I confess. I used to get lost in all the “begats” of the Bible, and I often skipped right over those passages. But as I’ve engaged in this study, I’ve realized that to understand my history better, I have to understand the genealogies. It’s like doing a Biblical DNA test to trace your ancestry. So we’re going to take a deep dive into Genesis 10. But before we jump into that analysis, I need you to consider the following information as we begin drawing conclusions about Africa and the descendants of Africa. 

Understanding Genealogy in general 

There is a lot written to discredit the validity of the Table of Nations (Genesis 10) and other genealogies within the Bible. And I could spend a lot of time trying to prove that they are real. However, as I’ve shared previously, the point of these Bible studies isn’t to debate and argue what was. Additionally, I’m coming from the perspective that the Bible is true, and although I may not always understand everything, I don’t doubt its validity. 

The thing with genealogies is that, although important, they can be tricky to understand. So, when reading the varying genealogies, we have to remember not to impose our modern expectations of precision on an ancient text written for very different purposes. Biblical genealogies were not meant to be exhaustive (From <https://biologos.org/series/how-should-we-interpret-biblical-genealogies/articles/the-genealogies-in-genesis-part-i>). 

An additional reason they might be challenging to understand, as noted above, is that the composition of Biblical genealogies differed. Some are unilinear, like in Genesis 4:25-26, or in Genesis 5:1-32, which lists the male head of each family from Adam to Noah and the descendants of Noah’s three sons or in Gen 11:20-26. These read with the understanding that “X is the son of Y.” However, a literal father/son relationship was not always the case. For example, the Hebrew word ben (begat) in Genesis 46:18 represents grandson. It can also demonstrate ancestral links. For example, when Matthew (1:9) says Uzziah (Azariah) fathered Jotham, he omits three kings who lived between them. Ahaziah reigned one year (2 Kings 8:26); Joash forty years (2 Kings 12:2) and Amaziah twenty-one years (2 Kings 14:2). Therefore Jotham would be a distant relative of Uzziah and not a direct son. Yet, he is listed next in the genealogy (From <https://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/don_stewart/don_stewart_719.cfm>). 

Others, like Genesis 10, are multilinear, more like a family tree, listing multiple branches of descendants in each generation (https://www.compellingtruth.org/Bible-genealogies.html). 

The genealogies are also complex to understand because they serve different purposes. One of the purposes of the Biblical genealogies was to determine who could serve in specific roles. For example, only Levites working in the tabernacle and temple and descendants of Aaron were able to serve as high priests. Also, certain activities in the Mosaic Law were limited to those who could prove there were Jewish descendants. Another purpose was to prove many Bible prophecies. For example, Jesus would be a Jew from the tribe of Judah. As Scripture predicted, he was also a descendent of Abraham and David (From <https://www.compellingtruth.org/Bible-genealogies.html>). 

Some genealogies also provided interesting information about people’s lives, as evidenced in I Chronicles 4:9-10, the passage regarding Jabez.

Other Genealogies list the names of tribes and or nations. In Genesis 25:12-18, the names listed are based on village names in areas surrounding Canaan but are not part of the land promised to Abraham and his descendants. And in Genesis 10, the list includes the corresponding tribes or nations of Noah’s descendants (From <https://bibleresources.americanbible.org/resource/genealogies-in-the-bible>).

So, although boring at times and confusing at others, genealogies are important for solidifying our belief that the Bible is real history and that we are, in fact, African descendants with a rich, royal, and God-ordained Biblical lineage. Genealogies help us trace the priestly and royal lines of Israel’s history. Genealogies also explain geographical proximity and ethnic similarity through family relationships. And when you look at the lives of some of the people included in varying genealogies (i.e., Tamar and Rahab), we begin to understand that God uses all kinds of people, even people like you and me (From <https://answersingenesis.org/bible-timeline/genealogy/gaps-in-the-genesis-genealogies/> and https://bibleproject.com/blog/jesus-genealogies/). Genealogies are essential specifically for:

• Substantiating the historical accuracy of the Bible,
• Confirming Biblical prophecy,  
• Revealing more about the nature of God with respect to His attention to detail, to order, and to not only seeing “kingdoms, nations, tribes, and families,” but seeing individual people like you and me, and 
• Showing that Jesus fulfilled the promise of God the Father.  

 From <https://answersingenesis.org/bible-timeline/genealogy/who-begat-whom/> 

Genesis 5:32 verifies the names of Noah’s three sons, Japheth, Shem and Ham. However, before we go further, we must first understand the significance of names and the naming of children in ancient Biblical times. In later studies I’ll go into more detail, but for our purposes, know that in ancient Biblical times, names were given intentionally. Names were more than just labels. For example, to the ancient Hebrews, nothing existed until it had a name and the name of a thing reflected its essence and very being. Names often expressed the person’s character as in the naming of Jacob (Genesis 25:26). Names sometimes signified origin like the naming of Adam, which in Hebrew meant “son of the red earth” (Genesis 2:7). Names offered explanations of something that the parents might have experienced, as seen in the naming of Issachar (Genesis 30:15-8). And sometimes, the name reflected the child’s appearance, as seen in the naming of Essau (Genesis 25:24).

So when we look at the meaning of the names of the sons of Noah, we come to understand that Japheth means to get bigger or to extend. Shem is often translated to mean “name.” However, the Hebrew translation is more akin to having a good name. And Ham is translated to mean warm, hot or burnt. Apparently, Ham’s name was reflective of his skin color (From <https://www.massbible.org/curse-of-ham-black-people>). 

For this study, we will focus on the line of Noah’s youngest son, Ham, the father of Cush, Mizraim, Phut and Canaan, who, along with their descendants, are recognized as having populated the African nations. Now Ham was most notably known for instigating the Noah family scandal. After the flood, Noah and his family worked to reestablish civilization. One day, Noah became drunk and passed out naked in his tent. When Ham entered Noah’s tent, he found his dad there, passed out and naked. Instead of covering him and respecting his dad’s privacy, Ham told his brothers of their father’s condition. Shem and Japheth walked backward into the tent, their faces turned respectfully away, and they covered their father. When Noah awoke, he realized what Ham had done to him. Noah then cursed one of Ham’s sons and blessed Shem and Japheth for their actions (Genesis 9:18-27). 

This “curse” has played a significant part in the justification of the enslavement and the oppression of Black Africans throughout the centuries. The story has been twisted, leading many to believe that God cursed Ham and that because Ham’s skin was “burnt” or black, then all of Ham’s Black descendants were cursed and destined to be “servants” or “slaves.” I just want to take a moment to dispel the lies. First of all, God did not curse Ham or Ham’s son Canaan. God spoke blessings over all of Noah’s sons and their descendants (Genesis 9:1-11). Next, Noah issued the curse (Genesis 9:24-27). Third, Noah did not curse Ham; he cursed Canaan, one of Ham’s sons (Genesis 9:25)  (From <https://africa.thegospelcoalition.org/article/curse-of-ham/> ). Finally, and most importantly, even if we had been cursed back then, we wouldn’t be cursed now. See, when Christ hung on the cross in our place, He took on the curses of the law and all of our sins so that we would no longer be under any curse. Because of God’s love for us and because of the sacrifice of His only begotten Son, we have been redeemed so that the blessings and promises of God are our rightful inheritance (Deuteronomy 21:23, Galatians 3:13).