Genesis Chapter 9

A New Beginning

9:1

This verse reveals God blessing Noah and his sons, commanding them once again to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. This is a repeat of the original command given to Adam and Eve. Remember, without God’s blessings and man’s obedience, it is impossible to be successful and please God.

9:2

Something entirely new is given here by God. The animals were now to fear and dread man! Yet, man is to maintain dominion over all animals. This means mankind has a responsibility, before God, to properly care for the animal kingdom. This does not mean we try to preserve every animal life, but that we are good stewards over the animal kingdom. We must consider the consequences of managing the earth’s resources and the impact on animal life. We must remember that our primary mandate is to fill the earth with humans. Thus human life always takes precedence over animal life. Yet, we cannot allow animal abuse or cruelty anymore than we can allow human abuse or cruelty. Putting animals before men is not what God intended.

9:3-4

This gives us the answer as to why animals would need to fear and dread humans. Mankind was now given the mandate that every living thing, in addition to the vegetation, was to be food for mankind. In addition, some of the animals also, would now be meat eaters. Therefore, God put a fear of man on the animals, otherwise animals might overpower man and mankind could be exterminated. (4.) Mankind could eat everything except the blood of animals. Why? Because God tells man that the very life of all living things is contained in the blood. Our lifeblood is the basis of our life and its functioning. Blood carries nutrients and oxygen to our organs and allows us to function and live.

9:5-6

Now God mandates, or commands, that anyone who takes the lifeblood of another human being, killing the person, shall be required to die by the hand of man. This mandate for the death penalty for murder is very clear. Prior to this time, God had retained the authority to require the death of another human. In addition, any animal that causes a human’s death shall also be put to death by man. Since God uses the term ‘reckoning’ this would mean that some sort of social civil government would be established to insure the truth of the situation would be determined before the accused murderer would be put to death. This would later be termed a magisterial power, and the power of the sword. It is very important to note that the first governmental authority over another man’s life is given by God, not to just to punish them, but to require that they be put to death! Some of us may cringe at this, yet we must understand that God says to allow a murderer to continue to live is to pollute the land. See Numbers 35:30-34. God says that to allow a murderer to go on living, after he has been convicted by two witnesses, its to pollute and defile the land in which we live. The shed blood of innocent people pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land except the blood of him who did the murder. Mankind is made and created in the image and likeness of God, and God greatly values all humans. God says that He lives in the midst of the land that we live in. Jesus Himself said that He came not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it. Jesus gave His blood for the atonement of all mankind. At no time did Jesus ever state that murderers were not to be executed. So, here in America, have we polluted our land by allowing convicted murderers to continue to live? According to God, we have.

9:7

God repeats again the primary mandate that they are to be fruitful and multiply and to fill the Earth abundantly. Yet those who are anti-God scream and yell that there are too many people. Really? Look around us, there is plenty of vacant and empty land. There are large vast regions of land that are uninhabited, yet could easily be farmed and used for human habitation. Remember, God wants more people in His image and likeness. He welcomes more people to be born and become His Children to enjoy Heaven forever. Yet, who doesn’t want people in Gods image and likeness? Who hates humans and wants to destroy all mankind? The evil one, Satan.

9:8-11

It is marvelous that the Holy Spirit actually gives us God’s very Words for the Covenant to Noah and future generations; that’s us! God’s pledge and promise is to all living creatures: Never again will all living things be destroyed by a flood, neither will the Earth be destroyed by a flood. This Covenant is known as the ‘Noahic Covenant’. Despite the fact that they would sin, and we also sin, this Covenant was unconditional; they and we, do nothing to earn it. There are no conditions to it’s being fulfilled.

9:12-13

God graciously and lovingly gives a token of His solemn promise to Noah, future generations and every living creature: God sets His bow, which is a Rainbow, in the clouds and sky for all to clearly see and enjoy. What a powerful reminder that God makes and keeps His promises to us.

9:14-17

God assures Noah, and future generations, that when He brings clouds over the earth, and the rainbow is seen, He remembers and keeps His solemn pledge between Himself and mankind. That never, ever, would there be a flood to destroy all men, animals and the world. God continues to assure them that He is giving them an everlasting covenant that cannot and will not ever be broken. God tells Noah personally that the rainbow is God’s sign of his promise to Mankind and all flesh upon the Earth. This was to give assurance to people when any kind of heavy rainfall came, that a worldwide flood was NOT happening. The rainbow has always been a reminder to us that God always keeps His promises to us. We use the ‘rainbow’ as the background for our Evangelical Pamphlet, LIVE FOREVER, in sharing the Good News of Eternal Salvation through Jesus Christ.

