Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshek and Tiras. New Living Translation The descendants of Japheth were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. English Standard Version The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. Berean Standard Bible The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. King James Bible The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. New King James Version The sons of Japheth were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. New American Standard Bible The sons of Japheth were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. NASB 1995 The sons of Japheth were Gomer and Magog and Madai and Javan and Tubal and Meshech and Tiras. NASB 1977 The sons of Japheth were Gomer and Magog and Madai and Javan and Tubal and Meshech and Tiras. Legacy Standard Bible The sons of Japheth were Gomer and Magog and Madai and Javan and Tubal and Meshech and Tiras. Amplified Bible the sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras; Christian Standard Bible Japheth’s sons: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. Holman Christian Standard Bible Japheth’s sons: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. American Standard Version The sons of Japheth: Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. English Revised Version The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. GOD'S WORD® Translation Japheth's descendants were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. Good News Translation The sons of Japheth--Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras--were the ancestors of the peoples who bear their names. International Standard Version Japheth's descendants included Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. NET Bible The sons of Japheth were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. New Heart English Bible The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. Webster's Bible Translation The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. Majority Text Translations Majority Standard BibleThe sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. World English Bible The sons of Japheth were: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. Literal Translations Literal Standard VersionSons of Japheth [are] Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. Young's Literal Translation Sons of Japheth are Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. Smith's Literal Translation The sons of Japheth; Gomer and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. Catholic Translations Douay-Rheims BibleThe sons of Japheth: Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Thubal, and Mosoch, and Thiras. Catholic Public Domain Version The sons of Japheth were Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. New American Bible The descendants of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech and Tiras. New Revised Standard Version The descendants of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. Translations from Aramaic Lamsa BibleThe sons of Japheth were Gomer, Mongolia, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. Peshitta Holy Bible Translated The children of Yaphet: Gamar and Magog and Maday and Yavan and Tubyl and Meshek and Tyras. OT Translations JPS Tanakh 1917The sons of Japheth: Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. Brenton Septuagint Translation The sons of Japheth, Gamer, and Magog, and Madoi, and Jovan, and Elisa, and Thobel, and Mosoch, and Thiras. Additional Translations ... Audio Bible Context The Japhethites1This is the account of Noah’s sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, who also had sons after the flood. 2The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. 3The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah.… Cross References 1 Chronicles 1:5-7 The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras. / The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah. / And the sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittites, and the Rodanites. Ezekiel 27:13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech were your merchants. They exchanged slaves and bronze utensils for your merchandise. Ezekiel 38:2-3 “Son of man, set your face against Gog of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. Prophesy against him / and declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. Ezekiel 39:6 I will send fire on Magog and on those who dwell securely in the coastlands, and they will know that I am the LORD. Isaiah 66:19 I will establish a sign among them, and I will send survivors from among them to the nations—to Tarshish, Put, and the archers of Lud; to Tubal, Javan, and the islands far away who have not heard of My fame or seen My glory. So they will proclaim My glory among the nations. Jeremiah 51:27 “Raise a banner in the land! Blow the ram’s horn among the nations! Prepare the nations against her. Summon the kingdoms against her—Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. Appoint a captain against her; bring up horses like swarming locusts. Acts 2:9-11 Parthians, Medes, and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, / Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome, / both Jews and converts to Judaism; Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” Revelation 20:8 and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth—Gog