Genesis 9:26
ESV
He also said, "Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant.
NIV
He also said, "Praise be to the Lord, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem.
NASB
He also said, 'Blessed be the Lord, The God of Shem; And may Canaan be his servant.
CSB
He also said: Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem; Let Canaan be Shem’s slave.
NLT
Then Noah said, 'May the Lord, the God of Shem, be blessed, and may Canaan be his servant!
KJV
And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.
NKJV
And he said: “Blessed be the Lord, The God of Shem, And may Canaan be his servant.
What does Genesis 9:26 mean?
In the previous verse, Noah cursed Canaan, Ham's son, as a result of Ham's extraordinary dishonor of his father (Genesis 9:24-25). The curse applied to their descendants, as well. Now, apparently to emphasize the curse, Noah blesses Ham's brothers. Here, actually, Noah blesses the Lord, "the God of Shem." Since Shem's line is the one that leads to Abraham and the Israelites, this may very well be the first hint that God will make Shem's people His people. This not only makes Shem the ancestor of the nation of Israel, it means Shem's ancestral line will produce the promised Messiah, Jesus Christ (Luke 3:36).The curse on Canaan is repeated once more. Much later in history, the people occupying the promised land, the people Israel would conquer, will be known as the Canaanites. Many times throughout Israel's history, the Canaanites would be in conflict with and serve the Israelites (descendants of Shem). More pertinent to this curse, they would always eventually find themselves on the "losing side" of their conflicts with Israel.
Genesis 9:18–29 comes immediately after God has established his promise to never again destroy all life with a flood. This includes a sign: the rainbow. The passage reintroduces Noah's three sons as the fathers of all the people of the earth to come. This passage also states that Ham was the father of Canaan. Next, we're told the embarrassing story of when Noah became drunk and lay naked in his tent. After seeing Noah uncovered, Ham went out and told his brothers about it. When Noah woke up, he cursed the descendants of Ham's son Canaan to be subservient to the descendants of Shem and Japheth.
Chapter 9 describes God's interactions with Noah and his sons following the flood. First, God gives blessings and instructions, including the command to reproduce and fill the earth. Next, God makes a unilateral covenant with humanity and animals never to end all life with a flood again. He offers the rainbow as a sign of this promise. Finally, Noah prophesies about the future of his son's descendants after an awkward episode in which Ham talks to his brothers about seeing Noah passed out drunk and naked.