9:18-19

We are reminded of the names of Noah’s three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth. We are also told that Ham is the father of Canaan. All the Earth is to be populated by these men. This is quite possible considering that 4,000 + years have passed and that they lived long lives.

9:20

Noah takes up a profession as a Husbandman, and plants a vineyard. Husbandman could mean a man of the ground, a man of cattle, a man of words, a man of war, a man of blood. The Bible gives us all these meanings. We do know that since Noah planted a vineyard and had the clean animals, he was a farmer and cattleman.

9:21

Oh, oh! This is the first failing we see of Noah. When he became drunk, he evidently fell asleep without covering himself. Keep in mind that he is in his tent, not just out in the open. Remember, sinful men are destroyed, yet we all have hearts that are not perfect, and can and do chose sin.

9:22

Now Ham willfully looks at his naked father. Certainly a sign of disrespect. When Ham realized his father was naked, he made a sinful choice to ‘look upon him’. He could have just immediately looked away, and then graciously found a way to cover him, or secure the tent flap, or? Some scholars believe there was some sort of sexual sin involved in the son looking at the fathers nakedness. To make matters worse, he tells his brothers about Noah’s being drunk and naked, thereby dishonoring his father by his lack of respect and discernment. These actions denote a strong hint of rebellion in the heart of Ham. Why else would he do something to harm his father’s reputation and honor? Remember, by dishonoring his father, Ham also dishonored God. Today, those who do not honor their father, also dishonor God.

9:23

Shem and Japheth immediately take a garment, probably some kind of a blanket, and hold it on their shoulders and go backward into the tent, keeping the backs of their heads toward their father, and cover their father’s nakedness, without seeing him naked. They honor their father by not looking at him, and by covering him so no one else can look at him and humiliate him. Their immediate response is to protect and honor their father. How we respond to someone else’s failure speaks a great deal about our own integrity, honesty, kindness, love and respect of others. We should never reveal another person’s sin unless it is to prevent harm to another person, and then only to the proper authorities.

9:24

When Noah woke up he somehow knew that his son had dishonored and disrespected him by looking at him and revealing his nakedness to his other sons. (25.) Noah curses Canaan, Ham’s son, with a prophecy, stating that his grandson would be a servant of servants to his kinsman. Why would Noah curse his grandson, when he had nothing to do with his father’s sin? The father wants his son to be successful and receive God’s blessings; now, however, because of Ham’s sinful actions, he has caused his own son to be cursed. Any other ideas? Perhaps Noah saw the bent of Ham and realized by divine inspiration that he would be leading his son, Canaan, into similar disrespectful and ungodly ways. The Canaanites in later history become wicked and immoral people. God in later history eventually orders them to be driven from the land.

9:26

Noah now gives a prophetic blessing to Shem, identifying Shem as a believer, by calling God, the God OF Shem! He further prophecies that Shem will be blessed by the Lord my God. It would be from the line of Shem that the promised Redeemer would come. The last part of the prophesy states that Canaan shall be his servant, indicating the lineage was to serve Shem’s lineage.

9:27

Noah’s prophetic blessing to Japheth indicate that he would be enlarged and spread to other lands, and possibly be made fruitful, wise and wealthy. Dwelling in the tents of Shem indicates that their respective kinsmen would live together in peace. Again, Canaan’s lineage was to also be the servant of Japheth’s lineage. These prophetic blessings on each of Noah’s sons, gives a future bent of those peoples. Japheth’s line of Greeks, Romans, Aryans, and Europeans have supplied the philosophers and scientists of mankind. Whereas Ham’s line was dominated by physical attributes. Shem’s line was to continue the spiritual concerns of following the One True God. These three attributes emphasize the tripartite nature of man (Body, Mind and Spiritual). Even today, we see nations of peoples who emphasize these different areas of man.

9:28-29

We are again given the important information of how long Noah lived after the flood and the exact number of years of his entire life, 950 years. The Holy Spirit has carefully preserved the exact age of all the line of the seed of the Messiah so that we can know with certainty how much time has been involved. Why? Because God knew evolutionists would try to discredit the creation of mankind, the world and the universe by God. We are given the Truth and can know by the evidence we see, that God is our Creator. The last phrase of this chapter, ‘And he died’, is another reminder that all of us will die someday.

We should all be living our lives in ways that honor God by doing what is best for others, in the view of Eternity. All of us leave the Earth the same way, are you prepared?`