God’s Word Translation
Genesis 9:25
25So he said, “Canaan is cursed! He will be the lowest slave to his brothers.
Genesis 9:25 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.
- New International Version (NIV)he said, “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)he said, "Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be to his brothers."
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then he said: “Cursed be Canaan; A servant of servants He shall be to his brethren.”
Context of Genesis 9:25
23Shem and Japheth took a blanket and laid it over their shoulders. Then they walked in backwards and covered their father’s naked body. They turned their faces away so that they didn’t see their father naked. 24When Noah sobered up, he found out what his youngest son had done to him. So he said, “Canaan is cursed! He will be the lowest slave to his brothers. 26Praise the Lord, the God of Shem! Canaan will be his slave. 27May God expand the territory of Japheth. May he live in the tents of Shem. Canaan will be his slave.”
Read all of Genesis 9Genesis 9:25 word by word
וַיֹּ֖אמֶר אָר֣וּר כְּנָ֑עַן עֶ֥בֶד עֲבָדִ֖ים יִֽהְיֶ֥ה לְאֶחָֽיו׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Genesis 9:25
- Genesis 9:22Ham, father of Canaan, saw his father naked. So he went outside and told his two brothers.
- Genesis 3:14So the Lord God said to the snake, “Because you have done this, You are cursed more than all the wild or domestic animals. You will crawl on your belly. You will be the lowest of animals as long as you live.
- Genesis 4:11So now you are cursed from the ground, which has received the blood of your brother whom you killed.
- Genesis 49:7May their anger be cursed because it’s so fierce. May their fury be cursed because it’s so cruel. I will divide them among ⌞the sons of⌟ Jacob and scatter them among ⌞the tribes of⌟ Israel.
- Deuteronomy 27:16“Whoever curses his father or mother will himself be cursed.” Then all the people will say amen.
- Deuteronomy 28:18You will be cursed. You will have few children. Your land will have few crops. Your cattle will be cursed with few calves, and your flocks will have few lambs and kids.
- Matthew 25:41“Then the king will say to those on his left, ‘Get away from me! God has cursed you! Go into everlasting fire that was prepared for the devil and his angels!
- John 8:34Jesus answered them, “I can guarantee this truth: Whoever lives a sinful life is a slave to sin.
- Joshua 9:23You are under a curse now. You will always be servants. You will be woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God.”
- Judges 1:28When the Israelites were strong enough, they made the Canaanites do forced labor. But they did not force all of them out.
- 1 Kings 9:20The Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites had been left ⌞in the land⌟ because the Israelites had not been able to claim them for God by destroying them. They were not Israelites,
- 2 Chronicles 8:7The Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites had been left ⌞in the land⌟ because the Israelites had not been able to destroy them. They were not Israelites,
Commentaries on Genesis 9:25
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 25Cursed be Canaan - See on the preceding verses. In the 25th, 26th, and 27th verses, instead of Canaan simply, the Arabic version has Ham the father of Canaan; but this is acknowledged by none of the other versions, and seems to be merely a gloss.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18-29Verses 18-29 - XXX. The Prophecy of Noah 18. כנען kena‛an “Kenaan, bowed down.” 19. נפץ nāpats “break, scatter, spread.” פוּץ pûts “break, scatter, flow.” 20. כרם kerem “orchard, vineyard.” 21. יין yayı̂n “wine; related: ferment.” After the blessing on the new heads of the human race has been pronounced, and the covenant with them renewed, we are prepared for a new development of human action. This appears, however, in the form of an event which is…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 24-29Verses 24-29 Noah declares a curse on Canaan, the son of Ham; perhaps this grandson of his was more guilty than the rest. A servant of servants, that is, The meanest and most despicable servant, shall he be, even to his brethren. This certainly points at the victories in after-times obtained by Israel over the Canaanites, by which they were put to the sword, or brought to pay tribute. The whole continent of Africa was peopled mostly by the descendants of…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 25Cursed be Canaan!: Noah understood that Ham’s actions showed the character of his descendants through Canaan.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2525. Cursed be Canaan--This doom has been fulfilled in the destruction of the Canaanites--in the degradation of Egypt and the slavery of the Africans, the descendants of Ham.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 9:25
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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