Bible Thesaurus: Nations

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Thesaurus

Nations (683 Occurrences)
... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia DESIRE OF ALL NATIONS. This phrase occurs
only in Haggai 2:7 (King James Version, the English Revised ...
/n/nations.htm - 58k

Stronger (59 Occurrences)
... See NIV). Genesis 25:23 Yahweh said to her, "Two nations are in your womb.
Two peoples will be separated from your body. The one ...
/s/stronger.htm - 23k

All (60349 Occurrences)
... verily held John to be a prophet" (Mark 11:32). MO Evans. DESIRE OF ALL
NATIONS. This phrase occurs only in Haggai 2:7 (King James ...
/a/all.htm - 16k

Arouse (24 Occurrences)
... (See NAS). Psalms 59:5 Even thou, O Jehovah God of hosts, the God of Israel, Arise
to visit all the nations: Be not merciful to any wicked transgressors. ...
/a/arouse.htm - 12k

Apportioned (24 Occurrences)
... Joshua 23:4 Behold, I have allotted to you these nations that remain, to be an
inheritance for your tribes, from the Jordan, with all the nations that I have ...
/a/apportioned.htm - 13k

Coastlands (29 Occurrences)
... Genesis 10:5 Of these were the islands of the nations divided in their lands, everyone
after his language, after their families, in their nations. (See NAS). ...
/c/coastlands.htm - 14k

Banner (20 Occurrences)
... Songs 6:4). 1. Military Ensigns among the Hebrews: The Hebrews, it would seem, like
the Assyrians, the Egyptians, and other ancient nations, had military ...
/b/banner.htm - 18k

Sea-lands (24 Occurrences)
... Sea-lands (24 Occurrences). Genesis 10:5 From these came the nations of the
sea-lands, with their different families and languages. (BBE). ...
/s/sea-lands.htm - 13k

Shatter (26 Occurrences)
... Numbers 24:8 God who brought him forth out of Egypt is for him like the lofty horns
of the wild-ox; he shall eat up the nations that are his adversaries, and ...
/s/shatter.htm - 14k

Clans (120 Occurrences)
... Genesis 10:5 Of these were the islands of the nations divided in their lands, everyone
after his language, after their families, in their nations. (See NIV). ...
/c/clans.htm - 34k

Bible Concordance

Nations (683 Occurrences)

Matthew 4:15 "Zebulun's land and Naphtali's land; the road by the Lake; the country beyond the Jordan; Galilee of the Nations!
(WEY DBY YLT)

Matthew 6:7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as those who are of the nations: for they think they shall be heard through their much speaking.
(DBY YLT)

Matthew 6:32 for all these things the nations seek after; for your heavenly Father knows that ye have need of all these things.
(DBY YLT)

Matthew 10:5 These twelve Jesus sent out when he had charged them, saying, Go not off into the way of the nations, and into a city of Samaritans enter ye not;
(DBY YLT)

Matthew 10:18 Yes, and you will be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony to them and to the nations.
(WEB DBY YLT)

Matthew 12:18 "Behold, my servant whom I have chosen; my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my Spirit on him. He will proclaim justice to the nations.
(WEB WEY DBY YLT NIV)

Matthew 12:21 In his name, the nations will hope."
(WEB WEY DBY YLT NIV)

Matthew 18:17 But if he will not listen to them, tell it to the assembly; and if also he will not listen to the assembly, let him be to thee as one of the nations and a tax-gatherer.
(DBY)

Matthew 20:19 and they will deliver him up to the nations to mock and to scourge and to crucify, and the third day he shall rise again.
(DBY YLT)

Matthew 20:25 But Jesus summoned them, and said, "You know that the rulers of the nations lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
(WEB DBY YLT)

Matthew 24:9 Then they will deliver you up to oppression, and will kill you. You will be hated by all of the nations for my name's sake.
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Matthew 24:14 This Good News of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.
(WEB KJV ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Matthew 24:30 Then will appear the Sign of the Son of Man in the sky; and then will all the nations of the earth lament, when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with great power and glory.
(WEY BBE NIV)

Matthew 25:32 Before him all the nations will be gathered, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Matthew 28:19 Therefore go, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Mark 10:33 Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of man shall be delivered up to the chief priests and to the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him up to the nations:
(DBY YLT)

Mark 10:42 Jesus summoned them, and said to them, "You know that they who are recognized as rulers over the nations lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
(WEB DBY YLT)

Mark 11:17 He taught, saying to them, "Isn't it written,'My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations?' But you have made it a den of robbers!"
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Mark 13:10 The Good News must first be preached to all the nations.
(WEB KJV ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Luke 2:31 Which Thou hast made ready in the sight of all nations--
(WEY BBE)

