After the Great Flood, described in Genesis 7 and 8, all mankind were destroyed from the Earth, with exception to Noah and his family. Eight people were saved on the ark that Noah had built. There were Noah and his wife, and his three sons (Shem, Ham, and Japheth) and their wives. And God charged them in Genesis 9:1 to "Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the Earth." (King James Standard Bible, 2017)
Genesis 10 outlines the genealogy of Noah's sons. Genesis 10:2-5 cover Japheth's descendants; Genesis 10:6-19 cover Ham's descendants; and Genesis 10:20-31 cover Shem's descendants.
We assume that Japheth was the eldest child, since we started with his genealogy, and since Genesis 10:21 referred to him as Shem's elder brother. With exception to Genesis 5:32 when he was named first in the account, Ham is always placed in the middle, whenever Noah's sons are named, and we know that he was a younger son (Genesis 9:24), and so the assumption is that Ham was the middle child. Which presumably made Shem the youngest of Noah's three sons. Shem was listed first in Genesis 5:32, because of his place in the history of the Hebrew people.
Genesis 5:32 tells us that Noah was 500 years old and fathered Shem, Ham, and Japheth. The Bible did not tell us that there were no other children born to Noah during the 500 years; so there is a high likelihood that Noah had other sons and daughters. However, these three sons are highlighted, because they were the ones who accompanied Noah onto the Ark, with their wives and Noah's wife. Genesis 7:6 tells us that Noah was 600 years old when the Great Flood occurred; and it rained on the Earth for 150 days (Genesis 7:24). In all, Noah and his family spent approximately one year inside the Ark (Genesis 7:7; Genesis 8:13-14). Two years after the Flood, at age 100, Shem fathered a son. That made him age 97, when Noah was 600 years old, which meant that he was born when Noah was 503 years old.
Japheth became the father of the Gentile nations (Genesis 10:5) and produced the nations within Europe, which included India, Germany, Greece, Russia, and Pakistan (Osterholm, 2004). The nations emerging from Ham were the nations within Asia and Africa, including the Chinese, Japanese, Africans, Egyptians, and aboriginal groups from the Americas, Australia, and the Pacific Islands (Osterholm, 2004). The nations that emerged from Shem were nations within North Africa, parts of Asia, and the Middle East, including the Jews, Persians, Iraqis, Syrians, and Palestinians (Osterholm, 2004). It is from the name "Shem" that we get the word "Semite" (Dictionary.com); making the Shem the father of the Semite nations.
Before the people separated into different nations, they initially remained together. They started off as a small family that grew into a tribe, which became a large city that eventually was ruled by a man named Nimrod, who was Noah's great-grandson (Genesis 10:8).
Nimrod is listed separately in the genealogy of Cush, one of Ham's sons, because he featured prominently in the Genesis story at this point. He built four kingdoms - Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh (Genesis 10:10), indicating that Nimrod considered himself to be a king, as a very near descendant of Ham. Babel is thought to be where Iraq now exists. Nimrod's name means "Rebel" or "Tyrant", and it is believed that this name is a contemptuous description of the character of this person, and not necessarily his given name (Nam Dobbs, 2020). It is likely that he developed some of his tendencies from Ham. If you will recall, Ham attempted to humiliate Noah in Genesis 9:22, resulting in Noah proclaiming a curse on Cush (Genesis 9:25). This was likely one of the many things that Nimrod felt that he could not forgive. Some believe that this man was Gilgamesh, of whom the oldest writings were made (Livingston, 2001). In any case, it appears that Nimrod became a great hunter - not just of animals, but of people. He was ruthless, depraved, and vile; and lived his life challenging the Lord God, YAHWEH.
Gravely upset that God had destroyed all mankind, with exception to the eight people who were saved in the ark, Nimrod instigated a movement by the people of his day to take action to protect themselves from God. This involved building a great tower from the same materials used in building the Ark, to ensure that if God sent another flood onto the Earth, the people could escape the waters and live. Not surprising, he led the people in a rebellion against God, and it is highly likely that he punished his relatives who preferred to believe in, trust, and obey YAHWEH, God. He also pushed his belief that it was the people who were responsible for their happiness, and not God (Livingston, 2001).
Genesis 11:1-9 tells us more about Babel. "Babel" means "confusion" or "noisy" (Merriam-Webster, 2023). We learn in Genesis 11:9 that the city was named "Babel", after the Lord God, YAHWEH, had "confounded" the language that used to be spoken by all in the Earth.
References:
Dictionary.com (2022). Semite. Retrieved December 23, 2022 from https://www.dictionary.com/browse/semite
King James Standard Bible, 2017. Thomas Nelson, Nashville
Livingston, D. P., 2001. Nimrod, who was he? Retrieved December 23, 2022 from https://biblearchaeology.org/research/founders-corner/4126-who-was-nimrod
Nam Dobbs, S., 2020. Commentary on the Book of Genesis. Columbia
Osterholm, T., 2004. Table of Nations. Retrieved December 21, 2022 from https://freepages.rootsweb.com/~sturnbo/folklore/files/oldest/Table%20of%20Nations%20and%20Genealogy%20of%20Mankind.htm
Merriam-Webster, 2023. Babel. Retrieved January 30, 2023 from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Babel
