Cursing Canaan - Joel NothmanJoel Nothman Cursing Canaan 5 find four general solutions among...

Cursing Canaan

Pre-Geonic interpretations of Genesis 925

Joel Nothman

Table of Contents

1 Introduction The inexplicable curse 2 2 ldquoHam sinned and Canaan is cursedrdquo 4

21 Canaan was cursed 4 211 Canaan sinned 5 212 Noah was unable to curse Ham 7 213 Now disallowed offspring Noah cursed offspring 10 214 As an affliction for Ham 12

22 Ham was cursed 14 23 Both Ham and Canaan were cursed 16

3 The significance of slavery 19 31 The meaning of ldquoa slave of slavesrdquo 21

4 Realisation of Noahs curse 24 41 Immediate results 24 42 Conquering of Canaan 26 43 Peoples affected by the curse 29

431 Canaanites 30 432 Hamites 33

5 Lessons from the narrative 37 51 Respect for onersquos father 38 52 The effects of wine 40 53 Righteousness can un-curse the cursed 43 54 Other moral lessons 46

6 Genesis 925 in midrashic lists 48 7 Notable absences 51 8 Summary and conclusions Patterns in approach to exegesis 52 References 57

Joel Nothman Cursing Canaan 2

1 Introduction The inexplicable curse

One of the more confusing narratives found in Genesis is that of Noahs drunkenness that

begins the antediluvian period in which humanity is reborn from his three sons Shem Ham

and Japheth As the narrative relates

את ערות וירא חם אבי כנען ויתגל בתוך אהלה וישכר היין- וישת מן כרם ויטע איש האדמה ויחל נח

מלה-ויקח שם ויפת את אחיו בחוץ-ויגד לשני אביו ויכסו את וילכו אחרנית שכם שניהם- עלוישימו ה

עשה לו בנו הקטן-את אשר וידע וייקץ נח מיינו וערות אביהם לא ראו ופניהם אחרנית ערות אביהם

ארור כנען ויאמר

ש

יפת אלהים ויהי כנען עבד למו אלהי שםייברוך ויאמריה לאחיועבד עבדים יה

ויהיו שלש מאות שנה וחמשים שנה אחר המבול נח-ויחי ויהי כנען עבד למו שם-וישכן באהלי ליפת

1וימת נח תשע מאות שנה וחמשים שנה-יימ- כל

There are many issues commonly taken with this story most significant may be the question

of what sin Ham actually committed in this incident but also the unusual reference to his

youngest son (בנו הקטן) the insertion of statements that Ham is the father of a previously

unmentioned Canaan in 918 22 and the cursing of Canaan when the only misdeed told in the

story is that of his father This paper intends to focus on the verse that first entails this final

difficulty

And he said Cursed be Canaan the lowest of slaves Shall he be to his brothers2

The numerous and stark curiosities associated with the above passage made it a relatively

common subject of concern for commentators from the outset of the history of Bible

interpretation While no passages in the Tanakh itself comment directly on the verse or its

contents it may be possible to see the cursing of Canaan as a commentary on later events

depicted in the Biblemdashat least if subscribing to a source theory of Genesismdashor as a prophecy

or premonition of future relationships depicted in the Bible a connection a number of later

1 Gen 920ndash29

2 Gen 925 New JPS translation in bold in the Hebrew above


commentators indeed do make A number of references to this verse are given in Hellenistic

Jewish works such as those of Philo Judaeus Josephus and a number of works from the

pseudepigrapha and one Dead Sea Scrolls fragment Parallels are occasionally drawn to other

mythologies which may also give us insight into the understanding of Canaanrsquos curse In

addition numerous Rabbinic midrashic sources include reference to this passage often

contrasting but also showing similarities in many cases with the approach of early Christian

writers Further Greek and Aramaic translations of Genesis include minor linguistic

differences that give some insight to understanding the verse in the eyes of its translators and

editors Throughout we find a number of common threads of interpretation and at the same

time significant variation in approach and understanding

Rather than discussing each of these sources by their genre or chronology the various

sources have primarily been grouped on the basis of their commentary Through this we hope

to identify common resolutions to problems in the interpretation of the passage and to see the

similarities and differences in exegetical approach The first issue of focus is the largest one

immediately visible from the verse why does it seem to say that Canaan was cursed for the

actions of Ham In much more recent times our verse has also become associated as a source

for biblical justification of black slavery and it is important to view this versersquos interpretation

in terms of the advent of slavery or the meaning of עבד עבדים as the outcome for Canaan in

the curse This issue further bears upon us to uncover what the early interpreters saw as the

realisation of Noahrsquos statement and which peoples it was to affect A few further sources

notably the midrash and the patristic writers intend to learn moral implications from the

cursing and its associated narrative Our penultimate topic of discussion relates to a midrashic

manner of including this verse among patterns within the Bible and thus creating another


form of exegesis on the passage It is finally worthwhile to note the absences of commentary

on this verse where it otherwise may have been expected By uncovering and comparing the

different meanings and uses assumed from Genesis 925 we shed light on the history of its

interpretation and may succeed in comparing exegetical approaches and viewpoints presented

by the various pre-Gaonic Jewish sources

2 ldquoHam sinned and Canaan is cursedrdquo

This is the introductory statement of Genesis Rabbah as it attempts to solve the primary issue

implied by our verse3 it is certainly the most common question directly answered by

commentaries thereupon While the only actions in the narrative are performed by Noah and

his sons his curse in verse 25 falls upon Canaan a phenomenon quite clearly requiring

explanation on behalf of commentators on the passage In general three solutions can be taken

(a) Ham was actually the subject of the curse but Canaanrsquos name was used in the curse (b)

Canaan was actually the subject of the curse but in this case exegetes need to provide an

explanation as to why (c) by some manner both Ham and his son are direct targets of Noahrsquos

curse The passage does seem to indicate a focus towards Canaan at this stage being the only

of Noahrsquos sons mentioned being described in relation to Ham in the context of his misdeed

Possibly as a result of this the majority of opinions on the subject take the second option

21 Canaan was cursed

As a result of the inconsistency present in a simple reading of the text numerous early

interpreters of the Genesis story had to provide an explanation for Noah cursing Canaan We

3 Gen R 367


find four general solutions among pre-Geonic exegetes that agree with the literal reading of

the Masoretic text in cursing Canaan (a) ascribe some sin to Canaan (b) provide a reason

why Noah could not curse Ham and therefore cursed Canaan instead (c) Noah cursed Hamrsquos

son in poetic justice in being prevented a son and (d) Ham would be taught a greater lesson

by his son being cursed for his sin Because it abides by a direct reading of the verse this

general approach is more popular than having to explain Ham into the curse as discussed in

the next section

211 Canaan sinned

One clear way to explain the cursing of Canaan is by assuming that it was he that performed

the transgression against Noah rather than his father What exactly Canaan did is most vividly

depicted in Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer

Canaan entered and saw the nakedness of Noah and he bound a thread (where the mark of)

the covenant was and emasculated him He went forth and told his brethren Ham entered

and saw his nakedness hellip But he told his two brothers in the market making sport of his

fatherhellip Noah awoke from his wine and he knew what the younger son of Ham had done

him and he cursed him as it is said ldquoAnd he said Cursed be Canaanrdquo4

Here we find the famous rabbinic explanation of Noahrsquos castration as the cause for the curse5

While this emasculation is not in any way described or implied by the Genesis text

Heinemann describes the aggada as ldquocreative historiographyrdquo and suggests that

4 Pirke De Rabbi Eliezer 23 translated by Friedlander p 170f

5 See also Lev R 175 and the opinion of Rab or Shmuel in Sanhedrin 70a where castration is also

explicit it is implicit R Berakhiah and R Huna in the name of R Joseph in Gen R 367 and ldquoour mastersrdquo in

Tanhuma Noah 14 Hamrsquos castration of Noah may also be derived from or related to Greek mythology which the

Sibylline Oracles (3110-116) implies by associating Ham with Cronos (Κρόνος)


The aggada hellip fills in the details [of the historical record] in an imaginative way in order to

find an answer to the questions of the listeners and to arrive at a depiction which will act on

their feelings6

Although castration is found else where the present source seems unique among the

midrashic literature in pinning the act upon Canaan rather than Ham The new narrative it

supplies attempts to find consistency within the passage of Genesis 920-27 by having Canaan

entering Noahrsquos tent prior to his father who then enters afterward and performs as in verse 22

Nonetheless with little doubt the license for the interpretation put forward by Pirke de Rabbi

Eliezer is found in its reading of verse 24 here where Noah knows what ldquohis younger sonrdquo

has done to him our midrash reinterprets the pronominal reference of ldquohisrdquo not to refer

reflexively to Noah but to Ham the subject of the narrative prior to this verse As such ldquohis

younger sonrdquo now referred to Hamrsquos son Canaan as explicitly stated here in the midrashic

retelling of events who could thus be reasonably cursed by his grandfather for his actions

A similar approach is offered elsewhere in the midrash where we again find that

Canaan is first to enter the tent and see Noahrsquos nakedness although less detail in the narrative

is given and no castration is implied In very similar passages in Genesis Rabbah and

Tanhuma we find respectively attributed to R Nehemiah

(a) It was Canaan who saw it and informed them therefore the curse is attached to him

who did wrong7

(b) Canaan had looked and told his father so the curse had returned to its source8

The subtle difference between these interpretations may be significant the use of ldquoinformed

themrdquo in the Gensis Rabbah quote can either be interpreted to imply that it was actually

6 Heinemann p 21

7 Gen R 367 translated by Freedman p 293

8 Tanhuma Noah 14 translated by Townsend 221 p 53


Canaan who saw Noahrsquos nakedness and then told others outside as is described of Ham in the

Genesis text or that he told others including his father who then performed as is described in

922 If the former understanding is taken Hamrsquos role in the text is left unexplained The

Tanhuma text thus seems to be a refinement on the same idea implying that Canaan and then

Ham saw Noahrsquos nakedness as we found also in the Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer text above9

The only earlier source that seems to imply that Canaan sinned is a reference in

Jubileesmdashwhere Rebecca warns her son not to take a daughter from among the Canaanitesmdash

that ldquothrough the sin of Ham Canaan sinned and all of his seed will be blotted outrdquo10

Although this states quite clearly that Canaan sinned and this may well be the reason for the

curse being upon him it is a result of Hamrsquos sin and not the reverse as seems to be

highlighted in the midrashic tradition Furthermore where Jubilees relates the story of Hamrsquos

sin it expresses it quite comparably to the Masoretic text of Genesis certainly providing no

detail that Canaan actually performed any wrong11

212 Noah was unable to curse Ham

One of the approaches which seems to have been accepted most widely among a variety of

sources is the concept that Noah was unable to curse Ham because he had already been

blessed by God along with his brothers12 Possibly the most interesting appearance of this

9 Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer seems to combine the two traditions of castration prominent among the

opinions discussed in sect 213 and of Canaanrsquos sinning both of which are transmitted in similar collections of

comments on the problem of Canaan being cursed in Hamrsquos place in Genesis Rabbah and Tanhuma Noah

10 Jubilees 2221 translated by Wintermute p 98

11 See Jubilees 79ff Also see comments on this passage sect 1 214 on p 12

12 See Gen 91


explanation was found on a fragment of 4Q252 found at Qumran ldquoa rather mysterious text

interwoven with quotations near quotations and rewordings from Genesis rewordings of

other texts and free additionsrdquo13

And Noah awoke from his wine and knew what his youngest son had done to him he said

ldquoCursed be Canaan the lowest of slaves shall he be to his brothersrdquo And he did not curse

Ham but rather his son because God had already blessed the sons of Noah ldquoAnd let him live

in the tents of Shemrdquo14

This identical explanation is also offered in later compilations of midrash and clearly

identifies an early source for the interpretation of R Judah who similarly claims that ldquothe

curse does not coexist with a blessingrdquo15

Adding further curiosity to the antiquity of this interpretation we also find it within the

early Church fathers Justin Martyr (100ndash165 CE) tells that

hellip Another mystery was accomplished and predicted in the days of Noah of which you are

not aware It is this in the blessings wherewith Noah blessed his two sons and in the curse

pronounced on his sonrsquos son For the Spirit of prophecy would not curse the son that had

been by God blessed along with [his brothers] But since the punishment of the sin would

cleave to the whole descent of the son that mocked at his fatherrsquos nakedness he made the

curse originate with his son16

Here Justin not only gives the same explanation as found in the Dead Sea Scrolls and midrash

but finds the need to further provide a reason for why Noah would curse his grandson instead

The appearance of this opinion in an interpretive text from the Dead Sea Scrolls may indicate

its antiquity thus reason to find it reflected in the Patristic literature but there has also been

