Man's BEGINNINGS

Friday, May 31, 2024

ROOTS of AFRICA

Song of Solomon 1:5-6

King James Version

5 I am black, but comely,

O ye daughters of Jerusalem,

as the tents of Kedar,

as the curtains of Solomon.

6 Look not upon me, because I am black,

because the sun hath looked upon me:

my mother's children were angry with me;

they made me the keeper of the vineyards;

but mine own vineyard have I not kept.

How did the African race begin?

What are its roots?

What is its future?

What does the Bible say?

First, we look to the roots.

Noah had three sons:

Genesis 9:18-19

King James Version

18 And the sons of Noah,

that went forth of the ark,

were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth:

and Ham is the father of Canaan.

19 These are the three sons of Noah:

and of them was the whole earth overspread.

Genesis 10:1

King James Version

10 Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah,

Shem, Ham, and Japheth:

and unto them were sons born

after the flood.

His son, Ham, had four sons:

Genesis 10:6

King James Version

6 And the sons of Ham;

Cush, and Mizraim,

and Phut, and Canaan*.

Of his four sons, three represented the roots of Africa:

Cush (Ethiopia)

Mizraim (Egypt)

Phut (Libya)

Genesis 10:7

King James Version

7 And the sons of Cush;

Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah,

and Raamah, and Sabtechah:

and the sons of Raamah;

Sheba, and Dedan.

Genesis 10:8-12

King James Version

8 And Cush begat Nimrod:

he began to be a mighty one in the earth.

9 He was a mighty hunter before the Lord:

wherefore it is said,

Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord.

10 And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel,

and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.

11 Out of that land went forth Asshur,

and builded Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah,

12 And Resen between Nineveh and Calah:

the same is a great city.

Genesis 10:13-14

King James Version

13 And Mizraim begat Ludim, and Anamim,

and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim,

14 And Pathrusim, and Casluhim,

(out of whom came Philistim,)

and Caphtorim.

Africa's future?

There will be a remnant:

Isaiah 11:10-12

King James Version

10 And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse,

which shall stand for an ensign of the people;

to it shall the Gentiles seek:

and his rest shall be glorious.

11 And it shall come to pass in that day,

that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time

to recover the remnant of his people,

which shall be left,

from Assyria,

and from Egypt,

and from Pathros,

and from Cush,

and from Elam,

and from Shinar,

and from Hamath,

and from the islands of the sea.

12 And he shall set up an ensign for the nations,

and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel,

and gather together the dispersed of Judah

from the four corners of the earth.

*To know more about Ham's other son, Canaan, we have a blog just on him, and his tribe.

Click here.

Know more about Africa, and the Bible:

The Untold History of AFRICA in the Bible

Have a 9-minute tour of African nations:

AFRICAN COUNTRIES - Learn Africa Map and the Countries of Africa Continent

Related material:

Africa

Image: Clipart Library

Friday, November 24, 2023

Sons of SHEM

Genesis 10:31

King James Version

31 These are the sons of Shem, after their families,

after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations.

Now, we come to the third son of Noah.

Here's what Scripture says about Shem:

Genesis 10:21-30

King James Version

21 Unto Shem also,

the father of all the children of Eber,

the brother of Japheth the elder,

even to him were children born.

22 The children of Shem;

Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad,

and Lud, and Aram.

Genesis 10:21-30

King James Version

23 And the children of Aram;

Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash.

Genesis 10:21-30

King James Version

24 And Arphaxad begat Salah;

and Salah begat Eber.

Genesis 10:21-30

King James Version

25 And unto Eber were born two sons:

the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided;

and his brother's name was Joktan.

Genesis 10:21-30

King James Version

26 And Joktan begat Almodad, and Sheleph,

and Hazarmaveth, and Jerah,

27 And Hadoram, and Uzal, and Diklah,

28 And Obal, and Abimael, and Sheba,

29 And Ophir, and Havilah, and Jobab:

all these were the sons of Joktan.

30 And their dwelling was from Mesha,

as thou goest unto Sephar a mount of the east.

