Genesis 9C (2011) Tday we mve n frm the Fld stry and transitin t the next tldat r genealgy in Genesis But first we have sme unfinished business in the family f Nah Nah has unfrtunately given int his flesh, becme drunk and uncvered himself Thus prving that Nah was nt perfect, nt sinless, thugh he was a man f great faith Then his sn Ham saw his father and magnified his shame Ham celebrated his father s sin rather than shwing discretin and endeavring t cver the shame His brthers, n the ther hand, shw mercy and d their best t help their father recver his dignity Next we watch father Nah s respnse t hw his children reacted Nah respnds by making prphetic statements cncerning the bys and the future f their respective family lines As we read these prnuncements, remember that Nah wuld have understd the seriusness f what he was saying Nah understd that his bys wuld reppulate the earth He knew that each sn wuld prduce a multitude f peple ver time Which explains why Nah chse such sweeping prnuncements And we must assume that Nah s impetus t make these statements was the Spirit s influence and directin S nw lk at Nah s respnse: 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 9C! 2 Gen. 9:24 When Nah awke frm his wine, he knew what his yungest sn had dne t him. Gen. 9:25 S he said, Cursed be Canaan; A servant f servants He shall be t his brthers. Gen. 9:26 He als said, Blessed be the LORD, The Gd f Shem; And let Canaan be his servant. Gen. 9:27 May Gd enlarge Japheth, And let him dwell in the tents f Shem; And let Canaan be his servant. Gen. 9:28 Nah lived three hundred and fifty years after the fld. Gen. 9:29 S all the days f Nah were nine hundred and fifty years, and he died. As Nah awke, he learns f his indiscretins f the prir evening My English text says the yungest sn, But the Hebrew wrd can als be translated yunger, which is mre accurate since Ham is the middle child Sme f us may be able t identify with Nah, perhaps as a result f past decisins and indiscretins The sinking feeling as we replay the previus night in ur memry, piecing tgether what was said and dne In Nah s case, he prbably nticed that he wasn t wearing his nrmal sleep attire Instead, there was a clak thrwn ver him, smething he wuldn t have dne fr himself under nrmal circumstances It prbably didn t require much thught t recgnize that smene else had cvered him And with that recgnitin, Nah wuld have been hrrified and embarrassed and ashamed Perhaps he apprached the bys t aplgize r t ask fr an explanatin In the curse f that discussin, v.24 says Nah knew r understd what his yungest sn had dne 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 9C! 3 And what Ham had dne was disrespect his father Mre than simply disrespect, Ham had shwn a willingness t enjy and even celebrate the sin f anther And in that behavir he had shamed Nah and himself Ham s example is a gd ne fr us t cnsider urselves D we glry in anther s sin? Our first answer might be, Of curse nt... But befre we rush t that answer, let s ask urselves a few questins When we learn embarrassing r shameful news f anther persn, d we ask urselves wh can I share this with? If we re ut with friends and ne persn begins engaging in mischief, d we encurage them n hping t see them d smething utlandish r risk getting int truble? D we lk the ther way when a friend breaks the rules r even the law rather than crrecting them kindly and reminding them f their Christian witness? In all these cases and thers like them we repeat the mistake f Ham, certainly in manner if nt in degree We glry in anther s sin, encuraging, feeding it r at least enjying it vicariusly Paul said he prayed that the church wuld act differently Phil. 1:9 And this I pray, that yur lve may abund still mre and mre in real knwledge and all discernment, Phil. 1:10 s that yu may apprve the things that are excellent, in rder t be sincere and blameless until the day f Christ; Phil. 1:11 having been filled with the fruit f righteusness which cmes thrugh Jesus Christ, t the glry and praise f Gd. Paul s cncern fr the church was that we wuldn t be a Ham, s t speak 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 9C! 4 We wuld abund in lve in knwledge and discernment Which wuld lead us t apprve f excellent things, rather than abased things And we wuld be blameless until ur judgment day, filled with righteusness Nah certainly didn t apprve f Ham s behavir, and in respnse Nah prnunces a curse The first thing we ntice is that the curse is directly against nt Ham but Canaan Since the beginning f this chapter, we ve nticed that any mentin f Ham has included the phrase the father f Canaan Here we see why Mses has been making that cnnectin thrughut the chapter Mses was helping us understand the cnnectin between Ham and the curse Nah gives Nah is upset at his sn Ham, but Nah directs his curse at Ham s sn rather than at Ham himself Why? D yu remember what we learned in chapter 3 cncerning curses? A curse is a prnuncement f eternal damnatin And when it cmes frm Gd (in this case by the pwer f the Spirit), it is a permanent and irrevcable verdict Culd Gd prnunce a curse - eternal damnatin - upn Ham? Ham remember was ne f the eight n the ark Peter testifies that all eight n the ark were righteus by faith 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 9C! 5 2Pet. 2:4 Fr if Gd did nt spare angels when they sinned, but cast them int hell and cmmitted them t pits f darkness, reserved fr judgment; 2Pet. 2:5 and did nt spare the ancient wrld, but preserved Nah, a preacher f righteusness, with seven thers, when He brught a fld upn the wrld f the ungdly;... 