13 Froumlhlich p 82

14 4Q252 frag 1 col ii 5bndash7 translated in Wise et al pp 275f

15 Tanhuma Noah 14 also Gen R 367

16 Justin Martyr Dialogue with Trypho 139 translated in Ed Roberts and Donaldson


extensive scholarly debate as to whether Justin has been influenced by the midrash17 While it

is likely then that Justin the rabbinic tradition and 4Q252 have a common source for their

tradition it seems quite plausible for Justin to have reached his conclusion independently

Since this solution to the problems posed by the passage is prominent in the early

centuries CE it is significant to note the similarity although not identity to what is found in

the Judean Antiquities of Flavius Josephus (c37ndashc100 CE)

And Nochos realising this invoked a blessing for his other sons but he did not curse

Chamas because of his kinship to him but rather his descendants And whereas the others

escaped the curse God pursued the children of Chananaios18

While the difficulty in cursing Ham as put forward in the above sources was because he had

previously been blessed by God Josephus differs by limiting this to Noah being unwilling to

bless his son simply because of kinship Feldman considers that Josephus would likely know

other Rabbinic responses to the text whether either of those quoted so far from Genesis

Rabbah but that ldquorealising that such rabbinic interpretations are not readily derived from the

plain meaning of the text prefers to abide by the literal meaning of the text and explains very

simply and reasonably that Noah did not curse Ham himself because of his nearness of kin

(συγγένειαν)rdquo19 This may accord with Josephusrsquos purported goal of synthesizing Jewish and

Hellenistic culture where a seemingly far-fetched Rabbinic approach may be less becoming

Despite this argument it is not clear that Josephusrsquos explanation here is particularly simpler

than the contradiction of Godrsquos blessing and Noahrsquos curse as found in 4Q252 Justin and the

midrash Indeed Feldman places this argument directly after discussing the Rabbinic position

17 See Rokeacuteah pp 38ndash40 for a summary of some such discussion

18 Josephus Judean Antiquities 1142 translated by Feldman (2000) p 50

19 Feldman (1988) p 54


that Canaan was the first to see Noahrsquos nakedness (or to castrate him) as above20 distancing it

from the present midrashic tradition and so not clearly responding to this challenge21

Nonetheless Josephus does seem to accord to the general school of thought that Canaan was

cursed as a result of Noahrsquos inability to curse his own son

213 Now disallowed offspring Noah cursed offspring

As a result of the rabbinic opinion that the misdeed in 922 was an act of castration comes the

suggestion that Canaan being Hamrsquos son was cursed because Ham prevented Noah from

having further progeny and as a result Hamrsquos progeny should be cursed22 The Babylonian

Talmud puts it simply and by way of a play on words

23 מתוך שקלקלו ברביעי קללו ברביעימאן דאמר סרסו

20 See sect 212 p 7

21 There is also no clear evidence that the idea of Canaanrsquos transgression should have been available to

Josephusmdashthe attribution to R Nehemiah dates it to the mid-2nd century CE while Josephusrsquos antiquities were

completed by 94mdashwhereas Noah being unable to curse Ham is expressed by nearly contemporaneous authors

22 See note 5 p 5 for other sources on Noahrsquos emasculation Possibly the causality is in reversemdashor it

may a compounding of the two factorsmdashin that the desire to explain why Hamrsquos offspring was cursed may result

in the idea of castration The textual evidence seems to indicate otherwise in Sanhedrin 70a this explanation of

the cursing of Canaan is an incidental addition to the more certain opinion that Noah was castrated in Gen R

367 and Tanhuma Noah 14 his impotence as a result of the deed seems to be assumed knowledge Even the

opinion in Sanhedrin 70a that the transgression was one of intercourse is resolved by saying that in addition Noah

was castrated and both this and Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer where castration is upheld but another explanation is

given for Canaanrsquos cursing seem to indicate the prevalence of this opinion The idea that Noah was emasculated

is likely thus a direct response to the inexplicability Genesis 921-22

23 BT Sanhedrin 70a


Since Ham damaged Noah in relation to having a fourth child Noah cursed Hamrsquos fourth

child This same reading is expressed in Targum Pseudo-Jonathan

דהוא קליל בזכותא דגרם ליה דלא ואיתער נח מן חמריה וידע באשתעות חלמא ית דעבד ליה חם בריה

24 עביד משעבד יהי לאחוידהוא בריה רביעייואמר ליט כנען יוליד בר רביעיי

Finally the same position is stated in the midrash of Genesis Rabbah although there it is

phrased as a first-person pronouncement by Noah

R Huna said in R Josephrsquos name [Noah declared] lsquoYou have prevented from me from

begetting a fourth son therefore I curse your fourth sonrsquo25

In this same passage of midrash the opinion of R Berakhiah is presented comparable but

again not identical with a parallel passage in the Tanhuma respectively

(a) R Berakiah said Noah grieved very much in the Ark that he has no young son to

wait on him and declared lsquoWhen I go out I will beget a young son to do this for mersquo

But when Ham acted thus to him he exclaimed lsquoYou have prevented me from

begetting a young son to serve me therefore that man [your son] will be a servant to

his brethrenrsquo26

(b) Our masters have said when Noah was in the ark he said Oh that my children had

slaves so that while they were seated those ltslavesgt would go forth before them

When however I go out from the ark whomever I beget I shall make into slaves for

them He said to him (Ham) You did not allow me to beget a fourth son who would

be a slave for his brothers By your life I am making your fourth son a slave Thus it

is stated And he said Cursed be Canaan [A slave of slaves shall he be to his

brothers]27

24 Targum Pseudo-Jonathan on Genesis 924ndash25 Emphasis added



27 Tahnhuma Noah 14 translated by Townsend p 53


In the three midrashic quotations the idea that Ham caused Noahrsquos impotence is implicit28

and in all cases the cursing of the youngest son is a result of Noahrsquos being impaired from

bearing another The latter two cases though also explain making the cursed son of Ham a

slave to his brethren and then differ subtly in Noahrsquos reasoning29 In all cases this may be

derived from the general idea of Hamrsquos youngest son being cursed by way of his father not

being able to bear another in turn likely a result of the midrashic view that Hamrsquos sin was an

act of castration

214 As an affliction for Ham

Another approach taken by a few early interpreters of our passage is that Noah chose to curse

Hamrsquos son as this would be of greater offence than cursing him directly Alongside his

primary thesis of an allegorical reading30 this is an explanation given by Philo Judaeus

(20 BCEndash40 CE) He writes in his Questions and Answers on Genesis

In the first place God pronounced this sentence because both father and son had displayed

the same wickedness being both united together and not separated and both indulging in the

same disposition But in the second place he did so because the father would be exceedingly

afflicted at the curse thus laid upon the son being sufficiently conscious that he was punished

not so much for his own sake as for that of his father And so the leader and master of the two

28 By allowing reference to Noahrsquos castration to be implicit these midrashim gives a clue to the oral

nature of its transmission where ldquoThe corpus of assumed popular knowledge hellip played an important role in

establishing a rapport between early preachers and their audiences hellip [who could rely on their] familiarity with

well-known traditionsrdquo Jacobs p 80

29 See sect3 p 19

30 To be discussed in sect 23 p 16


suffered the punishment of his wicked counsels and words and actions This is the literal

meaning of the statement31

This reads into the text a psychological motivation for Noahrsquos curse upon Canaan while Ham

in his wickedness may feel no upset at a curse upon him with his son cursed and knowing that

it is due to his fatherrsquos wrongdoing it sets up a discord and relationship of blame between

Canaan and his father thus leaving Ham greater afflicted than if he was to be the cursersquos

direct subject In another work On Sobriety a polemic regarding Noah and the effects of wine

he suggests a related reason of allowing the fulfilment of Exodus 205 in which God is

described as ldquovisiting the iniquities of the fathers upon the sons to the third and fourth

Generationsrdquo32 an inter-scriptural connection typical of midrash texts Noah curses his

grandson to illustrate the extent of the transgression for which Ham ultimately bears more

guilt

Although not providing as much detail Jubilees comments with a notion very similar

to that given by Philo

And Noah woke up from his wine and knew everything which his youngest son had done to

him And he cursed his son and said ldquoCursed is Canaan let him be an enslaved servant of his

brothersrdquo hellip And Ham knew that his father cursed his younger son and it was disgusting to

him that he cursed his son And he separated from his father he and his sons with him Cush

and Mizraim and Put and Canaan33

This rewriting of the Genesis narrative does not as clearly identify why Canaan was cursed

but it almost implies Philorsquos reading by identifying Hamrsquos displeasure at his fatherrsquos cursing

his son Unlike Philorsquos reading it does not seem to indicate that the reason Noah chose to

31 Philo Questions and Answers on Genesis 277 translated by Yonge

32 Philo On Sobriety 1048 translated by Yonge

33 Jubilees 710ndash13 translated by Wintermute p 69


curse Canaan over his own son was to add to the affliction incurred upon his son although

this could be a possible reading of Jubilees

Since these two interpretations alone are the only reflecting this sort of tradition to a

common problem in the understanding of Genesis 925 it may be possible that they derive

their resolution from a common source or that Philo was knowledgeable in Jubilees although

there seems no evidence34 Ultimately both these interpretations examine Hamrsquos reaction to

the cursing of his son although only Philo explicitly details this as the reason that Noah chose

Canaan as the subject of his curse

22 Ham was cursed

The alternative approach of rereading Genesis 925ndash26 as actually referring to Ham rather

than Canaan is less popular than the converse among Jewish commentators Despite being a

later midrashic compilation than a number of the works mentioned heretofore in association

with the opposite view Numbers Rabbah stands out amid the rabbinic canon by following this

approach

hellip it says And Noah awoke from his wine hellip and he said Cursed be Canaan (Gen 924f) by

which he meant Ham who was his third son and was called the father of Canaan35

This midrash seems unusually to claim that Ham was merely referred to as Canaan by virtue

of being his father This view is only clearly repeated in the writings of early Christians

34 Jubilees was probably sufficiently ancient even by the time of Philo for its ideas to be publicly known

See Wintermute pp 43ndash44 for a discussion of the dating of Jubilees under the assumption of a separation of the

Qumran sect regarding high-priesthood the latest possible date for its composition would be 140 or 152 BCE

35 Num R 102 translated by Slotki p 347 Also in Num R 108


Epiphanius (c 310ndash403) for instance states simply that ldquothe mocker received the curserdquo36 In

Aduersus Haereses Irenaeus Lugdunesis (c 130ndash202) quotes ldquothe presbyterrdquo in saying

hellip We ought not to hellip become like Ham who ridiculed the shame of his father and so fell

under a curse37

Elsewhere he confirms this position more clearly where he quotes the verse as ldquocursed be

Hamhelliprdquo

The younger of them [Noahrsquos sons] who was called Ham having mocked their father and

having been condemned of the sin of impiety because of his outrage and unrighteousness

against his father received a curse38

Despite the changed quotation of the verse McKenzie argues that Irenaeusrsquos reference to Ham

here is intentional and consistent with his message and world-view which ldquosees the

subsequent history of the human race in its relation to God as the unfolding of the original

blessing and cursing which determines the relations of the respective races descended

variously from their favoured or rejected forefatherhelliprdquo39 Introducing Canaan as the recipient

of the curse would upset his portrayal of its affliction upon the progeny of Ham40

Independent of motivation that Noah cursed Ham seems to be the dominant view among

many of the early Christian writers in sharp contrast to the majority of rabbinic positions41

36 Epiphanius of Salamis Panarion 63 39 translated by Williams vol 2 p 130

37 Irenaeus Aduersus Haereses IV chapter 31

38 Irenaeus Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching 20 translation by Robinson in MacKenzie p 6

39 MacKenzie p 132

40 See sect 43 below p 29 for a discussion of Irenaeusrsquos views on those affected by the curse

41 Goldenberg pp 158f lists many examples from later Christian authors as well as the patristic

writers where Ham is given as the target of Noahrsquos curse or at least being affected by it This paper treats Ham

being affected by the curse elsewhere in sect 432 p 33


Whether as a result of this opinion a cause or an independent but identical resolution

Wevers notes that the Byzantine text of the Septuagint encountered the incongruence of

Canaan being cursed for Hamrsquos act ldquorealized the difficulty and changed the name to χαμ

(Ham)rdquo in both Genesis 925 and the following verses42 It may significant to note that in

each of the Christian examples cited Canaan is entirely absent from mention unlike in the

Numbers Rabbah explanation above This could easily be explained by use of the Byzantine

edition of the Bible text (or some equivalent) whose substitution removes the problem here

being addressed entirely

On the one hand then there could be a cause of textual or oral tradition to explain

Christian dominance in the view of Ham being cursed but on the other hand there may be

some motivation to do so early Christian interpretations of servitude considered all men freed

that would serve Christ and so maximising the number of nations originally designated by the

Genesis account as slaves may be beneficial for rhetorical reasons 43 At the same time as the

Christians for whatever reason tend to indicate Ham as the direct target of Noahrsquos curse

