Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided...

Approximate boundaries of the division in Peleg's time.

Many respected Christian teachers have passed on the mistaken idea that the continents were combined into one land mass until the days of Peleg. Then at that time, the continents moved into their present positions. But that is incorrect.

Some do entertain the idea that it was possibly some sort of a political division. However, they end up running with shifting continents, perhaps because it is more exciting - using the reasoning that if the Bible mentions it, it must have been a big deal. And in their minds a political division is not a big enough deal.

But they would be wrong.

This political division of the world was a HUGE deal.  The Book of Jubilees spends almost all of chapters 8 and 9 fleshing out the details of this political division, even though only one verse mentions it in Genesis 10:25.

Genesis 10:25 And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided...

Jubilees 8:8 ...his name Peleg; for in the days when he was born the children of Noah began to divide the earth amongst themselves... (Follow the link to read the extensive details of where the borders were located.)

Ham, Shem and Japheth originally divided things up privately among themselves then they presented the plan to Noah, who gave the plan his blessing.

The rest of the chapter is filled with the details of where the boundaries were to be set. And finishes with this curious commentary: "...the land ... for Japheth ... is cold, and the land of Ham is hot, and the land of Shem is neither hot nor cold, but it is of blended cold and heat." Jubilees chapter 9 goes on to explain how each son of Noah divided their allotted lands further among their children and grandchildren.

The pictured division of the continents occurred during the catastrophe
of Noah's flood. The days of Peleg was a political distribution of land.

The knowledge of this division was preserved well into the time of Moses, where the conquering of the land of Canaan was justified because that land was originally reserved for Shem and his descendants. However, Ham's descendants had conquered and occupied it illegally.

It is also interesting to note that the ancient Irish "Book of Invasions" points out that the original inhabitants of Ireland came from the tower of Babel and were descendents of Japheth. And Ireland is within the division that was allotted to Japheth.

The continents ended up in their current positions during the great Flood. Their shifting position was the principle reason for the devastation. (Read: The Most Recent Cataclysm WAS Noah's Flood After All) There is no evidence, either physical or historical, that another continental shift occurred during the time of Peleg. (Read: What Is Cataclysmic Continental Shift?)