Genesis 9
9
The Noahic Covenant
1#Ge 1:28; 8:17; 9:7Then God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. 2#Jas 3:7Every beast of the earth and every bird of the sky and all that moves on the earth and all the fish of the sea will fear you and be terrified of you. They are given into your hand. 3#Dt 12:15; Ro 14:14Every moving thing that lives will be food for you. I give you everything, just as I gave you the green plant.
4#Dt 12:16; 12:23“Only you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. 5#Ex 21:28–29; Ge 4:9–10But for your own lifeblood I will surely require a reckoning; from every animal will I require it; of man, too, will I require a reckoning for human life, of every man for that of his fellow man.
6#Ge 1:26–27; Lev 24:17 Whoever sheds the blood of man,
by man shall his blood be shed;
for God made man
in His own image.
7#Ge 9:1And as for you, be fruitful and multiply; increase abundantly in the earth and multiply in it.”
8Again God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying, 9#Ge 6:18“As for Me, I establish My covenant with you, and with your descendants after you; 10and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the livestock, and every beast of the earth with you; of all that comes out of the ark, every beast of the earth. 11#Isa 54:9; Ge 8:21–22I establish My covenant with you. Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood. Never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”
12#Ge 17:11Then God 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 future generations. 13#Eze 1:28; Rev 4:3I have set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth. 14When I bring a cloud over the earth, the rainbow will be seen in the cloud; 15#Eze 16:60; Dt 7:9then I will remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh, and the waters will never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16#Ge 17:13; 17:19The rainbow will appear in the cloud, and I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.”
17So God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”
The Sons of Noah
18#Ge 10:1; 10:6The sons of Noah who went forth from the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Ham was the father of Canaan. 19These were the three sons of Noah, and from them the whole earth was populated.
20Noah began to be a man of the soil, and he planted a vineyard. 21#Pr 20:1Then he drank some of the wine and became drunk, and lay uncovered in his tent. 22And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. 23So Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father’s nakedness.
24When Noah awoke from his wine and knew what his younger son had done to him, 25#Jos 9:23; Dt 27:16he said,
“Canaan be cursed!
He will be a servant of servants
to his brothers.”
26He also said,
“Blessed be the Lord God of Shem,
and let Canaan be his servant.
27May God enlarge Japheth,
and may he dwell in the tents of Shem,
and may Canaan be his servant.”
28Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. 29All the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years, and then he died.
Military Bible Association
Genesis 9
9
God’s Covenant with Noah
1God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. # Gn 1:28; 8:17; 9:7; 35:11 2The fear and terror of you will be in every living creature on the earth, every bird of the sky, every creature that crawls on the ground, and all the fish of the sea. They are placed under your authority. # Lit are given in your hand 3Every living creature will be food for you; # Dt 12:15; 1Tm 4:3-4 as I gave the green plants, I have given you everything. # Gn 1:28-30 4However, you must not eat meat with its lifeblood in it. # Lv 3:17; 7:20; 17:10-16; 19:26; Dt 12:16,23; 15:23; 1Sm 14:34; Ac 15:20,29 5I will require the life of every animal # Ex 21:28 and every man for your life and your blood. I will require the life of each man’s brother for a man’s life. # Gn 4:2,8
6Whoever sheds man’s blood,
his blood will be shed by man, # Ex 21:12-14; Lv 24:17; Nm 35:33; Mt 26:52
for God made man in His image. # Gn 1:26-27
7But you, be fruitful and multiply; spread out over the earth and multiply on it.” # Gn 1:28
8Then God said to Noah and his sons with him, 9“Understand that I am confirming My covenant # Gn 6:18; 8:22; 17:2; Ex 6:4; 19:5; Lv 26:9 with you and your descendants after you, 10and with every living creature that is with you — birds, livestock, and all wildlife of the earth that are with you — all the animals of the earth that came out of the ark. 11I confirm My covenant with you that never again will every creature be wiped out by the waters of a flood; there will never again be a flood to destroy the earth.” # Is 54:9-10
12And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant # Gn 17:11 I am making between Me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all future generations: 13I have placed My bow in the clouds, # Ezk 1:28; Rv 4:3; 10:1 and it will be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth. 14Whenever I form clouds over the earth and the bow appears in the clouds, 15I will remember My covenant # Lv 26:42,45; Dt 7:9; 1Kg 8:23; Ezk 16:60 between Me and you and all the living creatures: # Lit and creatures of all flesh water will never again become a flood to destroy every creature. 16The bow will be in the clouds, and I will look at it and remember the everlasting covenant # Gn 17:13; 2Sm 23:5; 1Ch 16:17; Is 24:5 between God and all the living creatures # Lit creatures of all flesh on earth.” 17God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have confirmed between Me and every creature on earth.”
Prophecies about Noah’s Family
18Noah’s sons who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Ham was the father of Canaan. 19These three were Noah’s sons, and from them the whole earth was populated. # Gn 9:1,7; 10:32; 1Ch 1:4
20Noah, a man of the soil, was the first to plant # Or Noah began to be a farmer and planted a vineyard. 21He drank some of the wine, became drunk, and uncovered himself inside his tent. 22Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside. # Lm 4:21; Hab 2:15 23Then Shem and Japheth took a cloak and placed it over both their shoulders, and walking backward, they covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father naked.
24When Noah awoke from his drinking and learned what his youngest son had done to him, 25he said:
Canaan will be cursed. # Dt 27:16
He will be the lowest of slaves to his brothers. # Jos 9:23; Jdg 1:28; 1Kg 9:20-21
26He also said:
Praise the Lord, the God of Shem;
Canaan will be # As a prophecy; others interpret the verbs in vv. 26-27 as a wish or prayer: let Canaan be . . . his slave.
27God will extend # In Hb, the name Japheth sounds like the word “extend.” Japheth;
he will dwell in the tents of Shem;
Canaan will be his slave.
28Now Noah lived 350 years after the flood. 29So Noah’s life lasted 950 years; then he died.
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