I want to refer readers to this excellent post in Meridian regarding Noah.
Most of us, I would guess, have been puzzled by these verses in Genesis 9 in the Old Testament:
20 And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
21 And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.
22 And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
23 And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s nakedness.
24 And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him.
25 And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.
Questions considered:
- Was Noah drunk or in a vision in Genesis 9?
- Was Noah in the tent of Yahweh at the time?
- What is the significance of the wine in the story?
- What does it mean that Noah was “uncovered?”
- What about the garment?
- What was it that Ham was condemned for seeing?
- What was the significance of Noah’s “nakedness?”
Read the post over on Meridian. This post alone may be an excellent example of why studying the Old Testament is so important. There are so many potential layers of meaning.