Abraham's Lineage From Noah's Son Shem
Abraham's lineage traces back to Noah through his son Shem [6]. The biblical accounts in Genesis and 1 Chronicles consistently list Shem as one of Noah's three sons, alongside Ham and Japheth [2, 3, 4]. While some interpretations suggest Japheth was the elder, Shem is often mentioned first and is considered by some to be the eldest [1, 5].
After the great flood, Shem, his wife, and his family received God's blessing and entered into a covenant [1]. Noah also foretold Shem's preeminence [5]. The biblical narrative, particularly in Genesis 10 and 11, meticulously details the generations descending from Shem, specifically those leading to Abraham [7, 9]. This lineage was crucial for preserving the "city of God" after the flood, much as the line of Seth had done before it [7].
Abraham, whose original name was Abram, was born in Ur of the Chaldees, a region associated with the descendants of Shem [6, 8]. His father was Terah, who also had two other sons, Nahor and Haran. Haran died in Ur, leaving a son named Lot. Terah, Abram, Sarai (Abram's wife), and Lot then migrated to Haran in Mesopotamia, where Terah died. After his father's death, Abram, at 75 years old, continued his journey with Sarai and Lot [6].
The genealogies in Genesis emphasize Shem's line because it is through this lineage that the Messiah was prophesied to come [9, 10]. John Gill notes that the book of Genesis focuses on the generations of Shem primarily to show the ancestry of Abraham, from whom the Messiah would eventually descend [9, 10]. This focus highlights the preservation of the "church of God and the true religion" within this specific family line [10]. Augustine, in City of God, also underscores the importance of this genealogical record for understanding the progression of God's city from Abraham's era, when divine promises concerning Christ became more fully revealed [8].
Sources
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Shem — (name), the eldest son of Noah. (Genesis 5:32) He was 98 years old, married, and childless at the time of the flood. After it, he, with his father, brothers, sisters-in-law and wife, received the blessing of God, (Genesis 9:1) and entered into the covenant. With the help of his brother Japheth, he covered the nakedness of their father and received the first blessing. (Genesis 9:25-27) He died at the age of 630 years. The portion of the earth occupied by the descendants of Shem, (Genesis 10:21,31) begins at its northwestern extremity with Lydia, and includes Syr”
- I Chronicles “I Chronicles 1:4 (BSB) — The sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.”
- Genesis “Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. -- Genesis 6:10”
- Genesis “Genesis 10:1 (Darby) — And these are the generations of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth; and to them were sons born after the flood.”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Shem — A name; renown, the first mentioned of the sons of Noah (Gen. 5:32; 6:10). He was probably the eldest of Noah's sons. The words "brother of Japheth the elder" in Gen. 10:21 are more correctly rendered "the elder brother of Japheth," as in the Revised Version. Shem's name is generally mentioned first in the list of Noah's sons. He and his wife were saved in the ark (7:13). Noah foretold his preeminence over Canaan (9:23-27). He died at the age of six hundred years, having been for many years contemporary with Abraham, according to the usual chronology. The Isra”
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Abraham — (father of a multitude) was the son of Terah, and founder of the great Hebrew nation. (B.C. 1996-1822.) His family, a branch of the descendants of Shem, was settled in Ur of the Chaldees, beyond the Euphrates, where Abraham was born. Terah had two other sons, Nahor and Haran. Haran died before his father in Ur of the Chaldees, leaving a son, Lot; and Terah, taking with him Abram, with Sarai his wife and his grandson Lot, emigrated to Haran in Mesopotamia, where he died. On the death of his father, Abram, then in the 75th year of his age, with Sarai and Lot, ”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 2: Augustine — City of God, Christian Doctrine — CHAP. 10.----OF THE GENEALOGY OF SHEM, IN WHOSE LINE THE CITY OF GOD IS PRESERVED TILL THE TIME OF ABRAHAM. (part 1): It is necessary, therefore, to preserve the series of generations descending from Shem, for the sake of exhibiting the city of God after the flood; as before the flood it was exhibited in the series of generations descending from Seth. And therefore does divine Scripture, after exhibiting the earthly city as Babylon or "Confusion," revert to the patriarch Shem. and recapitulate the generations from him to Abraham, speci”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 2: Augustine — City of God, Christian Doctrine — CHAP. 12.--OF THE ERA IN ABRAHAM'S LIFE FROM WHICH A NEW PERIOD IN THE HOLY SUCCESSION BEGINS.: Let us now survey the progress of the city of God from the era of the patriarch Abraham, from whose time it begins to be more conspicuous, and the divine promises which are now fulfilled in Christ are more fully revealed. We learn, then, from the intimations of holy Scripture, that Abraham was born in the country of the Chaldeans, a land belonging to the Assyrian empire. Now, even at that time impious superstitions were rife with the Chaldea”
- Genesis (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Genesis 11:10: These are the generations of Shem,.... Or a genealogy of the posterity of Shem; not of all of them, only of those of the line which led to Abraham, by which might appear the true line in which the Messiah from Adam through Abraham sprung: Shem was one hundred years old, and begat Arphexad two years after the flood; by which it is pretty plain that he was younger than Japheth; See Gill on Gen 10:21 of Arphaxad his son; see Gill on Gen 10:22.”
- Genesis (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Genesis 10:21: Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber,.... And for the sake of those Shem is particularly said to be the father of, is this genealogy given, and indeed the whole book of Genesis wrote: Eber was the great-grandson of Shem, and is here spoken of by anticipation, and Shem is called not the father of either of his immediate sons, but of the posterity of this man; because the Hebrews sprung from him in his line, among whom the church of God and the true religion were preserved, and from whom the Messiah was to come, as he did: the word Eber, Jarchi inter”