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Scripture Analysis

Genesis 9:23

This verse is examined in more than one Scripture Analysis section. Each lens is shown on its own terms, in the section's own words; GEBible reaches no verdict of its own.

Contradictions
1 entry

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WEB

Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it on both their shoulders, went in backwards, and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were backwards, and they didn’t see their father’s nakedness.

World English Bible

Read Genesis 9:23 in context

Examined in Scripture Analysis

Contradictions (1)

Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.

  • Who was Noah's youngest son?

    Genesis 9:24 calls Ham Noah's 'younger son' after the nakedness episode. Genesis 5:32, 6:10, 7:13, 9:18, 10:1, and 1 Chronicles 1:4 consistently list the sons as Shem, Ham, and Japheth — an order that, read as birth order, makes Japheth the youngest.

    Critical scholarship: Widely regarded as a genuine contradiction.

    More on this question

    The proposed answers and sources for each reading are on the question page.

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Each section sets the viewpoints side by side; you weigh the evidence. Here, "critical scholarship" means academic study, not a value judgment. How this is built

Within each section, grouped by shared field or question type — not a cross-section comparison.

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This citation refers to this GEBible page — the verse and the analysis gathered here. To cite the underlying scholarship, cite those sources directly.

"Genesis 9:23 — Scripture Analysis" GEBible, https://gebible.app/analysis/verse/genesis/9/23?version=WEB (retrieved 27 August 2026).