Jewish sources tend not to

23 Both Ham and Canaan were cursed

The primary proponent of a position wherein both Ham and Canaan were cursed is Philo who

takes an allegorical reading of the text In this he identifies both father and son as

representing wickedness and by their similar natures and mindsets mentioning only Canaan

is inherently referring to both similarly the repeated statement that ldquoHam is the father of

42 Wevers on 925 p 124

43 See sect 53 p 43 on the curse being revoked for those who submit their faith to Jesus


Canaanrdquo is not primarily an indication of genealogy but of their affiliation by way of lack of

virtue44 By unifying their characters Philo needs to thus justify Genesisrsquos use of one or the

other name in reference to various acts In his Questions he suggests that Moses ldquodoes not

mention the father with blame but with respect to the man with whom he thought it fair that

the son should be a partakerrdquo45 he further suggests that this may be a premonition of

Canaanrsquos conquer in later times46 also that Ham would be exceedingly hurt by a curse upon

his son47 Nonetheless Philorsquos most expansive account of the allegorical nature of Canaanrsquos

curse is covered in his On Sobriety

hellip Ham the son of Noah is the name of wickedness in a state of inactivity but his grandson

Canaan is the name of wickedness in a state of motion For Ham being interpreted means

warm but Canaan means commotion hellip But no lawgiver ever affixes a punishment to

wicked men while in a state of inaction but only when they are in a state of motion and

practise actions in accordance with injusticehellip The just man will appear to have launched his

curses against his grandson Canaan But I have used the expression will appear because in

effect he is cursing his son Ham through the medium of Canaan for Ham being moved to

commit sin does himself become Canaanhellip Canaan ishellipdescribed as the son of Ham

commotion as the offspring of tranquillity in order that the statement made in another

passage may be true namely visiting the iniquities of the fathers upon the sons to the third

and fourth Generations48

Both the form and the content of this reading are not familiar within the rabbinic corpus

Dawson suggests that Philo follows the Ptolemaic Jewish interpreters Aristobulus of Paneas

44 See Philo Questions and Answers on Genesis 265 270


46 Philo Questions and Answers on Genesis 270 translated by Yonge Regarding interpretation of our

verse as a premonition of the nature Canaanrsquos conquer and servitude see sect42 p 26 42

47 Philo Questions and Answers on Genesis 277 translated by Yonge See also sect 214 p 12

48 Philo On Sobriety 1044ndash48 translated by Yonge


and Aristeas in reading scripture through allegory in order to associate it with Hellenistic

ideas that are otherwise unconnected49 Philo thus transforms Moses as the author of the

Pentateuch into a remarkable allegorist and philosopher who uses his characters and groups as

symbols for various abstract concepts While in itself depicting Canaan as a symbol of

wickedness is not too far from the text in distinguishing between Ham and Canaan as

different manifestations of wickedness one static and one in motion is clearly drawing upon

classical ideas from Greek philosophy in order to paint new ideas onto the difficulties in the

Genesis narrative In Dawsonrsquos words

Philo hellip evades the constraints of literalism by suspending the personal identity of important

biblical characters Read allegorically these characters become hellip personifications of various

types (tropoi) of souls or faculties (dynameis) within the soul hellip When Noah curses Canaan

for Hamrsquos sinhelliphe is in effect ignoring his sonrsquos literal individualities in order to make an

allegorical pointhellipPhilorsquos allegorical readings turn specific characters who speak and act

according to ordinary narrative realism into the impulses and faculties of the inner world and

of the human soul Along with the suspension of narrative time and space the reading of

scriptural characters as personifications of psychological dispositions and faculties provides

scripture with an underlying meaning of immediate universal spiritual relevance50

To aid this method of drawing abstract meaning from biblical characters we also see Philo

making use of Hebrew language to find or aid interpretations for characters51 While the

49 Dawson p 73ff Goldenberg gives numerous references to Philo as an allegorist in p 333 note 65

50 Dawson p 100

51 Goldenberg p 150 points out that ldquoHamrdquo and ldquohotrdquo originally made use of different gutturals for

their first consonant (ḥ and ḫ respectively in his notation Philorsquos equating these words makes use of their

equivalent orthography and possibly phonetic value According to note 62 upon that page Gary Rendsburg (in

Ancient Hebrew Phonology pp 73-74) identifies their phonological merging to around 200BCE


meanings of names do seem to play a role in some midrash and even in the Bible itself52

there they are usually related to narrative or thematic rather than philosophical concepts as

are typical of Philo

Ignoring the allegorical method or value of Philorsquos commentary he ultimately

produces an opinion that both Ham and Canaan sinned and were thus cursed the latter as a

result of the former It may be possible to see a similar interpretation in the statement from

Jubilees that ldquothrough the sin of Ham Canaan sinned and all of his seed will be blotted

outrdquo53 While it misses the allegorical reading this seems to be conceptually comparable to

Philorsquos ldquoin effect he is cursing his son Ham through the medium of Canaanrdquo and thus draws

for us another parallel between the writings of Philo and those in Jubilees54

3 The significance of slavery

While the major textual issues in Genesis 925 are borne of asking who is the subject of the

curse it is important too to note that the our verse is the first use of the word עבד ldquoslaverdquo or

ldquoservantrdquo in the Pentateuch While the exact meaning of the expression עבד עבדים may also be

questioned the text here possibly suggests that slavery in general is the result of a curse upon

Canaan As the Tanhuma describes

Noah was the first with planting with drunkenness with cursing and with slaveryhellip55

52 See for instance Garsiel Moshe Biblical Names A Literary Study of Midrashic Derivations and

Puns Ramat Gan 1987 Trans Phyllis Hackett Bar-Ilan University Press 1991


54 This connection was also made in sect 214 p 12



From our verse the midrash illustrates Noah as the inventor of both the slave and the curse

Later in that same passage we find the quote of ldquoour mastersrdquo as cited above56 In that

passage as well as in the views of R Berakhiah from Genesis Rabbah also quoted there there

is an implication that Noah desired to invent a slave either to wait upon himself or for his

children ldquoso that while they were seated those slaves would go forth before themrdquo Elsewhere

in early rabbinic literature the concept that all slavery stems from this verse is evidenced In

Pesikta Rabati the same R Berakhia is attributed with the statement that ldquoonly upon Canaan

fell the curse of being a bondmanrdquo57 in the Mishnah the Babylonian Talmud and the minor

tractate of lsquoAbadim any heathen slave is referred to as ldquoa Canaanite slaverdquo58 Hence although

the references may be sparse there is definitely evidence of a rabbinic opinion that at least

associates slavery with the nation of Canaan59 if not with our particular story in Genesis

In addition to these rabbinic sources Philo also makes a comment in On Sobriety that

describes the nature of slavery as deriving from this verse

And very appropriately has he assigned the fool to be a slave to those who cultivate virtue

that either by passing under a better government he may live a better life or if he continue in

evil doing he may easily be punished by the independent authority of his masters60

Here he applauds the Bible for designing the slave as an inherently wicked or foolish

character again relating the narratives and characters to the much more abstract philosophical

concepts of government and subjugation of slaves This may further have related to his

56 See p 11

57 Pesikta Rabati 2122 translated by Braude vol 1 p 452

58 See Mishnah Qiddushin 13 BT Baba Mezia 71a Masekhet lsquoAbadim 32

59 See sect 431 p 30 for a discussion of interpretations that the curse affects only the Canaanites



attitude towards his surrounding Egyptians of Hamitic background of whom he gives

occasional positive appraisals but mostly ldquohellip offers sharp criticism of their worship of

animals and of the Nile hellip of the character of the Egyptians they are arrogant hellip jealousy is

part of the Egyptiansrsquo nature and the Egyptians have an ancient and innate hostility to the

Jewsrdquo61 Philo was also the author of an entire treatise on slavery entitled Every Good Man is

Free which neglects to mention this biblical account But as Colson writes

This treatise is usually believed to be a youthful essay of Philos and we may well suppose

that it belongs to a period of his life when he still had the dialectic of the philosophical

schools fresh in mind and before he had settled down to his lifes work of interpreting the

Pentateuchhellip The tract is an argument to show the truth of the Stoic ldquoparadoxrdquo that the wise

man alone is freehellip The thought that slavery in the sense of subjection to the wise is the best

hope for the wicked a moral which he draws from the story of Esau and from Noahrsquos curse

of Canaan in De Sob 69 may well have played a part62

We therefore see that Philo in associating slavery with wickedness both draws upon Stoic

philosophy and upon the Genesis 920ndash27 narrative which hemdashalong with a number of

rabbinic sourcesmdashseems to associate with the origin of a practice of servitude

31 The meaning of ldquoa slave of slavesrdquo

If our passage is indeed to be taken as the origin or slavery or otherwise it may be sensible to

ask why the passage does not simply curse Canaan to be an עבד rather than עבד עבדים As an

idiomatic form of Hebrew also commonly found in the phrase מלך מלכים the duplication

literally translated as ldquoservant of servantsrdquo or ldquoslave of slavesrdquo generally implies emphasis a

61 Borgen p 23

62 Colson vol 9 pp 2-5


superlative degree and is therefore often translated as ldquolowly servantrdquo The translation given

by the Septuagint for Genesis 95 reads as follows

Καὶ εἶπεν ἐπικατάρατος Χανααν παῖς οἰκέτης ἔσται τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς αὐτοῦ

In this the words עבד עבדים have been translated as παῖς οἰκέτης Generally παῖς means

child boy or servant οἰκέτης indicates a domestic or menial slave The popular Brenton

translation of the text renders in English ldquoAnd he said Cursed be the servant Chanaan a slave

shall he be to his brethrenrdquo a more recent translation differs in phrasing ldquoCursed be Chanaan

a slave a domestic shall he be to his brothersrdquo63 Wevers seems to take the latter approach

commenting that the translator tries to express the superlative meaning of the Hebrew

duplication by suggesting ldquolsquoa slave even a household servantrsquo by which is meant the lowest

of all possible ranks in the community of slavesrdquo64 As Emanuel Tov writes

Every translation reflects linguistic exegesis which is an integral part of the act of

translation Linguistic exegesis involves the grammatical identification of all words

(especially forms of verbs and nouns) in the source language as well as their semantic

interpretation On the other hand not every translation contains additional forms of exegesis

A translation like Aquilarsquos for example reflects mainly linguistic exegesis since Aquila was

interested only in the linguistic identification of the Hebrew words and did not introduce any

exegetical elements in this translation This tendency is visible in his choice of equivalents

which was stereotyped throughout the translation irrespective of context65

As such we find that Aquilarsquos translation differs from the standard LXX by suggesting quite

literally ldquoδοῦλος δούλωνrdquo Jellicoe points out that Aquilarsquos version created to counter

Christian misuses of the original Septuagint was likely never ldquointended for popular

63 Translation by Hiebert


65 Tov p 82


circulationrdquo and that by giving an exact account of the Hebrew was ldquousable only by one who

already understood that language its function was interpretive rather than literaryrdquo66 It is

not clear how on the present verse Aquila may be attempting to avoid an untoward

understanding of the LXX text but his hyper-literal translation method is certainly accorded

to in this instance

In a similar fashion the traditionally most literal Aramaic translations copy the form

the Samaritan Targum has שמש שמושין while the Syriac Peshitta gives ܒ ܒ (עבד עבדין)

Pseudo-Jonathan and Neofiti maintain the repetition of עבד but not in the same form as the

Hebrew presenting עבד משעבד and עבד משתעבד respectively approximately ldquoan enslaved

servantrdquo while Onkelos gives עבד פלח using a word meaning to labour serve or worship

paralleling in some sense the LXX While the available translations differ in the specific

words used to translate the idiomatic עבד עבדים we see that they tend to vary from a literalist

approach to a looser one where the essence of ldquoa most lowly slaverdquo is described

In one instance the midrash goes further to explain the meaning of עבד עבדין In

Tanhuma we find

Resh Laqish said Behold those from Ham are slaves forever but the children of Shem go

forth into the world free [as in the laws of the Hebrew slave described in Deut 1512 17] hellip

Here however it is a slave of slaves ltiegt a slave who does not take his freedom and never

goes away67

It is not entirely clear whether this interpretation takes a literal reading of ldquoa slave of slavesrdquo

rather than understanding the expression as ldquoa most lowly slaverdquo Nonetheless this midrash

provides a reading as to why Canaan was cursed to be an עבד עבדים and its distinction from

66 Jellicoe p 77



the general term עבד This passage too hides the implication that the non-Hebrew slave

derives its definition and origin from the Genesis 9 curse as was highlighted in other rabbinic

literature above

4 Realisation of Noahs curse

The Patristic father Origen (185ndashc254 CE) in his Contra Celsum speaks of the prophecy of

