In the previous post we looked at the covenant God made with all of creation after the flood. God promised never to use the forces of nature to judge the earth and its inhabitants. And more to the point, God promised that he would not allow human violence and depravity be a reason for which he punishes the earth. We now see what happens to Noah and his sons after the flood. And, while the text itself is quite dark, the ways in which it has been used through Church history have been darker still.

Hebrew text:

18 וַיִּֽהְי֣וּ בְנֵי־נֹ֗חַ הַיֹּֽצְאִים֙ מִן־הַתֵּבָ֔ה שֵׁ֖ם וְחָ֣ם וָיָ֑פֶת וְחָ֕ם ה֖וּא אֲבִ֥י כְנָֽעַן׃

19 שְׁלֹשָׁ֥ה אֵ֖לֶּה בְּנֵי־נֹ֑חַ וּמֵאֵ֖לֶּה נָֽפְצָ֥ה כָל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃

20 וַיָּ֥חֶל נֹ֖חַ אִ֣ישׁ הָֽאֲדָמָ֑ה וַיִּטַּ֖ע כָּֽרֶם׃

21 וַיֵּ֥שְׁתְּ מִן־הַיַּ֖יִן וַיִּשְׁכָּ֑ר וַיִּתְגַּ֖ל בְּת֥וֹךְ אָהֳלֹֽה׃

22 וַיַּ֗רְא חָ֚ם אֲבִ֣י כְנַ֔עַן אֵ֖ת עֶרְוַ֣ת אָבִ֑יו וַיַּגֵּ֥ד לִשְׁנֵֽי־אֶחָ֖יו בַּחֽוּץ׃

23 וַיִּקַּח֩ שֵׁ֨ם וָיֶ֜פֶת אֶת־הַשִּׂמְלָ֗ה וַיָּשִׂ֙ימוּ֙ עַל־שְׁכֶ֣ם שְׁנֵיהֶ֔ם וַיֵּֽלְכוּ֙ אֲחֹ֣רַנִּ֔ית וַיְכַסּ֕וּ אֵ֖ת עֶרְוַ֣ת אֲבִיהֶ֑ם וּפְנֵיהֶם֙ אֲחֹ֣רַנִּ֔ית וְעֶרְוַ֥ת אֲבִיהֶ֖ם לֹ֥א רָאֽוּ׃

24 וַיִּ֥יקֶץ נֹ֖חַ מִיֵּינ֑וֹ וַיֵּ֕דַע אֵ֛ת אֲשֶׁר־עָ֥שָׂה־ל֖וֹ בְּנ֥וֹ הַקָּטָֽן׃

25 וַיֹּ֖אמֶר אָר֣וּר כְּנָ֑עַן עֶ֥בֶד עֲבָדִ֖ים יִֽהְיֶ֥ה לְאֶחָֽיו׃

26 וַיֹּ֕אמֶר בָּר֥וּךְ יְהוָֹ֖ה אֱלֹ֣הֵי שֵׁ֑ם וִיהִ֥י כְנַ֖עַן עֶ֥בֶד לָֽמוֹ׃

27 יַ֤פְתְּ אֱלֹהִים֙ לְיֶ֔פֶת וְיִשְׁכֹּ֖ן בְּאָֽהֳלֵי־שֵׁ֑ם וִיהִ֥י כְנַ֖עַן עֶ֥בֶד לָֽמוֹ׃

28 וַֽיְחִי־נֹ֖חַ אַחַ֣ר הַמַּבּ֑וּל שְׁלֹ֤שׁ מֵאוֹת֙ שָׁנָ֔ה וַֽחֲמִשִּׁ֖ים שָׁנָֽה׃

29 וַיִּֽהְיוּ֙ כָּל־יְמֵי־נֹ֔חַ תְּשַׁ֤ע מֵאוֹת֙ שָׁנָ֔ה וַחֲמִשִּׁ֖ים שָׁנָ֑ה וַיָּמֹֽת׃ פ

Transliteration:

18 way·yih·yū  ḇə·nê- nō·aḥ, hay·yō·ṣə·’îm  min- hat·tê·ḇāh, šêm wə·ḥām wā·yā·p̄eṯ;  wə·ḥām hū ’ă·ḇî ḵə·nā·‘an.  

