Noah's Nakedness: A Curse for a Peeping Tom

We've all experienced the odd occurrence of the Bible and was left with fringe questions

Watch and listen as we leave no question unanswered

So you thought you'd start your Bible reading plan for the year in the book of Genesis makes sense

Genesis means the beginning. It's the beginning of the Bible that records the beginning of creation. It's a good place to start

Well as you're reading you start to see the full effects of the fall of man take place The thoughts and intents of men's hearts were only evil continually

But one man was blameless and righteous in a land of wicked people

The Lord saw Noah and he walked with him according to Genesis 6 9 kind of like Adam He then made

Noah a prophet and priest of sorts Finally God comes to Noah and says the end of all flesh has come before me

For the earth is filled with violence Because of them and behold I am about to destroy them with the earth make for yourself an ark and that's what

Noah did for the next 75 to 100 years well after loading on the animals and bringing his wife along with their three sons

Shem Ham and Japheth and each one of their wives for a total of eight people the floodwaters finally came the deeps burst open in the earth the sky rained in torrential downpour and this happened for 40 days and 40 nights all the people of the earth perished except for this one family and at the end of 150 days the waters finally began to recede after they walked out as A priest of God Noah built an altar to the

Lord and took many animals and sacrificed them to God as burnt offerings The Lord was pleased and he made a covenant with Noah and his descendants

He would never again destroy all living creatures by flood The Lord also mentioned from now on he will require the lifeblood of man

Capital punishment was instituted in Genesis 9 Whoever sheds man's blood

By man, his blood shall be shed for in the image of God. He made man

Noah was in a sense not only a prophet and priest but with the rights of capital punishment a king and it's true

From Noah came every prophet every priest and every king that would ever live

Finally the Lord said to the eight of them be fruitful and multiply Take dominion on the face of the earth and that's what

Shem Ham and Japheth began to do well Noah had lived and worked and preached and walked with God for 600 years at this point in time

After the events of the flood and the ark as the prophet priests and king of the earth a new

Adam Noah was in a new type of Eden Genesis 9 chapter 20 states then

Noah began farming and planted a vineyard We get an image that Noah is looking for rest.

He's looking for a Sabbath of sorts Verse 21 says he drank of the wine and became drunk and uncovered himself inside his tent like Adam Noah enjoyed the fruits of what he planted and like Adam He was so at peace with God and the covenant made that he uncovered himself naked like Adam was in the peace of a garden or Vineyard in this text and some would state that this is

Noah's sin It's his fall from grace, but the text doesn't indicate that by now on multiple occasions the scripture has called

Noah blameless and Righteous and that's not retracted here He did not do as the men of Habakkuk 215 did when they were drunkards who exposed themselves to people

Noah was still covered by his tent Men and women were free to undress and be naked in their own tents

It's that pre fall image of enjoying the garden in his nakedness finally resting

The text doesn't say he was a drunkard But this word drunk in Hebrew means to enjoy one's fill of wine whether freely or festively

Wine is seen as a gift from God to man according to Psalm 104 15 and even burnt offerings and peace offerings were accompanied with a drink of wine by the priests in numbers 15 5 through 10 and Deuteronomy 14 26 encourages wine purchase and drinking at festivals

The abundance of the fruit of the vine is also a symbol of the messianic age Blessing from God is often seen in grains and grapes in Christ those two elements would be seen in his body and blood and one day we will go to the

Lamb's Supper where there will be bread and wine however in this moment

This is where things take a turn Just like with Adam There is a serpent

Lurking in Noah's garden Verse 22 states Ham the father of Canaan saw the nakedness of his father and told his two brothers outside Now this may sound straightforward to you

But like many we all wonder why this mistake if you will Would incur such a heavy punishment with the cursing of Ham's son

Canaan All of this has been the topic of much speculation Some believe

Ham committed some sort of homosexual assault The word Erewha in Hebrew does mean

Noah's genitals were out And he did indeed wake up and the text said he knew what

Ham had done to him This word done or a saw in the

Hebrew is just a generic word for doing something It can mean a multitude of things, but one thing it's never meant is something sexual

Although it may be different in our culture today No, man would have ever boasted about committing a homosexual act at that time in history

Let alone boasting about committing a homosexual act with his own father So that's out some believe

Ham has sexual intercourse with Noah's wife according to Leviticus 18 7

Leviticus 20 verse 11 and Deuteronomy 27 20 The man who lies with his father's wife and exposes her nakedness has figuratively exposed to the nakedness of his father and We do see that in Scripture when

Reuben lost the rights of firstborn for laying with one of Jacob's concubines likewise with Absalom who sought to take the kingdom from his father and Demoralized him by taking

David's concubines and laying with them These are shameful acts and incur heavy punishment

But this interpretation of Ham laying with Noah's wife does not work

Because the remedy to fix the sin was for Shem and Japheth to cover their father

So uncovering Noah's nakedness couldn't have been the nakedness of his wife otherwise, they would have covered her as Casuto points out if the covering was an adequate remedy

It follows that the misdemeanor was confined to only seeing so what's happening here?

Remember each man Noah Shem Ham and Japheth each have their own wives and their own tents

And they apparently already have children Ham Invaded his father's tent.

The Bible states in the law. You are not to enter someone's home without their permission Why was he there?

Did Ham already see how much his father drank? Did he think this was a good time for exploitation?

