Genesis 9
9
God’s Covenant with Noah
1God lovingly blessed Noah and all his family and said to them, “Reproduce, be fruitful, and populate the earth. 2I will cause every living creature of earth, sky, and sea # 9:2 Or “every animal of the earth, every bird of the air, everything that creeps on the ground, and all the fish of the sea.” to fear and dread you from this time forward. They are now under your authority. # 9:2 Or “are delivered into your hands.” 3You may now eat the meat of animals # 9:3 Or “every moving thing that lives.” See Col. 2:16; 1 Tim. 4:3–5. as well as green plants; I now give you everything for food for you. 4However, you must not eat meat with its lifeblood still in it, for its life is in the blood. 5If anyone takes another person’s life, I will demand an account—whether from man or beast, I will demand an account for taking a human life.
6“Whoever sheds human blood,
by other humans he must have his own blood shed;
for to kill a person is to kill one made
in God’s own beautiful image.
7Now all of you, with my blessing, reproduce,
be fruitful and repopulate the earth.” # 9:7 Or “swarm throughout the earth.”
8Then God said to Noah and his family, 9“I establish my loving covenant # 9:9 The Hebrew word for “covenant” is berit and is found numerous times in this chapter. God’s covenant turns judgment into grace. with you, your descendants, 10and every living creature that is with you—animals large and small, birds, and every living thing that came out of the ark. 11I will maintain my loving covenant with you. I will never again completely destroy life on earth by means of a flood. Yes, never again will a flood destroy the whole earth!”
The Rainbow
12“Here is the sign for you and future generations that my loving covenant will endure between me and you and every animal that came with you out of the ark: 13I have placed my rainbow # 9:13 Or “bending,” most often translated “warrior’s bow,” for just as a warrior hangs up his bow after the battle, so God’s bow, without arrows, is now surrendered to the sky, not aimed at earth, because of his love for humanity. The rainbow around God’s throne is a full circle, for the earth does not cut off God’s rainbow promises. And it is an emerald-colored rainbow around the throne, for it is the promise of life. See Rev. 4:3; 10:1. among the clouds, and it will be a sign of my loving covenant between me and the earth. 14Whenever I bring clouds over the earth, and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15I will remember my covenant with you and with every living thing upon the earth. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy life from the earth. 16When the rainbow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant I made with you and every living thing of every kind upon the earth.”
17So God said to Noah, “The rainbow is my signature in the sky, my seal of love # 9:17 Or “sign of confirmation.” to confirm that I have kept my covenant between me and every living thing on earth.”
Noah’s Sons
18Noah’s sons came out of the ark with him: Shem, Ham (the father of Canaan), and Japheth. 19From these three sons of Noah the entire world was repopulated.
20Noah, a farmer, was the first to plant a vineyard. 21He drank so much of the wine he made that he got drunk and passed out naked inside his tent. # 9:21 Chronologically, this would likely have been years after they exited the ark. 22And Ham, the father of Canaan, went into the tent and gazed on his shamefully exposed father. # 9:22 Various Hebrew scholars surmise that this was a euphemistic account of Ham doing some act of gross indecency, not mere voyeurism. See Prov. 30:17; 1 Peter 4:8. Then he went out and informed his brothers. 23So, Shem and Japheth took their father’s cloak # 9:23 Or “the garment.” It is possible that Ham brought his father’s garment outside the tent to show it to his brothers. and walked backwards with the cloak on their shoulders into the tent to cover up their naked father. Respectfully, they turned their faces away so as not to see their father lying there exposed. 24When Noah sobered up and realized what his youngest son had done to him, 25he uttered these words:
“Cursed be your son, Canaan, # 9:25 Although it was Ham, Noah’s son, who violated his father, Ham’s son Canaan was the one who was cursed. Some see the possibility that Canaan was complicit in what Ham did.
and let him be the lowest of servants # 9:25 Or “slave of slaves.” Canaan was the ancestor of the Canaanites. Canaan means “bow down.” See Josh. 9:23; Judg. 1. to his brothers.”
26He also said,
“Worthy of praise is Yahweh,
the God of Shem! # 9:26 Jesus Christ came through the lineage of Shem (see Luke 3:23–38), the father of the Semitic peoples. This is a prophecy that Shem would have a special relationship with Yahweh.
Let Canaan be Shem’s slave.
27May God enlarge Japheth’s family
and increase his territory. # 9:27 Or “May God make room for Japheth.” This a play on words, for the Hebrew triliteral root for Japheth (y-p-t) is identical to the root for “make room,” “increase,” or “enlarge [enrich, prosper].” Japheth was to become the father of enlarged nations, spreading out over the globe.
