²⁰And Noah began to be a husbandman, and he planted a vineyard: ²¹and he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent. ²²And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without. ²³And 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. ²⁴And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him. ²⁵And he said,

^rCursed be Canaan;

^sA servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.

²⁶And he said,

Blessed be ^tthe Lord God of Shem;

And Canaan shall be his servant.

²⁷God shall enlarge Japheth,

And he shall dwell in the tents of Shem;

And Canaan shall be his servant.

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Cross references

rDeut. 27.16.
s Josh. 9. 23. 1 Kings 9. 20, 21.
tHeb. 11. 16.

Public Domain

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

Noah began to be a man of the soil, and he planted a vineyard. He drank of the wine and became drunk and lay uncovered in his tent. And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father and told his two brothers outside. Then Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on both their shoulders, and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were turned backward, and they did not see their father’s nakedness. When Noah awoke from his wine and knew what his youngest son had done to him, he said,

“Cursed be Canaan;

a servant of servants shall he 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.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s naked body. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father naked.

When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, he said,

“Cursed be Canaan!

The lowest of slaves

will he be to his brothers.”

He also said,

“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Shem!

May Canaan be the slave of Shem.

May God extend Japheth’s territory;

may Japheth live in the tents of Shem,

and may Canaan be the slave of Japheth.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Noah, as a man of the soil, began by planting a vineyard. He drank some of the wine, became drunk, and uncovered himself inside his tent. Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside. Then Shem and Japheth took a cloak and placed it over both their shoulders, and walking backward, they covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father naked.

When Noah awoke from his drinking and learned what his youngest son had done to him, he said:

Canaan is cursed.

He will be the lowest of slaves to his brothers.

He also said:

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem;

Let Canaan be Shem’s slave.

Let God extend Japheth;

let Japheth dwell in the tents of Shem;

let Canaan be Shem’s slave.

NLTNew Living Translation

After the flood, Noah began to cultivate the ground, and he planted a vineyard. One day he drank some wine he had made, and he became drunk and lay naked inside his tent. Ham, the father of Canaan, saw that his father was naked and went outside and told his brothers. Then Shem and Japheth took a robe, held it over their shoulders, and backed into the tent to cover their father. As they did this, they looked the other way so they would not see him naked.

When Noah woke up from his stupor, he learned what Ham, his youngest son, had done. Then he cursed Canaan, the son of Ham:

“May Canaan be cursed!

May he be the lowest of servants to his relatives.”

Then Noah said,

“May the Lord, the God of Shem, be blessed,

and may Canaan be his servant!

May God expand the territory of Japheth!

May Japheth share the prosperity of Shem,

and may Canaan be his servant.”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And Noah began to be a man of the ground, and he planted a vineyard. And he drank some of the wine and became drunk, and he exposed himself in the midst of his tent. And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and he told his two brothers outside. Then Shem and Japheth took a garment, and the two of them put it on their shoulders and, walking backward, they covered the nakedness of their father. And their faces were turned backward, so that they did not see the nakedness of their father. Then Noah awoke from his drunkenness, and he knew what his youngest son had done to him. And he said,

“Cursed be Canaan,

a slave of slaves he shall be to his brothers.”

Then he said,

“Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Shem,

and let Canaan be a slave to them.

May God make space for Japheth,

and let him dwell in the tents of Shem,

and let Canaan be a slave for him.”

KJV 1900King James Version

And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard: And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent. And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without. 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. And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him. And he said,

Cursed be Canaan;

A servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.

And he said,

Blessed be the Lord God of Shem;

And Canaan shall be his servant.

God shall enlarge Japheth,

And he shall dwell in the tents of Shem;

And Canaan shall be his servant.

Public Domain