Wesley Corpus

And all these descended from Canaan, though some of them were afterwards extinct or confounded with others of their brethren by cohabitation or mutual marriages, whereby they lost their names: which is the reason why they are no more mentioned, at least under these names. The sons - Either the name of sons is so taken here as to include grandsons, or, these words, the children of Aram, are understood before Uz, out of Gen 10:23, where they are expressed. Begat - Either immediately, or mediately by his son Cainan, who is expressed, Luke 3:35. Divided - In their languages and habitations. Arphaxad - Having given a brief and general account of the original of the world and the people in it, he now returns to a more large and particular account of the genealogy of Shem, from whom the Jews were descended. The sons of Abraham - All nations but the seed of Abraham are already shaken off from this genealogy. Not that we conclude, no particular persons of any other nation but this found favour with God. Multitudes will be brought to heaven out of every nation, and we may hope there were many, very many people in the world, whose names were in the book of life, tho' they did not spring from the loins of Abraham. Timna - There is another Timna, the concubine of Eliphaz, Gen 36:12, but this was one of his sons, though called by the same name; there being some names common both to men and women in the Hebrew and in other languages. Seir - One of another nation, prince of the Horims; whose genealogy is here described, because of that affinity which was contracted between his and Esau's posterity; and those who were not united and incorporated with them, were destroyed by them. See Deut 2:12. These are the dukes of Edom - Let us, in reading these genealogies, think of the multitudes that have gone thro' the world, have successively acted their parts in it, and retired into darkness. All these and all theirs had their day; many of them made a mighty noise in the world; until their day came to fall, and their place knew them no more. The paths of death are trodden paths. How soon are we to tread them