Genesis 9:26
in Genesis 9He also declared: “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the servant of Shem.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he said, Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Shem; And let Canaan be his servant.
KJV
And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.
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This verse in Genesis 9
Commentary
11 notes on this verseA commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Blessed be the Lord God of Shem--rather, "Blessed of Jehovah, my God, be Shem,"--an intimation that the descendants of Shem should be peculiarly honored in the service of the true God, His Church being for ages established among them (the Jews), and of them, concerning the flesh, Christ came.
This site's exposition
Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem
on Genesis 9:26-27
The blessing goes to the LORD, the God of Shem. The line runs from Shem through the genealogy of 11:10 to 26 to Abram, and out of Abram comes the promise of 12:3, that all the families of the earth will be blessed through him. Japheth is given room and a place in Shem's tents, and Canaan is servant to both. Matthew Henry reads that as the nations coming in under a blessing given to another.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
After Ham had been cursed through his one son, Noah blessed Shem and Japheth and said, "May God increase Japheth, and may he dwell in the tent of Shem, and let Canaan be their slave."
A commentator
IrenaeusThe Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching, Sections 19-21 · Written before 202.
proposed
Now the three sons of Noah were Shem, Ham and Japheth, from whom again the race was multiplied: for these were the beginning of mankind after the flood. Now of these one fell under a curse, and the two (others) inherited a blessing by reason of their works.
First of all, let us show great reverence to our parents, as we read in Genesis 9:25-27, that whoever was blessed by their father, was blessed, and whoever was cursed by their father, was cursed! Therefore, God has granted this grace to parents, so that the piety of their children may be provoked. Therefore, it is the duty of children to obey their parents. Honor your father, so that he may bless you.
The Medieval Church2 voices
Blessed be the Lord God of Shem. For although He is the God of all nations, yet in a certain special way, even among the Gentiles, He is called the God of Israel; and how did this come to pass, if not from the blessing …
And he said: Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; let Canaan be his servant. In Shem, the firstborn son of Noah, we have indicated the primitive Church, gathered from the Israelite people, and in Japheth, the youngest son, the election of the Gentiles which …
4 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Observe, [1.] He calls the Lord the god of Shem; and happy, thrice happy, is that people whose God is the L ORD , Ps. cxliv. All blessings are included in this.
And he said, blessed be the Lord God of Shem,....
Observe, [1.] He calls the Lord the god of Shem; and happy, thrice happy, is that people whose God is the L ORD , Ps. cxliv. All blessings are included in this.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Blessed be the Lord God of Shem--rather, "Blessed of Jehovah, my God, be Shem,"--an intimation that the descendants of Shem should be peculiarly honored in the service of the true God, His Church being for ages established among them (the Jews), and of them, concerning the flesh, Christ came.
The words behind it
9 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֕אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| בָּר֥וּךְ | barukh | [be] blessed | H1288 → | 330 times |
| יְהֹוָ֖ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֱלֹ֣הֵי | ʾelohei | [the] God of | H430 → | 2601 times |
| שֵׁ֑ם | shem | Shem | H8035 → | 17 times |
| וִיהִ֥י | vihi | and let him be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| כְנַ֖עַן | khenaan | Canaan | H3667 → | 94 times |
| עֶ֥בֶד | ʾeved | a slave | H5650 → | 799 times |
| לָֽמוֹ׃ | lamo | to <the> them |
וַיֹּ֕אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
בָּר֥וּךְ[be] blessed
barukhH1288 →330 times
יְהֹוָ֖הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֱלֹ֣הֵי[the] God of
ʾeloheiH430 →2601 times
שֵׁ֑םShem
shemH8035 →17 times
וִיהִ֥יand let him be
vihiH1961 →3559 times
כְנַ֖עַןCanaan
khenaanH3667 →94 times
עֶ֥בֶדa slave
ʾevedH5650 →799 times
לָֽמוֹ׃to <the> them
lamo
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Hebrews 11:16Instead, they were longing for a better country, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.
it leads to
- Hebrews 13:14
For here we do not have a permanent city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.
- Philippians 3:20
But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,
- Hebrews 11:10
For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
- Hebrews 13:14
Through
Psalms 144:15Blessed are the people of whom this is so; blessed are the people whose God is the LORD.
it leads to
- Psalms 33:12
Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people He has chosen as His inheritance!
- Ephesians 1:3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms.
- Psalms 146:5
Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God,
- Psalms 33:12
Through
Romans 9:5Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them proceeds the human descent of Christ, who is God over all, forever worthy of praise! Amen.
it leads to
- John 10:30
I and the Father are one.”
- John 1:1–3
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
- John 10:30
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies6
About Genesis
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Ambrose of Milan, On the Blessings of the Patriarchs, 1.1; Bede, Commentary on Genesis (Hexaemeron); Ephrem the Syrian, COMMENTARY ON GENESIS 7.4.1; Irenaeus, The Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching, Sections 19-21; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.