2Pet. 2:9 then the Lrd knws hw t rescue the gdly frm temptatin, and t keep the unrighteus under punishment fr the day f judgment, S if Ham is a man saved by Gd s grace, then Gd cannt prnunce a curse upn Ham This is the same situatin as Gd faced with Adam and Wman in the Garden Adam sinned yet Gd prnunced curse nt upn him but upn the grund, Adam s surce Similarly, here Gd prnunces a curse thrugh Nah upn Ham but indirectly In this case it lands n Ham s sn, Canaan Remember, being a believer desn t assure us f a perfect life A believer can sin, and a believer can find life taking terrible turns Saving faith isn t an insurance plicy against the hrrrs f a sinful wrld Lking in the Hall f Faith in Hebrews 11, we might ntice that the first three men listed were Abel, Ench and Nah Nah dies f ld age, but nt befre enduring a traumatic disaster and an embarrassing sinful episde Ench is preserved frm even experiencing death Abel was murdered at a yung age If these men can experience such different utcmes in life yet all be men listed in the Hall f Faith, then we can knw anything can happen t us 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 9C! 6 But n matter what happens, we re assured that death wn t cnquer and we will receive an eternal inheritance S nw we understand why Nah desn t directly curse his wn sn Ham, but why place the curse n Canaan? The answer is simple, but it may nt be satisfying fr us at least nt at first Gd is intent n bringing a cnsequence fr this sin And the cnsequence must cme frm Nah, the man wh nw represents human gvernment But it can t cme against Ham And s it will flw frm Ham t the next generatin And it desn t really matter where it lands Gd is svereign ver the life f each persn and He determines hw each life will serve His purpses In Gd s wisdm and prvidence He determined that Canaan was the prper recipient f His wrath fr Ham s sin Yu might say that isn t fair, but remember that Canaan was brn a sinner like every man He was already n a path t judgment fr his sins, like every unbeliever Ham s sin didn t put Canaan under judgment Canaan s wn sin did that fr him But Gd s prnuncement means that Canaan will nt receive Gd s grace s as t vercme his sin He will be left in his sin, cursed as everyne wh des a sinner will be Yet still we ask why Canaan? Why nt Ham s ldest sn Cush? Or the secnd r third children? Many cmmentatrs have tried t answer that in inventive ways, but I think the answer is simple 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 9C! 7 When Gd respnded t Adam s sin in the Garden, He didn t curse Adam, but He cursed the grund Gd s chice cmmunicated that thugh Adam s sin required Gd s judgment, nevertheless Gd wuld turn that int gd fr thse wh lve Gd S by cursing the Earth, Gd was putting an end t ur crrupted physical bdy, which came frm the earth And Gd was prmising t replace the physical wrld, which itself was infected by sin S nw as Gd selects a sn f Ham t curse, Gd selects the furth sn And the number fur in Scripture is the number assciated with Earth Like we see fur cmpass directins, fur seasns, fur winds, fur crners f the earth, etc. Therefre, Gd repeats His pattern f cursing the earth, s t speak And like in the Garden, the curse against Canaan ultimately has a psitive impact fr thse wh lve Gd and are called by His purpse The family that descends frm Canaan will becme pster children fr depravity in the land later ccupied by Israel They were sexually depraved and idlatrs with extreme practices And when Gd s chsen peple entered int the prmised land under Jshua, Gd made Israel s army an instrument f punishment They were cnquered by Gd s peple and they were in a psitin f slavery r inferirity until they were finally enslaved and destryed by the Rmans in 146 BC Nah s prnuncement said Canaan wuld be cursed, a servant f servants, the lwest servant And he wuld serve the peple wh cme frm his brthers, meaning the families f Shem and Japeth 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 9C! 8 The Israelites came frm Shem and the Rmans came frm Japeth Gd s wisdm is evident in this plan, as it ensures that the peple dispsed by the arrival f Israel in the land are a peple prperly destined fr this utcme Sme have speculated that this curse is the