Hamathites

The Hamathites were descendants of Hamath, a son of Canaan in the Table of Nations (Genesis 10:18), who gave their name to the great Aramean city of Hamath on the Orontes River in northern Syria. The city of Hamath marked the northern boundary of the Promised Land in numerous texts (Numbers 13:21; 1 Kings 8:65) and maintained complex political relationships with Israel throughout the monarchic period. The Hamathites are included in the Canaanite genealogy to establish the deep antiquity of Hamath's connection to the land that God promised to Abraham's descendants.