Genesis 10:26-29

10:26 Joktan was the father of ¹  Almodad, ²  Sheleph, ³  Hazarmaveth, ⁴  Jerah, ⁵  10:27 Hadoram, Uzal, ⁶  Diklah, ⁷  10:28 Obal, ⁸  Abimael, ⁹  Sheba, ¹⁰  10:29 Ophir, ¹¹  Havilah, ¹²  and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan.

[10:26]  ¹ tn Heb “fathered.”

[10:26]  ² sn The name Almodad combines the Arabic article al with modad (“friend”). Almodad was the ancestor of a South Arabian people.

[10:26]  ³ sn The name Sheleph may be related to Shilph, a district of Yemen; Shalph is a Yemenite tribe.

[10:26]  ⁴ sn The name Hazarmaveth should be equated with Hadramawt, located in Southern Arabia.

[10:26]  ⁵ sn The name Jerah means “moon.”

[10:27]  ⁶ sn Uzal was the name of the old capital of Yemen.

[10:27]  ⁷ sn The name Diklah means “date-palm.”

[10:28]  ⁸ sn Obal was a name used for several localities in Yemen.

[10:28]  ⁹ sn The name Abimael is a genuine Sabean form which means “my father, truly, he is God.”

[10:28]  ¹⁰ sn The descendants of Sheba lived in South Arabia, where the Joktanites were more powerful than the Hamites.

[10:29]  ¹¹ sn Ophir became the name of a territory in South Arabia. Many of the references to Ophir are connected with gold (e.g., 1 Kgs 9:28, 10:11, 22:48; 1 Chr 29:4; 2 Chr 8:18, 9:10; Job 22:24, 28:16; Ps 45:9; Isa 13:12).

[10:29]  ¹² sn Havilah is listed with Ham in v. 7.