May he share in the blessing of Shem,
and his descendants make their homes
among the tents of Shem, # 9:27 Many scholars view this as an alliance between Shem and Japheth that would include sharing the blessing of prosperity among them.
and may Canaan be his slave also!” # 9:27 This account of Noah’s cursing and blessing of his three sons illustrates the power of a father’s words over his children (and grandchildren) and how those words create the reality of their future. Descendants of each of Noah’s sons were present at the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus. The descendants of Shem were present in the Jewish religious leaders who conspired to crucify the Messiah. Japheth was present in the Romans who participated jointly with the Jews to crucify the Lord Jesus. And a descendant of Ham was present in the person of Simon of Cyrene, who bore the cross of Christ in servitude (see Luke 23:26). The sons of Noah are brought before us again in Acts 8–10. The Ethiopian was a descendant of Ham whom Philip blessed with the gospel (see Acts 8:25–40). Saul of Tarsus (Paul) was from Shem and was also converted by the revelation of Jesus (see Acts 9:1–31). Cornelius the centurion was a son of Japheth who believed the good news of Christ (see Acts 10).
28After the flood, Noah lived another three hundred and fifty years. 29Noah’s entire lifetime was nine hundred and fifty years, and then he died. # 9:29 There are numerous parallels between Noah and Adam. Both came onto an earth that had been submerged by water. Both were given lordship over creation. Both were blessed and told to multiply. Both were men of the soil, working the ground. Both sinned in a garden (vineyard). Both experienced the exposure of nakedness. Both men’s sins affected their posterity. Both had three sons. And both experienced a prophecy following their fall.
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Genesis 9: TPT
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Learn More About The Passion TranslationGenesis 9
9
1And God blessed Noah and his sonnes, and said to them, Bring foorth fruite, and multiplie, and replenish the earth. 2Also the feare of you, and the dread of you shalbe vpon euery beast of the earth, and vpon euery foule of the heauen, vpon all that moueth on the earth, and vpon all the fishes of the sea: into your hand are they deliuered. 3Euery thing that moueth and liueth, shall be meate for you: as the greene herbe, haue I giuen you all things. 4But flesh with the life thereof, I meane, with the blood thereof, shall ye not eate. 5For surely I will require your blood, wherein your liues are: at the hand of euery beast will I require it: and at the hand of man, euen at the hand of a mans brother will I require the life of man. 6Who so sheadeth mans blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God hath he made man. 7But bring ye forth fruite and multiplie: grow plentifully in the earth, and increase therein. 8God spake also to Noah and to his sonnes with him, saying, 9Behold, I, euen I establish my couenant with you, and with your seede after you, 10And with euery liuing creature that is with you, with the foule, with the cattell, and with euery beast of the earth with you, from all that goe out of the Arke, vnto euery beast of the earth. 11And my couenant will I establish with you, that from henceforth all flesh shall not be rooted out by ye waters of the flood, neither shall there be a flood to destroy the earth any more. 12Then God saide, This is the token of the couenant which I make betweene me and you, and betweene euery liuing thing, that is with you vnto perpetuall generations. 13I haue set my bowe in the cloude, and it shalbe for a signe of the couenant betweene me and the earth. 14And when I shall couer the earth with a cloud, and the bowe shall be seene in the cloude, 15Then will I remember my couenant, which is betweene me and you, and betweene euery liuing thing in all flesh, and there shalbe no more waters of a flood to destroy all flesh. 16Therefore the bowe shalbe in the cloude, that I may see it, and remember the euerlasting couenant betweene God, and euery liuing thing in all flesh that is vpon the earth. 17God said yet to Noah, This is the signe of the couenant, which I haue established betweene me and all flesh that is vpon the earth. 18Nowe the sonnes of Noah going foorth of the Arke, were Shem and Ham and Iapheth. And Ham is the father of Canaan. 19These are the three sonnes of Noah, and of them was the whole earth ouerspred. 20Noah also began to be an husband man and planted a vineyard. 21And he drunke of ye wine and was drunken, and was vncouered in the middes of his tent. 22And when Ham the father of Canaan sawe the nakednesse of his father, he tolde his two brethren without. 23Then tooke Shem and Iapheth a garment, and put it vpon both their shoulders, and went backwarde, and couered the nakednesse of their father with their faces backwarde: so they sawe not their fathers nakednesse. 24Then Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his yonger sonne had done vnto him, 25And said, Cursed be Canaan: a seruant of seruants shall he be vnto his brethren. 26He said moreouer, blessed be the Lord God of Shem, and let Canaan be his seruant. 27God perswade Iapheth, that he may dwell in the tentes of Shem, and let Canaan be his seruant. 28And Noah liued after the flood three hundreth and fiftie yeeres. 29So all the dayes of Noah were nine hundreth and fiftie yeeres: and he died.
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