Shem
Shem (Hebrew שׁם) (1558 FC to 2158 FC | 2410 BC – 1810 BC | 600 yrs) was the third and youngest son of Noah, born when Noah was 502 years old.[1][2] At that time the world was troubled by violence and crime,[3] and God had warned his father Noah of the coming judgment and instructed him to build an Ark.[4] Shem and his brothers presumably helped Noah with the construction. He took a wife before the Flood came[5] and fathered Elam, Ashur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram after the Flood.[6] Abraham, the patriarch of the Hebrews and Arabs, was one of the descendants of Arphaxad. Shem lived 502 years after the Flood, outliving Abraham, and could have known Ishmael, Isaac, and Jacob.
He and Japheth were the ones to cover Noah after he had become drunk, and Canaan had seen his nakedness. Noah blessed him for this saying that he would dwell peaceably with Japheth and Canaan would be his servant.[7]
Shem is the father of the European peoples.
Etymology
Shem means “name, fame, renown”.[8] It may also be derived from the Hebrew verb “shum” which means “put, appoint, make”. In either case, Shem lived up to his name, as he was given the birthright blessings – being appointed to lead the world and becoming famous.
Was Shem Really The Youngest?
When Genesis 5:32 says that Noah was 500 years old and sired “Shem, Ham, and Japheth”, we are led to believe they were triplets; or, at the least, that Shem was the eldest. Yet the Bible makes it clear that isn’t possible by using some simple math.
The Flood began when Noah was 600.[9] At that time, Shem would have been 100 years old, if born when Noah was 500. But if you read Genesis 11:10, you’ll see that Shem’s firstborn, Arphaxad, was born 2 years after the Flood, when Shem was 100 years old.
But there’s a problem. Shem was born when Noah was 500, the Flood happened when Noah was 600, and Shem’s son was born two years later when Noah was 602... and at that point Shem was only 100. There are two extra years there. Figuring backwards, we cannot escape the conclusion that Shem was born when Noah was 502. Yet Genesis 5:32 clearly said Noah was 500 when he had “Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
This is reconciled by using all the scriptures. Shem was the brother of Japheth – we knew that – but the brother of Japheth who was the elder (Genesis 10:21).
This means that the order given in Genesis 5:32 is wrong. Not wrong exactly, because the order is given that way for a reason; but wrong, chronologically. See, the Bible has an interesting quirk in that the “eldest” child is often not the eldest in chronological age, but is the eldest reckoned by birthright. In other words, if the “real” firstborn child is an evil monster, the birthright will go to the next eldest; and from that point on, he will always be given the honors that belong to the eldest.
Shem was mentioned first because Shem received the birthright, not Ham or Japheth, the elder. We know that Shem received the birthright because the line of Christ and the blessings of Abraham were given to his children, not to the others.
We don’t know exactly why Shem inherited the birthright in front of his brothers. Very little is said about any of the three. Regardless, they were listed as “Shem, Ham, and Japheth”, even though Shem was certainly younger than Japheth; the way it is listed implies that Ham was the firstborn; Japheth the second; Shem the last.
If that is so, then we can safely conclude that Ham was born when Noah was 500; Japheth when he was 501; and Shem when he was 502. And that Genesis 5:32 meant that Noah was 500 years old when he began to have children, and had Shem, Ham, and Japeth in order of birthright, or Ham, Japheth, and Shem, in order of birth.
The Land Of Shem
Shem has left us a wide trail as most history, Biblical and otherwise, was written about Shem. The Bible is almost exclusively written about Shemites.
The world today uses “Semites” (the same word) to refer exclusively to the Jews; the educated world uses it to apply generally to various races in the Middle East. But the real meaning of the term is the sons of Shem; of which Jews are only the tiniest part.
The Shemites looked a particular way, differing from the Hamites and the Japhethites. Most of the ones we know from the Bible were Israelite, and most of those we have descriptions of were from the tribe of Judah; but they were all Shemites.
