Genesis 10:8 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Cush fathered Nimrod; he was the first on earth to be a mighty man.

NIV: Cush was the father of Nimrod, who became a mighty warrior on the earth.

NASB: Now Cush fathered Nimrod; he became a mighty one on the earth.

CSB: Cush fathered Nimrod, who began to be powerful in the land.

NLT: Cush was also the ancestor of Nimrod, who was the first heroic warrior on earth.

KJV: And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth.

NKJV: Cush begot Nimrod; he began to be a mighty one on the earth.

The majority of this chapter is a "table of nations," describing the origins of the various nations of the world. These are described according to their relationship to Noah and his sons. Verses 9 and 10 represent an interesting, unique pause in that purpose. Dropped into the middle of this table of nations is a fascinating historical aside about Nimrod, one of the sons of Cush.

Initially, we're told that Nimrod was the first on earth to become a "mighty man" or "champion," indicating that he was a powerful and renowned ruler. The Hebrew phrasing here can mean that Nimrod simply "began" to be mighty, or it can be interpreted to mean that he was the first person to attain that level of might.

Interestingly, in many English-speaking countries, the term "nimrod" is used to imply that a person is stupid, slow-witted, or incompetent. Various popular artists in the 1920s and 1930s sarcastically referred to specific hunters as "Nimrod," and popular culture eventually overtook the original implications of the term.

The follow verses give more detail about Nimrod's exploits and accomplishments.

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.

Genesis 9 described events that happened between God, Noah, and his three sons after the flood. Genesis 11 will tell the story of the Tower of Babel and the dispersal of the nations. Between them, Genesis 10 is a table of the nations that come from Japheth, Ham, and Shem after God divides and disperses humanity.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.