Genesis 10:21
Of Sem also, the father of all the children of Heber, the elder brother of Japheth, sons were born.
Open Genesis 10:21 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- De Sem quoque nati sunt, patre omnium filiorum Heber, fratre Japheth majore.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- Καὶ τῷ Σὴμ ἐγενήθη καὶ αὐτῷ, πατρὶ πάντων τῶν υἱῶν Ἔβερ, ἀδελφῷ Ἰάφεθ τοῦ μείζονος.
- Hebrew (WLC)
- וּלְשֵׁ֥ם יֻלַּ֖ד גַּם ה֑וּא אֲבִי֙ כָּל בְּנֵי עֵ֔בֶר אֲחִ֖י יֶ֥פֶת הַגָּדֽוֹל
Haydock's commentary
Of Heber. That is, of the nations beyond the Euphrates. Hebrews, &c. (Calmet)
The elder brother, fratre Japheth majore, may be rendered as well "Japheth being his elder brother," which, as we have already observed, was probably the case. By mentioning him alone, we may gather that Sem was elder than Cham, who is called the less or younger son. (Haydock)
The Hebrew may be translated either way. But the Chaldean, Liranus, and many excellent interpreters, make Japheth the eldest. (Calmet)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine City of God, Of the Generations of the Three Sons of Noah
It remains to mention the sons of Shem, Noah’s eldest son; for to him this genealogical narrative gradually ascends from the youngest. But in the commencement of the record of Shem’s sons there is an obscurity which calls for explanation, since it is closely connected with the object of our investigation. For we read, “Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Heber, the brother of Japheth the elder, were children born.” This is the order of the words: And to Shem was born Heber, even to himself, that is, to Shem himself was born Heber, and Shem is the father of all his children. We are intended to understand that Shem is the patriarch of all his posterity who were to be mentioned, whether sons, grandsons, great-grandsons, or descendants at any remove. For Shem did not beget Heber, who was indeed in the fifth generation from him. …