JAPHETH (Heb. יֶפֶת), son of Noah, brother of *Shem and *Ham. In
all the lists of Noah's sons, Japheth invariably appears in the
third place (Gen. 5:32; 6:10; 7:13; 9:18; 10:1; I Chron. 1:4).
However, on one occasion Ham is called the "youngest son" of
Noah (Gen. 9:24). If this is not to be explained as the result
of a corruption in the text, it must reflect a variant
tradition, unless some principle other than chronological
governs the order of the listings. Japheth was married before
the *flood (7:13), which he survived, together with his family,
inside the ark. When his intoxicated father lay naked in the
tent, Japheth, together with Shem, displayed great modesty and
delicacy in covering him up (9:23). For this act he was blessed
by Noah as follows: "May God enlarge Japheth, and let him dwell
in the tents of Shem; And let Canaan be a slave to them" (9:27).
The full meaning of this passage is obscure, and it has been
variously interpreted as referring to either a Philistine-
Israelite alliance against Canaan