Luke 2:32 a light for revelation to the nations, and the glory of your people Israel."
(WEB YLT)

Luke 12:30 For the nations of the world seek after all of these things, but your Father knows that you need these things.
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV)

Luke 18:32 for he shall be delivered up to the nations, and shall be mocked, and insulted, and spit upon.
(DBY YLT)

Luke 21:24 They will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
(WEB KJV ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Luke 21:25 There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars; and on the earth anxiety of nations, in perplexity for the roaring of the sea and the waves;
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Luke 22:25 He said to them, "The kings of the nations lord it over them, and those who have authority over them are called'benefactors.'
(WEB DBY YLT)

Luke 24:47 and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Acts 4:25 who by the mouth of your servant, David, said,'Why do the nations rage, and the peoples plot a vain thing?
(WEB WEY BBE DBY YLT NIV)

Acts 4:27 For in truth against thy holy servant Jesus, whom thou hadst anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the nations, and peoples of Israel, have been gathered together in this city
(DBY YLT)

Acts 7:45 which also our fathers, in their turn, brought in with Joshua when they entered into the possession of the nations, whom God drove out before the face of our fathers, to the days of David,
(WEB WEY ASV BBE DBY YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Acts 9:15 But the Lord said to him, "Go your way, for he is my chosen vessel to bear my name before the nations and kings, and the children of Israel.
(WEB DBY YLT)

Acts 10:45 And the faithful of the circumcision were astonished, as many as came with Peter, that upon the nations also the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out:
(DBY YLT)

Acts 11:1 And the apostles and the brethren who were in Judaea heard that the nations also had received the word of God;
(DBY YLT)

Acts 11:18 And when they heard these things they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then indeed God has to the nations also granted repentance to life.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 13:19 When he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land for an inheritance, for about four hundred fifty years.
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Acts 13:42 And having gone forth out of the synagogue of the Jews, the nations were calling upon 'them' that on the next sabbath these sayings may be spoken to them,
(YLT)

Acts 13:46 And Paul and Barnabas spoke boldly and said, It was necessary that the word of God should be first spoken to you; but, since ye thrust it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, lo, we turn to the nations;
(DBY YLT)

Acts 13:47 for thus has the Lord enjoined us: I have set thee for a light of the nations, that thou shouldest be for salvation to the end of the earth.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 13:48 And those of the nations, hearing it, rejoiced, and glorified the word of the Lord, and believed, as many as were ordained to eternal life.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 14:2 But the Jews who did not believe stirred up the minds of those of the nations and made them evil-affected against the brethren.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 14:5 And when an assault was making, both of those of the nations and the Jews with their rulers, to use them ill and stone them,
(DBY YLT)

Acts 14:16 who in the generations gone by allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways.
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Acts 14:27 When they had arrived, and had gathered the assembly together, they reported all the things that God had done with them, and that he had opened a door of faith to the nations.
(WEB DBY YLT)

Acts 15:3 They therefore, having been set on their way by the assembly, passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, relating the conversion of those of the nations. And they caused great joy to all the brethren.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 15:7 When there had been much discussion, Peter rose up and said to them, "Brothers, you know that a good while ago God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the nations should hear the word of the Good News, and believe.
(WEB DBY YLT)

Acts 15:12 All the multitude kept silence, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul reporting what signs and wonders God had done among the nations through them.
(WEB DBY YLT)

Acts 15:14 Simeon has reported how God first visited the nations, to take out of them a people for his name.
(WEB DBY YLT)

Acts 15:17 In order that the rest of mankind may earnestly seek the Lord--even all the nations which are called by My name,"
(WEY DBY YLT)

Acts 15:19 Wherefore I judge, not to trouble those who from the nations turn to God;
(DBY YLT)

Acts 15:23 having by their hand written thus: The apostles, and the elders, and the brethren, to the brethren who are from among the nations at Antioch, and in Syria and Cilicia, greeting:
(DBY YLT)

Acts 17:26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
(KJV BBE WBS)

Acts 18:6 But as they opposed and spoke injuriously, he shook his clothes, and said to them, Your blood be upon your own head: I am pure; from henceforth I will go to the nations.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 21:11 and he having come unto us, and having taken up the girdle of Paul, having bound also his own hands and feet, said, 'Thus saith the Holy Spirit, The man whose is this girdle -- so shall the Jews in Jerusalem bind, and they shall deliver 'him' up to the hands of nations.'
(YLT)

Acts 21:19 And having saluted them, he related one by one the things which God had wrought among the nations by his ministry.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 21:21 And they have been informed concerning thee, that thou teachest all the Jews among the nations apostasy from Moses, saying that they should not circumcise their children, nor walk in the customs.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 21:25 But concerning those of the nations who have believed, we have written, deciding that they should observe no such thing, only to keep themselves both from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 22:21 "'Go,' He replied; 'I will send you as an Apostle to nations far away.'"
(WEY DBY YLT)

