Genesis 10:22Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

They hold a region of Asia stretching from the Euphrates River to the Indian Ocean. Elam is associated with the Elamites, who are the ancestors of the Persian monarchs. It has been previously mentioned that Assur established the city of Nineveh. The Chaldeans trace their lineage to Arphaxad, the Lydians to Lud, and the Syrians to Aram, with Damascus serving as their principal city.

Sim had five sons, as listed by Georgi Kedrin in the following fashion: Arphaxad, from whom the Chaldeans and later the Jews descended through his great-grandson Eber; Elam, the ancestor of the Elamites and later the Persians; Assur, the progenitor of the Assyrians; Lud, from whom came the Lydians; and Aram, the forebear of both the Syrians and Armenians. In the Slavonic editions of the Bible, a sixth son of Shem, Cainan, is also referenced. However, this is believed to be an error. According to the Greek historian Kedrin and the Slavonic texts, it is clear that Cainan was actually the grandson of Shem and the son of Arphaxad.

Elam, known as Elimaida, refers to the region situated between Susiana and Media, frequently mentioned together in the Holy Scriptures (Isaiah 21:2, Jeremiah 25:25, Acts 2:9, 1 Esdras 4:9), and is at times even conflated with the former (Daniel 8:2). Assur, meaning happiness, denotes Assyria, which justly carries this designation (2 Samuel 18:32). Arphaxad’s name finds a faint echo in the works of Bochart alongside Ptolemy, in the term Arrapahitida, associated with Assyria. In the biblical texts, there is no mention of any nation or region identified by the name Arphaxad. Among the descendants of Shem, he is honored with the greatest distinction, being one of the patriarchs of the chosen people. Lud is recognized by Josephus, Jerome, Eusebius, and Isidore as the ancestor of the Lydians.