Genesis 9

Gn 9.1Benedīxitque Deus Noë et fīliīs eius. Et dīxit ad eōs: Crēscite, et multiplicāminī, et replēte terram.

And God blessed Noah and his sons. And he said to them: Grow, and be multiplied, and fill up the earth.

Note. Benedīxitque … Noë: benedīcō takes a dative of the person blessed (here the indeclinable Noë and fīliīs). Crēscite, multiplicāminī, replēte: three plural imperatives; multiplicāminī is a passive imperative, 'be multiplied'. The command repeats God's blessing at the creation (Genesis 1.28).

Gn 9.2Et terror vester ac tremor sit super cūncta animālia terrae, et super omnēs volucrēs caelī, cum ūniversīs quae moventur super terram: omnēs piscēs maris manuī vestrae trāditī sunt.

And let terror of you and trembling be over all the animals of the earth, and over all the birds of the sky, together with all things which are moved over the earth: all the fishes of the sea have been handed over to your hand.

Note. terror vester ac tremor: vester here is objective, 'fear of you', not 'your fear'. sit is a jussive subjunctive, 'let there be'. manuī vestrae trāditī sunt: dative of the person (or hand) something is handed over to.

Gn 9.3Et omne, quod movētur et vīvit, erit vōbīs in cibum: quasi olera virentia trādidī vōbīs omnia.

And all that is moved and lives will be to you for food: like green vegetables I have handed over to you all things.

Note. erit vōbīs in cibum: a double construction common in Biblical Latin: dative of the person (vōbīs) and in + accusative of purpose (in cibum), 'will be to you for food'. quasi olera virentia: 'as (I gave you) the green plants', referring back to Genesis 1.29.

Gn 9.4Exceptō, quod carnem cum sanguine nōn comedētis.

Excepted is this, that flesh with blood you will not eat.

Note. Exceptō quod: an ablative absolute used as a fixed phrase, 'with this excepted, that', i.e. 'except that'. comedētis: future indicative used as a prohibition, a very common Biblical Latin way of giving a command (compare 'thou shalt not').

Gn 9.5Sanguinem enim animārum vestrārum requīram dē manū cūnctārum bēstiārum: et dē manū hominis, dē manū virī, et frātris eius requīram animam hominis.

For the blood of your souls I will seek back from the hand of all beasts: and from the hand of a human being, from the hand of a man and of his brother, I will seek back the soul of the human being.

Note. requīram dē manū: 'I will demand back from the hand of', i.e. hold responsible. anima in Biblical Latin often means 'life' rather than 'soul'.

Gn 9.6Quīcumque effūderit hūmānum sanguinem, fundētur sanguis illīus: ad imāginem quippe Deī factus est homō.

Whoever pours out human blood, his blood will be poured out: for to the image of God the human being was made.

Note. Quīcumque effūderit … fundētur: a general relative clause with the future perfect (effūderit), followed by a future in the main clause. ad imāginem Deī: 'in the image of God', again recalling Genesis 1.27.

Gn 9.7Vōs autem crēscite et multiplicāminī, et ingrediminī super terram, et implēte eam.

You, however, grow and be multiplied, and go in over the earth, and fill it up.

Gn 9.8Haec quoque dīxit Deus ad Noë, et ad fīliōs eius cum eō:

These things also God said to Noah, and to his sons with him:

Note. ad Noë: in the Vulgate, verbs of speaking regularly take ad + accusative of the person addressed, where classical Latin would use a dative.

Gn 9.9Ecce ego statuam pactum meum vōbīscum, et cum sēmine vestrō post vōs:

Look, I will set up my pact with you, and with your seed after you:

Note. Ecce: 'look!', 'behold!', extremely common in Biblical Latin to introduce something new. pactum: in this passage the Vulgate alternates pactum and foedus for 'covenant'. sēmen: literally 'seed', meaning offspring or descendants.

Gn 9.10et ad omnem animam vīventem, quae est vōbīscum, tam in volucribus quam in iūmentīs et pecudibus terrae cūnctīs, quae ēgressa sunt dē arcā, et ūniversīs bēstiīs terrae.

and with every living soul which is with you, as much in the flying creatures as in the beasts of burden and the livestock of the earth, all that went out from the ark, and in all the beasts of the earth.