and Magog—to assemble them for battle. Their number is like the sand of the seashore. Isaiah 60:9 Surely the islands will wait for Me, with the ships of Tarshish in the lead, to bring your children from afar, with their silver and gold, to the honor of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified you. Isaiah 23:1 This is the burden against Tyre: Wail, O ships of Tarshish, for Tyre is laid waste, without house or harbor. Word has reached them from the land of Cyprus. Isaiah 23:6 Cross over to Tarshish; wail, O inhabitants of the coastland! Isaiah 23:10 Cultivate your land like the Nile, O Daughter of Tarshish; there is no longer a harbor. Isaiah 23:13 Look at the land of the Chaldeans—a people now of no account. The Assyrians destined it for the desert creatures; they set up their siege towers and stripped its palaces. They brought it to ruin. 1 Kings 10:22 For the king had the ships of Tarshish at sea with Hiram’s fleet, and once every three years the ships of Tarshish would arrive bearing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. Jonah 1:3 Jonah, however, got up to flee to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa and found a ship bound for Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went aboard to sail for Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD. Treasury of Scripture The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. Genesis 10:21 Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born. 1 Chronicles 1:5-7 The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras… Isaiah 66:19 And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles. Jump to Previous Gomer Japheth Javan Madai Magog Meshech Tiras TubalJump to Next Gomer Japheth Javan Madai Magog Meshech Tiras TubalGenesis 10 1. The generations of Noah.2. Japheth. 6. Ham. 8. Nimrod becomes the first monarch; the descendants of Canaan. 21. The sons of Shem. The sons of Japheth: Japheth is one of the three sons of Noah, and his descendants are traditionally associated with the peoples of Europe and parts of Asia. The name Japheth is often linked to the idea of expansion or enlargement, which aligns with the spread of his descendants across vast territories. This lineage is significant in understanding the dispersion of nations after the flood, as described in Genesis 9:19. Gomer: Magog: Madai: Javan: Tubal: Meshech: Tiras: Persons / Places / Events 1. JaphethOne of Noah's three sons, traditionally considered the ancestor of many Indo-European nations. His descendants are often associated with the spread of peoples into Europe and parts of Asia. 2. Gomer Traditionally linked to the Cimmerians, an ancient people who lived in what is now southern Russia and Ukraine. 3. Magog Often associated with the Scythians, a nomadic group from the Eurasian steppes. Magog is also mentioned in prophetic literature as a symbol of future enemies of God's people. 4. Madai Identified with the Medes, an ancient Iranian people who lived in the area of modern-day Iran. 5. Javan Generally associated with the Ionians, an ancient Greek people. The name is often used in the Bible to refer to Greece. 6. Tubal Linked to a people who lived in the region of modern-day Turkey. Tubal is sometimes mentioned alongside Meshech in prophetic texts. 7. Meshech Often associated with a group that lived in the area of modern-day Turkey or the Caucasus region. 8. Tiras Traditionally linked to the Thracians, an ancient people who lived in the Balkans. Teaching Points Understanding Our RootsRecognize the importance of genealogies in the Bible as they connect us to the broader account of humanity and God's plan for the nations. God's Sovereignty Over Nations Reflect on how God has orchestrated the rise and fall of nations throughout history, as seen in the descendants of Japheth. Prophetic Significance Consider the prophetic implications of these names, especially in light of future events described in the Bible. Unity in Diversity Appreciate the diversity of cultures and peoples that have descended from Noah's sons, and how this diversity is part of God's design. Historical Context Gain a deeper understanding of the historical and cultural context of the Bible by studying the ancient peoples and regions mentioned in genealogies. Bible Study Questions and Answers 1. What is the meaning of Genesis 10:2?2. How does Genesis 10:2 illustrate the fulfillment of God's command in Genesis 9:1? 3. What significance do the descendants of Japheth have in biblical and world history? 4. How can understanding Genesis 10:2 enhance our grasp of God's sovereignty over nations? 5. How does Genesis 10:2 connect to the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19? 6. What lessons from Genesis 10:2 can we apply to our view of diversity? 7. Who were the sons of Japheth mentioned in Genesis 10:2, and what nations did they become? 8. How does Genesis 10:2 fit into the larger narrative of the Table of Nations? 9. What historical evidence supports the genealogies listed in Genesis 10:2? 10. What are the top 10 Lessons from Genesis 10? 11. Who were Meshech and Tubal in the Bible? 12. Who were Meshech and Tubal in the Bible? 13. Who was Gomer in the Bible? 