Shem's sons:

*Out of the land of Shinar, Asshur built Nineveh, and other cities.

Aram's sons:

Arpahxad's son:

Salah's son:

Eber's sons:

Joktan's sons:

Obal

**Abram (renamed Abraham) came from the line of Shem, specifically from Shem's son, Arphaxad.

Arphaxad's son is Salah; Salah's son is Eber; Eber's other son, Peleg, sired Reu; Reu's son is Serug; Serug's son is Nahor; Nahor's son is Terah; Abraham is one of Terah's sons.

Related material:

Sons of NOAH

LINEAGE of Abraham

The sixteen grandsons of Noah

Image: Clipart Library

Sons of HAM

Genesis 10:20

King James Version

20 These are the sons of Ham,

after their families, after their tongues,

in their countries, and in their nations.

We look deeper into Noah's sons.

One of which was Ham.

These verses tell us much:

Genesis 10:6

King James Version

6 And the sons of Ham;

Cush, and Mizraim,

and Phut, and Canaan.

Genesis 10:7-10

King James Version

7 And the sons of Cush;

Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah,

and Raamah, and Sabtechah:

and the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan.

8 And Cush begat Nimrod:

he began to be a mighty one in the earth.

9 He was a mighty hunter before the Lord:

wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod

the mighty hunter before the Lord.

10 And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel,

and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.

Genesis 10:13-14

King James Version

13 And Mizraim begat Ludim, and Anamim,

and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim,

14 And Pathrusim, and Casluhim,

(out of whom came Philistim,) and Caphtorim.

Genesis 10:15-19

King James Version

15 And Canaan begat Sidon his first born, and Heth,

16 And the Jebusite, and the Amorite, and the Girgasite,

17 And the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite,

18 And the Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the Hamathite:

and afterward were the families of the Canaanites

spread abroad.

19 And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon,

as thou comest to Gerar, unto Gaza;

as thou goest, unto Sodom, and Gomorrah,

and Admah, and Zeboim, even unto Lasha.

Ham's sons:

Cush sons:

Raamah's sons:

Mizraim's sons:

Casluhim (out of whom came Philistim*)

Caphtorim

*More on Philistim here.

Canaan's sons:

Related material:

The sixteen grandsons of Noah

Image: Clipart Library

Sons of JAPHETH

Genesis 10:5

King James Version

5 By these were the isles of the Gentiles

divided in their lands;

every one after his tongue,

after their families,

in their nations.

As we go deeper into man's beginnings, we now turn to Noah's sons.

And their sons.

For this post, we look into Japheth.

Japheth was one of Noah's sons.

Genesis 10:1

King James Version

10 Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah,

Shem, Ham, and Japheth:

and unto them were sons born after the flood.

For his part, Japheth had these sons:

Genesis 10:2

King James Version

2 The sons of Japheth;

Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan,

and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras.

Genesis 10:3

King James Version

3 And the sons of Gomer;

Ashkenaz, and Riphath,

and Togarmah.

Genesis 10:4

King James Version

4 And the sons of Javan;

Elishah, and Tarshish,

Kittim, and Dodanim.

Japheth's sons:

Gomer's sons:

Javan's sons:

Related material:

The sixteen grandsons of Noah

Image: Clipart Library

Sunday, October 15, 2023

ABRAHAM and SARAH

Genesis 17:15-16

King James Version

15 And God said unto Abraham,

As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai,

but Sarah shall her name be.

16 And I will bless her,

and give thee a son also of her:

yea, I will bless her,

and she shall be a mother of nations;

kings of people shall be of her.

How has the LORD blessed Abram and Sarai?

In so many ways, as Scripture reveals:

Genesis 17:1-9

King James Version

17 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine,

the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him,

I am the Almighty God;

walk before me, and be thou perfect.

2 And I will make my covenant between me and thee,

and will multiply thee exceedingly.

3 And Abram fell on his face:

and God talked with him, saying,

4 As for me,

behold, my covenant is with thee,

and thou shalt be a father of many nations.

