite of at least two ancient sources: Some sections begin with the phrase “the sons of” ( בְּנֵי , bÿne ) while other sections use “begot” ( יָלָד , yalad ). It may very well be that the “sons of” list was an old, “bare bones” list that was retained in the family records, while the “begot” sections were editorial inserts by the writer of Genesis, reflecting his special interests. See A. P. Ross, “The Table of Nations in – Its Structure,” BSac 137 (1980): 340-53; idem, “The Table of Nations in – Its Content,” BSac 138 (1981): 22-34.


label: NET textual note

text: Most of the MT mss read “Dodanim” here, but 1 Chr 1:7 has “Rodanim,” perhaps referring to the island of Rhodes. But the Qere reading in 1 Chr 1:7 suggests “Dodanim.” Dodona is one of the most ancient and revered spots in ancient Greece.


text: Heb “fathered.” Embedded within Cush’s genealogy is an account of Nimrod, a mighty warrior. There have been many attempts to identify him, but none are convincing.


text: The Hebrew word for “hunt” is צַיִד ( tsayid ), which is used on occasion for hunting men ( 1 Sam 24:12 ; Jer 16:16 ; Lam 3:15 ).


text: Another option is to take the divine name here, לִפְנֵי יִהוָה ( lifne yÿhvah , “before the Lord [YHWH]”), as a means of expressing the superlative degree. In this case one may translate “Nimrod was the greatest hunter in the world.”


text: Heb “beginning.” E. A. Speiser, Genesis (AB), 67, suggests “mainstays,” citing Jer 49:35 as another text where the Hebrew noun is so used.


text: Or “Babylon.”


text: No such place is known in Shinar (i.e., Babylonia). Therefore some have translated the Hebrew term כַלְנֵה ( khalneh ) as “all of them,” referring to the three previous names (cf. NRSV).


text: The subject of the verb translated “went” is probably still Nimrod. However, it has also been interpreted that “Ashur went,” referring to a derivative power.


text: Heb “Asshur.”


text: Heb “and Resen between Nineveh and Calah; it [i.e., Calah] is the great city.”


text: Heb “fathered.”


text: Several commentators prefer to reverse the order of the words to put this clause after the next word, since the Philistines came from Crete (where the Caphtorites lived). But the table may suggest migration rather than lineage, and the Philistines, like the Israelites, came through the Nile Delta region of Egypt. For further discussion of the origin and migration of the Philistines, see D. M. Howard, “Philistines,” Peoples of the Old Testament World , 232.


text: Some see a reference to “Hittites” here (cf. NIV), but this seems unlikely. See the note on the phrase “sons of Heth” in Gen 23:3 .


text: Heb “were.”


text: For location see Map1-A1 ; JP3-F3 ; JP4-F3 .


text: Heb “as you go.”


text: Heb “And to Shem was born.”


text: Or “whose older brother was Japheth.” Some translations render Japheth as the older brother, understanding the adjective הַגָּדוֹל ( haggadol , “older”) as modifying Japheth. However, in Hebrew when a masculine singular definite attributive adjective follows the sequence masculine singular construct noun + proper name, the adjective invariably modifies the noun in construct, not the proper name. Such is the case here. See Deut 11:7 ; Judg 1:13; 2:7; 3:9; 9:5 ; 2 Kgs 15:35 ; 2 Chr 27:3 ; Neh 3:30 ; Jer 13:9; 36:10 ; Ezek 10:19; 11:1 .


text: The MT reads “Mash”; the LXX and 1 Chr 1:17 read “Meshech.” sn Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash . Little is known about these descendants of Aram.


text: The MT reads “Arphaxad fathered Shelah”; the LXX reads “Arphaxad fathered Cainan, and Cainan fathered Sala [= Shelah].” The LXX reading also appears to lie behind Luke 3:35-36 .


text: The expression “the earth was divided” may refer to dividing the land with canals, but more likely it anticipates the division of languages at Babel (). The verb פָּלָג ( palag , “separate, divide”) is used in Ps 55:9 for a division of languages.


text: Or “separated.”