14. What historical or archaeological evidence supports the existence of “Gog” and “Magog” as described in Ezekiel 38:2? What Does Genesis 10:2 Mean The sons of JaphethGenesis 10:2 sets out “The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras.” The verse functions like a title page for a whole branch of post-Flood history. Japheth, one of Noah’s three sons (Genesis 6:10; 9:18-27), receives the prophetic blessing of territorial expansion in Genesis 9:27. His line generally spreads north and west from Ararat, populating large portions of Europe and parts of Asia. The seven names that follow are tribes springing directly from him, each eventually giving rise to recognizable peoples and regions. Gomer • Ezekiel 38:6 links Gomer with the northern coalition that Gog musters “from the far north,” suggesting lands around the Black Sea. • Many historians associate Gomer with the Cimmerians, who moved across the Caucasus into Anatolia and toward Europe, fitting Genesis 10’s record of early migrations. • Through Gomer’s sons—Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah (Genesis 10:3)—we catch hints of later groups such as the Scythians and the peoples of Armenia. The biblical witness consistently treats these descendants as literal tribes whose footprints can be traced in ancient records. Magog • In Ezekiel 38:2, God addresses “Gog, of the land of Magog,” depicting Magog as a territory north of Israel that will one day play a role in end-times events (Revelation 20:8). • Josephus places Magog’s descendants among the Scythians, nomadic peoples who roamed from the Black Sea to Central Asia. • Genesis 10:2 therefore gives us Magog as a historical ancestor, while later prophecy lifts the name forward to describe nations that will challenge God’s people yet ultimately be overthrown. Madai • Madai becomes progenitor of the Medes, well known from the Medo-Persian Empire (2 Kings 17:6; Daniel 5:28). • Isaiah 13:17 foretells that God will “stir up the Medes” against Babylon, a fulfillment rooted in this Genesis ancestry. • The Medes’ partnership with Persia to topple Babylon shows Japheth’s descendants shaping the biblical narrative centuries after the Flood. Javan • The name aligns with the Ionians, early Greeks. Isaiah 66:19 lists Javan alongside “the distant islands” that will hear of God’s glory, pointing westward across the Mediterranean. • Daniel 8:21 identifies the “king of Greece” (literally Javan), confirming the prophetic significance of this lineage. • Through Javan’s sons—Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim (Genesis 10:4)—Scripture sketches the spread of maritime, trade-oriented cultures across the Aegean and beyond. Tubal • Ezekiel 27:13 mentions Tubal in Tyre’s trade network, dealing in “vessels of bronze,” implying a people skilled in metalwork. • Ezekiel 38:2 links Tubal with Meshech under Gog’s leadership, situating both in the far north relative to Israel—areas many equate with parts of modern Turkey or the Caucasus. • Ancient Assyrian inscriptions record a land called Tabal, echoing the biblical Tubal and confirming its historicity. Meshech • Psalm 120:5 laments dwelling “among Meshech,” a poetic way of describing remote, warlike territories. • Coupled with Tubal in Ezekiel 32:26 and 38:2, Meshech forms part of a northern confederation. Classical sources connect them with the Mushki in Anatolia. • The persistence of the name across texts underscores a real people group descending from Japheth. Tiras • Although Scripture gives little detail beyond Genesis 10:2, later historians (e.g., Josephus) link Tiras with Thrace, north of the Aegean Sea. • The Thracians’ reputation as fierce warriors meshes with the martial characterization of several Japhethite tribes (cf. Ezekiel 38:6). • Even with sparse data, the table of nations anchors Tiras in literal history, mapping the spread of humanity to Europe’s southeast corner. summary Genesis 10:2 is far more than a genealogical footnote; it is a God-given roadmap showing how Japheth’s seven sons seeded whole civilizations across Europe and Asia. Each name—Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras—marks a real line of descent, later echoed in prophetic passages and historical records. Taken together, they display the fulfillment of Noah’s blessing, trace the widening reach of humanity after the Flood, and prepare us for prophetic themes that reappear from Ezekiel to Revelation. (2) The sons of Japheth.--Of these, seven main divisions are enumerated, some of which are subsequently sub-divided; they are--1. Gomer, whose name reappears in the Cimmerians. Their original settlement was between Magog and Madai, that is, between the Scythians and the Medes. After remaining some time on the Caspian and Black Seas, on which latter they have left their name in the Crimea, a powerful branch of them struck across the centre of Russia, and, skirting the Baltic, became the Cimbri of Denmark (whence the name of the Chersonesus Cimbrica, given to Jutland), the Cymry of Wales, &c. Generally they are the race to which the " name is given of Celts. 2. Magog. The Scythians, who once possessed the country north and south of the Caucasus. The Russians are their modern representatives, being descended from the Sarmatians, a Scythic race, with a small admixture of Median blood. 3. Madai. The Medes, who dwelt to the south and south-west of the Caspian. Mada, in the Accadian language, means land, and it was in the Median territory that Kharsak-Kurra, "the mountain of the East," was situated, on which the Accadians believed the ark to have rested, whence possibly Media took its name, being "the land" above all others (Chald. Gen., p. 196). 