(1) God's intimation of His will that the earth was to be divided in an orderly distribution of the various families of mankind, which order the Hamitic Babel builders tried to contravene (Gen 1:4), in order to concentrate their power; also the Hamite Canaanites in "spreading abroad" broke the bounds assigned by God, seizing the sacred possession of Shem where Jehovah was to be blessed as "the Lord God of Shem" (Gen 9:26; Gen 9:18-20).

(2) The division of Eber's family; the younger branch, the Joktanids, migrating into S. Arabia the elder Peleg remaining in Mesopotamia.