Noah presumably as a result of the curse and blessings described in Genesis 925ndash2768 There

is certainly a sense in Noahrsquos curse that seems to make it predict future events as mentioned in

the Bible or otherwise From the text even the immediate effects of the curse remain

uncertain while it is also unclear who the curse should effect in the long-term all the peoples

the descended from Ham or only those of Canaan At the same time the most prominent

reference to Canaan in the Bible is surely that of the land and its people which the Israelites

conquer primarily in the books of Joshua and Judges and many interpretations connect the

curse and the conquest

41 Immediate results

The Bible text describes the curse upon Canaan and the blessing for Shem before announcing

Noahrsquos death and continuing with a listing of Noahrsquos descendents In its parallel recount of the

narrative Jubilees expands the immediate aftermath of the cursing explaining that Ham

separated from his father in upset over the curse and built himself a city69 In the account

68 See note 9 on Contra Celsum VII ch 7 httpwwwsacred-textscomchrecf0040040062htm

Justin Martyr in Dialogue with Trypho 139 similarly argues that Noahrsquos curse is prophetic

69 Jubilees 710 quoted p 13 above


Japheth follows suit and in jealousy also separates and builds a city while Shem remains with

his father anticipating the centrality of Shem to the continuation of the biblical narrative and

presumably its righteousness in contrast to Ham The thirdndashfourth century Christian writer

Lactantius (c240ndashc320 CE) also depicts Hamrsquos separation from his family

When their father [Noah] became aware of what had been done he disowned and sent away

his son But he went into exile hellip This was the first nation which was ignorant of God since

its prince and founder did not receive from his father the worship of God being cursed by

him and thus he left to his descendants ignorance of the divine nature70

In this case Ham is sent away by his father rather than a voluntary separation as is described

in Jubilees Further it describes explicitly the outcome of this separation that may only be

alluded to in Jubilees by the comparison of Shem and Hamrsquos fate Ham and his children were

left devoid of spiritual guidance understood as a repercussion of Noahrsquos curse The emphasis

on the spiritual may also reflect a Christian trend adding some allegorical understanding to

the incident Jubilees and Lactantius thus seem to use the physical separation of Ham a result

of the curse as a justification for the objectionable theology of the Hamites

In quite a different vein Genesis Rabbah describes another result of Noahrsquos curse Just

as preventing Noah a fourth son caused the cursing of Hamrsquos fourth son so does R Huna

suggest in the name of R Joseph suggest that Noah had exclaimed

You have prevented me from doing something in the dark therefore your seed will be ugly

and dark-skinned

The curse thus becomes an explanation for Hamrsquos offspring being dark-skinned71 Goldenberg

points out that curses bear an important role in the aetiologies of the ancient Near East

ldquoCurses hellip served as an explanation for enigmatic psychological or environmental

70 Lactantius The Divine Institutes II translated in Roberts and Donaldson

71 Goldenberg p 97 describes the negative rabbinic perception of black skin in Amoraic sources


peculiarities The ancestor or proto-type of those exhibiting such abnormalities was

considered to have been cursed by God hellip or by some ancient herordquo72 Although it is the only

source to ascribe the black skin of Ham to the curse Genesis Rabbah is far from alone in

identifying the curse of Ham as aetiology and indeed in describing Hamrsquos moral severance

from his father Lactantius also gives the curse aetiological value as do the approaches in the

next section

42 Conquering of Canaan

After his appearance in the narrative of Genesis 9 Canaanrsquos primary role in the Bible is as the

forefather of the nations inhabiting the Land of Canaan which are eventually conquered by

Israel returning from Egypt The Israelite possession of the land is promised by God to

Abraham ldquoI assign the land you sojourn in to you and your offspring to come all the Land of

Canaan as an everlasting holdingrdquo73 and is realised primarily in the stories of the books of

Joshua and Judges74 In this vein Philo identifies the curse of Canaan as a ldquopremonitory

warning hellip that he designs to take away the land of the Canaanites hellip and to show that he

[Canaan] both practised singular and peculiar wickedness of his own hellip so that in every part

he might be convicted of an ignoble slavery and submissionrdquo75 While Philo views the curse

as a prophecy or foreboding the midrash uses the passage in reverse by way of justifying

72 Stanley Gervitz Curse Motifs in the Old Testament and the Ancient Near East PhD diss University

of Chicago 1959 quoted by Goldenberg p 98

73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511

74 See for instance Judges 423f

75 Questions and Answers on Genesis 265 translated by Younge


Canaanrsquos continued submission according to similar tales given in three rabbinic sources76

the Canaanites approached Alexander the Macedonian alongside the Egyptians and

Ishmaelites In each case the complainant party attempts to use the Torah in their argument

and is refuted by a quotation from the Torah In the case of the Canaanites

lsquoWhence do you adduce your proofrsquo asked he [Gebiha b Pesisa the Sagesrsquo representative]

lsquoFrom the Torahrsquo they replied77 lsquoI toorsquo said he lsquowill bring you proof only from the Torah

for it is written And he said Cursed be Canaan a servant of servants shall he be unto his

brethren Now if a slave acquires property to whom does he belong and whose is the

property Moreover it is now many years that ye have not served usrsquo Then Alexander said

to them lsquoAnswer himrsquo lsquoGive us three daysrsquo timersquo they pleaded So he gave them a respite

they sought but found no answer Immediately thereon they fled leaving behind their sown

fields and their planted vineyards78

The three variations of this folk tale indicate that it is likely little more than that in terms of its

historical verity Its message thus has greater bearing Israel has been given divine authority

through the Bible to subjugate the Canaanites as expressed through the curse of our verse It

is interesting to note that this passage identifies Canaan not primarily as a slave but as former

inhabitants of the land by which it is inferred that their land may also be possessed So while

the slavery cursed upon Canaan in Genesis 925 does not explicitly refer to the land both

Philo and later rabbinic midrash identify the curse with the conquest of the Land of Canaan

Justin Martyr in his persuasion of Trypho the Jew uses this connection as the basis of

a polemic regarding the changed nature of servitude given the advent of Christ

76 BT Sanhedrin 91a Gen R 617 Megilat Taanit 3 pp 14-16

77 The Genesis Rabbah version states the claim as ldquoIt is everywhere written lsquoThe land of Canaanrsquo then

let them return us to our countryrdquo Megilat Taanit quotes Numbers 342rsquos reference to ldquothe Land of Canaan

according to its bordersrdquo

78 BT Sanhedrin 91a Translated in Epstein p 609


Now in what he said he foretold that the descendants of Shem would keep in retention the

property and dwellings of Canaanhellip And listen to the way in which it has so come to pass

For you who have derived your lineage from Shem invaded the territory of the sons of

Canaan by the will of God and you possessed it hellip To the two peoples there was the one

people of Canaan handed over for servants so Christ has come according to the power given

Him from the Almighty Fatherhellip And hence all men everywhere whether bond or free who

believe in Christ hellip know that they shall be with Him in that land and inherit everlasting and

incorruptible good79

Initially outlining the prophecy of Noah and its realisation he then comes to compare it to a

new situation where Jesus has freed all those who believe him even among them the slaves80

Appropriate to his framework of argument he thus connects the Old Testament prophecy and

characters the national history of the Jews to whom he is preaching and how the preachings

of Jesus work upon them

The relation between the curse and the Land of Canaan is also alluded to in Jubilees in

which Canaan covets a lot of land among Shemrsquos inheritance whereupon his father and

brothers angrilymdashbut to no availmdashwarn him

ldquoDo not do this because if you do this you and your children will fall in the land and be

cursed with sedition because by sedition you have dwelt and by sedition your children will

fall and you will be uprooted forever You are cursed and you will be cursed more than all

the sons of Noah by the curse which we swore with an oath before the holy judge and before

Noah our fatherrdquo81

Indeed this adds upon Noahrsquos curse of slavery a second curse as a result of inhabiting the

region that would become the Land of Canaan While it could be argued that Jubilees

distinguishes between the curse of slavery described earlier82 and the present curse relating to

79 Justin Martyr Dialogue with Trypho 139 Translated in Ed Roberts and Donaldson

80 See the discussion on revoking the curse sect 53 p 43

81 Jubilees 1030-31 translated by Wintermute p 76

82 In Jubilees 710ff


the land the reference to the first curse here highlights their connection Again it is worth

noting the appeal to provide an ancient aetiology for the actualities of the world later

perceived and this second incident seems to be provided to strengthen or give a more specific

explanation of the people of Canaan later being displaced by Israel according to the biblical

account Hence it likely accords with the rabbinic and Christian texts cited above in justifying

conquest through curse

43 Peoples affected by the curse

Many commentaries related to Genesis 925 describe a certain group or person as afflicted by

the curse indirectly bestowed upon them by Noah In a literal reading of the text we find that

only Canaan and his descendents are cursed directly Nonetheless given a reading that Ham

was the subject of the curse83 or even if he was not Hamrsquos descendents are also often

described as being affected by the curse A quite maximalist approach to this issue is given by

the Church father Irenaeus in his Demonstration in which he lists each of the nations afflicted

as Ham is cursed

ldquoCursed be Ham the child a servant shall he be unto his brethrenrdquo This having come upon

his race he begat many descendants upon the earth [even] for fourteen generations growing

up in a wild condition and then his race was cut off by God being delivered up to

judgement For the Canaanites and Hittites and the Peresites and Hivites and Amorites and

Jebusites and Gergasites and Sodomites the Arabians also and the dwellers in Phoenicia all

the Egyptians and the Libyans are of the posterity of Ham who have fallen under the curse

for the curse is of long duration over the ungodly84

83 As discussed in sect 22 23 p 14ff

84 Irenaeus Demonstration of the Apostolic Preaching 20 translation of J Armitage Robinson in

MacKenzie p 6


Irenaeusrsquos approach seems to take the descendents of Ham as those who are ungodly

Nonetheless MacKenzie notes that the list contains more theological nuance the entries on

Irenaeusrsquos list are drawn from the OT dwellers of Canaan as well as from the cultures who

head the Gospel in the Pentecost of Acts 29-11 This seems to indicate that despite them

being long-cursed they are newly freed in ldquothe dispensation of God through the incarnation of

the wordrdquo85 Nonetheless the connection that MacKenzie assumes to the Pentecost seems

quite weak the listing of Arabians Egyptians and Libyans Irenaeus excludes around thirteen

other peoples mentioned in Acts Rather it should be assumed that Irenaeus generally

assumed these cultures belonged to the progeny of Ham

Other sources that provide interpretation for our verse by detailing those affected by

the curse are generally not as explicit or exclusive but make mention of the burden of the

curse upon some group or individual

431 Canaanites

By far the most explicit in portraying Canaanrsquos descendents alone as afflicted by the curse is

Josephus who states that ldquowhereas the others escaped the curse God pursued the children of

Chananaiosrdquo A statement of this strength that excludes all other members of the family of

Ham from the detriment of the curse is not parallelled

A less explicit instance then is found nearly triplicated in Genesis Rabbah the

Babylonian Talmud and Megilat Taanit in a story where Canaanites present a complaint to

Alexander the Macedonian86 It is notable that in the same episodes where the Egyptians

85 MacKenzie p 132 See sect 1 53 p 43

86 See a quotation from this story above on p 27 source references in note 76 p 27


approach to give their protest they are not refuted with the same text of ldquoCursed be Canaanrdquo

Had all the descendents of Ham been included within the curse this would be a sufficient

response to them too87

Elsewhere we find a realisation of the curse upon Canaan where Jacob is being

forbidden from marrying the ldquodaughters of Canaanrdquo88 This prohibition is repeated at length in

the Jubilees version of the account and there we find three explanations for their prohibition

from Adamrsquos progeny

(a) And when any woman or girl fornicates among you you will burn her with fire and

let them not fornicate with her after their eyes and hearts and let them not take wives

from the girls of Canaan because the seed of Canaan will be rooted out of the land89

(b) Be careful my son Jacob that you do not take a wife from any of the seed of the

daughters of Canaan because all of his seed is (destined) for uprooting from the

earth because through the sin of Ham Canaan sinned and all of his seed will be

blotted out from the earth and all his remnant and there is none of his who will be

saved90

(c) My son do not take for yourself a wife from the daughters of Canaan as (did) Esau

your brother who took for himself two wives from the daughters of Canaan And

they have embittered my soul with all their impure deeds because all of their deeds

(are) fornication and lust And there is not any righteousness with them because

(their deeds are) evil91

87 This argument nonetheless may not be conclusive the Egyptians complaint regarding the theft of

their possessions is more directly answered by the given quotation from of Exod 1236

88 See Gen 281 6

89 Jubilees 204 translated by Wintermute p 93-4

90 Jubilees 2220-21 ibid p 99

91 Jubilees 241 ibid p 102


Of these appeals only (b) explicitly makes reference to the sin of Ham and the resulting curse