4. Javan, that is, Ionia, the land of the Greeks. 5. Tubal. The Tibareni, on the south-east of the Black Sea. 6. Meshech. The Moschi, a people of Colchis and Armenia. 7. Tiras. According to Josephus and the Targum, the Thracians. Other races have been suggested, but this is probably right; and as the Getae, the ancestors of the Goths, were Thracians, this would make the Scandinavian race the modern representatives of Tiras. In this enumeration the race of Japheth is described as occupying Asia Minor, Armenia, the countries to the west as far as the Caspian Sea, and thence northward to the shores of the Black Sea. Subsequently it spread along the northern shores of the Mediterranean and. over all Europe. But though unnoticed by the writer its extension was equally remarkable towards the east. Parthia, Bactria, the Punjab, India, are equally Japhethite with Germany, Greece, and Rome; and in Sanscrit literature the Aryan first showed that genius, which, omitting the greatest of all books, the Semitic Bible, has made this race the foremost writers in the world. Verse 2. - The sons of Japheth are first mentioned not because Japheth was the eldest of the three brothers, although that was true, but because of the greater distance of the Japhetic tribes from the theocratic center, the Hamites having always been much more nearly situated to and closely connected with the Shemites than they. The immediate descendants of Japheth, whose name, Ἰάπετος, occurs again in the mythology of a Japhetic race, were fourteen m number, seven sons and seven grandsons, each of which became the progenitor of one of the primitive nations. Gomer. A people inhabiting "the sides of the north" (Ezekiel 38:6); the Galatae of the Greeks (Josephus, 'Ant.,' 1:06); the Chomarii, a nation in Bactriana on the Oxus (Shulthess, Kalisch); but more generally the Cimmerians of Homer ('Odyss.,' 11:13-19), whose abodes were the shores of the Caspian and Euxine, whence they seem to have spread themselves over Europe as far west as the Atlantic, leaving traces of their presence in the Cimhri of North Germany and the Cymri in Wales (Keil, Lange, Murphy, Wordsworth, 'Speaker's Commentary ). And Magog. A fierce and warlike people presided over by Gog (an appellative name, like the titles Pharaoh and Caesar, and corresponding with the Turkish Chak, the Tartarian Kak, and the Mongolian Gog: Kalisch), whose complete destruction was predicted by Ezekiel (Ezekiel 38, 39.); generally understood to be the Scythians, whose territory lay upon the borders of the sea of Asoph, and in the Caucasus. In the Apocalypse (Revelation 20:8-10) Gog and Magog appear as two distinct nations combined against the Church of God. And Madai. The inhabitants of Media (Mada in the cuneiform inscriptions), so called because believed to be situated περὶ μεσην τὴν Ασίαν (Polyb. 5:44) on the south-west shore of the Caspian And Javan. Identical with Ἰάων (Greek), Javana (Sanscrit), Juna (Old Persian), Jounan (Rosetta Stone); allowed to be the father of the Greeks, who in Scripture are styled Javan (vide Isaiah 66:19; Ezekiel 27:13; Daniel 8:21; Daniel 10:20; Joel 3:6). And Tubal, and Meshech. Generally associated in Scripture as tributaries of Magog (Ezekiel 38:2, 3; Ezekiel 39:1); recognized as the Iberians and Moschi in the north of Armenia, between the sources of the Tigris and Euphrates, and the Black Sea (Josephus, Knobel, Lange, Kalisch). And Tiras. The ancestor of the Thraciaus (Josephus), of the Tyrrheni, a branch of the Pelasgians (Tuch), of the Asiatic tribes round the Taurus (Kalisch), in support of which last is a circumstance mentioned by Rawlinson, that on the old Egyptian monuments Mashuash and Tuirash, and upon the Assyrian Tubal and Misek, stand together as here. Tiras occurs nowhere else in Scripture.Parallel Commentaries ... Hebrew The sonsבְּנֵ֣י (bə·nê) Noun - masculine plural construct Strong's 1121: A son of Japheth: יֶ֔פֶת (ye·p̄eṯ) Noun - proper - masculine singular Strong's 3315: Japheth -- a son of Noah Gomer, גֹּ֣מֶר (gō·mer) Noun - proper - masculine singular Strong's 1586: Gomer -- a son of Japheth, also his descendants, also the wife of Hosea Magog, וּמָג֔וֹג (ū·mā·ḡō·wḡ) Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular Strong's 4031: Magog -- perhaps 'land of Gog', a son of Japheth, also his descendants and their land Madai, וּמָדַ֖י (ū·mā·ḏay) Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular Strong's 4074: Media -- a son of Japheth, also his descendants and their land Javan, וְיָוָ֣ן (wə·yā·wān) Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular Strong's 3120: Javan -- a son of Japheth, also his descendants and their land Tubal, וְתֻבָ֑ל (wə·ṯu·ḇāl) Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular Strong's 8422: Tubal -- a son of Japheth, also his descendants and their land Meshech, וּמֶ֖שֶׁךְ (ū·me·šeḵ) Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular Strong's 4902: Meshech -- a son of Japheth, also his descendants and their land and Tiras. וְתִירָֽס׃ (wə·ṯî·rās) Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular Strong's 8494: Tiras -- a son of Japheth and his desc Links Genesis 10:2 NIVGenesis 10:2 NLT Genesis 10:2 ESV Genesis 10:2 NASB Genesis 10:2 KJV Genesis 10:2 BibleApps.com Genesis 10:2 Biblia Paralela Genesis 10:2 Chinese Bible Genesis 10:2 French Bible Genesis 10:2 Catholic Bible OT Law: Genesis 10:2 The sons of Japheth: Gomer Magog Madai (Gen. Ge Gn) |