Genesis 9:4-14

4 But flesh with blood of life ye shall not eat.

5 For your blood of your lives will I require at the hand of all wild beasts, and I will require the life of man at the hand of brother man.

6 He that sheds man's blood, instead of that blood shall his own be shed, for in the image of God I made man.

7 But do ye increase and multiply, and fill the earth, and have dominion over it.

8 And God spoke to Noe, and to his sons with him, saying,

9 And behold I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you,

10 and with every living creature with you, of birds and of beasts, and with all the wild beasts of the earth, as many as are with you, of all that come out of the ark.

11 And I will establish my covenant with you and all flesh shall not any more die by the water of the flood, and there shall no more be a flood of water to destroy all the earth.

12 And the Lord God said to Noe, This the sign of the covenant which I set between me and you, and between every living creature which is with you for perpetual generations.

13 I set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of covenant between me and the earth.

14 And it shall be when I gather clouds upon the earth, that my bow shall be seen in the cloud.

Genesis 9:4-14 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO GENESIS 9

In this chapter we have an account of God's blessing Noah and his sons, being just come out of the ark, with a renewal of the blessing of propagating their species, and replenishing the earth, the dominion over the creatures, and a freedom from the fear of them; with liberty to eat flesh, only it must not be eaten with blood; with a providential care and preservation of their lives from men and beasts, by making a law that that man or beast should die that shed man's blood, Ge 9:1-6 and after repeating the blessing of procreation, Ge 9:7 mention is made of a covenant God made with Noah, his sons, and all the creatures, that he would drown the world no more, the token of which should be the rainbow in the cloud, Ge 9:8-17 the names of the sons of Noah are observed, by whom the earth was repeopled, Ge 9:18,19 and seem to be observed for the sake of an event after recorded; Noah having planted a vineyard, and drank too freely of the wine of it, lay down uncovered in his tent, which Ham seeing, told his two brothers of it, who in a very modest manner covered him, Ge 9:20-23 of all which Noah being sensible when he awoke, cursed Canaan the son of Ham, and blessed Shem and Japheth, Ge 9:24-27 and the chapter is concluded with the age and death of Noah, Ge 9:28,29.

Footnotes

• [a]. Gr. living soul.