Acts 26:17 taking thee out from among the people, and the nations, to whom I send thee,
(DBY YLT)

Acts 26:20 but have, first to those both in Damascus and Jerusalem, and to all the region of Judaea, and to the nations, announced that they should repent and turn to God, doing works worthy of repentance.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 26:23 namely, whether Christ should suffer; whether he first, through resurrection of the dead, should announce light both to the people and to the nations.
(DBY YLT)

Acts 28:28 "Be it known therefore to you, that the salvation of God is sent to the nations. They will also listen."
(WEB DBY YLT)

Romans 1:5 through whom we received grace and apostleship, for obedience of faith among all the nations, for his name's sake;
(WEB KJV ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT RSV)

Romans 1:13 And I desire you to know, brethren, that I have many a time intended to come to you--though until now I have been disappointed--in order that among you also I might gather some fruit from my labours, as I have already done among the rest of the Gentile nations.
(WEY BBE DBY YLT)

Romans 1:14 I have a debt to Greeks and to the nations outside; to the wise and to those who have no learning.
(BBE)

Romans 2:14 For when those of the nations, which have no law, practise by nature the things of the law, these, having no law, are a law to themselves;
(DBY YLT)

Romans 2:24 For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentile nations because of you, as Holy Writ declares.
(WEY DBY YLT)

Romans 3:29 Is God the God of Jews only? is he not of the nations also? Yea, of nations also:
(DBY YLT)

Romans 3:30 yes, also of nations; since one 'is' God who shall declare righteous the circumcision by faith, and the uncircumcision through the faith.
(YLT)

Romans 4:17 As it is written, "I have made you a father of many nations." This is in the presence of him whom he believed: God, who gives life to the dead, and calls the things that are not, as though they were.
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Romans 4:18 Who in hope believed against hope, to the end that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken, "So will your seed be."
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Romans 9:24 us, whom he has also called, not only from amongst the Jews, but also from amongst the nations?
(DBY YLT)

Romans 9:30 What then may we say? That the nations who did not go after righteousness have got righteousness, even the righteousness which is of faith:
(BBE DBY YLT)

Romans 11:11 I say then, Have they stumbled in order that they might fall? Far be the thought: but by their fall there is salvation to the nations to provoke them to jealousy.
(DBY YLT)

Romans 11:12 But if their fall be the world's wealth, and their loss the wealth of the nations, how much rather their fulness?
(DBY YLT)

Romans 11:13 For I speak to you, the nations, inasmuch as I am apostle of nations, I glorify my ministry;
(DBY YLT)

Romans 11:25 For I do not wish you to be ignorant, brethren, of this mystery, that ye may not be wise in your own conceits, that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the nations be come in;
(DBY YLT)

Romans 14:23 But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because it isn't of faith; and whatever is not of faith is sin. (24) Now to him who is able to establish you according to my Good News and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret through long ages, (25) but now is revealed, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, is made known for obedience of faith to all the nations; (26) to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever! Amen.
(WEB)

Romans 15:9 and that the nations should glorify God for mercy; according as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the nations, and will sing to thy name.
(DBY YLT)

Romans 15:10 And again he says, Rejoice, nations, with his people.
(DBY YLT)

Romans 15:11 And again, Give praise to the Lord, all you Gentiles; and let all the nations give praise to him.
(BBE DBY YLT)

Romans 15:12 And again, Esaias says, There shall be the root of Jesse, and one that arises, to rule over the nations: in him shall the nations hope.
(DBY YLT NIV)

Romans 15:16 for me to be minister of Christ Jesus to the nations, carrying on as a sacrificial service the message of glad tidings of God, in order that the offering up of the nations might be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
(DBY YLT)

Romans 15:18 For I will not dare to speak anything of the things which Christ has not wrought by me, for the obedience of the nations, by word and deed,
(DBY YLT)

Romans 15:27 They have been well pleased indeed, and they are their debtors; for if the nations have participated in their spiritual things, they ought also in fleshly to minister to them.
(DBY YLT)

Romans 16:4 (who for my life staked their own neck; to whom not I only am thankful, but also all the assemblies of the nations,)
(DBY YLT)

Romans 16:26 But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith:
(KJV ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

1 Corinthians 1:23 but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews an offence, and to nations foolishness;
(DBY)

1 Corinthians 5:1 It is universally reported that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not even among the nations, so that one should have his father's wife.
(DBY YLT)

1 Corinthians 10:20 But that what the nations sacrifice they sacrifice to demons, and not to God. Now I do not wish you to be in communion with demons.
(DBY YLT)