surce fr the slavery f Africans ver the centuries Ham s descendants ppulate Africa, s this thinking is an attempt t justify the enslavement f Africans by Eurpeans But even a casual reading f Genesis shws us the flaw in that thinking Ham wasn t cursed, Canaan was cursed And Canaan didn t settle in Africa Next, Nah turns t the ther brthers wh prtected his dignity, and Nah prnunces blessing Fr Shem, Nah blesses nt Shem directly but the Gd f Shem Fr Shem, the meaning f this blessing is clear He will be the line f the Seed The prmise fr a Messiah will cme thrugh Shem And Shem s blessing will be t be fund in the line f Messiah Frm Shem we get tw ntable lines f peple present in the wrld tday First, we get the peple f the prmised seed, the Jewish peple Secndly, we get the Arab peples, the appinted fils fr Israel We learn mre abut the rigins f these tw grups in future chapters Bth these grups are cnsidered Semites, because bth came frm Shem But nly the Israelites are the prmised seed line 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 9C! 9 Finally, Nah turns t Japeth And then Nah repeats that Canaan s family wuld serve the families f Shem Nah declares that Japeth and his families will be enlarged Enlarged refers t bth the number f them and their territry and wealth The peples wh cme frm Japeth eventually settle bth Eurpe, Asia and later Nrth America Obviusly these territries represent the vast majrity f the wrld s ppulatin and the wrld s wealth And Japeth s family wuld dwell in the tents f Shem The phrase in Hebrew cnveys a certain meaning The wrd dwell in Hebrew, sheken, can mean t abide in Similar t shekan, which is neighbr The sense is f shared benefit But the tents will be Shem s Japeth will have the wealth and the numbers But they cme t Shem s hme and gain benefit frm assciatin with Shem s dwelling The sharing will be mutual, but the greater blessing will cme frm Shem and g t Japeth The fulfillment f this prphecy can nly be understd spiritually Shem will prduce the line f the Messiah thrugh Israel And Japeth will prduce the bulk f the Gentile peple f the wrld And the Gentiles will receive blessing by dwelling spiritually in Israel, Shem s descendants And Shem will benefit frm the assciatin because the Gentiles will bring numbers and wealth t serve Israel in the Kingdm 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 9C! 10 Lking back at the three brthers, we can see each serving as a representative fr the three majr divisins f humanity, spiritually speaking Ham, as represented by his sn Canaan, pictures the fate f the sinner The ne wh glries in sin, and celebrates the flesh This persn will g t destructin paying the penalty fr that sin We wuld say the unbeliever Shem represents the Jew The seed line Gd s chsen peple, The peple wh bring salvatin t the wrld Finally, Japeth represents the Gentile believer Thse wh wn the wrld but give it up fr the hpe f Israel The persn wh later enters the family f Gd by faith and is grafted int the prmises f Israel Wh will dwell in Israel s prmised kingdm by assciatin with Gd s prmises T end this imprtant chapter, Mses tells us f the end f Nah s stry Gen. 9:28 Nah lived three hundred and fifty years after the fld. Gen. 9:29 S all the days f Nah were nine hundred and fifty years, and he died. Nah s life span is 950 years, f which 350 ccurred after the Fld Nah lives lng enugh t see the wrld reppulated Abraham is almst 100 years ld when Nah dies The wrld seen peple settled frm Eurpe t Africa t East Asia And Nah s sn Shem, anther passenger n the Ark, lived until Jacb was ver 100 years ld Clearly, between Nah and Shem, there was plenty f pprtunity fr ancient men t hear the stry f the fld firsthand and recrd the details accurately 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.
Genesis 9C! 11 As news f his death spread, it must have been a imprtant day Nah had been brn befre Adam died And nw Nah was gne And it s been 2,000 years since the Fall in the Garden Until this mment, we culd cnnect human histry back t the beginning f time thrugh the lives f just tw peple After Nah s death, length f lives drps dramatically And in just a future generatins, men will have lst that direct testimnial cnnectin t the beginning f all things And alng the way languages are increased and distances grw, and men begin t create stries t fill in their gaps f understanding histry Myths develp, idls increase And s the mercy f Gd is revealed in His willingness t recrd these truths thrugh the prphet Mses S that even tday, six thusands years r s later, we re still able t understand the details f hw men reached tday And mre than that, we understand the hws and whys fr the way things are The surce f sin, the cnsequences f men living apart frm Gd And Gd s mercy t prvide a prmised slutin, fund in the Lrd Christ 2011 Verse By Verse Ministry f San Antni (www.versebyverseministry.rg) May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.