19 šə·lō·šāh  ’êl·leh bə·nê-  nō·aḥ; ū·mê·’êl·leh  nā·p̄ə·ṣāh ḵāl hā·’ā·reṣ. 

20 way·yā·ḥel  nō·aḥ ’îš hā·’ă·ḏā·māh;  way·yiṭ·ṭa‘ kā·rem. 

21 way·yê·šət  min- hay·ya·yin  way·yiš·kār; way·yiṯ·gal  bə·ṯō·wḵ ’ā·ho·lōh  

22 way·yar,  ḥām ’ă·ḇî ḵə·na·‘an,  ’êṯ ‘er·waṯ ’ā·ḇîw; way·yag·gêḏ  liš·nê- ’e·ḥāw ba·ḥūṣ.  

23 way·yiq·qaḥ  šêm wā·ye·p̄eṯ ’eṯ-  haś·śim·lāh, way·yā·śî·mū  ‘al- šə·ḵem šə·nê·hem, way·yê·lə·ḵū  ’ă·ḥō·ran·nîṯ, way·ḵas·sū ’êṯ ‘er·waṯ  ’ă·ḇî·hem; ū·p̄ə·nê·hem ’ă·ḥō·ran·nîṯ, wə·‘er·waṯ  ’ă·ḇî·hem lō rā·’ū.  

24 way·yî·qeṣ  nō·aḥ mî·yê·nōw;  way·yê·ḏa‘ ’êṯ ’ă·šer-  ‘ā·śāh- lōw bə·nōw haq·qā·ṭān. 

25 way·yō·mer  ’ā·rūr kə·nā·‘an;  ‘e·ḇeḏ ‘ă·ḇā·ḏîm yih·yeh  lə·’e·ḥāw. 

26 way·yō·mer  bā·rūḵ Yah·weh  ’ĕ·lō·hê šêm; wî·hî  ḵə·na·‘an ‘e·ḇeḏ lā·mōw. 

27 yap̄t  ’ĕ·lō·hîm lə·ye·p̄eṯ,  wə·yiš·kōn bə·’ā·ho·lê-  šêm; wî·hî ḵə·na·‘an ‘e·ḇeḏ  lā·mōw.  

28 way·ḥî-  nō·aḥ ’a·ḥar  ham·mab·būl; šə·lōš  mê·’ō·wṯ šā·nāh, wa·ḥă·miš·šîm  šā·nāh.  

29 way·yih·yū  kāl- yə·mê- nō·aḥ,  tə·ša‘ mê·’ō·wṯ šā·nāh,  wa·ḥă·miš·šîm šā·nāh; way·yā·mōṯ.  p̄ 

NIV:

18 The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham and Japheth. (Ham was the father of Canaan.) 

19 These were the three sons of Noah, and from them came the people who were scattered over the whole earth.

20 Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. 

21 When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. 

22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside. 

23 But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s naked body. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father naked.

24 When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, 25 he said, “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.”

26 He also said, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem.

27 May God extend Japheth’s territory; may Japheth live in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be the slave of Japheth.”

28 After the flood Noah lived 350 years. 

29 Noah lived a total of 950 years, and then he died.

Study:

The text names Noah’s three sons and asserts that every human alive on earth is somehow descended from them. Then we read the Noah planted a vineyard and became drunk after drinking some of the wine. In this drunken stupor Noah somehow became naked and was lying naked in his tent. We are then told that Noah’s son Ham saw Noah naked and told his brothers about it.

We are not told that Ham did anything other than see his father naked. Yes there has been a lot of speculation about Ham’s sin. Some have suggested that Ham may have touched Noah in his private parts. Others have suggested that Ham did not just tell his brothers about his father’s nakedness, but made fun of him. Still others have suggested that Ham had sex with his mother. All of these are flights of fancy. 