1 Corinthians 12:2 Ye know that when ye were of the nations ye were led away to dumb idols, in whatever way ye might be led.
(DBY YLT)

2 Corinthians 11:26 in journeyings often, in perils of rivers, in perils of robbers, in perils from my own race, in perils from the nations, in perils in the city, in perils in the desert, in perils on the sea, in perils among false brethren;
(DBY YLT)

Galatians 1:16 was pleased to reveal his Son in me, that I may announce him as glad tidings among the nations, immediately I took not counsel with flesh and blood,
(DBY YLT)

Galatians 2:2 and I went up according to revelation, and I laid before them the glad tidings which I preach among the nations, but privately to those conspicuous among them, lest in any way I run or had run in vain;
(DBY YLT)

Galatians 2:8 for He who did work with Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, did work also in me in regard to the nations,
(YLT)

Galatians 2:9 and recognising the grace given to me, James and Cephas and John, who were conspicuous as being pillars, gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship, that we should go to the nations, and they to the circumcision;
(DBY YLT)

Galatians 2:12 for before that certain came from James, he ate with those of the nations; but when they came, he drew back and separated himself, fearing those of the circumcision;
(DBY YLT)

Galatians 2:15 We, Jews by nature, and not sinners of the nations,
(DBY YLT)

Galatians 3:8 The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the Good News beforehand to Abraham, saying, "In you all the nations will be blessed."
(WEB KJV WEY ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV)

Galatians 3:9 Blessed in thee shall be all the nations;' so that those of faith are blessed with the faithful Abraham,
(YLT)

Galatians 3:14 Our freedom has been thus purchased in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing belonging to Abraham may come upon the nations, so that through faith we may receive the promised Spirit.
(WEY DBY YLT)

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

DESIRE OF ALL NATIONS

This phrase occurs only in Haggai 2:7 (King James Version, the English Revised Version "desirable things," the American Revised Version, margin "things desired"), and is commonly applied to the Messiah.

At the erection of the temple in Ezra's time, the older men who had seen the more magnificent house of Solomon were disappointed and distressed at the comparison. The prophet, therefore, is directed to encourage them by the assurance that Yahweh is with them nevertheless, and in a little while will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, the dry land and the nations, and "the desire of all nations" shall come, and the house shall be filled with glory, so that "the later glory of this house shall be greater than the former."

(1) Many expositors refer the prophecy to the first advent of Christ. The shaking of the heavens, the earth, the sea and the dry land is the figurative setting of the shaking of the nations, while this latter expression refers to those changes of earthly dominion coincident with the overthrow of the Persians by the Greeks, the Greeks by the Romans, and so on down to the beginning of our era. The house then in process of construction was filled with glory by the later presence of the Messiah, which glory was greater than the Shekinah of Solomon's time. Objections are presented to this view as follows: First, there is the element of time. Five centuries, more or less, elapsed between the building of Ezra's temple and the first advent of Christ, and the men of Ezra's time needed comfort for the present. Then there is the difficulty of associating the physical phenomena with any shaking of the nations occurring atthe first advent. Furthermore, in what sense, it is asked, could Christ, when He came, be said to be the desire of all nations? And finally, what comfort would a Jew find in this magnifying of the Gentiles?

(2) These difficulties, though not insuperable, lead others to apply the prophecy to the second advent of Christ. The Jews are to be restored to Jerusalem, and another temple is to be built (Ezekiel 40-48). The shaking of the nations and the physical phenomena find their fulfillment in the "Great Tribulation" so often spoken of in the Old Testament and Revelation, and which is followed by the coming of Christ in glory to set up His kingdom (Malachi 3:1 Matthew 24:29, 30 and other places). Some of the difficulties spoken of in the first instance apply here also, but not all of them, while others are common to both interpretations. One such common difficulty is that Ezra's temple can hardly be identified with that of the time of Herod and Christ, and certainly not with that of Ezekiel; which is met, however, by saying that all the temples, including Solomon's, are treated as but one "house"-the house of the Lord, in the religious sense, at least, if not architecturally. Another such difficulty touches the question of time, which, whether it includes five centuries or twenty, is met by the principle that to the prophets, "ascending in heart to God and the eternity of God, all times and all things of this world are only a mere point." When the precise time of particular events is not revealed, they sometimes describe them as continuous, and sometimes blend two events together, having a near or partial, and also a remote or complete fulfillment. "They saw the future in space rather than in time, or the perspective rather than the actual distance." It is noted that the Lord Jesus so blends together the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus, A.D. 70, and the days of the anti-Christ at the end of this age, that it is difficult to separate them, and to say which belongs exclusively to either (Matthew 24). That the words may have an ultimate fulfillment in the second advent of Christ receives strength from a comparison of Haggai 2:21, 22 with Hebrews 12:26, 27. The writer of that epistle condenses the two passages in Haggai 2:6, 7 and Haggai 2:21, 22, implying that it was one and the same shaking, of which the former verses denote the beginning, and the latter the end. The shaking, in other words, began introductory to the first advent and will be finished at the second. Concerning the former, compare Matthew 3:17; Matthew 27:51; Matthew 28:2 Acts 2:2; Acts 4:31, and concerning the latter, Matthew 24:7 Revelation 16:20; Revelation 20:11 (Bengel, quoted by Canon Faussett).