Note. tam … quam: 'as much … as', 'both … and'. volucribus is the plural of volucris, 'bird' (literally 'flying creature'); iūmentum is a beast of burden, and pecudibus is from pecus, pecudis f., a single animal of the herd.

Gn 9.11Statuam pactum meum vōbīscum, et nēquāquam ultrā interficiētur omnis carō aquīs dīluviī, neque erit deinceps dīluvium dissipāns terram.

I will set up my pact with you, and by no means any further will all flesh be killed by the waters of a deluge, nor will there be from now on a deluge scattering the earth.

Note. nēquāquam ultrā: 'by no means any longer', 'never again'. dissipāns terram: a present participle agreeing with dīluvium, 'a flood laying waste the earth'.

Gn 9.12Dīxitque Deus: Hoc signum foederis quod dō inter mē et vōs, et ad omnem animam vīventem, quae est vōbīscum in generātiōnēs sempiternās:

And God said: This is the sign of the treaty which I give between me and you, and toward every living soul which is with you, into everlasting generations:

Note. Hoc signum foederis: supply est, 'This (is) the sign of the covenant'. Leaving out forms of esse is frequent in the Vulgate. in generātiōnēs sempiternās: 'for everlasting generations', i.e. for ever.

Gn 9.13arcum meum pōnam in nūbibus, et erit signum foederis inter mē et inter terram.

my bow I will place in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the treaty between me and between the earth.

Note. inter mē et inter terram: Hebrew repeats the preposition ('between me and between the earth'), and the Vulgate often keeps the repetition.

Gn 9.14Cumque obdūxerō nūbibus caelum, appārēbit arcus meus in nūbibus:

And when I have drawn clouds over the sky, my bow will appear in the clouds:

Note. Cumque obdūxerō … appārēbit: cum with the future perfect in a future time clause, 'when I have covered'. The rainbow is the sign: the Hebrew word also means a war bow, hung up in peace.

Gn 9.15et recordābor foederis meī vōbīscum, et cum omnī animā vīvente quae carnem vegetat: et nōn erunt ultrā aquae dīluviī ad dēlendum ūniversam carnem.

and I will call to mind my treaty with you, and with every living soul which gives life to flesh: and no further will there be waters of a deluge for destroying all flesh.

Note. ad dēlendum: ad + gerund expressing purpose, 'for destroying'.

Gn 9.16Eritque arcus in nūbibus, et vidēbō illum, et recordābor foederis sempiternī quod pactum est inter Deum et omnem animam vīventem ūniversae carnis quae est super terram.

And the bow will be in the clouds, and I will see it, and I will call to mind the everlasting treaty which was agreed between God and every living soul of all flesh which is over the earth.

Note. quod pactum est: pactum here is the perfect participle of the deponent paciscor, used with a passive sense, 'which was agreed'.

Gn 9.17Dīxitque Deus ad Noë: Hoc erit signum foederis, quod cōnstituī inter mē et omnem carnem super terram.

And God said to Noah: This will be the sign of the treaty which I have set up between me and all flesh over the earth.

Gn 9.18Erant ergō fīliī Noë, quī ēgressī sunt dē arcā, Sem, Cham et Iapheth: porrō Cham ipse est pater Chanaan.

There were therefore the sons of Noah who went out from the ark, Shem, Ham and Japheth: moreover Ham himself is the father of Canaan.

Note. porrō: 'moreover', 'further', a favourite connective in the Vulgate's lists and genealogies. Cham ipse est pater Chanaan: this anticipates the curse on Canaan in verse 25.

Gn 9.19Trēs istī fīliī sunt Noë: et ab hīs dissēminātum est omne genus hominum super ūniversam terram.

Three are these sons of Noah: and from these was sown abroad every kind of human beings over the whole earth.

Note. ab hīs dissēminātum est omne genus hominum: 'from these all the human race was spread abroad'. The story divides humanity into three family lines, which chapter 10 then traces.

