Shem
From CreationWiki, the encyclopedia of creation science
Shem (Hebrew: שֵׁם, Šēm; Greek: Σημ, Sēm ; Arabic: سام ; Ge'ez: Sham; "renown, prosperity, name") (1558 AM 2600 BC
1161 H
1559 AM-2158 AM 2000 BC
1761 H
2159 AM) is the second of Noah's three sons. His brothers were Ham and Japheth. He was born in AM 1558 when Noah was 502 years old, 98 years before the global flood.[1]
Shem was married before the flood and his wife was with him in the ark, but he had no children at the time it started. His son, Arpachshad was born when Shem was 100 years old. His other sons were Elam, Asshur, Lud, and Aram. Whether Arpachshad (alternatively spelled Arphaxad) was the eldest of them is unclear. He is listed third of all of them, but might still have received the birthright for a reason that the Bible does not document. Shem lived a further 500 years after Arpachshad's birth, and thus would have been 600 years7,420.96 mon
219,145.319 da old at his death in AM 2158.
Shem is the father of the Semitic races, most notably the Jews and the Arabs.
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Known Descendants of Shem
The sons of Shem were:
- Elam: Elamites, Persians, and Iranians.
- Asshur: Assyrians, Syrians, and Northern Iraqis.
- Arpachshad: Chaldeans, Southern Iraqis, Hebrews, Israelites, Arabs, Bedouins, Moabites, Jordanians, and related groups.
- Lud: Lydians, Chubs, Albanians, Georgians, and Kabyles, and other related groups in Asia Minor and North Africa.
- Aram: Aramaeans, Syrians, Lebanese, Armenians, and remnant groups throughout the Middle East.
Proposed Lineages from Shem
Many now claim that the Anglo-Saxons are the descendants of Shem. "Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons [b. 849 AD] was... the son [descendant] of Sem [Shem]."[2] Proponents of this theory also claim that Alfed the Great was a descendent of Shem because he claimed to descend from Sceaf, a marooned man who cam to Britain on a boat after a flood.
Further, it is said that Tuitsch, a German patriarch, is noneother than Shem himself. There are many who also claim that the Germans are the descendents of the Assyrians (children of Asshur).
The Lacedaemonians (Spartans), notably enough, claim descent from Hebrews. I Maccabees XII, and Josephus's Antiquities xii, iv 10, state that about 180 years BC, the King of the Lacedaemonians sent the following letter to the Jews in Jerusalem: "Areus, King of the Lacedaemonians, to Onias, the High Priest, sendeth greetings. It is found that Lacedaemonians and Jews are brethren, and that they are of the stock of Abraham. Now, therefore since this has come to our knowledge, ye shall do well to write unto us of your prosperity."
The Jews in Jerusalem are reported to have replied as follows: "We joyfully recieved the epistle, and were well pleased with Demoteles and Araeus, although we did not need such a demonstration, because we were well satisfied about it from the sacred writings."[3] Josephus called attention to the 'seal' upon he letter from Areus, "This letter is four-square, and the seal is is an eagle with a dragon in it's claws." Such an emblem can be traced to the tribe of Dan. The letter of reply mentioned "sacred writings." This could refer to Ezekiel 27:19 where Dan is represented, in company with Greece, trading to Tyre.
A text from the Islamic Hadith also claims that the Greeks derived from Shem: Tabari II:11 “Shem, the son of Noah was the father of the Arabs, the Persians, and the Greeks; Ham was the father of the Black Africans; and Japheth was the father of the Turks and of Gog and Magog who were cousins of the Turks. Noah prayed that the prophets and apostles would be descended from Shem and kings would be from Japheth. He prayed that the African’s color would change so that their descendants would be slaves to the Arabs and Turks.”
Many scholars believe that from Shem descend the whole of the European peoples. Ernest L. Martin writes, "...[The] Shemite tribes (people who were descendants of Shem and including some peoples who came from Abraham) later colonized the whole of southern Europe and replaced the people of JAVAN and his four descendants. JAVAN'S people were pushed mainly into the northern areas of Europe where in turn they migrated farther east into Asia (along with GOMER the firstborn son of JAPHETH and his descendants). Indeed, in prophecies dealing also with the End-Time, we find the people of JAVAN no longer in Europe but they are now associated with TUBAL [Ezekiel 38: & 39 end time prophecy] (another son of JAPHETH) who became an eastern Mongolian type of people...though the name JAVAN still retained it geographical hold on the southern region of Europe, particularly in Greece)...It is not uncommon for people to give a name to a region and then the original people move on to other areas (or are killed off) and the original geographical name becomes associated with completely different people."[4]
Le Petit, a writer in 1601 mentioned King Adel, said to be descendant of Shem, ruler of Britian having 3 children that migrated to India.
References
- ↑ James Ussher, The Annals of the World, Larry Pierce, ed., Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2003 (ISBN 0890513600), pgh. 31
- ↑ Church Historians of England, vol. 2, p. 443
- ↑ Josephus xiii. v.8
- ↑ British-Israel Church of God. British-Israelism Utterly Refuted....REFUTED! Accessed December 25, 2007.
Related links
- Noah's Three Sons. online book by Arthur C. Custance.
