Daily a new Bible text for devotion - EZBB

Genesis 9:18-29

Even with the lessons of the flood, men were not entirely faithful to God.

THE LEVITY OF NOAH'S FAMILY - Noah was a farmer, as was Cain. Caring for plants became his great passion, and among them was the grapevine. This is the first time wine production is mentioned in the Bible, and it is significant that it is linked to a situation of misfortune.

Noah may have been innocent, not knowing the effect that fermentation has on grape juice nor the effect that fermented wine has on the human brain. Then shame entered the family circle. Losing consciousness, Noah took off his clothes and lay down naked.

One of Noah's sons, Ham (v. 22), entered the tent. Seeing his father, he did not help him, but irreverently scorned Noah's condition to his brothers. The other two sons immediately covered their father's nakedness (v. 23), entering the tent discreetly, backwards (not looking).

Regaining his senses, Noah learned what had happened and spoke to his sons. He left Ham without a blessing and focused his rebuke on Canaan, whose descendants became a people historically marked by sordid morals and a major source of corruption for the Israelites. Canaanite worship of Baal descended to the lowest depths of moral degradation.

The blessing placed on Shem has a strong religious connotation, and this lineage of Noah's descendants played an important role in transmitting the message of redemption to the world. The most prominent was Israel, to whom the revelation of God preserved in the Bible was given.

The blessing of Japheth (v. 27) involved a play on words, as the name means "that which increases". Japheth's lineage multiplied and played a role as a political power through the Persians, Greeks, and Romans. Few significant events occurred in Noah's last days. Like those who preceded him, he died (v. 29).