A BLESSING & A CURSE

25 So he said, “Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants. He shall be to his brothers.” 26 He also said, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant”. 27 “May God enlarge Japheth, and let him dwell in the tents of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant.” Genesis 9:25-27

As if things could not get any worse for mankind, in the annals of recorded human history, the very next prayer in the Bible was a very significant curse. This was not immediately after the Great Flood as Noah was already now a great first time Farmer and Owner of Vineyards which produced much wine. His three sons and their wives had already begun to be “fruitful and multiply” to “fill the earth” as commanded by God.

One day, Noah got a little too much into the fruit of the vine and passed out drunk without any of his clothes. His grandson Canaan, son of Ham, saw him in a most unfortunate position laid out cold and apparently merrily told his father, Ham. This was (and is) a shameful thing in many respects. Dishonor before God does not go unpunished, even now. It may not happen immediately (as Canaan was young) but it will happen!  Therefore, Noah prays an imprecatory prayer against his own grandson while praying a blessing on the descendants of his other sons – Japheth and Shem……READ MORE HERE

THE FIRST PRAYER OF THE BIBLE

13 And Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is greater than I can bear! 14 Surely You have driven me out this day from the face of the ground; I shall be hidden from Your face; I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth, and it will happen that anyone who finds me will kill me.”  15 And the Lord said to him,  “Therefore, whoever kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.” And the Lord set a mark on Cain, lest anyone finding him should kill him. (Genesis 4:13-15)
The very first prayer in the Bible was the end result of a rebuke from God to the first murderer in history. Cain had just killed his brother Abel, when worship and sacrifice to God went awry, due to jealousy. Cain also lied to the Father insisting he did not know where Abel was, using those immortal words “Am I my brother’s keeper”. Because of his vile actions, God banished him, cursed him and sent him on his way to roam the earth as a fugitive, who will even a hard time growing his own food. This shook Cain to the core.  He obviously had not thought of the consequences of his action and in shock, sorrow, fear and sadness, Cain offered the very first prayer of the Bible from a human…..READ MORE HERE