But when he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and uncovered himself inside his tent.
Parallel translations
- WEB He drank of the wine and got drunk. He was uncovered within his tent.
- KJV And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.
- NKJV Then he drank of the wine and was drunk, and became uncovered in his tent.
- NASB He drank some of the wine and became drunk, and uncovered himself inside his tent.
- NLT One day he drank some wine he had made, and he became drunk and lay naked inside his tent.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Noah drank the wine, became drunk, and lay uncovered in his tent. Even this righteous man falls into sin and shame.
Overview
Noah's drunkenness and exposure show that the flood did not cleanse the human heart; sin persists even in the godly. The scene is reported plainly, without excusing it, as a sober warning. It underscores the need for a righteousness greater than Noah's, found only in Christ, who never failed and who covers our shame.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Prov 20:1Wine is a mocker, strong drink is a brawler, and whoever is led astray by them is not wise.
- Hab 2:15–16Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin until they are drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness!
- Prov 23:31–32Do not gaze at wine while it is red, when it sparkles in the cup and goes down smoothly.
- Gal 5:21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
- Titus 2:2Older men are to be temperate, dignified, self-controlled, and sound in faith, love, and perseverance.
- Rom 13:13Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy.
- Gen 19:32–36Come, let us get our father drunk with wine so we can sleep with him and preserve his line.”
- Eccl 7:20Surely there is no righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.
- Gen 6:9This is the account of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation; Noah walked with God.
- 1 Cor 10:12So the one who thinks he is standing firm should be careful not to fall.
- Luke 22:3–4Then Satan entered Judas Iscariot, who was one of the Twelve.
- Rev 3:18I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, white garments so that you may be clothed and your shameful nakedness not exposed, and salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 9:21 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.