Genesis 9:25 - Printer Friendly

ESV: he said, “Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be to his brothers.”

NIV: he said, 'Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.'

NASB: So he said, 'Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants He shall be to his brothers.'

CSB: he said: Canaan is cursed. He will be the lowest of slaves to his brothers.

NLT: Then he cursed Canaan, the son of Ham: 'May Canaan be cursed! May he be the lowest of servants to his relatives.'

KJV: And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.

NKJV: Then he said: “Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants He shall be to his brethren.”

What was Ham's wrongdoing, exactly? At the very least, his choice to tell his brothers about seeing Noah's nakedness made him guilty of furthering Noah's dishonor. Perhaps he laughed at Noah, telling his brothers in an effort to mock his father. It's possible Ham was attempting to use what he had seen to elevate his own importance in the family. It's also possible, though not stated, that Ham did something to additionally violate Noah while he was helpless. Either way, the prior verse makes it clear that Ham has sinned against Noah (Genesis 9:24). And, as this passage shows, that results in dire consequences.

If Ham's intent was to improve his status by humiliating his father, it backfired. Instead, Noah now curses Ham's descendants. They will become servants to the descendants of Ham's brothers. The curse is actually levied against Canaan, Ham's son. This is the first time in recorded Scripture that a human being curses other people. Apparently, Noah's curse was backed by God's authority.

Why curse Canaan, the son, instead of Ham himself? We're not given the reason. God had blessed Noah and his sons earlier in the chapter, so perhaps it wasn't an option to curse one God had blessed. Or perhaps it was a case of the punishment fitting the crime as Canaan would become dishonorable to Ham as Ham was dishonorable to Noah.

In any case, the curse is that Canaan, and his descendants, will become the lowest of slaves or a "servant of servants" to Ham's brothers and their descendants. Much later, these descendants of Canaan became known as the Canaanites, the people who occupied the Promised Land Israel conquered after the exodus from Egypt. The following two verses will expand on the curse.

This verse has, unfortunately, often been used in an attempt to justify various forms of racism, including slavery. Under that use, this verse would suggest that the curse was really on Ham, not on Canaan, and implies there is a certain "race" of men divinely appointed to slavery and subjugation. This is not supported by the Hebrew, however, which does not use the terminology for slavery, even in the limited sense in which it was practiced by Israel. In fact, for most of the history recorded in the Old Testament, it is the descendants of Ham who have the advantage over the descendants of Shem and Japheth.

Genesis 9:18–29 comes immediately after God has established his promise to never again destroy all life with a flood. This includes a sign: the rainbow. The passage reintroduces Noah's three sons as the fathers of all the people of the earth to come. This passage also states that Ham was the father of Canaan. Next, we're told the embarrassing story of when Noah became drunk and lay naked in his tent. After seeing Noah uncovered, Ham went out and told his brothers about it. When Noah woke up, he cursed the descendants of Ham's son Canaan to be subservient to the descendants of Shem and Japheth.

Chapter 9 describes God's interactions with Noah and his sons following the flood. First, God gives blessings and instructions, including the command to reproduce and fill the earth. Next, God makes a unilateral covenant with humanity and animals never to end all life with a flood again. He offers the rainbow as a sign of this promise. Finally, Noah prophesies about the future of his son's descendants after an awkward episode in which Ham talks to his brothers about seeing Noah passed out drunk and naked.

Chapters 6, 7, and 8 describe God's destruction of the world in a massive flood. Now, in Genesis 9, Scripture describes God's dealings with Noah and his sons following the flood. First, God blesses them and gives specific instructions, including the command to fill the earth. Next, God expands on His promise to never again end all life on earth a flood. Finally, Noah curses Ham and blesses Shem and Japheth after Ham tells his brothers about seeing Noah passed out drunk and naked. Chapters 10 and 11 will sketch out the history of mankind from Noah to Abraham.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.