5 Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram,

but thy name shall be Abraham;

for a father of many nations have I made thee.

6 And I will make thee exceeding fruitful,

and I will make nations of thee,

and kings shall come out of thee.

7 And I will establish my covenant

between me and thee and thy seed after thee

in their generations for an everlasting covenant,

to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.

8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee,

the land wherein thou art a stranger,

all the land of Canaan,

for an everlasting possession;

and I will be their God.

9 And God said unto Abraham,

Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore,

thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.

Abram, now "Abraham", was to be a "father of many nations".

Where Sarai, now "Sarah", used to be barren, now she will bear a child.

Genesis 17:19

King James Version

19 And God said,

Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed;

and thou shalt call his name Isaac:

and I will establish my covenant with him

for an everlasting covenant,

and with his seed after him.

Ishmael, Abraham's son with Hagar was to be blessed, too.

Genesis 17:20

King James Version

20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee:

Behold, I have blessed him,

and will make him fruitful,

and will multiply him exceedingly;

twelve princes shall he beget,

and I will make him a great nation.

But GOD's covenant is with Isaac, Abraham's son with Sarah.

Genesis 17:21-22

King James Version

21 But my covenant will I establish with Isaac,

which Sarah shall bear unto thee

at this set time in the next year.

22 And he left off talking with him,

and God went up from Abraham.

To seal the covenant, GOD asked Abraham to have all male children to be circumcised on their 8th day of birth.

For himself, Abraham and Ishmael were circumcised, too.

Now, we take a look into the generations of Noah.

Click here to know more.

Image: Free Bible Images

SARAI and HAGAR

Genesis 16:1

King James Version

16 Now Sarai Abram's wife bare him no children:

and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian,

whose name was Hagar.

What happens when a woman can't bear a child?

Sarai, Abram's wife, thought up a plan.

She must have been frustrated, and desperate.

Enough to think this:

Genesis 16:2-3

King James Version

2 And Sarai said unto Abram,

Behold now,

the Lord hath restrained me from bearing:

I pray thee, go in unto my maid;

it may be that I may obtain children by her.

And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.

3 And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid

the Egyptian,

after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan,

and gave her to her husband Abram

to be his wife.

As destiny would have it, Hagar didn't share the same problem as Sarai.

But she turned haughty.

Genesis 16:4

King James Version

4 And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived:

and when she saw that she had conceived,

her mistress was despised in her eyes.

Sarai sought Abram's advice.

Genesis 16:5-6

King James Version

5 And Sarai said unto Abram,

My wrong be upon thee:

I have given my maid into thy bosom;

and when she saw that she had conceived,

I was despised in her eyes:

the Lord judge between me and thee.

6 But Abram said unto Sarai,

Behold, thy maid is in thine hand;

do to her as it pleaseth thee.

And when Sarai dealt hardly with her,

she fled from her face.

An angel of the Lord visits Hagar.

Genesis 16:7-9

King James Version

7 And the angel of the Lord found her

by a fountain of water in the wilderness,

by the fountain in the way to Shur.

8 And he said,

Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence camest thou?

and whither wilt thou go?

And she said,

I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai.

9 And the angel of the Lord said unto her,

Return to thy mistress,

and submit thyself under her hands.

The angel also promises her:

Genesis 16:10

King James Version

10 And the angel of the Lord said unto her,

I will multiply thy seed exceedingly,

that it shall not be numbered for multitude.

The angel informs Hagar,

Genesis 16:11

King James Version

11 And the angel of the Lord said unto her,

Behold, thou art with child and shalt bear a son,

and shalt call his name Ishmael;

because the Lord hath heard thy affliction.

The angel prophesies:

Genesis 16:12

King James Version

12 And he will be a wild man;

his hand will be against every man,

and every man's hand against him;

and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.

Abram becomes a father at 86.

Genesis 16:15-16

King James Version

15 And Hagar bare Abram a son:

and Abram called his son's name,

which Hagar bare,

Ishmael.