Nonetheless Canaanrsquos ldquouprooting from the earthrdquo in (a) may be connected to the curse92 their

promiscuous practices in (c) may further be related to the nature of Hamrsquos action by which he

was cursed Still the reference in (b) quite certainly describes Canaanrsquos progeny as those

affected by the curse and not generally the descendents of Ham It seems then to be at least

the view of Jubilees that Canaanrsquos progeny alone were affected by Noahrsquos curse hence the

prohibition of marriage to their daughters

Eliezer as cursed Canaan

One of the more curious interpretations of Noahrsquos curse within the midrashic literature is a

claim that ldquoEliezer is called Canaanrdquo and is therefore cursed We find this claim in two

midrashim from Midrash Rabbah In Genesis Rabbah 599 Eliezer is taken as the subject of a

variant reading of Hosea 128 ldquoCanaan has the balances of deceit in his hand to rob the

beloved onerdquo93 Eliezer hence is portrayed of having intended his own daughter for Isaac but

ldquolsquoThou art accursedrsquo said he [Abraham] to him lsquoand my son is blessed and the accursed

cannot unite with the blessedrsquordquo94 Later in Genesis Rabbah but also paralleled in Leviticus

Rabbah we find Eliezer again referred to as Canaan but find there that he is able to escape

from the category of the cursed95 In the first place considering Eliezer as Canaan is

92 See above sect 42 p 26

93 More commonly translated as ldquoA trader who uses false balances who loves to overreachrdquo (NJPS)

The midrash reads אהב (ldquohe lovesrdquo) as אהב (ldquoa beloved onerdquo)


95 Gen R 607 and R Jose b Dosa in Lev R 175 For a quotation of the midrash and discussion on

the righteous escaping curse see below sect 53 p 43


problematic since he is described in Genesis 152 as ldquothe Damascene Eliezerrdquo and we have

no reason to consider Damascus as a Canaanite dwelling96 It may well be then that this

reference to Eliezer as Canaan is referring to his position as a servant and as we saw above it

is common in rabbinic literature to consider all non-Hebrew slaves as Canaanite97

432 Hamites

A number of sources available to us whether or not interpreting Ham as the direct target of

Noahrsquos curse give indication that all his descendants are affected and not just those of

Canaan For instance Philo who in his allegorical approach takes Ham and Canaan both as

recipients of Noahrsquos curse describes Ham as having ldquofallen from his brilliant nobility of birth

and having become accursed and having also become the beginning of misery to all his

posterityrdquo98 which implies that the curse here quite non-descript is fallen upon all his

progeny In the pseudepigraphal Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs we find Canaan and

Ham separately designated to destruction presumably as a result of the curse upon them

Then shall perish the seed of Canaan

And a remnant shall not be unto Amalek

And all the Cappadocians shall perish

And all the Hittites shall be utterly destroyed

Then shall fail the land of Ham

And all the people shall perish

Then shall all the earth rest from trouble

96 A further problem to consider although not of bearing here is that in one of the present midrashim

Eliezer is relieved of his curse while in the other he is accused of being cursed a seeming contradiction

97 See sect 3 p 19 Most notable is Pesikta Rabatirsquos comment that ldquoonly upon Canaan fell the curse of being

a bondmanrdquo

98 Philo On the Virtues 37202 translated by Yonge


And all the world under heaven from war

Then the Mighty One of Israel shall glorify Shem

For the Lord God shall appear on earth

And Himself save men99

The contrast with the blessedness of Shem clearly sources those nations doomed in this poetic

prophecy attributed to Simeon to the parallel cursing of HamCanaan in a reflection of

Genesis 925-26 Notable here too and comparable to Philo is the lack of mention of slavery

and rather general images of destruction

This vague but devastating curse upon the entire people of Ham is depicted in later

rabbinic sources as well One midrash from Tanhuma describes the effect of Noahrsquos actions

with the words

Ham upon seeing his fatherrsquos nakedness hellip he and his lineage were set far apart until the end

of all the generations100

Another Tanhuma passage connects Noahrsquos curse to the Prophets

hellip So also the Holy One is going to exact punishment from the children of Ham and

humiliate them at the hands of Assyria as stated ldquoso shall the king of Assyria drive off the

captives of Egypt and the exiles of Nubiahelliprdquo (Isaiah 204)101

Again in both these cases no image of slavery is given but it is clear that the curse is not

limited to the lineage of only one of Hamrsquos sons

In other sources we find the descendents of Ham described as slaves in one case as

simply as ldquothose from Ham are slaves foreverrdquo as cited above102 Because of Hamrsquos

99 Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs Simeon 63ndash5 translated by Kee p 787

100 Tanhuma Kedoshim 9 My translation

101 Tanhuma Noah 14 translated by Townsend 221 p 53 Mekhilta Pisha 12 also connects the curse to

the Philistines in Joel 48 see a quote and discussion of this passage in sect 6 p 48

102 See the quotation of Resh Laqish on p 23


association as the father of Mizraim makes for common depiction of the Egyptians as slaves

which provides a sense of even humorous irony because of Israelrsquos slavery under them In

Lamentations for instance we find the biblical author lamenting submission to Egypt and

Assyria and two verses later stating that ldquoservants rule over usrdquo The Midrash Rabbah on that

passage explains that this expression must indicate the Egyptians103 presumably by means of

their descent from Ham as otherwise the reference to the subjugators as servants seems

unfounded In this way the curse of Genesis 925 is brought in by the midrash to solve a

perceived difficulty in the Hagiography but in doing so Lamentations Rabbah also implies the

statement that Hamrsquos descendents too were affected by Noahrsquos curse Elsewhere in the

aggadic midrash the irony of Egypt being depicted as slaves is clearer

R Pinehas the priest said that Moses argued lsquoI am not a man of words and moreover I see

no place for words here For the man to whom I am to go is a slave and will not accept

reproof as it says A servant will not be corrected by my words (Prov 2919) I will only go if

I can chastise him with suffering104

Here Moses refuses to approach Pharaoh in a plea for the sake of the Hebrew slaves because

Pharaoh himself is a slave Lehrman upon his translation of this episode notes that Pharaoh

being taken as a slave by the midrash is a result of the curse upon his ancestor Ham Pesikta

Rabati similarly reinterprets the description of Egypt as a ldquohouse of bondagerdquo to refer to the

Egyptiansrsquo status as slaves

R Tanhum bar Hanilarsquoi said in the name of R Berachiah only upon Canaan fell the curse of

being a bondman And he said Cursed be Canaan a servant of servants shall he be unto his

brethren (Gen 925) And whence the proof that all the families of Ham [besides Canaan] are

103 Lam R 57

104 Exod R 314 translated by Lehrman p 74


also called bondmen Because scripture says out of the land of Egypt out of the house of

bondage (Exodus 202)105

By corollary this passage claims we can prove indeed that the cursersquos effects did not rest

only with the lineage of Canaan but the whole house of Ham This midrash seems to put

disconnected passages of the bible into a dialogue forming its characteristic intertextuality106

With a surprisingly analogous depiction of the cursersquos impact on Egypt the Christian writer

Origen comments on their society

Pharao easily reduced the Egyptian people to bondage himself nor is it written that he did

this by force For the Egyptians are prone to a degenerate life and quickly sink to every

slavery of the vices Look at the origin of the race and you will discover that their father

Cham who had laughed at his fatherrsquos nakedness deserved a judgement of this kind that his

own son Chanaan should be a servant to his brothers107

Origen here curiously finds no need to explain why Egypt is prone to slavery as a result of

Canaanrsquos designation as a servant to his brethren Justin on the other hand ldquosince the

punishment of the sin would cleave to the whole descent of the son that mocked at his fatherrsquos

nakednessrdquo108 understands the curse falling upon Canaan as an arbitrary representative of his

brethren It was found above that many early Christian sources had identified Ham as the

direct subject of the curse some even to the extent of inserting his name in the Genesis

verse109 Goldenberg also lists numerous early Christian writers who indicate that Ham and


106 See Boyarin p 12 for the dialogical nature of intertextuality in midrash

107 Origen Homilies on Genesis 161 translated by R Heine in FC 1215 as quoted by Goldenberg

p 160

108 Justin Martyr Dialogue with Trypho 139 translated in Ed Roberts and Donaldson For a longer

quotation of this passage see p 27

109 See sect 22 p 14


his descendents were all cursed110 So we see that among the patristic writers there was a

tendency to include Hamrsquos lineage in the result of the curse even by those for whom he is not

its direct target

Hence the overall impression we are given by the early rabbinic and Christian writers

is that independent of whether Noah actually cursed Ham his descendents are liable to its

effects111

5 Lessons from the narrative

Given the nature of the Bible text as a source of morality it is not surprising that a number of

commentators attempt to draw a message from Noahrsquos cursing of his son On one hand being

cursed is seen as disastrous and hence the association of some misdeed by Ham and curse

provides a moral connotation on the other hand a number of commentators seem to perceive

the act of cursing negatively as well and find polemic resolve in Noahrsquos actions Further

approaches implicitly explore the nature of curse and find evidence that the righteous can

escape it Morality commonly associated with the Bible is thus drawn out of the present

Genesis narrative and the impact of curse

110 Goldenberg pp 158f

111 It is curious to note that while our sources connect the Egyptians and the daughters of Canaan with

Noahrsquos curse we find that Cush is also listed as one of the sons of Ham in Gen 106 It may be surprising then

that no interpretation I have found connects Miriam and Aaronrsquos slander against Mosesrsquo Cushite wife in Num

121 as relating to the Cushites being cursed in Gen 925 This though may have been borne out of a necessity

to associate the Cushite in Numbers with Zippora of Midian or to absolve Moses of such wrongdoing


51 Respect for onersquos father

It is unclear what exactly was the sin Ham performed in ldquoseeing his fatherrsquos nakednessrdquo and

telling his brothers outside and we have already seen multiple instances of midrashic

interpretation that this was an act of emasculation112 Possibly due to this ambiguity or at

least despite it numerous sources understand that Canaan is cursed because he disrespected

his father Accordingly the most ancient among these sources Philo of Alexandria preaches

[Ham] dared to turn his father the cause of his safety into ridicule laughing at him and

mocking and reviling him because of an error which he committed unintentionally hellip

Therefore hellip he suffered all those evils which it was fitting for a man to suffer who had

disregarded all the honour due to his parents113

This discussion of Hamrsquos deed he places within a discussion ldquoon nobilityrdquo where he

highlights the virtue of humility despite nobility drawing from biblical narratives for a non-

Jewish audience He gives Ham as an example of one that mocked his parents who fell from

his nobility and thus suffered for his actions Elsewhere Philo is more concerned that Ham

ldquoridiculed the involuntary misfortune of a devoted disciple of wisdomrdquo114 rather than his

father Still the general perspective seems to be that the curse of Genesis 925 is a result of

disrespect which as we see from his disgusted attitude should be a lesson to all

While we later find in Josephus that Ham ldquoshowed him [Noah] mockingly to his

brothersrdquo115 there is no indication that the shaming of his father is the primary cause for the

curse and this too requires interpretation in order to be understood as a moral lesson In

112 See sect211 p 5 211





contrast and in agreement with Philo the authors of the midrash are explicit ldquoWhat caused

this curse for him [Ham] It came about because he treated his father with contemptrdquo116

Similarly Tanhuma interprets a command from the book of Leviticus

If anyone insults his father or his mother he shall be put to death (Lev 209) And so he

[Moses] says He who insults his father or his mother shall be put to death (Exod 2117)

And so said Solomon One who insults his father or mother light will fail himhellip Our sages

said Ham upon seeing his fatherrsquos nakedness although he did not insult him he and his

lineage were set far apart until the end of all the generations The one who insults his father

how much more so And the scripture says For there is no future for the evil man the lamp

of the wicked goes out117

This excerpt connects five texts from across the Bible in order to emphasise the statement of

the verse upon which it comments Most importantly it takes advantage of the elusiveness of

Hamrsquos sin as contrasted with the harshness of his punishment to render by a fortiori the

graveness of insulting onersquos parents Rather than connecting the incident to the negative

commandment as does Tanhuma Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer considers Hamrsquos misdeed with

relation to its positive counterpart alluding to the fifth commandment118

Ham entered and saw his nakedness He did not take to heart the duty of honouring (onersquos

father) But he told his two brothers in the market making sport of his fatherhellip119

So we see that for the midrash the significance of the incident with Ham was one of parental

disrespect associated closely and explicitly with the commandments of the Torah While

Philo derived the same social implications it seems that for him it was a question of universal

morals and appropriate behaviour rather than an example of disobedience of the Godrsquos



118 ldquoHonour your father and your motherrdquo Exod 2011 Deut 515

119 Pirke De Rabbi Eliezer 23 translated by Friedlander p 170


command Epiphanius Constantiensis takes again a slightly different approach in his

