Genesis 9

The New Beginning

1Then God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Have many children; grow in number and fill the earth. 2Every animal on earth, every bird in the sky, every animal that crawls on the ground, and every fish in the sea will respect and fear you. I have given them to you.

3“Everything that moves, everything that is alive, is yours for food. Earlier I gave you the green plants, but now I give you everything for food. 4But you must not eat meat that still has blood in it, because blood gives life. 5I will demand blood for life. I will demand the life of any animal that kills a person, and I will demand the life of anyone who takes another person’s life.

6“Whoever kills a human being

will be killed by a human being,

because God made humans

in his own image.

7“As for you, Noah, I want you and your family to have many children, to grow in number on the earth, and to become many.”

8Then God said to Noah and his sons, 9“Now I am making my agreement with you and your people who will live after you, 10and with every living thing that is with you—the birds, the tame and the wild animals, and with everything that came out of the boat with you—with every living thing on earth. 11I make this agreement with you: I will never again destroy all living things by a flood. A flood will never again destroy the earth.”

12And God said, “This is the sign of the agreement between me and you and every living creature that is with you. 13I am putting my rainbow in the clouds as the sign of the agreement between me and the earth. 14When I bring clouds over the earth and a rainbow appears in them, 15I will remember my agreement between me and you and every living thing. Floods will never again destroy all life on the earth. 16When the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and I will remember the agreement that continues forever between me and every living thing on the earth.”

17So God said to Noah, “The rainbow is a sign of the agreement that I made with all living things on earth.”

Noah and His Sons

18The sons of Noah who came out of the boat with him were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. (Ham was the father of Canaan.) 19These three men were Noah’s sons, and all the people on earth came from these three sons.

20Noah became a farmer and planted a vineyard. 21When he drank wine made from his grapes, he became drunk and lay naked in his tent. 22Ham, the father of Canaan, looked at his naked father and told his brothers outside. 23Then Shem and Japheth got a coat and, carrying it on both their shoulders, they walked backwards into the tent and covered their father. They turned their faces away so that they did not see their father’s nakedness.

24Noah was sleeping because of the wine. When he woke up and learned what his youngest son, Ham, had done to him, 25he said,

“May there be a curse on Canaan!

May he be the lowest slave to his brothers.”

26Noah also said,

“May the Lord, the God of Shem, be praised!

May Canaan be Shem’s slave.

27May God give more land to Japheth.

May Japheth live in Shem’s tents,

and may Canaan be their slave.”

28After the flood Noah lived 350 years. 29He lived a total of 950 years, and then he died.

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Genesis 9

Covenant of the Rainbow

1And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. 2The fear of you and the terror of you will be on every beast of the earth and on every bird of the sky; with everything that creeps on the ground, and all the fish of the sea, into your hand they are given. 3Every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you; I give all to you, as I gave the green plant. 4Only you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. 5Surely I will require your lifeblood; from every beast I will require it. And from every man, from every man’s brother I will require the life of man.

6Whoever sheds man’s blood,

By man his blood shall be shed,

For in the image of God

He made man.

7As for you, be fruitful and multiply;

Populate the earth abundantly and multiply in it.”

8Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying, 9“Now behold, I Myself do establish My covenant with you, and with your descendants after you; 10and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you; of all that comes out of the ark, even every beast of the earth. 11I establish My covenant with you; and all flesh shall never again be cut off by the water of the flood, neither shall there again be a flood to destroy the earth.” 12God said, “This is the sign of the covenant which I am making between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all successive generations; 13I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth. 14It shall come about, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud, 15and I will remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and never again shall the water become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16When the bow is in the cloud, then I will look upon it, to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” 17And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”

18Now the sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem and Ham and Japheth; and Ham was the father of Canaan. 19These three were the sons of Noah, and from these the whole earth was populated.

20Then Noah began farming and planted a vineyard. 21He drank of the wine and became drunk, and uncovered himself inside his tent. 22Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. 23But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it upon both their shoulders and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were turned away, so that they did not see their father’s nakedness. 24When Noah awoke from his wine, he knew what his youngest son had done to him. 25So he said,

“Cursed be Canaan;

# I.e. The lowest of servants A servant of servants

He shall be to his brothers.”

26He also said,

“Blessed be the Lord,

The God of Shem;

And let Canaan be his servant.

27May God enlarge Japheth,

And let him dwell in the tents of Shem;

And let Canaan be his servant.”

28Noah lived three hundred and fifty years after the flood. 29So all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years, and he died.

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