Most interpreters of Genesis 9:18–29 read with a presumption that Noah’s curse must be justified and that Ham, Canaan, or the Canaanites therefore deserve punishment. Examining problems with this pervasive “presumption of Canaanite guilt” opens alternative readings of Noah’s curse as drunken, excessive, misdirected, or unjust and helps resist its continued weaponization.
See also: The Injustice of Noah’s Curse (Oxford University Press, 2025)
By Justin Michael Reed
Louisville Seminary
July 2026
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