Gn 9.20Coepitque Noë vir agricola exercēre terram, et plantāvit vīneam.

And Noah, a man who farmed, began to work the earth, and he planted a vineyard.

Note. Coepitque Noë vir agricola: 'Noah, a man (who was) a farmer, began'. vir agricola is in apposition to Noë. Noah is the first to plant a vineyard in the Bible.

Gn 9.21Bibēnsque vīnum inēbriātus est, et nūdātus in tabernāculō suō.

And drinking wine he was made drunk, and was laid bare in his tent.

Note. inēbriātus est et nūdātus: the second est is understood with nūdātus.

Gn 9.22Quod cum vīdisset Cham, pater Chanaan, verenda scīlicet patris suī esse nūdāta, nūntiāvit duōbus frātribus suīs forās.

Which thing when Ham, father of Canaan, had seen, namely that the parts of his father which ought to be respected were laid bare, he reported it to his two brothers outside.

Note. Quod cum vīdisset: a connecting relative (quod = et hoc) followed by cum + pluperfect subjunctive, 'and when he had seen this'. verenda: neuter plural of the gerundive of vereor used as a noun, literally 'things to be respected', a euphemism. The accusative and infinitive (verenda … esse nūdāta) depends on vīdisset.

Gn 9.23At vērō Sem et Iapheth pallium imposuērunt humerīs suīs, et incēdentēs retrōrsum, operuērunt verenda patris suī: faciēsque eōrum āversae erant, et patris virīlia nōn vīdērunt.

But Shem and Japheth put a cloak on their shoulders, and stepping backwards they covered the parts of their father to be respected: and their faces were turned away, and their father's manhood they did not see.

Note. incēdentēs retrōrsum: 'walking backwards', so that they would not see. faciēsque eōrum āversae erant: āversae is a perfect participle used as an adjective, 'turned away'.

Gn 9.24Ēvigilāns autem Noë ex vīnō, cum didicisset quae fēcerat eī fīlius suus minor,

Noah, however, waking up from the wine, when he had learned what things his younger son had done to him,

Note. minor: comparative of parvus, 'younger'. The Vulgate (following the Hebrew) calls Ham the younger son, although he is listed in the middle.

Gn 9.25ait: "Maledictus Chanaan, servus servōrum erit frātribus suīs."

says: "Cursed is Canaan; a slave of slaves he will be to his brothers."

Note. Maledictus Chanaan: supply sit, 'Cursed be Canaan'. servus servōrum: a Hebrew idiom for the superlative, 'the lowest of slaves'.

Gn 9.26Dīxitque: "Benedictus Dominus Deus Sem, sit Chanaan servus eius.

And he said: "Blessed is the Lord God of Shem; let Canaan be his slave.

Note. Benedictus Dominus Deus Sem: again supply sit (or est). Dominus represents God's Hebrew personal name, which Jewish readers replaced with 'Lord'.

Gn 9.27Dīlātet Deus Iapheth, et habitet in tabernāculīs Sem, sitque Chanaan servus eius."

Let God widen Japheth, and let him dwell in the tents of Shem, and let Canaan be his slave."

Note. Dīlātet Deus Iapheth: a pun in Hebrew, where the verb 'enlarge' sounds like the name Japheth. Dīlātet and habitet are jussive subjunctives expressing a wish.

Gn 9.28Vīxit autem Noë post dīluvium trecentīs quīnquāgintā annīs.

Noah lived, moreover, after the deluge, three hundred fifty years.

Note. trecentīs quīnquāgintā annīs: ablative of duration of time, common in the Vulgate where classical Latin prefers the accusative. Numbers are written out in words throughout these chapters; hundreds like trecentī decline, while quīnquāgintā does not.

Gn 9.29Et implētī sunt omnēs diēs eius nōngentōrum quīnquāgintā annōrum: et mortuus est.

And filled up were all his days, of nine hundred fifty years: and he died.

Note. implētī sunt omnēs diēs eius nōngentōrum quīnquāgintā annōrum: 'all his days were completed, (being) of 950 years', a genitive of description.