(3) Other expositors seek to cut the Gordian knot by altogether denying the application to the Messiah, and translating "the desire of all nations" by "the beauty," or "the desirable things of all nations," i.e. their precious gifts (see Isaiah 60:5, 11; Isaiah 61:6). This application is defended in the following way:

(a) The Hebrew word means the quality and not the thing desired;

(b) the Messiah was not desired by all the nations when He came;

(c) the verb "shall come" is plural, which requires the noun to be understood in the plural, whereas if the Messiah be intended, the noun is singular;

(d) "The silver is mine," etc. (Haggai 2:8) accords with the translation "the desirable things of all nations";

(e) the agreement of the Septuagint and Syriac versions with such rendering.

All these arguments, however, can be fairly met by counter-arguments, leaving the reader still in doubt.

(a) An abstract noun is often put for the concrete;

(b) the result shows that while the Jews rejected Christ, the Gentiles received and hence, desired Him;

(c) where two nouns stand together after the manner of "the desire" and "nations," the verb agrees in number sometimes with the latter, even though the former be its nominative;

(d) the 8th verse of the prophecy can be harmonized about as easily with one view as the other;

(e) the King James Version is sustained by the Vulgate (Jerome's Latin Bible, 390-405 A.D.) and early Jewish rabbis.

James M. Gray

DISPERSION OF NATIONS

See BABEL; DISPERSION; TABLE OF NATIONS.

HAROSHETH, OF THE GENTILES, OF THE NATIONS

ha-ro'-sheth or (charosheth ha-goyim): There is now no means of discovering what is meant by the phrase "of the nations." This is the place whence Sisera led his hosts to the Kishon against Deborah and Barak (Judges 4:13), to which the discomfited and leaderless army fled after their defeat (Judges 4:16). No site seems so well to meet the requirements of the narrative as el Charithiyeh. There are still the remains of an ancient stronghold on this great double mound, which rises on the North bank of the Kishon, in the throat of the pass leading by the base of Carmel, from the coast to Esdraelon. It effectually commands the road which here climbs the slope, and winds through the oak forest to the plain; Megiddo being some 16 miles distant. The modern also preserves a reminiscence of the ancient name. By emending the text, Cheyne would here find the name "Kadshon," to be identified with Kedesh in Galilee (EB, under the word). On any reasonable reading of the narrative this is unnecessary.

W. Ewing

NATIONS

na'-shunz.

See GENTILES; GOIIM; HEATHEN; TABLE OF NATIONS.

TABLE OF NATIONS

" 1. The Table and Its Object

2. What It Includes and Excludes

3. Order of the Three Races

4. Extent of Each

5. Sons of Japheth

6. Sons and Descendants of Ham

7. Further Descendants of Ham

8. Sons of Shem

9. Further Descendants of Shem

10. Value of Table and Its Historical Notes

11. Further Arguments for Early Date of Table

1. The Table and Its Object:

This is the expression frequently used to indicate "the generations of the sons of Noah" contained in Genesis 10. These occupy the whole chapter, and are supplemented by Genesis 11:1-9, which explain how it came about that there were so many languages in the world as known to the Hebrews. The remainder of Genesis 11 traces the descent of Abram, and repeats a portion of the information contained in Genesis 10 on that account only. The whole is seemingly intended to lead up to the patriarch's birth.

2. What It Includes and Excludes:

Noah and his family being the only persons left alive after the Flood, the Table naturally begins with them, and it is from his three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, that the inhabitants of the earth, as known to the Hebrews, were descended. All others-the Mongolians of the Far East and Japan, the American Indians, both North and South, the natives of Australia and New Zealand-were naturally omitted from the list. It may, of course, be argued that all the nations not regarded as descended from Shem and Japheth might be included among the descendants of Ham; but apart from the fact that this would give to Ham far more than his due share of the human race, it would class the Egyptians and Canaanites with the Mongolians, Indians, etc., which seems improbable. "The Table of Nations," in fact, excludes the races of which the Semitic East was in ignorance, and which could not, therefore, be given according to their lands, languages, families, and nations (Genesis 10:5, 20, 31).

