Genesis 9: Noah the farmer

Genesis 9:20-29

The flood has subsided and the people are outside the ark.  A glance at Genesis 9:1 tells us that God blessed Noah and his sons.

And after the promise of the rainbow, Noah decides to become a farmer and vintner. He apparently makes a potent potable:

Noah, a man of the soil, was the first to plant a vineyard. He drank some of the wine and became drunk, and he lay uncovered in his tent. 

And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. Then Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on both their shoulders, and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father; their faces were turned away, and they did not see their father’s nakedness. 

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

                          “Cursed be Canaan;
                           lowest of slaves shall he be to his brothers.”

He also said,

                          “Blessed by the Lord my God be Shem;
                            and let Canaan be his slave.
                           May God make space for Japheth,
                           and let him live in the tents of Shem;
                           and let Canaan be his slave.”

After the flood Noah lived three hundred fifty years. All the days of Noah were nine hundred fifty years; and he died.

Another prayer of a parent towards his children.  But this time, there is a curse (of slavery) for one child and a blessing for two others.

I'm intrigued by the curse on Canaan.

There are some odd things going on behind the page in this story.  Back in Genesis 6:10, we're told Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japeth. In Genesis 7:7, it says Noah and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him entered the ark...

In Genesis 8:16, God says "Go out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and your sons' wives with you."

Then the twist: in Genesis 9:18, "Now the sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem and Ham and Japeth; and Ham was the father of Canaan.  These three the sons of Noah; and from these the whole earth was populated."

And when Noah awoke from his bout of drinking, "... he knew what his youngest son had done to him."

For a long time, I thought Japeth was the youngest of Noah's sons, just because of the order the names are given.  And even if that's wrong, and Ham is the youngest - why no curse on Ham?  Instead it falls on Canaan, son of Ham.

It could be that Noah couldn't curse Ham, because God had blessed Ham back in Genesis 9:1.

Or, it could be that Canaan is Ham's son and is Noah's son.

In any case, the curse that Noah placed on Canaan saw the Canaanites subjected by Joshua and later by Solomon.  There is no one under the Canaanite curse today: they have long since died out.