Man living at the time of the Patriarchs
Shem, one of Noah's three sons and the ancestor of the Semitic peoples.
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Also known as Sem
Shem was one of the three sons of Noah, along with Ham and Japheth (Gen.5.32; 6.10). He and his wife were among the eight people who survived the great flood in the ark (Gen.7.13). After the flood, Shem and his brothers became the ancestors of the nations that repopulated the earth (Gen.9.18,19; 10.1).
Shem was the ancestor of the Semitic peoples, including the Elamites, Assyrians, Arameans, and Hebrews (Gen.10.21-31). He was also the ancestor of Abraham and, therefore, of the Israelites (Gen.11.10-26; 1Ch.1.17-27). In the New Testament, Shem is mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus in Luk.3.36.
Shem and Japheth showed respect for their father by covering his nakedness when he became drunk (Gen.9.23). As a result, Noah blessed Shem, saying, "Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem" (Gen.9.26). This blessing implied that Shem's descendants would have a special relationship with God. Shem lived for 600 years (Gen.11.10-11).
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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 Israelitish nation sprang from him (Gen. 11:10-26; 1 Chr. 1:24-27).
(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 Syria (Aram), Chaldaea (Arphaxad), parts Of Assyria (Asshur), of Persia (Elam), and of the Arabian peninsula (Joktan). Modern scholars have given the name of Shemitic or Semitic to the languages spoken by his real or supposed descendants. [Hebrew Language]
SHEM(name), the eldest son of Noah, preserved with his wife in the ark. His conduct toward his father on one occasion is recited to his praise. Gen 9:20-27. The Jews are his descendants, and, besides, there are the Aramaeans, Persians, Assyrians, and Arabians. The languages spoken by the descendants of Shem (the Hebrew, Chaldee, Assyrian, and Arabic) are called Shemitic languages.
SHEM(name), the eldest son of Noah, preserved with his wife in the ark. His conduct toward his father on one occasion is recited to his praise. Gen 9:20-27. The Jews are his descendants, and, besides, there are the Aramaeans, Persians, Assyrians, and Arabians. The languages spoken by the descendants of Shem (the Hebrew, Chaldee, Assyrian, and Arabic) are called Shemitic languages.
Easton (1897), Smith (1863), Hitchcock (1869), Hastings (1898) and Schaff are in the public domain. Parsed text: neuu-org/bible-dictionary-dataset (CC BY 4.0). Headwords and whitespace normalised for this site.
17 verses in 3 books · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H8035
After Noah was 500 years old, he became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
And Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
On that very day Noah entered the ark, along with his sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and his wife, and the three wives of his sons—
The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. And Ham was the father of Canaan.
Then Shem and Japheth took a garment and placed it across their shoulders, and walking backward, they covered their fatherʼs nakedness. Their faces were turned away so that they did not see their fatherʼs nakedness.
He also declared: “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the servant of Shem.
May God expand the territory of Japheth; may he dwell in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be his servant.”
This is the account of Noahʼs sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, who also had sons after the flood.
And sons were also born to Shem, the older brother of Japheth; Shem was the forefather of all the sons of Eber.
The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram.
These are the sons of Shem, according to their clans, languages, lands, and nations.
This is the account of Shem. Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father of Arphaxad.
And after he had become the father of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters.
The sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram. The sons of Aram: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Meshech.
So from Shem came Arphaxad, Shelah,
the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech,
Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.