3. Order of the Three Races:

Notwithstanding that the sons of Noah are here (Genesis 10:1) and elsewhere mentioned in the order Shem, Ham and Japheth (Genesis 5:32; Genesis 6:10), and Ham was apparently the youngest (see HAM), the Table begins (Genesis 10:2) with Japheth, enumerates then the descendants of Ham (Genesis 10:6), and finishes with those of Shem (Genesis 10:21). This order in all probability indicates the importance of each race in the eyes of the Hebrews, who as Semites were naturally interested most in the descendants of Shem with whom the list ends. This enabled the compiler to continue the enumeration of Shem's descendants in Genesis 11:12 immediately after the verses dealing with the building of the Tower of Babel and the Confusion of Tongues.

4. Extent of Each:

The numbers of the descendants of each son of Noah, however, probably bear witness to the compiler's knowledge, rather than their individual importance in his eyes. Thus, the more remote and less known race of Japheth is credited with 14 descendants only (7 sons and 7 grandsons), while Ham has no less than 29 descendants (4 sons, 23 grandsons, and 2 great-grandsons), and Shem the same (5 sons, 5 grandsons, 1 great-grandson, and 20 remoter descendants to the 6th generation). Many of the descendants of Shem and Ham, however, are just as obscure as the descendants of Japheth. How far the relationship to the individual sons of Noah is to be taken literally is uncertain. The earlier names are undoubtedly those of nations, while afterward we have, possibly, merely tribes, and in chapter 11 the list develops into a genealogical list of individuals.

5. Sons of Japheth:

It is difficult to trace a clear system in the enumeration of the names in the Table. In the immediate descendants of Japheth (Genesis 10:2), Gomer, Magog, Tubal and Mesech, we have the principal nations of Asia Minor, but Madai stands for the Medes on the extreme East, and Javan (the Ionians) for the Greeks (? and Romans) on the extreme West (unless the Greeks of Asia Minor were meant). Gomer's descendants apparently located themselves northward of this tract, while the sons of Javan extended themselves along the Mediterranean coastlands westward, Tarshish standing, apparently, for Spain, Kittim being the Cyprians, and Rodanim the Rhodians.

6. Sons and Descendants of Ham:

Coming to the immediate descendants of Ham (Genesis 10:6), the writer begins with those on the South and then goes northward in the following order: Cush or Ethiopia, Mizraim or Egypt, Phut (better Put, the Revised Version (British and American)) by the Red Sea, and lastly Canaan-the Holy Land-afterward occupied by the Israelites. The sons of Cush, which follow (Genesis 10:7), are apparently nationalities of the Arabian coast, where Egyptian influence was predominant. These, with the sons of Raamah, embrace the interior of Africa as known to the Hebrews, and the Arabian tract as far as Canaan, its extreme northern boundary. The reference to Babylonia (Nimrod) may be regarded as following not unnaturally here, and prominence is given to the district on account of its importance and romantic history from exceedingly early times. Nevertheless, this portion (Genesis 10:8-12) reads like an interpolation, as it not only records the foundation of the cities of Babylonia, but those of Assyria as well-the country mentioned lower down (Genesis 10:22) among the children of Shem.

7. Further Descendants of Ham:

The text then goes back to the West again, and enumerates the sons of Mizraim or Egypt (Genesis 10:13), mostly located on the southeastern and eastern shores of the Mediterranean. These include the "Libyans in the narrowest sense" (Lehabim), two districts regarded as Egyptian (Naphtuhim and Pathrusim), the Casluhim from whom came the Philistines, and the Caphtorim, probably not the Cappadocians of the Targums, but the island of Crete, "because such a large island ought not to be wanting" (Dillmann). The more important settlements in the Canaanitish sphere of influence are referred to as the sons of Canaan (Genesis 10:15)-Sidon, Heth (the Hittites), the Jebusites (who were in occupation of Jerusalem when the Israelites took it), the Amorites (whom Abraham found in Canaan), and others. Among the sons of Canaan are, likewise, the Girgashites, the Arkites and Sinites near Lebanon, the Arvadites of the coast, and the Hamathites, in whose capital, Hamath, many hieroglyphic inscriptions regarded as records of the Hittites or people of Heth have been found. It is possibly to this occupation of more or less outlying positions that the "spreading abroad" of the families of the Canaanites (Genesis 10:18) refers. In Genesis 10:19 the writer has been careful to indicate "the border of the Canaanites," that being of importance in view of the historical narrative which was to follow; and here he was evidently on familiar ground. 8. Sons of Shem:

In his final section-the nations descended from Shem (Genesis 10:21)-the compiler again begins with the farthest situated-the Elamites-after which we have Asshur (Assyria), to the Northwest; Arpachshad (? the Chaldeans), to the West; Lud (Lydia), Northwest of Assyria; and Aram (the Aramean states), South of Lud and West of Assyria. The tribes or states mentioned as the sons of Aram (Uz, Hul, Gether and Mash), however, do not give the names with which we are familiar in the Old Testament (Aram Naharaim, Aram Zobah, etc.), and have evidently to be sought in different positions, indicating that they represent an earlier stage of their migrations. With regard to their positions, it has been suggested that Uz lay in the neighborhood of the Hauran and Damascus; Hul near the Sea of Galilee; and that Mash stands for Mons Masius. This last, however, may have been the land of Mas, West of Babylonia.

