Bible Strands
Genesis 9:26
He also declared: “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the servant of Shem.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Noah pronounces this declaration after the flood, addressing his grandsons regarding the standing of Shem and Canaan.
The words — בָּרוּךְ (ba.Rukh) carries the literal sense "[be] blessed," while עֶבֶד ('E.ved) translates directly to "a slave" or "servant."
The thread — The declaration of Yahweh as God aligns with the communal blessing in Psalms 144:15, and the servant motif continues in Genesis 9:27 while pointing toward the covenantal call in Genesis 12:1.
Why it lands — The text explicitly states that Shem’s God is blessed and that Canaan will serve Shem, requiring the reader to accept the passage’s plain declaration of lineage and subjugation without adding external theological assumptions.
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 he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.
Cross-references
- Psalms 144:15 Blessed are the people of whom this is so; blessed are the people whose God is the LORD.
- Genesis 12:1 Then the LORD said to Abram, “Leave your country, your kindred, and your father’s household, and go to the land I will show you.
- Hebrews 11:16 Instead, 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.
- Genesis 10:10 His kingdom began in Babylon, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.
- Genesis 27:37 But Isaac answered Esau: “Look, I have made him your master and given him all his relatives as servants; I have sustained him with grain and new wine. What is left that I can do for you, my son?”
- Deuteronomy 33:26 “There is none like the God of Jeshurun, who rides the heavens to your aid, and the clouds in His majesty.
- Luke 3:23 Jesus Himself was about thirty years old when He began His ministry. He was regarded as the son of Joseph, the son of Heli,
- Romans 9:5 Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them proceeds the human descent of Christ, who is God over all, forever worthy of praise! Amen.
- Genesis 27:40 You shall live by the sword and serve your brother. But when you rebel, you will tear his yoke from your neck.”