GENESIS – An Expositional Overview of the Beginning of God’s Revelation: Chapter NINE

Contributing commentaries by Sonny Islas and James Fire

Chapter Nine – by James Fire
Video teaching at ETERNAL LIVING WORD Church - GENESIS Chapter 9

Audio teaching on GENESIS 8-9 by Lambert Dolphin –

Commentary on GENESIS by Ray Stedman 

The judgment of the people of Earth was finished; all the rebellious had perished. The flood waters subsided, and the ark finally came to rest on the land. These eight remaining souls became the progenitors of the Human Race. All people derive from the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham and Japheth.

GENESIS 9:1-2
¹ And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. ² And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered.

The LORD gave commandment to Noah and his sons to replenish the Earth: the same command that He gave to Adam and Eve (GEN 1:28). In Hebrew, the word for “replenish” is male, and it means: “accomplished (1), become full (1), completed”.

Apparently, the LORD wasn’t at all concerned about overpopulation! He told His creatures to “fill the Earth”! 

With the lifespan of several hundred years (Shem lived to be 600 years old), the numbers of children these three men (and their father) could have would be incredible. With subsequent generations living lifespans about the same as Noah’s sons, the Earth would be adequately populated in as little as several generations (in the following chapter, we see the great numbers of tribes coming from the sons of Noah). In chapter 11 we see a prodigious civilization prospering in the land of Shinar which later became the region where the Babylonian Empire ruled the known world.

The LORD no doubt had given the animals He intended to rescue in the ark, a sense of attraction to Noah and his kin, so that they would be easy to herd to safety – otherwise it would have been an insurmountable task; could you imagine? The lands were all conjoined at this point, so migration of these animals could have begun perhaps even at the time when God commanded Noah to build the ark (the continents had not yet been divided prior to the Flood, but afterward, the waters didn’t recede to where they were before, and the land bridges that connected the continents were submerged, with the exception of their highest mountains which became islands.

GENESIS 9:3-4
³ Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things. ⁴ But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.

Thank GOD for rib-eye steak!!! We have here none other than the LORD God stating that we could consume animal flesh but no blood. There are many who consider themselves spiritual and will refuse to eat meat, thinking that its sinful in some way. That GOD doesn’t endorse meat-eating, but we see here that this actually is the case, that He does endorse this practice.

The LORD equipped us with canine teeth, that are specifically formed to hold and tear meat – not what you’d expect in our mouths if GOD intended us to be herbivores; the same can be said for our digestive system which is designed to digest plant and animal life (omnivores).

Some would argue that Daniel’s conduct proves that we are not to eat meat (DAN 1); however a careful reading of this portion of Scripture reveals that it wasn’t the meat itself that was objectionable, but the fact that the animals from which the meat came, had been sacrificed to the idols of Babylon and they probably ate foods that were forbidden to the Hebrews according to the Law of the LORD.

GENESIS 9:5-6
⁵ And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. ⁶ Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man.

Likewise, those that refuse to eat meat because it kills animals and they see this as inherently wrong, all too often they will see capital punishment as barbaric, uncivilized, and equally wrong, yet here we see GOD instituting this law. There some who insist that this is Old Testament, and that under the New Testament, we are to turn the other cheek and forgive (MATT 5:38-40).

As far as personal offenses, in the name of Christ, we are to forgive them of course; yet for such sin against God in the murdering of people, this has to do with civil justice; if no such laws are in place, criminal activity will naturally increase because there are no severe consequences.

C.A.R.M. ministries on What does the New Testament say about capital punishment?

And from TRUTH or TRADITION ministry we have the following article:
Does the New Testament support the death penalty / capital punishment?