9. Further Descendants of Shem:

Only one son is attributed to Arpachshad, namely, Shelah (shalach, shelach, Genesis 10:24), unidentified as a nationality. This name should, however, indicate some part of Babylonia, especially if his son, Eber, was the ancestor of the Hebrews, who were apparently migrants from Ur (Mugheir) (see ABRAHAM; UR OF THE CHALDEES). Though Peleg, "in whose days the land was divided," may not have been an important link in the chain, the explanatory phrase needs notice. It may refer to the period when the fertilizing watercourses of Babylonia-the "rivers of Babylon" (Psalm 137:1)-were first constructed (one of their names was pelegh), or to the time when Babylonia was divided into a number of small states, though this latter seems to be less likely. Alternative renderings for Selah, Eber and Peleg are "sending forth" (Bohlen), "crossing" (the Euphrates), and "separation" (of the Joktanites) (Bohlen), respectively.

The Babylonian geographical fragment 80-6-17, 504 has a group explained as Pulukku, perhaps a modified form of Peleg, followed by (Pulukku) sa ebirti, "Pulukku of the crossing", the last word being from the same root as Eber. This probably indicates a city on one side of the river (? Euphrates), at a fordable point, and a later foundation bearing the same name on the other side.

Reu, Serug, and Nahor, however, are regarded generally as place-names, and Terah as a personal name (the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran). From this point onward the text (Genesis 11:27) becomes the history of the Israelite nation, beginning with these patriarchs.

10. Value of Table and Its Historical Notes:

Arguments for its early date.-There is hardly any doubt that we have in this ethnographical section of Genesis one of the most valuable records of its kind. Concerning the criticisms upon it which have been made, such things are unavoidable, and must be regarded as quite legitimate, in view of the importance of the subject. The interpolated sections concerning Nimrod and the Tower of Babel are such as would be expected in a record in which the compiler aimed at giving all the information which he could, and which he thought desirable for the complete understanding of his record. It may be regarded as possible that this information was given in view of the connection of Abraham with Babylonia. In his time there were probably larger cities than Babylon, and this would suggest that the building of the Babylonian capital may have been arrested. At the time of the captivity on the other hand, Babylon was the largest capital in then known world, and the reference to its early abandonment would then have conveyed no lesson-seeing the extent of the city, the reader realized that it was only a short setback from which it had suffered, and its effects had long since ceased to be felt.

11. Further Arguments for Early Date of Table:

Limits of its information.-For the early date of the Table also speaks the limited geographical knowledge displayed. Sargon of Agade warred both on the East and the West of Babylonia, but he seems to have made no expeditions to the North, and certainly did not touch either Egypt or Ethiopia. This suggests not only that the information available was later than his time, but also that it was obtained from merchants, travelers, envoys and ambassadors. The scantiness of the information about the North of Europe and Asia, and the absence of any reference to the Middle or the Far East, imply that communications were easiest on the West, the limit of trade in that direction being apparently Spain. If it could be proved that the Phoenicians came as far westward as Britain for their tin, that might fix the latest date of the compilation of the Table, as it must have been written before it became known that their ships went so far; but in that case, the date of their earliest journeys thither would need to be fixed. Noteworthy is the absence of any reference to the Iranians (Aryan Persians) on the East. These, however, may have been included with the Medes (Madai), or one of the unidentified names of the descendants of Japheth in Genesis 10:2, 3.

SeeSHEM; HAM; JAPHETH, and the other special articles in this Encyclopedia; also, for a great mass of information and theories by many scholars and specialists, Dillmann, Kurzgefasstes exegetisches Handbuch zum Altes Testament, "Die Genesis," Leipzig, 1882; W. Max Muller, Asien und Europa, Leipzig, 1893; and F. Hommel, Grundriss der Geographic und Geschichte des alten Orients, Munich, 1904.

