The firstborn bore a son and called his name Moab. He is the father of the Moabites to this day.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The name "Moab" itself carries a hidden sting. It's a deliberate wordplay on the Hebrew phrase meaning "from my father," a stark, unashamed declaration of the incestuous circumstances of his birth.
The firstborn bore a son and called his name Moab. He is the father of the Moabites to this day.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Following the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot and his two daughters took refuge in a cave. Fearing their lineage would die out in isolation, the daughters hatched a plan and, after getting their father drunk, lay with him. This verse marks the birth of the first son from this incestuous union, named Moab, who would become the ancestor of the Moabite people.
The names given to these sons weren't just labels; they were public declarations of a deeply shameful act. Why would parents name their children in such a way?
The text tells us the firstborn daughter named her son Moab. The name is widely understood as a wordplay on the Hebrew for 'from a father.' This wasn't just a casual naming; it was an acknowledgment, however veiled, of the incestuous relationship with Lot.
Similarly, the younger daughter named her son Ben-Ammi, meaning 'son of my people' or 'son of my kin.' While less direct than Moab, it still points to the origin of the child within the family unit, a stark reminder of the forbidden union.
These names served as a lasting, public record of the daughters' desperate actions and their father's compromised state. They were a constant, uncomfortable reminder of the origins of the Moabite and Ammonite peoples.
From these deeply troubling beginnings, two nations arose. What does their origin story tell us about their relationship with God's people?
The story of Moab and his twin brother Ben-Ammi is more than just an ancient tale; it’s the foundation for the ongoing relationship between the Moabites and Ammonites and the Israelites.
Despite their scandalous birth, these peoples grew into nations. However, their origins cast a long shadow. Throughout the Old Testament, the Moabites and Ammonites are frequently depicted as adversaries of Israel.
They often opposed Israel's journey to the Promised Land, tested their faith, and were subject to divine judgment. This animosity, rooted in this disturbing genesis, demonstrates how past actions and origins can have profound, long-lasting consequences.
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Understand the original words
bekirah · Hebrew Adjective
A title indicating the eldest daughter in a family. In biblical culture, the firstborn held a position of priority, privilege, and responsibility, making the actions described here particularly significant within the family structure.
Moab · Hebrew Proper Noun
Meaning 'from (my) father,' this name serves as an etiological marker identifying the origin of the Moabite people. In Scripture, names often convey the essence or the history of an individual or people group.
Moabi · Hebrew Proper Noun/Adjective
An ethnic group descended from Moab; throughout the Old Testament, they are often characterized by their complex, frequently adversarial relationship with the nation of Israel, representing a people born out of a history of brokenness and exclusion from the covenant line.
The name 'Moab' itself, derived from 'from my father,' directly reflects the incestuous union from which the Moabite nation originated. This verse anchors the existence of the Moabite people in a specific, albeit scandalous, event following the judgment of Sodom.
c. 2000 BC
Lot settles in Sodom
Lot, Abraham's nephew, chooses to live in the wicked city of Sodom, a decision that would lead to profound personal tragedy and divine judgment.
c. 2000 BC
Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah
Angels warn Lot and his family to flee before God rains fire and brimstone on the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, destroying them and the surrounding plain.
c. 2000 BC
Lot's daughters conceive
After fleeing to a cave in the mountains, Lot's two daughters, fearing they would never bear children, devise a plan to impregnate themselves by their father.
c. 2000 BC— this verse
Birth of Moab
The elder daughter bears a son and names him Moab, which is understood as 'from [my] father,' referencing the incestuous circumstances of his conception.
c. 2000 BC
Birth of Ben-Ammi
The younger daughter also bears a son and names him Ben-Ammi, meaning 'son of my people,' also acknowledging the familial origin of the child.
c. 2000 BC
Founding of Moabites and Ammonites
These two sons become the progenitors of the Moabite and Ammonite nations, peoples who would later have a significant and often adversarial relationship with Israel.
This passage describes how the descendants of Esau and the descendants of Lot (Moab and Ammon) were established in their lands by God, highlighting the long-standing presence of these nations as a result of these origins.
Ruth 1:4This verse shows the Moabites as having intermarried with the Israelites, illustrating how the descendants of Moab became a distinct people whose presence was known to other nations.
Judges 3:12-14Here, the Moabites are shown to have oppressed Israel due to Israel's sin, demonstrating the ongoing conflict and distinct identity of the Moabites as a people established from this origin.
Matthew 1:5-6This genealogy includes the Moabite woman Ruth, and by extension, Moab itself, as part of the lineage leading to David and Jesus, showing the incorporation of this nation's lineage into redemptive history despite its controversial beginnings.
gillGenesis 19:37: "And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day."
And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab,.... As if it was "Meab", from the father, as Aben Ezra, and so Josephus, that is, which she had by her father; and she was so far from being ashamed that it might be known in time to come, she gave him this name. Hillerus (w) makes it to be a compound of and and to signify "going into", or "lying with a father", w…
pooleGenesis 19:37: "And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day."
1807 Called his name Moab, i.e. of my father, begotten upon me by my father. So she had learned from her neighbours to declare her sin as Sodom, Isaiah 3:9 . The Moabites were a mischievous and infamous people, branded, as their brethren also the Ammonites were, with characters of God’s displeasure.
The name "Moab" itself carries a hidden sting. It's a deliberate wordplay on the Hebrew phrase meaning "from my father," a stark, unashamed declaration of the incestuous circumstances of his birth.
Following the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot and his two daughters took refuge in a cave. Fearing their lineage would die out in isolation, the daughters hatched a plan and, after getting their father drunk, lay with him. This verse marks the birth of the first son from this incestuous union, named Moab, who would become the ancestor of the Moabite people.
Following the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot and his two daughters took refuge in a cave. Fearing their lineage would die out in isolation, the daughters hatched a plan and, after getting their father drunk, lay with him. This verse marks the birth of the first son from this incestuous union, named Moab, who would become the ancestor of the Moabite people.
"The firstborn bore a son and called his name Moab. He is the father of the Moabites to this day." — The name "Moab" itself carries a hidden sting. It's a deliberate wordplay on the Hebrew phrase meaning "from my father," a stark, unashamed declaration of the incestuous circumstances of his birth.
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Last reviewed October 2026