Remember also that the shedding of innocent blood includes the lives of the unborn who GOD considers to be persons, just as much as those who have already been born, raised and matured to adulthood. Recall what the LORD said to Jeremiah:

JEREMIAH 1:5
Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

See this TTUF article on the issue of abortion:

MARCHING ORDERS AGAINST MOLECH

And the personal testimony of Jeremiah Thomas, a young believer who has gone home to be with the LORD, after battling cancer, but even up to his last days in this world, was a valiant advocate for the unborn, taking after his parents, pastor Rusty and Kendra Thomas (this article is also included in the above article):

JEREMIAH THOMAS’s LETTER To HIS GENERATION

GENESIS 9:7
⁷ And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein.

Just in case there might have been some misunderstanding by Noah and his sons, the LORD repeats His command for them to be fruitful and bring forth abundantly in the Earth. He had commanded Adam and Eve to do the same.

GOD desires fruitfulness and increase in our lives, and rewards fruitfulness. For us in the New Testament, the focus is the fruit of the Holy Spirit – the very nature and character of Jesus in our lives. The LORD would tell us “Be fruitful and multiply the nature of My Beloved Son and fill your lives with the life of your Savior!”

EPHESIANS 4:13
Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

May we know the blessedness of the fullness of Christ in our lives and bring forth abundantly the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives!

GENESIS 9:8-11
⁸ And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying,⁹ And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; ¹⁰ And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. ¹¹ And I will establish my covenant with you, neither shall all flesh be cut off anymore by the waters of a flood; neither shall there anymore be a flood to destroy the earth.

This covenant was not just to Noah and his descendants, but also with “every living creature that is with you” GOD said to Noah! Therefore, we believe that the Flood was universal, that is, a flood that covered the entire Earth and not just a local flood as some Bible expositors teach. Since the days of Noah, there have been countless numbers of floods throughout the world and not the least, in the Middle East where Noah resided.

If the Flood of Noah was a local flood, then God’s covenantal promise was broken! Yet the covenant is firm and solid for the world has never known, nor ever will experience another global flood!

GENESIS 9:12-13
¹² And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: ¹³ I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.

The rainbow has been used in our recent times as a symbol of cultural diversity in a general sense, and in a more specific sense for the homosexual movement, but its original intent was a promise by GOD never to destroy the Earth by flood. Ironic that the symbol that GOD instituted as a promise to refrain from destroying man from off the face of the Earth should then be used by rebels of the LORD in promoting an ungodly lifestyle that will incur the judgment of GOD at His Second Coming – or perhaps even sooner?

We understand that this judgment is soon to arrive, and it will result in the absolute destruction of this planet, but not by water, but by fire:

2 PETER 3:3-13
3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, 4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. 5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: 6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:

7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. 8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. 11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, 12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? 13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

After this absolute destruction of the old Earth and the old Heavens, there will come the New and Infinitely Improved versions of both! A Day that we saints long for, amen?

GENESIS 9:14-15
¹⁴ And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: ¹⁵ And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.

The rainbow is spoken of here to represent the covenant that GOD made with Noah, all of the descendants of his and his sons (that’s all of us) and even the animal kingdom. The rainbow is spoken of here, representing this specific covenant, known as the Noahic covenant with the promise mentioned regarding the flood. The rainbow is seen elsewhere in Scripture – the vision given to Ezekiel has a rainbow in it, when he saw cherubim descend out of heaven to the earth, and the throne of God above them, where the prophet saw “the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it” and around the throne was a rainbow.

John the apostle saw the same thing, but with greater detail and clarity – in REVELATION 4:

REVELATION 4:2-3
2 And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. 3 And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.

Why is there a rainbow around the throne of GOD? What is He promising by covenant with this rainbow?

The color of this rainbow is emerald, correct? The One on the throne was glorified in light with the color of jasper and a sardius stone.

If you read EXODUS 18, there GOD instructs Moses how to create the breastplate for the High Priest – and twelve precious stones are to be used, each representing a tribe of the 12 sons of Israel. The emerald, the jasper and the sardius (“sardine”) stone are all used. Which tribes do these precious stones represent?