T. G. Pinches

Greek

1484. ethnos -- a race, a nation, pl. the nations (as distinct ...
... the nations (as distinct from Isr.). Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter Transliteration:
ethnos Phonetic Spelling: (eth'-nos) Short Definition: a race, people, the ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1484.htm - 7k

896. Baal -- Baal, a Canaanite deity
... Transliteration: Baal Phonetic Spelling: (bah'-al) Short Definition: Baal Definition:
Baal, chief deity of the Phoenicians and other Semitic nations. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/896.htm - 6k

4275. proeido -- to foresee
... 8 The Scripture, (4275a) that God would justify the Gentiles by (4102 ), preached
the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, " all the nations will be blessed ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4275.htm - 7k

Strong's Hebrew

1471. goy -- nation, people
... 1470, 1471. goy. 1472 . nation, people. Transliteration: goy Phonetic
Spelling: (go'-ee) Short Definition: nations. Word Origin ...
/hebrew/1471.htm - 6k

524. ummah -- a nation
... 523, 524. ummah. 525 . a nation. Transliteration: ummah Phonetic Spelling:
(oom-maw') Short Definition: nations. Word Origin (Aramaic ...
/hebrew/524.htm - 6k

776. erets -- earth, land
... territories (1), wild (1), world (3). common, country, earth, field, ground,
land, nations, way,. From an unused root probably meaning ...
/hebrew/776.htm - 6k

3816. leom -- people
... Word Origin from an unused word Definition people NASB Word Usage nation (1), nations
(11), other (1), people (4), peoples (17), peoples' (1). nation, people. ...
/hebrew/3816.htm - 6k

3865. Lud -- a son of Shem, also his desc. and their land
... and their land NASB Word Usage Lud (5). Lud, Lydia. Probably of foreign derivation;
Lud, the name of two nations -- Lud, Lydia. 3864, 3865. Lud. 3866 . ...
/hebrew/3865.htm - 6k

5971a. am -- people
... Ammi (1), army (2), army* (1), citizens (3), creatures (1), each people (2), every
people (2), fellow* (3), force (1), men (1), nation (1), nations (4), own ...
/hebrew/5971a.htm - 5k

Library

The Hardening of Nations.
... Second Chapter. LOVE. XXXV. The Hardening of Nations. "The election hath
obtained it, and the rest were hardened."" Romans 11:7. St. ...
/.../kuyper/the work of the holy spirit/xxxv the hardening of nations.htm

Early Israel and the Surrounding Nations
Early Israel and the Surrounding Nations. <. Early Israel and the
Surrounding Nations Archibald Sayce. Produced by Jonathan ...
//christianbookshelf.org/sayce/early israel and the surrounding nations/

The Present Distress of Nations.
... Chapter Six The Signs of the Redeemer's Return 6. The present Distress
of Nations. "And there shall be signs in the sun, and in ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/pink/the redeemers return/6 the present distress of.htm

Whether the Right of Nations is the Same as the Natural Right?
... OF RIGHT (FOUR ARTICLES) Whether the right of nations is the same as the
natural right? Objection 1: It would seem that the right ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether the right of nations.htm

Israel and the Nations.
... THE OUTPOURING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT XXVI. Israel and the Nations. "Because that on
the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.""Acts 10:45. ...
/.../kuyper/the work of the holy spirit/xxvi israel and the nations.htm

In what Manner the Nations in the Interior of India were ...
... Book I. Chapter XIX. "In what Manner the Nations in the Interior of India
were Christianized in the Times of Constantine. We must ...
/.../the ecclesiastical history of scholasticus/chapter xix name what manner.htm

The Veil Over all Nations
... THE VEIL OVER ALL NATIONS. ... It will then be an emblem of that which obscures
for 'all nations the face of God.' And what is that but sin? ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture h/the veil over all nations.htm

The Teuton Nations.
... LESSON XXVIII. THE TEUTON NATIONS. ... The nations to whom these hired soldiers belonged,
were the forefathers of most of the present people of Europe. ...
/.../yonge/the chosen people/lesson xxviii the teuton nations.htm

How the Midianites and Other Nations Fought against the Israelites ...
... CHAPTER 6. How The Midianites And Other Nations Fought Against The Israelites And
Beat Them, And Afflicted Their Country For Seven Years, How They Were ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 6 how the midianites.htm

What Say You, O Races and Nations, Given up to Such Beliefs? when ...
... Book V. 14 What say you, O races and nations, given up to such beliefs? When these
things� What say you, O races and nations, given up to such beliefs? ...
/.../arnobius/the seven books of arnobius against the heathen/14 what say you o.htm

Subtopics

Nations

Related Terms

Stronger (59 Occurrences)

All (60349 Occurrences)

Arouse (24 Occurrences)

Apportioned (24 Occurrences)

Coastlands (29 Occurrences)

Banner (20 Occurrences)

Sea-lands (24 Occurrences)

Shatter (26 Occurrences)

Clans (120 Occurrences)