Panarion

But his mocker received the curse for the punishment of those who offer insult to their

parents and of thoughts in us that rebel against the knowledge of God and his rightly decreed

ordinance120

As a Christian writer the obligation borne upon one regarding his parents is neither purely

philosophical nor is it clearly scriptural but its breach is a rebellion against God Hence by

way of the universality of the moral virtue to respect onersquos parents we find this reading

associated with the meaning of Noahrsquos curse in Hellenistic rabbinic and early Christian

literature each deriving the meaning within their own approaches to the issue121

52 The effects of wine

Another approach to the cursing of Canaan gives the impression that a curse is something

unnecessary and detrimental and presents the idea that the curse given in Genesis 9 was a

result of Noahrsquos intoxication Tanhuma on the portion of Shemini discusses twice and at

length the negative effects of wine The first stems from a discussion of the biblical quotation

ldquoAnd the Lord spoke to Aaron saying Drink no wine or other intoxicanthelliprdquo122 and so

includes quotations from Proverbs and Isaiah as well as of Noahrsquos drunkenness and the

resulting curse It concludes

Therefore guard yourselves from the wine for it is a sign of curse As he says in Noah he

drank of the wine and became drunk and he uncovered himself within his tent (Gen 921)


121 It may also be through the disrespect to his father that we find the Sibylline Oracles affiliates Ham

with Greek mythology See note 5 above p 5

122 Lev 109


Ham entered and saw his nakedness What did he say to him He cursed his son as it is said

And he said Cursed be Canaan (ibid 25) Therefore drink no wine or other intoxicant123

Although amid a discussion on the honour given to the elderly the other lengthy treatise

against wine in Tanhuma Shemini also extends from the prohibition to Aaronrsquos sons and

includes the emphatic exemplar of Noah

See what Noah did he began to err with it [wine] as it is said And Noah tiller of the soil

began and planted a vineyard (Gen 920) And it is written He drank of the wine and he

uncovered himself (ibid 21) What caused him to be spoilt The wine And it caused him to

bring curse upon his offspring as it is written And he said Cursed be Canaan (ibid 25)

And so be wary of wine for wine brings man to all the transgressions in the world to

harlotry to the spilling of blood to theft and to all the transgressions in the world124

It is interesting to note the form of both these commentaries Both are introduced by way of

other passages relating to wine and then interleave quotations from our narrative in Genesis

920 in order to produce the conclusion that one should avoid wine because Noahrsquos

drunkenness led to a curse Both are also very forceful in giving the intention of their

discussion as an invective against the excessive drinking of wine

The Midrash Rabbah sources that cite Genesis 925 in relation to the drinking of wine

are less extensive in their discussion and persuasion against its intoxicating effects In one

instance R Johanan warns to ldquoBeware of a passion for wine because in his passage on wine

is written fourteen timesrdquo125 The passage argument proceeds to count the 3rd person (woe) וי

converted-imperfect verbs used in sequence in Genesis 920ndash25mdashconcluding And he said

Cursed be Canaanmdashwith the understanding that this prefix implies woe and misfortune

123 Tanhuma Shemini 5 My translation


125 Gen R 364 translated by Freedman p 293 See also Sanhedrin 70a where only 13 instances of וי

are listed by counting only Gen 920ndash24 and therefore stopping before our verse of interest


Drawing meaning from the sound or meaning of common particles and patterns of speech

seems arbitrary but it is also reflected elsewhere in amoraic literature126

Commonly associated in the midrash with the negative results of wine in the story of

Noahrsquos drunkenness is a passage from the book of Proverbs

Do not ogle that red wine hellip In the end it bites like a snake It spits like a basilisk127

The midrash takes license to understand the word יפרש with the meaning of a homophone

such that the last clause now becomes ldquoit separates like a basiliskrdquo Hence we find

Just as the basilisk parts death from life so wine parted Noah from his sons dooming the

latter to servitude as it is written And he drank of the wine hellip and he was uncovered in his

tent (Gen 921) as a result of which he said Cursed be Canaan etc (Gen 925)128

This midrash in Esther Rabbah proceeds to list numerous examples from the Bible that in

some manner pertain to alcoholism causing a regrettable separation129 Similarly we find in

Numbers Rabbah

As the serpent by enticing eve to drink wine was the cause for which the ground was

cursedmdashas it says Cursed is the ground for thy sake (Gen 317)mdashso it was with Noah

Through wine his son a third of the world was cursed as it says And Noah awoke from his

wine hellip and he said Cursed be Canaan (Gen 924f)hellip As the basilisk divides between the

dead and the living so the wine causes man to take leave of the paths of life for the paths of

death130

126 It may be likened for instance to Shimon of Amson (or Nehemiah of Amson) expounding upon the

Biblersquos use of את (an object marker) in BT Pesahim 22b

127 Prov 2331ndash32

128 Est R 51 translated by Simon p 67 A parallel midrash is found in Lev R 121

129 See below p 49

130 Num R 102 translated in Slotki p 347 also 108 Similarly making derivation from Prov 2332

Tanhuma Shemini 5 also claims that ldquoa third of the world was cursed because of winerdquo


Hence we once again find that the midrash uses a liberal reading of verses within the Bible

and attempts to connect the messages found in many in this case in order to make a statement

Still as noted above the Rabbah midrash in contrast with Tanhuma does not lecture on the

topic but merely draws connections between passages and gives brief conclusions on that

basis The rabbis further do not seem concerned that this approach places some blame upon

the typically righteous figure Noah and ignores the potential premonitory nature of the curse

and the wickedness of its target For the sake of the moral and intertextual argument

therefore the midrash focuses only on the connection between wine and the unfortunate curse

and thus makes a persuasive claim regarding the dangers of intoxication131

53 Righteousness can un-curse the cursed

One of the more curious connections that can be found between rabbinic and non-Rabbinic

approaches to the cursing of Canaan is the concept that the curse particularly that of

servitude can be superseded by virtuous character Since the curse bore down upon the entire

progeny of Canaan or Ham commentators need to provide an exemption to exemplary cases

Although he does not explicitly take this position as noted above Philo applauds the biblical

author for associating slavery with foolishness and elsewhere had written that ldquoevery good

man is freerdquo while not directly teaching this message It is on the other hand quite blindly

apparent in two near-identical texts in Midrash Rabbah

131 The absence of non-Rabbinic texts from this discussion is readily apparent While they certainly do

write with polemic on drunkenness in relation to Noahmdashindeed it is the focus of Philorsquos On Sobriety and the

opening passages of On Drunkennessmdashthey connect it with his uncovering and not with the cursing presumably

because they do not see the cursing as a lamentable event As a result they do not enter into the present

discussion which pertains to the interpretive uses of Genesis 925


R Jose b Dosa said Eliezer was Canaan132 but through ministering to that righteous man he

escaped from the category of the cursed and entered the category of the blessed This is

indicated in what is written Cursed be Canaan (Gen 925) and Come in though blessed of

the Lord (Gen 2431) R Jacob in the name of R Judah in the name of R Nathan of Beth-

Gubrin used this homily as a message at leave-taking [saying] Seeing that Eliezer left the

category of cursed for the category of blessing through having ministered to that righteous

man the same must in greater degree be true for our brother Israelites who accord honour to

their great men133

The particular message here is one of respecting the ldquogreat menrdquo of Israel by which one can

be relieved of a curse Ironically in this case servitude itself brings about Eliezerrsquos release

from the curse of Canaan and designation as blessed Thus while the rabbis of the midrash

allow for the concept of one who ldquoleaves the category of the cursed for the category of the

blessedrdquo their primary concern lies with what we may learn from Eliezer who does so and

that is respect for worthwhile teachers and leaders

In contrast for early Christian writers the ability to throw of onersquos servitude is

centralised in their doctrine it can be enacted by acquiring faith in Jesus Hence although the

curse of Canaan is not explicit in the passage the reversal of their subjugation for faithful

individuals among them is expressed in this episode from the Gospel of Matthew

A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him crying out Lord Son of David have

mercy on me My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession Jesus did not

answer a word So his disciples came to him and urged him Send her away for she keeps

crying out after us He answered I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel The woman

came and knelt before him Lord help me she said He replied It is not right to take the

childrens bread and toss it to their dogs Yes Lord she said but even the dogs eat the

132 See above p 32

133 Lev R 175 translated in Israelstam p 220 Also found approximately in Gen R 607


crumbs that fall from their masters table Then Jesus answered Woman you have great

faith Your request is granted And her daughter was healed from that very hour134

Some of the early writers of Christianity bring from this an understanding that all slaves can

thus be freed To these writers the concept of reconciliation was an important result of

Christrsquos martyrdom as according to Paul Godrsquos enemies were reconciled through the death

of his son135 This attitude is clearly given by Justin Martyr who also has the role of

convincing the Jewish character Trypho of the superior ideals of Christianity

Now Leah is your people and synagogue but Rachel is our Church And for these and for

the servants in both Christ even now serves For while Noah gave to the two sons the seed of

the third as servants now on the other hand Christ has come to restore both the free sons and

the servants amongst them conferring the same honour on all of them who keep His

commandments even as the children of the free women and the children of the bond women

born to Jacob were all sons and equal in dignity And it was foretold what each should be

according to rank and according to fore-knowledge Jacob served Laban for speckled and

many-spotted sheep and Christ served even to the slavery of the cross for the various and

many-formed races of mankind acquiring them by the blood and mystery of the cross136

Those cursed by Noah are hence released by Jesus if they are to follow his commandments A

curious twist is taken here though by comparing the servility instituted by Noah to that of

Jacobrsquos concubines linking allegory and narrative to the conclusion that Christ was a servant

of mankind and all would be released by serving him Earlier we saw this same idea played

out in MacKenziersquos understanding of Irenaeusrsquos list of those affected by the curse137 Chilton

134 Matthew 1522ndash28 translation of New International Version

135 Romans 510 See Grayston p 258

136 Justin Martyr Dialogue with Trypho 134 Translated in Ed Roberts and Donaldson See above

another quotation of Justin Martyr to a similar end p 28

137 See p 30


further writes of Irenaeusrsquos role in defining the relationship between the Old Testament and

Jesus

In his treatise Against Heresies Irenaeus pressed the case for the unity implicit in the

fulfilment of ancient prophecies in Christ typology in Irenaeusrsquo treatment became a general

theory of the relationship between he Scriptures of Israel and Jesus It is no coincidence that

the second century saw the rise and triumph of the use of the phrase ldquoNew Testamentrdquohellip

The phrase implies another ldquoOld Testamentrdquo which embodies the theory that the Scriptures

of Israel are to be understood as types which are fulfilled in Christ138

The early Christian focus on the curse upon Ham in terms of a change in covenant with the

arrival of Christ exemplifies this idea of the Old Testament being fulfilled in the New While

the differences in approach between the rabbinic Patristic and Hellenistic Greek writers are

clear it is interesting to note the universality of the idea that through some form of good

deeds one is able to escape the curse of Canaan

54 Other moral lessons

Other commentators further supply lessons learnt from the curse of Canaan Leviticus Rabbah

asks why the Bible makes use of the expression ldquoThe Land of Canaanrdquo and not ldquoThe Land of

Israelrdquo

Seven nations [inhabited it] and you say lsquoThe Land of Canaanrsquo The Rabbis said The

scriptures gave you the following hint Just as when Ham castrated him [Noah] Canaan was

punished so too when Israel sin the land is cursed139

This explanation draws a parallel between the cursing of the Nation of Canaan and the cursing

of the Land of Canaan Furthermore the sin performed by one thing involves the curse of

138 Neusner and Chilton p 125

139 Lev R 175 translated in Israelstam p 220


something else The midrash therefore teaches those listening not to sin because it leads to the

land being cursed

Irenaus presents an understanding of our verse that is related to that of honouring onersquos

parents140 but takes an interesting spin He quotes the ldquopresbyterrdquo

With respect to those misdeeds for which the Scriptures themselves blame the patriarchs and

prophets we ought not to inveigh against them nor become like Ham who ridiculed the

shame of his father and so fell under a curse but we should [rather] give thanks to God in

their behalf inasmuch as their sins have been forgiven them through the advent of our Lord

for He said that they gave thanks [for us] and gloried in our salvation141

The lesson here is not to speak against the heroic characters of the bible who the bible itself

does not blame for a transgression Here we find Noah drunken and revealed and yet

Irenaeus tries to persuade that such characters should not mocked as the curse upon Hamrsquos

descendents makes clear142

An anonymous Patristic writer also intended to prove from the text that onersquos own

transgressions do not affect others and so one is responsible in accounting for his own

Each one therefore of the laity is to render an account of his own sins and a man is not hurt

by reason of the sins of others For neither did Judas harm us at all when he was praying with

us but he alone perished And in the ark Noah and his two sons who were saved alive they

were blessed but Ham his other son was not blessed but his seed was cursed and the

animals that went in animals they came forth143



142 Irenaeusrsquos attempt to wash over the negative actions of the patriarchs and prophets may be similar in

motivation to the rabbis in BT Shabbat 55b-56a who attempt to assign sin-free lives to biblical heroes

Nonetheless the approach differs where the rabbis try to find a logical argument to give no evidence against the

character Irenaeus seems to imply that one should assume them innocent despite what may seem as faults