European features are different from Asian features and African features. David had a ruddy complexion.[10][11] Solomon looked white.[12] The Jews of Jeremiah’s time are described as white and ruddy.[13] Solomon described his lover in greater details, which likely resemble European features.[14]
The Song of Solomon is a book that contains more physical descriptions of people than all the rest of the Bible put together. It is written from the perspective of a man and at least one woman; sometimes it is extolling the beauty of a man – Solomon/Christ – and sometimes it is extolling the virtues of one or more women. It is a deeply symbolic book. So when Solomon says his lover’s eyes are like the “fishpools of Heshbon”, in this context, it cannot signify any color but blue/green eyes. A belly the color of wheat would signify a healthy tan on top of a clear, white “ivory” skin. Tall and slender, like a palm tree, with hair that is almost purple is a dark colored hair. There are many people today who fit this description but all of them are of European ancestry.
Blue-eyed Asians or Africans are extremely rare. Brown/black hair and blue eyes, with the whites of the eyes being very white, reddish skin and/or hair, are all distinctly European features. Also, the nose “like the tower of Lebanon” implies a long, Roman-type nose, as opposed to the more flattened African or smaller Asian nose.
God was with Shem; and with his descendants, such as Abraham, Isaac, and Joseph; and with David, Solomon, Jeremiah, Jesus, and the apostles. They were all Shemites. And not one of them had oriental features.
God did intend for Shem’s descendants to be leaders of the world. He plainly said so in Genesis 9:26-27. This means that Shem’s sons, the “sons of the name” were given divine right to rule the world.
But not by military conquest, not by exterminating the rest of the world. Not by out-breeding the rest of the world. By spreading the truth of God. God gave them the weakest genetics, recessive genes that are so fragile they disappear in a few generations of intermarriage. He did this so that they would be forced to rely on Him for their successes, so that no flesh could glory in His presence.[15]
God must be blameless when He judges.[16] So to prove that His choice of Israel was not simply a matter of favoritism, He has given each of the other nations a chance at power. Despite His promise to Shem that his brothers would serve him, at various points in history each of the families listed in Genesis 10 have had the opportunity to lord it over their brethren; and each has proven, in turn, why they are not fit to be the master race.
The nations of Shem, and particularly Israel, used their power more benevolently and righteously than most, but even they were clearly not qualified to hold ultimate power, and they have shown this many times in history. The world was supposed to come to the sons of Shem, the sons of Eber, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, David, and finally Jesus, and learn the truth from them.
References
- ↑ Genesis 5:32 And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
- ↑ Burson, Nathaniel. The Original Bible Correspondence Course, Lesson 54: Chronology, Part 1.
- ↑ Genesis 6:5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
- ↑ Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.
- ↑ Genesis 7:7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood.
- ↑ Genesis 10:22-31 The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram. And the children of Aram; Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash.
And Arphaxad begat Salah; and Salah begat Eber. 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.
And Joktan begat Almodad, and Sheleph, and Hazarmaveth, and Jerah, And Hadoram, and Uzal, and Diklah, And Obal, and Abimael, and Sheba, And Ophir, and Havilah, and Jobab: all these were the sons of Joktan.
And their dwelling was from Mesha, as thou goest unto Sephar a mount of the east. These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations. - ↑ Genesis 9:21-27 And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent. And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness.
And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him. And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren. And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant. God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant. - ↑ Strong’s H8035. https://biblehub.com/str/hebrew/8035.htm See also H8034. https://biblehub.com/hebrew/8034.htm
- ↑ Genesis 7:6 And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.
- ↑ 1 Samuel 16:12 And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him: for this is he.
- ↑ 1 Samuel 17:42 And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance.
- ↑ Song of Solomon 5:10 My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand.
- ↑ Lamentations 4:7 Her Nazarites were purer than snow, they were whiter than milk, they were more ruddy in body than rubies, their polishing was of sapphire:
- ↑ Song of Solomon 7:1-7 How beautiful are thy feet with shoes, O prince's daughter! the joints of thy thighs are like jewels, the work of the hands of a cunning workman. Thy navel is like a round goblet, which wanteth not liquor: thy belly is like an heap of wheat set about with lilies.
Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins. Thy neck is as a tower of ivory; thine eyes like the fishpools in Heshbon, by the gate of Bathrabbim: thy nose is as the tower of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus.
Thine head upon thee is like Carmel, and the hair of thine head like purple; the king is held in the galleries. How fair and how pleasant art thou, O love, for delights! This thy stature is like to a palm tree, and thy breasts to clusters of grapes. - ↑ 1 Corinthians 1:27-29 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence.
- ↑ Psalms 51:4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.