16 And Abram was fourscore and six years old,

when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.

But what of Sarai?

How did she fare?

Did GOD bless her, too?

We shall find out on the next post.

Image: Free Bible Images

The childless ABRAM

Genesis 11:31-32

King James Version

31 And Terah took Abram his son,

and Lot the son of Haran his son's son,

and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram's wife;

and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees,

to go into the land of Canaan;

and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there.

32 And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years:

and Terah died in Haran.

GOD had great plans for Abram.

He showed him the land he would own.

He promised him sons to own that land.

But one thing remained.

Proving to be a major problem in the fulfillment of such plans.

To understand, we turn to Scripture:

Genesis 12:1-3

King James Version

12 Now the Lord had said unto Abram,

Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred,

and from thy father's house,

unto a land that I will shew thee:

2 And I will make of thee a great nation,

and I will bless thee,

and make thy name great;

and thou shalt be a blessing:

3 And I will bless them that bless thee,

and curse him that curseth thee:

and in thee shall all families of the earth

be blessed.

Genesis 12:4-6

King James Version

4 So Abram departed,

as the Lord had spoken unto him;

and Lot went with him:

and Abram was seventy and five years old

when he departed out of Haran.

5 And Abram took Sarai his wife,

and Lot his brother's son,

and all their substance that they had gathered,

and the souls that they had gotten in Haran;

and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan;

and into the land of Canaan they came.

6 And Abram passed through the land

unto the place of Sichem,

unto the plain of Moreh.

And the Canaanite was then in the land.

Genesis 12:7

King James Version

7 And the Lord appeared unto Abram,

and said,

Unto thy seed will I give this land:

and there builded he an altar unto the Lord,

who appeared unto him.

Genesis 13:12

King James Version

12 Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan,

and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain,

and pitched his tent toward Sodom.

Genesis 13:14-16

King James Version

14 And the Lord said unto Abram,

after that Lot was separated from him,

Lift up now thine eyes,

and look from the place where thou art northward,

and southward, and eastward, and westward:

15 For all the land which thou seest,

to thee will I give it,

and to thy seed for ever.

16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth:

so that if a man can number the dust of the earth,

then shall thy seed also be numbered.

Genesis 15:1

King James Version

15 After these things

the word of the Lord came unto Abram

in a vision, saying,

Fear not, Abram:

I am thy shield,

and thy exceeding great reward.

Genesis 15:4-5

King James Version

4 And, behold,

the word of the Lord came unto him,

saying,

This shall not be thine heir;

but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels

shall be thine heir.

5 And he brought him forth abroad,

and said,

Look now toward heaven,

and tell the stars,

if thou be able to number them:

and he said unto him,

So shall thy seed be.

Genesis 15:7

King James Version

7 And he said unto him,

I am the Lord that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees,

to give thee this land to inherit it.

Genesis 15:18-21

King James Version

18 In the same day

the Lord made a covenant with Abram,

saying,

Unto thy seed have I given this land,

from the river of Egypt unto the great river,

the river Euphrates:

19 The Kenites, and the Kenizzites,

and the Kadmonites,

20 And the Hittites, and the Perizzites,

and the Rephaims,

21 And the Amorites, and the Canaanites,

and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.

Going back a few chapters in Genesis, we recall that Abram is the son of Terah.

Genesis 11:27-28

King James Version

27 Now these are the generations of Terah:

Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran;

and Haran begat Lot.

28 And Haran died before his father Terah

in the land of his nativity,

in Ur of the Chaldees.

Now, GOD promised Abram that of him will be a great nation.

And that the LORD will give Abram's seed the land.

Thing is, Sarai, Abram's wife, was barren.

Genesis 11:30

King James Version

30 But Sarai was barren;

she had no child.

Humiliated, and impatient, at not being able to bear a child, Sarai takes matters in her hand.

And that's for the next post.

Image: Free Bible Images

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Friday, May 31, 2024

Friday, November 24, 2023

Sunday, October 15, 2023