143 Didascalia apostolorum 6 translated by Connolly


Ironically Didascalia apostolorum brings the cursing of Ham as an example which seems to

contradict his argument in this case Ham is not cursed alone but his descendents suffer

because of his sin and at least in the MT it is not Ham at all that is cursed for his sin but

another

Sometimes independent from the direct interpretation of the meaning of a text is its

application and here we have seen that in parental honour wine repentance and other moral

practice the Jewish and early Christian sources have found application for Genesis 925

6 Genesis 925 in midrashic lists

One approach often taken by the midrash is to find some pattern common to a number of

passages or episodes from across the Bible Such approaches are less about deriving meaning

from a particular verse but providing it interpretation through its membership in a class

pertaining to a pattern often itself defined by reading another verse from scripture Thus we

find an appearance of our verse in the Mekhilta

According as He Hath Promised And where did he promise ldquoAnd I will bring you into the

landrdquo etc (Ex 68) In like manner you interprethellip [etc] In like manner you interpret lsquoAnd

I will sell your sons and daughters hellip for the Lord hath spokenrsquo (Joel 48) And where had He

spoken lsquoAnd he said Cursed be Canaanrsquo (Gen 925) In like manner you interprethellip144

A list of many examples is brought out each beginning ldquo רכיוצא בדבר אתה אומ rdquo where an

antecedent reference seems to be required and the midrash provides for it In the instance in

which our verse is cited the referring text from Joel is ldquo דבר כי ה rdquo commonly found at the end

of prophetic passages and not usually assumed to be referring to any other antecedent than the

immediately-preceding prophecy Once again the midrash provides an unusual meaning for a

144 Mekhilta de Rabbi Ishmael Pisha 12 translated by Lauterbach vol 1 p 92


common expression by which it can provide additional interpretation and intertextuality145 By

forcibly doing so the midrash also provides further interpretation of Genesis 925 as a

statement of God as a prophecy and by implicitly considering the Philistines who are the

subjects of the prophetic quotation146 as cursed by Noah147

Another midrashic list focussing on patterns in the narrative is found in Tanhuma on

Vezot Haberakha

And this is the blessing (Deut 331) This is what the Scripture said Many women have done

well but you surpass them all (Prov 3129) This is the blessing of Moses since here each of

the forefathers blessed his generation and none was among them as the blessing of Moses

See Noah blessed his sons and there was a separation in it since he blessed one and cursed

onehellip Isaac blessed Jacob but there was a quarrel in his blessinghellip148

In order to determine Mosesrsquo blessing as the greatest of those in the Bible the midrash

provides a history of blessings that were imperfect in some way The example of Noahrsquos curse

is thus used to elevate Moses over his predecessors

In two other instances containing our verse these lists are formed to provide midrashic

meanings for verses from Proverbs In Boyarinrsquos words ldquothis is a reflex of the general

rabbinic principle that the lsquowords of Torah are poor in their own context and rich in another

contextrsquordquo 149 As quoted earlier Esther Rabbah relates Noahrsquos curse which separates him from

his son to wine which ldquoseparates like a basiliskrdquo150 Alongside this example it also suggests

145 See for instance the reading of וי- as ldquowoerdquo and note 126 thereupon p 42

146 See Joel 44

147 The Bible designates the Philistines as Hamitic in Gen 1014

148 Tanhuma Vezot Haberakha 1 My translation

149 Boyarin p 27

150 See p 42 and its reading of Prov 2332


that drink divided Adam and Eve151 parted lot from his daughters through incest separated

Aaron from his sons through death152 parted the Ten Tribes from Judah amp Benjamin153

Ahasuerus from Vashti154 and so on Here both a rhetorical message and an interpretive goal

in understanding the proverb are clear Similarly Tanhuma on Tzav interprets Proverbs 335

Take Aaron along with his sonshellip (Lev 82) This is as the Scripture said The wise will

inherit honour while fools bring about disgrace (Prov 335) This scripture applies from

eternityrsquos creation and until now The wise will inherit honour refers to Noah and his sons

While fools bring about disgrace refers to the generation of the flood The wise will inherit

honour refers to Shem as is said Blessed is the Lord God of Shem (Gen 926) While fools

bring about disgrace refers to Ham as it is written Cursed be Canaan The wise hellip refers to

Abraham fools hellip refers to the kings that fought with Abrahamhellip

Here the midrash is not applying an unusual meaning to the Proverbs text it is simply using

that verse to read the Leviticus text in relation to other biblical episodes Unlike the previous

example there also seems to be no rhetorical value in designating the wise and associated

fools who bring about disgrace except in declaring certain characters as honourable and

others not although generally this is inferable without the midrash The purpose of such a list

then seems primarily methodological in finding parallels between scriptural episodes or

phenomena and relating them to each other and to the exegetical task at hand Although

referring to a more specific category of lists the following quote from Neusner applies

The mode of thought brought to bear upon the theme of history remains exactly the same as

in the Mishnah list-making with the data exhibiting similar taxonomic traits drawn together

into lists based on common monothetic traits or definitions These lists then through the

power of repetition make a single enormous pint or prove a social law of historyhellip Since

151 Since the עץ הדעת טוב ורע purportedly bore grapes see bottom of Sanhedrin 70a Deut 3232

152 As understood from Lev 1029

153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110


biblical events exemplify recurrent happenings they lose their one-time character At the

same time and in the same way current events find a place within the ancient but eternally

present paradigmatic scheme155

To our verse these pattern-based lists provide new realms of interpretation by relating it to

verses and passages previously unconnected

7 Notable absences

As much as the commentary present upon our verse provides great interest it is worth noting

sources that retell the Genesis tale but miss mention of a curse upon Canaan From among the

Dead Sea Scrolls Genesis Apocryphon describes the exit of Noah and his family from the ark

They then planted the soil and put a vineyard on Mount Lubar that produced wine four years

later On the first day of the fifth year there was a feast at which the first wine was drunk

Noah gathered his family together and they went to the altar and thanked God for saving

them from the destruction of the flood156

Since the Genesis account is a direct result of Noahrsquos planting a vineyard it is surprising here

to find the planting narrated but the subsequent tale ignored all of the Genesis-retold texts in

DSS inexplicably ldquoretell only selected stories of the biblical tradition and omit othersrdquo157

Feldman also notes that Pseudo-Philorsquos Biblical Antiquities omits the incident158 It is likely

though that these omission has little to do with understanding the curse in 925 itself and

more likely hypotheses would relate to (a) the shaming of a righteous Noah (b) sexual

references or (c) narrative inconsistencies and vagueness


156 1QapGen = 1Q20 frag 2 col 12

157 Froumlhlich p 82

158 Feldman (1988) p 54


8 Summary and conclusions Patterns in approach to exegesis

Our coverage of the pre-Geonic materials that comment on Genesis 925 has found many

similarities and differences both in content and genre In concluding we will take a vaguely

chronological sample of our sources to summarise their content and perspective

Pseudepigrapha and Dead Sea Scrolls

Jubilees while essentially rewriting the Genesis text provides many additional details It

identifies the curse as an affliction for Ham by which he responds and separates from his

father It also foresees in the curse the conquering of Canaan and relates it to the prohibition

of Canaanite women While it somewhat akin to the later midrash connects distant scriptural

passages through rewriting the biblical does not provide homilies and moral lessons and thus

only connects narrative features by way of the curse

The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs only makes mention that both Canaan and

Ham shall perish thus according (in opposition to Jubilees) with a perception that Ham was

affected by the curse

Pseudo-Philo fails to mention the incident See sect 7

4Q252 curiously presents the idea that Ham was not cursed because he had been

blessed by God and thus may have a common oral tradition with a variety of later sources

Hellenistic Jewish writers

Philo treats the text primarily with allegory seeing Ham and Canaan as two manifestations of

the same character and so were both cursed His allegorical method is heavily influenced by

Jewish and non-Jewish Greek allegorists The mention of Canaan in the verse is thus an

premonitory indication of Canaanrsquos conquest at the same time he shares parallels with


Jubilees in saying that the father would be exceedingly afflicted by a curse upon the son Philo

also connects the curse to other scripture in the manner of the midrash In other writings he

gives an opinion that our verse appropriately ascribes slavery to the wicked which is

appropriate both of his attitude to surrounding Egyptians and his ideas from a Greek-educated

background Among the philosophical lessons taught through allegory Philo also takes this

passage as a teaching against mocking onersquos parents

In attempting to document history for a Greco-Roman audience Josephusrsquos approach

to why Canaan was cursed is similar to Philo and the Dead Sea Scrolls but simplified to a

matter of kin rather than blessing against curse possibly in order to avoid excessive rabbinic

forms of logic He seems to be the most particular in limiting the curse to Canaanrsquos

descendents although this may also be reflected in Jubilees and as a result of his goals does

not look for moral or philosophical lessons as Philo does

Textual translations

In general the textual translations only varied on the meaning of עבד עבדים as a matter of

difficulty translating idiom approached with different methods of literalness in translation

The significant exceptions are the Byzantine LXX text which replaced Canaan with Ham and

Targum Pseudo-Jonathan which provided the most common midrashic readingmdashof Noahrsquos

impotence due to Hamrsquos actmdashto explain why Canaan was cursed and not Ham

Patristic writers

Like most other writers the patristic authors firstly attempted to find consistency within a

difficult biblical passage and in many cases this was by saying that Ham is cursed possibly

for ideological reasons but maybe because of a textual or oral tradition Justin as an earlier


writer seems to be an exception and follows the tradition given in 4Q252 Primarily though

the motives of the patristic authors are related to rereading the Old Testament in light of a

changed world with the coming of Christ Hence they tend to take a moral approach claiming

that the curse is ended for those who will take upon Jesus as their faith In contrast with

midrashic approaches they will rarely explicitly juxtapose two independent scriptural sources

although they allude to relevant ethics and historical concepts its intertextual nature is distinct

in style from the midrash

Rabbinic sources

Due to the nature of the material being interpreted there was a lack of halakhic rabbinic

sources such as Mishna or Tosefta Characteristic in Rabbinic texts is the appearance of the

same ideas in minor variation in multiple sources At the same time they also tend to allow

multiple contradictory solutions to the same problem in one source notably the parallel

passages in Gen R and Tanhuma Noah describing why Canaan was cursed As Goldin

explains

A verse may have a number of interpretations for in the revealed words are impacted many

intentions Nor is this to be overlooked We are dealing with a text which is nonhalakhic not

involved with formulation of public or private practice In short we are exploring a text of

the realm of human speculation and imaginativeness where the intellect or imagination is

free to suggest what it strikes as appropriatehellip159

There seem to be two main approaches of interpretation in the midrash (a) one

independent of other scripture that basically transmits interpretations of the text in its own

context as we find in the opinions of various Tannaim etc eg in Genesis Rabbah 367 and

Tanhuma Noah 14 as with the castration theory (b) one that aims to interpret one or multiple

159 Goldin p 274


verses within the scripture within the enriching context of another occasionally in the form of

a tale or a list of interpretive patterns in scripture Thus we have represented both

Heinemannrsquos ldquocreative historiographyrdquo and Boyarinrsquos ldquointertextuality in midrashrdquo not

entirely mutually exclusive but often so Associated with either or both of these approaches is

the midrash with an intended moral

The particular focuses and styles of each text have been hard to distinguish because of

lack of material in some sources and the inclusion of the same material in various sources

Nonetheless Tanhuma seems particularly involved in long homilies on specific topics

making use of midrashic lists of patterns to enhance the lesson We also find the midrash

building upon each other particularly in terms of Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer that seems to

combine two schools of thought on why Canaan is cursed

Again as a result of the mixed variety of ideas present throughout the rabbinic sources

it is not worthwhile to summarise and delineate the content of the commentaries Of interest

rather may be the lack of allegorical interpretation as found in Philo the obsession with the

castration theory the perception of the curse as both detrimental to the recipient and to the

giver in terms of polemic against dishonouring parents and against intoxication

Concluding remarks

The commentary on Genesis 925 generally finds itself expressed in two manners it is either

(a) attempting to resolve a difficulty in the text (b) or it is trying to produce a lesson In the

case of midrash the lesson may not necessarily be clear but for the use of intertextual citation

and juxtaposition We see a variety of resolutions for the problems found in the text finding a

reason why Canaan was cursed and not Ham or simply explaining that Ham indeed was

cursed but then needing to excuse the reference to Canaan providing evidence that one or


another group was effected by the curse or that it had a prophetic role Lessons from the

passage too vary to include the immorality of wine or dishonouring onersquos father and the

ability to be redeemed from a curse We find that in many cases traditions have been passed

between different groups and generations of commentators and at the same time the choice of

commentary or genre is often chosen appropriately according to the background of the writer

Although it is unclear indeed who is to be understood ultimately as the subject of Noahrsquos

curse its interpretation over time indicates once again the overwhelming applicability of

scripture and its interpretation to each writer for his own needs


References

Texts and translations

ldquorsquoAbadimrdquo Trans Maurice Simon In The Minor Tractates of the Talmud ed A Cohen London Soncino Press 1965 Vol 2 pp 623-630

