Bible Strands
Genesis 9:23
Then Shem and Japheth took a garment and placed it across their shoulders, and walking backward, they covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned away so that they did not see their father’s nakedness.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator records Shem and Japheth acting immediately after Ham’s discovery of Noah’s exposed state, while the father remains unconscious from wine. The text documents their physical response before Noah awakens to learn what his youngest son did.
The words — וַ/יִּקַּח (va/i.yi.Kach) means "and he took," and שְׁכֶ֣ם (she.Khem) denotes "shoulder," specifying that the brothers draped a garment over their shoulders as they walked backward. These terms detail the precise method used to cover the nakedness without direct visual contact.
The thread — The action aligns with the command to honor parents in Exodus 20:12 and the instruction to rise before the aged in Leviticus 19:32, while the principle of careful restoration appears in Galatians 6:1. These passages collectively address how to respond to familial failure and human vulnerability.
Why it lands — The text requires a concrete response to another’s shame: physical action that restores dignity while deliberately avoiding voyeurism. It asks the reader to examine how they handle the exposed failures of others without looking away in contempt or looking closer in curiosity.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
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.
Cross-references
- Galatians 6:1 Brothers, if someone is caught in a trespass, you who are spiritual should restore him with a spirit of gentleness. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.
- Exodus 20:12 Honor your father and mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.
- Leviticus 19:32 You are to rise in the presence of the elderly, honor the aged, and fear your God. I am the LORD.
- Romans 13:7 Pay everyone what you owe him: taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due.
- 1 Timothy 5:1 Do not rebuke an older man, but appeal to him as to a father. Treat younger men as brothers,
- 1 Timothy 5:17 Elders who lead effectively are worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching.
- 1 Timothy 5:19 Do not entertain an accusation against an elder, except on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
- 1 Peter 2:17 Treat everyone with high regard: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king.
- 1 Peter 4:8 Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.