Interesting Facts

• Arphaxad was born two years after the flood.
• According to Jubilees, Arphaxad married Rasu’eja in the year 1373 A.M..
• Kainam was born to Arphaxad and Rasu’eja in the year 1375 A.M..
• Jubilees states Arphaxad married Melka in the year 1429 A.M..
• Salah (also called Shelah) was born to Arphaxad and Melka in the year 1432 A.M. according to Jubilees.
• Arphaxad lived for 438 years and died in the forty-eighth year of the life of Isaac, according to Jasher.

Genealogy

• Arphaxad was the son of Shem.
• Shem was born in 1556 A.M..
• Arphaxad was born two years after the flood, placing his birth around 1658 A.M. or 1659 A.M. according to Jubilee. Genesis states Shem was 100 years old when he begat Arphaxad two years after the flood [1, Genesis 11:10], which would place Arphaxad’s birth 102 years after Shem’s birth.
• Arphaxad married Rasu’eja, the daughter of Susan, the daughter of Elam.
• Arphaxad and Rasu’eja had a son named Kainam.
• Arphaxad later married Melka, the daughter of Madai, the son of Japheth.
• Arphaxad and Melka had a son named Salah (Shelah) [12, Genesis 10:24a, Genesis 11:12, Jasher 7:19b].
• Salah begat Eber [14, Genesis 11:14, Jasher 7:19c, Jubilees 8:7a].
• Arphaxad was an ancestor of Abraham [This is implied through the lineage to Eber and subsequent generations].

Historical Context

Arphaxad lived in the early generations after the great flood. His birth occurred approximately two years after this cataclysmic event that reshaped the world. The initial period after the flood was marked by the repopulation of the earth by Noah and his sons [2, Genesis 10:1]. Arphaxad was part of the lineage of Shem, who received a significant portion of the earth as his inheritance, encompassing the middle of the earth, including the Garden of Eden. During Arphaxad’s lifetime, the descendants of Noah began to build cities [5, Jubilees 7:13-17] and eventually scattered across the earth. The rise of Nimrod, a mighty figure who established a kingdom beginning in Babel [8, 15, 16, Jasher 7:23], also occurred during this post-flood era, though the exact overlap with Arphaxad’s life is not precisely detailed in these excerpts. The division of the earth into three parts among Shem, Ham, and Japheth took place during this period [18, Jubilees 8:9-30], setting the stage for the development of distinct nations and territories. Arphaxad’s marriages, as recorded in Jubilees, provide some insight into the familial connections and intermingling among the early post-flood generations.

Narrative

The narrative concerning Arphaxad primarily focuses on his place within the genealogical records following the flood. He is consistently listed as a son of Shem, born two years after the deluge, marking him as one of the foundational figures in the repopulation of the earth. Jubilees provides more specific details about his life events, including his marriages to Rasu’eja and Melka, and the births of his sons Kainam and Salah. These accounts, however, present some discrepancies with the timeline provided in Genesis regarding the age of Shem when Arphaxad was born [1, Genesis 11:10, 6]. The mention of Kainam as a son of Arphaxad in Jubilees but not in Genesis is another point of divergence. Arphaxad’s lineage is crucial as it leads to Salah and then Eber, who is identified as the father of all the children of Eber [1, Genesis 10:21, 14]. According to Jasher, Arphaxad lived to the age of 438 and died during the lifetime of Isaac, placing him within the extended lifespans characteristic of the early post-flood generations. While the sources do not offer specific actions or dialogues of Arphaxad, his significance lies in his role as a vital link in the chain of ancestry leading from Noah’s righteous son Shem to subsequent generations, including those who would later be associated with Abraham and the lineage of the Hebrews.