Genesis 9:5

Genesis 9:5 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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.
• New International Version (NIV)And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of another human being.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And for your lifeblood I will require a reckoning: from every beast I will require it and from man. From his fellow man I will require a reckoning for the life of man.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the hand of every man’s brother I will require the life of man.

Context of Genesis 9:5

3I have given them to you for food, just as I have given you grain and vegetables. 4But you must never eat any meat that still has the lifeblood in it. “And I will require the blood of anyone who takes another person’s life. If a wild animal kills a person, it must die. And anyone who murders a fellow human must die. 6If anyone takes a human life, that person’s life will also be taken by human hands. For God made human beings in his own image. 7Now be fruitful and multiply, and repopulate the earth.”

Genesis 9:5 word by word

וְאַ֨ךְ אֶת־דִּמְכֶ֤ם לְנַפְשֹֽׁתֵיכֶם֙ אֶדְרֹ֔שׁ מִיַּ֥ד כָּל־חַיָּ֖ה אֶדְרְשֶׁ֑נּוּ וּמִיַּ֣ד הָֽאָדָ֗ם מִיַּד֙ אִ֣ישׁ אָחִ֔יו אֶדְרֹ֖שׁ אֶת־נֶ֥פֶשׁ הָֽאָדָֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And surelyאַךְ'ak · surelyH389
• your bloodדָּםdâm · bloodH1818
• of your livesנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: lifeH5315
• will I requireדָּרַשׁdârash · to seekH1875
• at the handיָדyâd · hand: toH3027
• of every beastחַיָּהchay · living thingH2416
• of manאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
• of every man’sאִישׁ'îysh · man: anyoneH376
• brotherאָח'âch · brother: compatriotH251

Cross-references for Genesis 9:5

• Exodus 21:12“Anyone who assaults and kills another person must be put to death.
• Genesis 4:9Afterward the Lord asked Cain, “Where is your brother? Where is Abel?” “I don’t know,” Cain responded. “Am I my brother’s guardian?”
• Leviticus 19:16“Do not spread slanderous gossip among your people. “Do not stand idly by when your neighbor’s life is threatened. I am the Lord.
• Numbers 35:31Also, you must never accept a ransom payment for the life of someone judged guilty of murder and subject to execution; murderers must always be put to death.
• Deuteronomy 21:1“When you are in the land the Lord your God is giving you, someone may be found murdered in a field, and you don’t know who committed the murder.
• Psalms 9:12For he who avenges murder cares for the helpless. He does not ignore the cries of those who suffer.
• Matthew 23:35As a result, you will be held responsible for the murder of all godly people of all time—from the murder of righteous Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you killed in the Temple between the sanctuary and the altar.
• Acts 17:26From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries.

Commentaries on Genesis 9:5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5Surely your blood - will I require; at the hand of every beast - This is very obscure, but if taken literally it seems to be an awful warning against cruelty to the brute creation; and from it we may conclude that horse-racers, hare-hunters, bull-baiters, and cock-fighters shall be obliged to give an account to God for every creature they have wantonly destroyed. Instead of חיה chaiyah, "beast," the Samaritan reads Yod Kaph chai, "living," any "living…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-7Verses 1-7 - The Blessing of Noah 2. מורא môrā' “fear, reverence, awful deed.” חת chat “dread, breaking of the courage.” Noah is saved from the deluge. His life is twice given to him by God. He had found grace in the sight of the Lord, and now he and his family have been graciously accepted when they approached the Lord with burnt-offerings. In him, therefore, the race of man is to be begun anew. Accordingly, as at the beginning, the Lord proceeds to…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-7Verses 4-7 The main reason of forbidding the eating of blood, doubtless was because the shedding of blood in sacrifices was to keep the worshippers in mind of the great atonement; yet it seems intended also to check cruelty, lest men, being used to shed and feed upon the blood of animals, should grow unfeeling to them, and be less shocked at the idea of shedding human blood. Man must not take away his own life. Our lives are God's, and we must only give…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5-6Violence, including murder, was a major factor in bringing about God’s judgment of the flood (4:8; 6:11, 13). At this new beginning for human beings, God affirmed the value of human life (that human life is sacred) and established justice for those who take a human life (see also Psalm 9:12; “Retribution” Theme Note). The function of law is to restrain human wickedness and preserve moral order. This law was further developed in the law of Moses (Exodus…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. surely your blood of your lives will I require--The fourth part establishes a new power for protecting life--the institution of the civil magistrate (Ro 13:4), armed with public and official authority to repress the commission of violence and crime. Such a power had not previously existed in patriarchal society.Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 9:5

• Avenger of Blood
• Brother
• Covenant
• Homicide
• Punishment

In the dictionaries

• Blood
• Brother
• Cloud
• Covenant
• Dwell
• Enlarge
• Food
• Meat
• Move
• Murder

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