I think it's possible. He was looking to find fault walking in the Noah's tent

Ham saw the nakedness of his father and this was and is such a big deal in our culture with pornography and movies and Promiscuity, there's so much nudity, but it is very serious to God Nakedness and not being ashamed was only possible before the fall now

Nakedness exposed to others carries a lot of meaning with it one thing being vulnerability

One who is naked is vulnerable All that they are is seen before someone else a woman

Finding herself exposed in front of a group of men finds herself violated But not only that there is a powerless feeling

Imagine the strange dreams some have had and they've expressed riding a bus or they've been up on a stage or in some

Important place and in the dream, they suddenly realize they're naked. It's demoralizing its vulnerability and Specifically there is a transfer of power

Think of those who have been reduced to nakedness at POW or concentration camps a clothed person

Gains a sense of power in front of an exposed person That was

Ham's aim He then came outside and mocked his father's nakedness to his brothers

Shem and Japheth He made their father so very small in their eyes, but Shem and Japheth refused to see their father in that way

The question is why did Ham do this? The answer is rebellion and it's possible that what he also saw was his father's robe

Maybe he took it and brought it outside holding it up as a testimony of his father's nakedness laughing

But more than this it's possible. He took the prophet priest and Kings robe

Clothing was a symbol of power What the Aaronic priests wore were specially made for them consecrated for their priestly duties

Jesus's robe and tunic were also seen as symbols of power as the guards cast lots for his clothing

Joseph had a coat of many colors when Ruth wanted Boaz to marry her She said for him to cover her with his cloak in Isaiah 61 it is prophesied the

Messiah will cover us with his salvation and put his robe of righteousness on us

That is a transfer of righteousness While he takes our sin Robes and cloaks were so important in Bible times

Noah's nakedness depicted his weakness while Noah's robe depicted his authority and God -given roles for Dominion for him to take his father's robe an

Attempt to conspire with his brothers is seeking to rebel with intent to gain the highest rank

The most power in the newly flood cleansed earth and It's just like Adam and Eve in the garden take this item use it and become like God But it was a lie of the enemy and Satan used him just for it.

So what happened? Shem and Japheth would not join him in this rebellion The word says to honor your father.

In fact Leviticus says to have reverence for him Noah was already covered by the garment of the tent

The brothers didn't have to cover him the verse 23 says but Shem and Japheth took the garment and laid it upon both their shoulders and Walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father and their faces were turned away

So that they did not see their father's nakedness Notice the brothers didn't each hold a side of the cloak with their hands they took the robe and Carried it on their shoulders

And I would say that this is symbolically as pillars of support servants carried things on their shoulders

Therefore upholding their father's authority and office as the prophet and priest of the earth

They would not allow the nakedness transfer of power. They refused It says they kept their faces turned away and they restored to their father the robe

Showing their respect and deference and submission to him over the family and the earth

There are even similarities with the fact that man cannot look upon God as he is in Exodus 33 20

God says man shall not see me and live. No one gets to see the exposed glory of God as James Jordan says the situation is just like that in the tabernacle

God is enthroned naked in the Holy of Holies, but the priests are never to see him when they move the tabernacle

They unhook the veil and carry it backwards to cover the throne When they set up the tabernacle

They pull off the veil carefully and walk forward and hook it up without looking on the day of coverings

Leviticus 16 when Aaron does go into the Holy of Holies God wraps himself in his cloud

God is not to be seen in his tent, but God does speak from his throne

The same is true of Noah when he awakes he speaks and so this is how we finish this episode verses 24 to 27 state

When Noah awoke from his wine, he knew what his youngest son had done to him So he said cursed be

Canaan a servant of servants. He shall be to his brothers He also said blessed be the

Lord the God of Shem and let Canaan be his servant May God enlarge Japheth and let him dwell in the tents of Shem and let

Canaan be his servant Three times we see Canaan is cursed for the sin of his father

Ham He will be the servant of servants or slave of slaves that means the lowest of the low and We see that when the

Hebrews make conquests on the land of Canaan and inherit it as the promised land for their home But the question you might be wondering is

Why did Noah curse Canaan instead of Ham when Ham was the one who committed the offense?

Well, God had just given a blessing to Noah and each one of his sons according to verse 1

So it's possible Noah couldn't undo what God had done or didn't feel that it was right but what

I think is it may be a mirroring of punishment that since Noah's son sinned against him

Ham's son would receive the punishment son to father and father to son

Canaan would rebel against Ham creation and God himself as the Canaanites became the most wicked people on the face of the earth

Ham would have to live with that and remember he rebelled against his father

Noah Finally Noah blessed Yahweh saying the Lord will be the

God of Shem From Shem is where we get the word Semite the Semitic people the

Hebrews will have the Lord as their God they will be God's people this is gracious election and Japheth will be enlarged in one day dwell in the tents of Shem However, we have no record of any people group from Japheth sharing a tent with the people of Shem There is one incredible theory though To dwell in another's tent is an image of being in the same household

When did Japheth go into Shem's tent? Let's think about these people groups a little bit

Canaan's descendants became the nations of Cush Egypt put and Canaan the wicked peoples of northern

Africa and the Middle Eastern nations From Shem comes the Israelites the

Jews the people of God and It is believed that from Japheth came all the

Gentiles who would eventually turn to Christ Once Jesus Christ the true prophet the true priest and King comes and takes away all

Curses upon himself only then would Japheth and Shem come back together under one tent

Only then would the Jews and Gentiles become one in Christ the better Noah the last

Adam Only then in Christ with the tent the tabernacle the one temple of God Become the church

And so there you have it The curse of Canaan for the rebellion of him against his father.