Curse of Caanan

[childoffaith]

20 Then Noah began farming and planted a vineyard. 21 He drank of the wine and became drunk, and uncovered himself inside his tent. 22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. 23 But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it upon both their shoulders and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were turned away, so that they did not see their father’s nakedness. 24 When Noah awoke from his wine, he knew what his youngest son had done to him. 25 So he said,

“ Cursed be Canaan;
A servant of servants
He shall be to his brothers.”

26 He also said,
“ Blessed be the Lord,
The God of Shem;
And let Canaan be his servant.

27 “ May God enlarge Japheth,
And let him dwell in the tents of Shem;
And let Canaan be his servant.”
Genesis 9:20-27

This is by far the weirdest and most confusing verse I've read in Genesis. However it's been interpreted as justification of slavery and racism in the past so I would like to know the true meaning of the passage and what's really going on. Thanks to all who respond.

 

[Brighthouse]

I shall do my best in the Lord to help, you can judge then yourself.verse 21 Though this is the first use of the word wine in the bible, it was not the first occasion of drinking.( matt 24:38),so Noah must have known the effects of drinking.Probably Noah becoming very warm inside from drinking the wine took his clothes off.verse 22 Ham saw,(meaning literaly gazed with satisfaction).By contrast,Shem and Jepheth showed proper respect for there father by covering him.( verse 23) verse 25 Cursed be Canaan.Whether Canaan was personally involved with his father Ham's sin we do not know( he might have seen Noah's condition first, and then told his father).

But Ham is punished for his dishoner to his father by having a son who would bring dishonor to him.The curse is not on the Hamites,but on the Canaanites,the inhabitants of Palestine who were first subjected by Joshua and later by Solomon ( 1 Kings 9:20-21).The Canaanites long ago became extinct;the curse, therefore cannot be applied to anyone today. Verse 26 Yahweh will be Shem's God and Shem's blessing. ( Jews are of Semitic- from Shem- descent.)verse 27 The descendants of Japheth( which means enlargement) would spread throughout the earth and prosper. dwell in the tents of Shem means that spiritual blessing will come to the Japhethites through the God of the Semites. I hope this has helped you .Blessing always to you Child!! GOOD QUESTION!!

 

[bgsda]

wow isn't that something that even these great men of faith had a fallen nature with Noah getting drunk. That was not right at all. It wasn't right for Canaan to do what he did either.Doesnt give us the excuse, like some believe, that we are allowed to keep sinning. But as David was so was Noah a blessed man of God. i Beileve that is what happened and why the curse fell on him. God Bless. and your welcome

 

[childoffaith]

wow isn't that something that even these great men of faith had a fallen nature with Noah getting drunk. That was not right at all. It wasn't right for Canaan to do what he did either.Doesnt give us the excuse, like some believe, that we are allowed to keep sinning. But as David was so was Noah a blessed man of God. i Beileve that is what happened and why the curse fell on him. God Bless. and your welcome

Hi bgs.

It was wrong for Caanan to do what? The text doesn't say Caanan did anything. Can you please explain?

 

[JehovahDaughter]

Like you have stated, Noah cursed Canaan(one of Ham's sons). "The Canaanites, having never moved to sunny Africa, were not black, but looked just like other middle eastern people" The Origin of Nations: We all came from One family, Mathew Mcgee 1998 The Canaanites(All or most) were completely wiped out by the Israelites, I believe the story is in the book of Deutoronomy and Joshua(someone please correct me if i'm wrong), so I believe that the most of Canaan's lineage did not go further than the land of Canaan where they were wiped out. The remaining moved to the middle eastern area. Now Mizraim, Put and Cush which were Ham's other sons had descendants that moved into parts of Asia and North Africa(and are believed to have eventually spread to the rest of Africa). This shows no justification for slavery and/or racism(imo). Some of the people who came up with this theory of Canaan's descendants which you have asked about, I believe had their own agendas(racist propaganda).

Eitherway, whether it was Canaan's descendants or Mizraims(also known as Egypt) or Put or Cush, the blood of Christ Jesus washes away any curses that may be in anyone's lineage, so that everyone can be saved if they believe.

 

[Davy]

From the 1700's, black slavery was sanctioned by Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Presbyterian, and Reformed churchmen and theologians, No church sought to publicly speak out against slavery or discourage its members from owning or even trafficking in black slaves, states the book [Slavery and Human Progress.] In fact, as early as the 1450's, the edicts of Roman Catholic popes sanctioned the subjugation and enslavement of pagans and infidels so that their souls might be saved for God's Kingdom. Wish such a nod of approval, early European explorers and slave traders felt no qualms about their brutal treatment of native people. The implication was that so long as the souls of the people of such native races were saved by being converted to Christianity, it was unimportant how they were treated physically. And when it came to the situation of blacks, many religious leaders argued that they were cursed by God anyway; or so they claimed!!!

According to the bible commentary, Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown, When Genesis 9:25 says: "Cursed be Canaan," this doom has been fulfilled in the destruction of the Canaanites, so that they would no longer exist as a nation of people. Furthermore, the bible indicates the black race descended from Cush generally considered to be people in the eastern part of Africa. Not Canaan generally considered to be lighter-skinned peoples living to the east of the Mediterranean Sea. In the 18th　century, John Woolman argued that using this Biblical curse to justify the enslaving of blacks, depriving them of their natural rights, "is a supposition too gross to be admitted into the mind of any person who sincerely desires to be governed by solid principles."

It is amazing when you look back throughout history and consider just how many wicked deeds were sanctioned by twisting the bible to one's own ends.