The simplest explanation is what the text plainly says. Ham saw his father naked. And instead of covering his father, he reported it to his brothers. Ham may have accidentally stumbled upon Noah in the latter’s drunken stupor. However, reporting this to his brothers was an intentional act that lacked discretion called for by the circumstances. He should have done what Shem and Japheth did – take a sheet and cover his father. Then no one would have known of the indecent state in which he had found his father. 

When Ham tells them of their father’s nakedness, Shem and Japheth proceed to cover Noah. The text even tells us that they approached him with their backs facing him so that they would not see him naked. This is a clear indication in the text itself about what Ham’s sin was. 

When Noah recovers from his drunken state and learns about what Ham had done he proceeds to bless Shem and Japheth while cursing Ham’s sin Canaan. Some have wondered why Noah would curse Canaan and not Ham. What Ham had done violated the father-son relationship and so Noah’s curse targets Ham’s son. Since he had failed as a son, he will now know what it means to watch as his son failed.

We must pause, however, to ask how effective we would consider Noah’s curse to be. Given the polemic nature of the text, right from chapter 1, it is likely that here too we have an instance of the text intentionally including something to make a point or justify some practice. Indeed, the text gives a rationale for the later conquest of Ham’s descendants, the Canaanites. However, the text also provides a critique. While not justifying the specifics of Noah’s curse, it should be borne in mind that Noah declared that Canaan would be Shem’s slave. The genocide envisioned later during the conquest of the land is not within the purview of Noah’s curse and should be seen as a condemnation of that campaign. If Noah had curse Canaan with becoming a slave then wiping out the Canaanites was just not right. 

That being said, Noah’s words did give a justification for the enslavement of Ham’s descendants. This provided later Europeans with a biblical basis for the enslavement of non-white people groups. All such people groups  were classified as ‘Hamites’ and considered okay to enslave because of Noah’s words concerning Canaan. Of course, there was no admission that the Europeans did not have the slightest piece of evidence linking the people groups they enslaved to Ham. Anyone they felt they could enslave were automatically considered to be descendants of Ham.

I see two problems with such an approach. First, and this is a minor objection, those in power were automatically in a position to dictate which people groups were descended from Ham. Whoever they wanted to and could enslave were inevitably categorized as descendants of Ham without much effort. The arbitrariness of this is quite evident and should serve as a warning to us when we attempt to interpret scripture.

Second, and this is the major objection, why should we think that Noah’s curse is somehow binding on any people group, however we may identify or define them? The Old Testament has many examples of curses. Job curses the day he was born (Job 3). Jeremiah curses himself because of his task as a prophet (Jeremiah 20). Both of these curses fail. The curses announced by Balaam backfire (Numbers 22-24). So the simple fact that a curse is announced has no bearing on whether or not God approves of it or if it will come true. 

So why is it that the curse announced by Noah has been seen as having an effect? I think there is only one probable reason – we humans are fully capable of twisting scripture and will do so when it suits our purposes. This should, therefore, serve as a warning to us. We need to continuously wrestle with scripture, listening to voices that disagree with us so that we do not simply fall into an echo-chamber in which our cherished, but possibly erroneous, views are reinforced.

In my view, Noah pronounced the curse with genuine intent in the heat of the moment. And since the text is silent about Ham’s response, we can also perhaps conclude that Ham did not take this curse seriously and did not even apologize to his father, let alone repent of his misdeed. We can also assume that Noah continued to hope that his curse would be in effect. However, Noah’s genuineness in uttering the curse does not mean that it came into effect. I think that this should be taken as yet another example of a curse that failed.

Prayer:

Heavenly Father. You who have forgiven us uncountable times, we ask you to open our eyes to our tendencies toward unforgiveness and our desire to dominate others. We ask you to empower us with your Spirit so that we can refuse the seductive temptations to use scripture in a way that would dehumanize others. And we ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.