Genesis 10:8–12

10:8 Cush was the father of31 Nimrod; he began to be a valiant warrior on the earth. 10:9 He was a mighty hunter32 before the Lord.33 (That is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the Lord.”) 10:10 The primary regions34 of his kingdom were Babel,35 Erech,36 Akkad,37 and Calneh38 in the land of Shinar.39 10:11 From that land he went40 to Assyria,41 where he built Nineveh,42 Rehoboth-Ir,43 Calah,44 10:12 and Resen, which is between Nineveh and the great city Calah.45

31	tn Heb “fathered.” Embedded within Cush’s genealogy is an account of Nimrod, a mighty warrior. There have been many attempts to identify him, but none are convincing.
32	tn The Hebrew word for “hunt” is צַיִד (tsayid), which is used on occasion for hunting men (1 Sam 24:12; Jer 16:16; Lam 3:15).
33	tn Another option is to take the divine name here, לִפְנֵי יִהוָה (lifne yéhvah, “before the Lord [YHWH]”), as a means of expressing the superlative degree. In this case one may translate “Nimrod was the greatest hunter in the world.”
34	tn Heb “beginning.” E. A. Speiser, Genesis (AB), 67, suggests “mainstays,” citing Jer 49:35 as another text where the Hebrew noun is so used.
35	tn Or “Babylon.”
36	sn Erech (ancient Uruk, modern Warka), one of the most ancient civilizations, was located southeast of Babylon.
37	sn Akkad, or ancient Agade, was associated with Sargon and located north of Babylon.
38	tn No such place is known in Shinar (i.e., Babylonia). Therefore some have translated the Hebrew term כַלְנֵה (khalneh) as “all of them,” referring to the three previous names (cf. NRSV).
39	sn Shinar is another name for Babylonia.
40	tn The subject of the verb translated “went” is probably still Nimrod. However, it has also been interpreted that “Ashur went,” referring to a derivative power.
41	tn Heb “Asshur.”
42	sn Nineveh was an ancient Assyrian city situated on the Tigris River.
43	sn The name Rehoboth-Ir means “and broad streets of a city,” perhaps referring to a suburb of Nineveh.
44	sn Calah (modern Nimrud) was located twenty miles north of Nineveh.
45	tn Heb “and Resen between Nineveh and Calah; it [i.e., Calah] is the great city.”