The emerald stone represents Judah, the jasper stone represents Benjamin and the sardius stone represents Reuben.

The names of these three sons of Israel are very interesting, when you consider the vision that John the apostle received concerning the LORD Jesus Christ, shining with glory as with a sardius and jasper stone, around His throne, this rainbow of emerald light:

Judah: “Let GOD be praised”

Reuben “Behold A Son”

Benjamin “Son of my right hand”

The promise of this emerald rainbow I believe involves the Kingdom of heaven as it arrives and will be known on Earth during the Millennium – this is the kingdom promised to David, where Messiah will rule and reign on His father’s throne (LUKE 1:30-33), as well as the eternal kingdom in the New Heavens, New Earth and New Jerusalem.

GENESIS 9:16-18
¹⁶ And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. ¹⁷ And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth. ¹⁸ And the sons of Noah, that went forth of the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and Japheth: and Ham is the father of Canaan.

Just as these sons of Noah stepped forth from the ark, which was their salvation – a type of Christ, we too who are sons of GOD by our salvation Who is Christ, shall step into the New Creation and enjoy the blessedness that the LORD intends for all people, who will receive His salvation.

GENESIS 9:19-22
¹⁹ These are the three sons of Noah: and of them was the whole earth overspread. ²⁰ And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard: ²¹ And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent. ²² And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.

Now what do we have here?? No sooner than Noah is delivered from the wickedness of the old world, this man who was accounted righteous before the LORD, that he gets drunk?? Why is this?

After reviewing the Internet for possible explanations from various Christian sites, I’ve discovered a number of possible answers.

Some suggest that the horrors of remembering all human life on the planet being wiped out, might have been too much for Noah – and that he got drunk to numb the pain of it; no doubt there were dear relatives and friends of his that died in the flood.

Others believe that because the nature of our world changed so drastically from before to after the flood, that grape juice fermented much faster than it used to before this drastic change – so it wasn’t Noah’s intention to get drunk at all.

Whatever the reason, we do well to remember that we should never fall under the influence of substances that would impair sound judgment and right thinking; remember what EPHESIANS 5:18 says: “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;”

If we avoid such things, we can avoid trouble that could potentially cause irreparable harm to our health, our finances, our reputation and witness.

Noah had a bit of trouble as a result of this – he became so drunk that he stripped off his clothes – and one of his sons, Ham, along with his own son Canaan saw it, and rather than cover up their father’s indiscretion, they told Noah’s other sons – who themselves then took care of the problem:

GENESIS 9:23-24
²³ And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness. ²⁴ And Noah awoke from his wine and knew what his younger son had done unto him.

Noah somehow understood what Ham (and Canaan) had done once he awoke from his drunken stupor – and he then proceeds to lay a curse on Ham’s son. Some think this was a vengeful act on Noah’s part; others think that he was prophesying according to the will of God, and I favor the latter:

GENESIS 9:25-27
²⁵ And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren. ²⁶ And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant. ²⁷ God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.

“The one in view here seems to be a prophetic utterance of malediction upon the descendants of Canaan. This is not an idle or knee-jerk vengeful proclamation, but one of prophetic foresight. Compare this with the curses announced in DEUT 27:12–26 that serve as a warning of what would happen to the Israelites if they disobeyed.

"Why did Noah pronounce a curse upon Canaan rather than Ham? His words came to pass, so we believe he was inspired by God. Other than that, the Bible does not reveal the precise reason why Canaan was cursed instead of Ham.

"Canaan was not only the father of the Canaanites, but also of the Amorites, Jebusites, Sidonians and the Phoenicians. All of these peoples would at some period in the future wage war against the descendants of Shem and (to a lesser extent) Japheth, and would also become grossly idolatrous. Noah may have been prophetically denouncing this departure from faith in the true and living God.” ~ from ANSWERS IN GENESIS.

GENESIS 9:28
²⁸ And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. ²⁹ And all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years: and he died.