What does Genesis 10:15 mean?
Genesis 10 contains a table of nations, a description of how the descendants of Noah's sons became the peoples of the ancient world. After detailing the descendants of Ham's other sons, this verse begins a listing of the sons of Canaan. These sons will become the Canaanites, the peoples who occupied the Promised Land before the nation of Israel arrived to claim it under the direct orders of God (Exodus 3:17). The evil of these Canaanite nations would become so severe that Israel was used as God's instrument of judgment against them (Deuteronomy 9:3–6).Canaan's firstborn son was Sidon. The city of Sidon (Judges 1:31; Acts 27:3) is one of the oldest in the region of Canaan. Canaan's son Heth has a connection to the Hittites, but apparently not a direct connection to the great nation of the Hittites that would arise later (Exodus 13:5; Judges 1:26).
Genesis 10:6–20 details the descendants of Noah's son, Ham. The majority of these tribes settled in the regions south and east of the Promised Land. While Ham's son Canaan was cursed (Genesis 9:24–25), many of Ham's descendants established powerful nations. One of these is Mizraim, also known as Egypt. Though Canaan's sons were destined to fall to the sons of Shem, other sons of Ham would hold Israel captive for more than 400 years. This passage also contains an interesting aside about one particular man: Nimrod.
Genesis 10 is sometimes called the table of nations. It describes, in three sections, the peoples that descended from Noah's sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Japheth's people settled mostly to the north of what would be Israel. Ham's people became great nations in the region of the Middle East, including the people that would settle in the Promised Land before Israel drove them out. Shem's line would lead to Abraham and the Israelites.
