# Genesis 09 đź“–: God's Covenant With Noah
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> [!info] Table of Contents
> [[#đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)]]
> [[#đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary]]
> [[#🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]]
> [[#🧠Chapter Summary]]
> [[#✝️ Christ in This Chapter]]
> [[#🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application]]
> [[#đź’¬ Discussion Questions]]
> [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]]
> [[#đź”— Related Passages]]
> [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]]
> [[#đź“‚ Internal Notes]]
## đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)
(The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005)
### God’s Covenant with Humankind through Noah
[[#Verse 01.]] Then God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.
[[#Verse 02.]] Every living creature of the earth and every bird of the sky will be terrified of you. Everything that creeps on the ground and all the fish of the sea are under your authority.
[[#Verse 03.]] You may eat any moving thing that lives. As I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.
[[#Verse 04.]] “But you must not eat meat with its life (that is, its blood) in it.Â
[[#Verse 05.]] For your lifeblood I will surely exact punishment, from every living creature I will exact punishment. From each person I will exact punishment for the life of the individual since the man was his relative.
[[#Verse 06.]] “Whoever sheds human blood,
by other humans
must his blood be shed;
for in God’s image
God has made humankind.
[[#Verse 07.]] “But as for you, be fruitful and multiply; increase abundantly on the earth and multiply on it.”
[[#Verse 08.]]Â God said to Noah and his sons,Â
[[#Verse 09.]] “Look. I now confirm my covenant with you and your descendants after youÂ
[[#Verse 10.]] and with every living creature that is with you, including the birds, the domestic animals, and every living creature of the earth with you, all those that came out of the ark with you—every living creature of the earth.
[[#Verse 11.]] I confirm my covenant with you: Never again will all living things be wiped out by the waters of a flood; never again will a flood destroy the earth.”
[[#Verse 12.]] And God said, “This is the guarantee of the covenant I am making with you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all subsequent generations:Â
[[#Verse 13.]] I will place my rainbow in the clouds, and it will become a guarantee of the covenant between me and the earth.Â
[[#Verse 14.]] Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds,Â
[[#Verse 15.]] then I will remember my covenant with you and with all living creatures of all kinds. Never again will the waters become a flood and destroy all living things.Â
[[#Verse 16.]] When the rainbow is in the clouds, I will notice it and remember the perpetual covenant between God and all living creatures of all kinds that are on the earth.”
[[#Verse 17.]] So God said to Noah, “This is the guarantee of the covenant that I am confirming between me and all living things that are on the earth.”
### The Curse on Canaan
[[#Verses 18-28.]]
[[#Verse 18.]]Â The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. (Now Ham was the father of Canaan.)Â
[[#Verse 19.]]Â These were the three sons of Noah, and from them the whole earth was populated.
[[#Verse 20.]] Noah, a man of the soil, began to plant a vineyard.
[[#Verse 21.]] When he drank some of the wine, he got drunk and uncovered himself inside his tent.Â
[[#Verse 22.]] Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers who were outside.Â
[[#Verse 23.]] Shem and Japheth took the garment and placed it on their shoulders. Then they walked in backwards and covered up their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned the other way so they did not see their father’s nakedness.
[[#Verse 24.]] When Noah awoke from his drunken stupor he learned what his youngest son had done to him.Â
[[#Verse 25.]]Â So he said,
“Cursed be Canaan!
The lowest of slaves
he will be to his brothers.”
[[#Verse 26.]]Â He also said,
“Worthy of praise is the Lord, the God of Shem!
May Canaan be the slave of Shem!
[[#Verse 27.]] May God enlarge Japheth’s territory and numbers!
May he live in the tents of Shem
and may Canaan be the slave of Japheth!”
[[#Verse 28.]]Â After the flood Noah lived 350 years.
[[#Verse 29.]]Â The entire lifetime of Noah was 950 years, and then he died.
## đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary
##### Verses 18-28.
This passage is full of curiosity for Bible scholars. Due to the way the original languages read, what Ham did could have been really bad. The Hebrew language sometimes uses the same words to have multiple meanings so context is always key. Scholars interpret these verses to possibly mean:
- Ham saw and reported in ridicule.
- Ham had sex with Noah.
- Ham had sex with Noah’s wife. (Michael Heiser seemed to lean this way.)
This is why Noah was so angry.
###### Overall.
###### Verse 01.
###### Verse 02.
###### Verse 03.
###### Verse 04.
###### Verse 05.
###### Verse 06.
###### Verse 07.
###### Verse 08.
###### Verse 09.
###### Verse 10.
###### Verse 11.
###### Verse 12.
###### Verse 13.
###### Verse 14.
###### Verse 15.
###### Verse 16.
###### Verse 17.
###### Verse 18.
###### Verse 19.
###### Verse 20.
###### Verse 21.
###### Verse 22.
###### Verse 23.
###### Verse 24.
###### Verse 25.
###### Verse 26.
###### Verse 27.
###### Verse 28.
###### Verse 29.
## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights
1. The word "covenant" first appears in 6:18, and here God explains its terms.
2. God's covenant with Noah includes every living creature (9:10), not only people.
3. The Hebrew word for rainbow is the same word for a warrior's bow. Many see it as God hanging up His bow.
4. God permits eating meat after the flood (9:3), but not with the blood still in it (9:4).
5. The command against eating blood is repeated in the Law (Leviticus 17:10-14) and in Acts 15:20.
6. Genesis 9:6 grounds the value of human life in the image of God.
7. Noah is the first person in the Bible recorded planting a vineyard (9:20).
8. Noah's curse falls on Canaan, Ham's son, rather than on Ham himself (9:25).
9. Noah lived 350 years after the flood and died at 950 (9:28-29).
10. Shem's line leads to Abraham (11:10-26). The word "Semitic" comes from Shem's name.
## 🧠Chapter Summary
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## ✝️ Christ in This Chapter
Christ is the fulfillment of God's covenant promises. The rainbow assured Noah of God's mercy (9:13-16), and in Jesus every promise of God is "Yes" (2 Corinthians 1:20).
## 🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## đź’¬ Discussion Questions
1. God gave Noah the same blessing He gave Adam (9:1). What does that show about God's purpose after judgment?
2. Human life is precious because people are made in God's image (9:6). How should that conviction shape our words and actions?
3. Noah failed after the flood (9:20-21). What warning or comfort do you take from that?
## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember
- đź“– verse 6: Human life is precious because people are made in God's image.
- đź“– verses 12-13: The rainbow is the sign of God's covenant with the earth.
- đź“– verse 15: God remembers His covenant.
## đź”— Related Passages
- đź”— [[Genesis 01#Verse 28.|Genesis 1:28]] - The original blessing to be fruitful.
- đź”— [[Isaiah 54#Verse 09.|Isaiah 54:9-10]] - God's covenant of peace will not be removed.
- đź”— [[Ezekiel 01#Verse 28.|Ezekiel 1:28]] - The glory of the Lord like a rainbow.
- đź”— [[Revelation 04#Verse 03.|Revelation 4:3]] - A rainbow surrounds God's throne.
- đź”— [[2 Corinthians 01#Verse 20.|2 Corinthians 1:20]] - All God's promises are "Yes" in Christ.
## 🙏 Devotional Reflection
đź“ť SOAP: [[Genesis 09- SOAP|Seasons Change]]
## đź“‚ Internal Notes