Covenants and Curses

This Afternoon's Reading from Noach:
Genesis 9:8-10:32

In the beginning of this passage, G-d covenants with Noah and all other living creatures never to destroy the earth by flood (Genesis 9:9ff). Not only does G-d in His great love establish this covenant with His creation, in His great mercy He also introduces them to the sign of this covenant: the rainbow. One would expect that after a major catastrophic event such as the flood, any subsequent threat of rain became cause for alarm among the earth's inhabitants. So from that time on, whenever it rained, humanity would have a visible reminder of G-d's covenant promise not to destroy the earth by flood.

Now in Genesis 9:20-27 we encounter one of the Bible's more confusing accounts, that of Ham seeing his father Noah naked and subsequently being cursed. I've always found this story rather difficult, because on a surface level it seems as though Ham is punished for something he did by accident. A bit of research in a couple of commentaries has shed some light on this.

According to the IVP Bible Background Commentary, Ham's deed may not have been the "cause" of the curse, but simply the circumstance that elicited it. The commentary goes on to point out that the curse originated from the patriarch himself, rather than G-d, but was still taken seriously and thought to have influence on future generations.

The Bible Knowledge Commentary also offers a more detailed explanation of this passage. This commentary points out that at that time in history, even seeing one's father naked constituted a violation of family propriety. In that instance, the father's dignity was destroyed and his strength brought into question. So while Ham accidentally saw his father's nakedness, he intentionally bragged about it to his brothers, almost as if he had prevailed over his father in some way. This is in stark contrast to the way his brothers handled the situation.

Given this deeper explanation, we can perhaps understand a little better Noah's response upon realizing what his son had done. He proclaimed a curse upon Ham's line and a blessing upon those of Shem and Japheth. This also shows us how a seemingly inconsequential event can have great impact, not only on those directly involved but on successive generations as well.

Speaking of generations, in Genesis 10:1-32, we encounter another genealogy list. This list gives us an explanation of how the different nations came about through the respective offspring of Noah's three sons. One final thing that stands out is the singling out of one person in an otherwise monotonous record. In Genesis 10:8-9 the writer pauses to tell us that Nimrod was "a mighty one on earth" and a "mighty hunter before the L-rd." Much like his ancestor Noah, one man of integrity in a generation of corrupt people, Nimrod is singled out in this list of generations. Not only that, ironically, Nimrod is a descendant of Ham! To me this demonstrates that we do not have to be a product of our genetic code or family environment. We can choose to break sinful patterns and impact future generations in a positive way. Once again we find a redeeming nugget hidden in a Scriptural account that might easily be skimmed over. Similar to the sign of the rainbow, only smaller in scale, we see a reason to rejoice in G-d's goodness.

My prayer today is that I would choose to follow G-d's laws and walk in His ways, that I might be a positive influence on future generations.

Next Reading: Genesis 11:1-32