The Babylonian Talmud Seder Neziḳin Trans I Epstein London Soncino Press 1935

The Dead Sea Scrolls Trans Wise Abegg amp Cook San Francisco HarperSanFrancisco 1996

Didascalia Apostolorum Trans R Hugh Connolly Oxford Clarendon Press 1929 lthttpwwwbombaxocomdidascaliahtmlgt

Epiphanius of Salamis The Panarion of Epiphanius of Salamis Trans Frank Williams Lieden EJ Brill 1994

Flavius Josephus Judean Antiquities 1-4 Trans Louis H Feldman In ldquoFlavius Josephus Translation and Commentaryrdquo ed Steve Mason vol 3 Leiden Brill 2000

Irenaeus Lugdunesis ldquoDemonstration of the Apostolic Preachingrdquo In Iain M MacKenzie Irenaeusrsquos Demonstration of the apostolic preaching a theological commentary and translation Trans J Armitage Robinson Aldershot Hants England Ashgate 2002

Irenaeus Lugdunesis ldquoAduersus Haeresesrdquo In Ante-Nicene Fathers Ed Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson Edinburgh T amp T Clark Vol 1 lthttpwwwsacred-textscomchrecf001indexhtmsection_008gt

ldquoJubileesrdquo Trans O S Wintermute In The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha ed James H Charlesworth Garden City NY Doubleday amp Company 1985 Vol 2 pp 35ndash142

Justin Martyr ldquoDialogue with Tryphordquo In Ante-Nicene Fathers Ed Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson Edinburgh T amp T Clark Vol 1 lthttpwwwsacred-textscomchrecf001indexhtmsection_007gt

Lactantius ldquoThe Divine Institutesrdquo In Ante-Nicene Fathers Ed Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson Edinburgh T amp T Clark Vol 7 lthttpwwwsacred-textscomchrecf007section_002gt

Megilat Talsquoanit Vilna lthttpwwwshechemorgtorahmegtangt


Mekilta de-Rabbi Ishmael Trans Jacob Z Lauterbach Philadelphia Jewish Publication Society 1949

Midrash Rabbah Exodus Trans S M Lehrman London Soncino Press 1939

Midrash Rabbah Esther Trans Maurice Simon London Soncino Press 1939

Midrash Rabbah Genesis Trans H Freedman London Soncino Press 1939

Midrash Rabbah Lamentations Trans A Cohen London Soncino Press 1939

Midrash Rabbah Leviticus Trans J Israelstam and Judah J Slotki London Soncino Press 1939

Midrash Rabbah Numbers Trans Judah J Slotki London Soncino Press 1939

Pesikta Rabbati Trans William G Braude New Haven Yale University Press 1968

Philo The Works of Philo Judaeus Trans C D Yonge London Henry G Bohn 1855 lthttpwwwearlyjewishwritingscomphilohtmlgt

Pirke De Rabbi Eliezer Trans Gerald Friedlander New York Hermon Press 1970

The Septuagint with Apocrypha Greek and English Trans Lancelot C L Brenton Peabody Hendrickson Publishers 1986

(Septuagint) A New English Translation of the Septuagint Genesis Trans Robert J V Hiebert Provisional Edition lthttpccatsasupennedunetseditiongenpdfgt

Tanhuma No publishing details given lthttpwwwtselorgtorahtanhumagt

Tanhuma Genesis (S Buber recension) Trans John T Townsend Hoboken NJ Ktav Publishing House

(Targum) Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon databases Targumic Studies Module Cincinnati Hebrew Union College Jewish Institute of Religion lthttpcal1cnhucedutargumstartpagehtmlgt

ldquoSibylline Oraclesrdquo Trans J J Collins In The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha ed James H Charlesworth Garden City NY Doubleday amp Company 1985 Vol 1 pp 317ndash472

ldquoTestaments of the Twelve Patriarchsrdquo Trans H C Kee In The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha ed James H Charlesworth Garden City NY Doubleday amp Company 1985 Vol 1 pp 775ndash828


Secondary sources and general references

Borgen Peter Philo of Alexandria An exegete for his time Lieden Brill 1997

Boyarin Daniel Intertextuality and the reading of Midrash Bloomington Indiana University Press 1990

Colson F H Philo Cambridge Harvard University Press 1929

Dawson David Allegorical Readers and Cultural Revision in Ancient Alexandria Berkeley University of California Press 1992

Feldman Louis H (1988) ldquoJosephusrsquo Portrait of Noah and its Parallels in Philo Pseudo-Philorsquos Biblical Antiquities and Rabbinic Midrashimrdquo PAAJR 5531-57 Jerusalem 1988

Feldman Louis H (1998) Josephusrsquos Interpretation of the Bible Berkeley University of California Press 1998


Froumlhlich Ida ldquolsquoNarrative Exegesisrsquo in the Dead Sea Scrollsrdquo In Biblical Perspectives Early use and interpretation of the Bible in light of the Dead Sea Scrolls Ed Michael E Stone and Esther G Chazon Lieden Brill 1998

Goldenberg David M The Curse of Ham Race and Slavery in Early Judaism Christianity and Islam Princeton Princeton University Press 2003

Goldin Judah Studies in Midrash and Related Literature Ed Barry L Eichler and Jeffrey H Tigay Philadelphia Jewish Publication Society 1988

Grayston ldquoAtonement and martyrdomrdquo In Early Christian thought in its Jewish context Ed John Barclay and John Sweet Cambridge Cambridge University Press 1996

Heinemann Isaak Darkhe Ha-Agadah Jerusalem Magnes 1970

Jacobs Irving The Midrashic Process Cambridge Cambridge University Press 1995

Jellicoe Sidney The Septuagint and Modern Study Oxford Clarendon Press 1968

MacKenzie Iain M Irenaeusrsquos Demonstration of the apostolic preaching a theological commentary and translation Aldershot Hants England Ashgate 2002

Neusner Jacob and Bruce Chilton The intellectual foundations of Christian and Jewish discourse The philosophy of religious argument London Routledge 1997


Rokeacuteah David Justin Martyr and the Jews Lieden Brill 2002

Stemberger Gunter and H L Strack Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash Edinburgh Scotland T amp T Clark 1991

Tov Emanuel The Text-Critical Use of the Septuagint in Biblical Research Jerusalem Simor 1981

Wevers John W Notes on the Greek Text of Genesis Atlanta Georgia Scholars Press 1993

Wintermute O S ldquoJubileesrdquo In The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha ed James H Charlesworth Garden City NY Doubleday amp Company 1985 Vol 2 pp 35ndash142




211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References





One of the more confusing narratives found in Genesis is that of Noahs drunkenness that

begins the antediluvian period in which humanity is reborn from his three sons Shem Ham

and Japheth As the narrative relates

את ערות וירא חם אבי כנען ויתגל בתוך אהלה וישכר היין- וישת מן כרם ויטע איש האדמה ויחל נח

מלה-ויקח שם ויפת את אחיו בחוץ-ויגד לשני אביו ויכסו את וילכו אחרנית שכם שניהם- עלוישימו ה

עשה לו בנו הקטן-את אשר וידע וייקץ נח מיינו וערות אביהם לא ראו ופניהם אחרנית ערות אביהם

ארור כנען ויאמר

ש

יפת אלהים ויהי כנען עבד למו אלהי שםייברוך ויאמריה לאחיועבד עבדים יה

ויהיו שלש מאות שנה וחמשים שנה אחר המבול נח-ויחי ויהי כנען עבד למו שם-וישכן באהלי ליפת

1וימת נח תשע מאות שנה וחמשים שנה-יימ- כל

There are many issues commonly taken with this story most significant may be the question

of what sin Ham actually committed in this incident but also the unusual reference to his

youngest son (בנו הקטן) the insertion of statements that Ham is the father of a previously

unmentioned Canaan in 918 22 and the cursing of Canaan when the only misdeed told in the

story is that of his father This paper intends to focus on the verse that first entails this final

difficulty

And he said Cursed be Canaan the lowest of slaves Shall he be to his brothers2

The numerous and stark curiosities associated with the above passage made it a relatively

common subject of concern for commentators from the outset of the history of Bible

interpretation While no passages in the Tanakh itself comment directly on the verse or its

contents it may be possible to see the cursing of Canaan as a commentary on later events

depicted in the Biblemdashat least if subscribing to a source theory of Genesismdashor as a prophecy

or premonition of future relationships depicted in the Bible a connection a number of later

1 Gen 920ndash29

2 Gen 925 New JPS translation in bold in the Hebrew above














































3 Gen R 367








the next section

211 Canaan sinned




















their feelings6
















who did wrong7




6 Heinemann p 21


























12 See Gen 91
























13 Froumlhlich p 82




























19 Feldman (1988) p 54












20 See sect 212 p 7













23 BT Sanhedrin 70a
















his brethrenrsquo26







brothers]27












act of castration















29 See sect3 p 19














guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References
















































3 Gen R 367








the next section

211 Canaan sinned




















their feelings6
















who did wrong7




6 Heinemann p 21


























12 See Gen 91
























13 Froumlhlich p 82




























19 Feldman (1988) p 54












20 See sect 212 p 7













23 BT Sanhedrin 70a
















his brethrenrsquo26







brothers]27












act of castration















29 See sect3 p 19














guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References










the next section

211 Canaan sinned




















their feelings6
















who did wrong7




6 Heinemann p 21


























12 See Gen 91
























13 Froumlhlich p 82




























19 Feldman (1988) p 54












20 See sect 212 p 7













23 BT Sanhedrin 70a
















his brethrenrsquo26







brothers]27












act of castration















29 See sect3 p 19














guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References






their feelings6
















who did wrong7




6 Heinemann p 21


























12 See Gen 91
























13 Froumlhlich p 82




























19 Feldman (1988) p 54












20 See sect 212 p 7













23 BT Sanhedrin 70a
















his brethrenrsquo26







brothers]27












act of castration















29 See sect3 p 19














guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References


























12 See Gen 91
























13 Froumlhlich p 82




























19 Feldman (1988) p 54












20 See sect 212 p 7













23 BT Sanhedrin 70a
















his brethrenrsquo26







brothers]27












act of castration















29 See sect3 p 19














guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References


























13 Froumlhlich p 82




























19 Feldman (1988) p 54












20 See sect 212 p 7













23 BT Sanhedrin 70a
















his brethrenrsquo26







brothers]27












act of castration















29 See sect3 p 19














guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References



























19 Feldman (1988) p 54












20 See sect 212 p 7













23 BT Sanhedrin 70a
















his brethrenrsquo26







brothers]27












act of castration















29 See sect3 p 19














guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References














20 See sect 212 p 7













23 BT Sanhedrin 70a
















his brethrenrsquo26







brothers]27












act of castration















29 See sect3 p 19














guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References


















his brethrenrsquo26







brothers]27












act of castration















29 See sect3 p 19














guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References










act of castration















29 See sect3 p 19














guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References















guilt























22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References












22 Ham was cursed





approach













under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References







under a curse37


Hamhelliprdquo















39 MacKenzie p 132













































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References











































































50 Dawson p 100
















































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References














































56 See p 11



























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References

























61 Borgen p 23



























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References




























65 Tov p 82






to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References








to in this instance










Tanhuma we find




goes away67




66 Jellicoe p 77





literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References






literature above







































and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References























and dark-skinned












next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References









next section














73 Gen 178 See also 1Ch 1618 Ps 10511









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References









































































as Ham is cursed










MacKenzie p 6














431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References
















431 Canaanites

























saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References


















saved90








88 See Gen 281 6

































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References
































432 Hamites



















a bondmanrdquo













with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References














with the words







































103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References


























103 Lam R 57

























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References


























p 160







its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References






its direct target



effects111





































112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References
























112 See sect211 p 5 211

































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References
































Panarion



ordinance120



















122 Lev 109









































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References











































Numbers Rabbah






death130





129 See below p 49



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References



































their great men133

















132 See above p 32




























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References





























137 See p 30



Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References





Jesus















Israelrdquo










land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References





land being cursed






























another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References







another


























Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References









Vezot Haberakha















146 See Joel 44



149 Boyarin p 27




























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References





























153 See Isa 511-13

154 Est 110







7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References









7 Notable absences


















158 Feldman (1988) p 54











































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References













































Patristic writers












Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References











Rabbinic sources






explains










159 Goldin p 274


















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References




















Concluding remarks

















References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References













References



























































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References
















































211 Canaan sinned




22 Ham was cursed








431 Canaanites


432 Hamites







7 Notable absences





Patristic writers

Rabbinic sources

Concluding remarks

References



Cursing Canaan - Joel NothmanJoel Nothman Cursing Canaan 5 find four general solutions among...

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Transcript of Cursing Canaan - Joel NothmanJoel Nothman Cursing Canaan 5 find four general solutions among...