Faces Turned Backwards

Genesis 9:22-28 – “And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father and told his two brothers outside. Then Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on both their shoulders, and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were turned backward, and they did not see their father's nakedness. When Noah awoke from his wine h and knew what his youngest son had done to him, he said, ‘Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be to his brothers.’ He also said, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant. May God enlarge Japheth, and let him dwell in the tents of Shem, and let Canaan be his servant.’ After the flood Noah lived 350 years. All the days of Noah were 950 years, and he died.”

Last week we left Noah laying naked in his tent as we discussed that fact that all humans have some sort of sin in their lives. This week, I’d like to point out that there are two responses to someone else’s sin. One response resulted in a curse that went way beyond the scope of Canaan serving his brothers. This passage was wrongly used in past centuries to justify the grievous, inhumane practice of enslaving African people. The other response resulted in the blessing of the Lord.
Let’s look at the right response first and then we will grapple with the wrong. Take a look at what great lengths Shem and Japheth went to honor their father even though he had sinned. Scripture does not indicate that they told a single soul of the predicament their father was in. They took a garment and laid it over their shoulders and walked backwards. Their faces were even turned backwards for Scripture tells us that they did not see their father’s nakedness. I imagine this took some time; we are talking about extreme caution here. No careless quick fix; just honor, respect and dignity. What is right in their actions? They did not speak of it to other people, they used extreme caution when handling the situation and they treated their father respectfully. They did not allow their father’s sin to draw them into sin. This is the right way to handle this situation.

Ham, on the other hand, dishonored his father in several ways. He looked upon his father’s nakedness. Scripture does not say if this was by accident or on purpose. Either way, it doesn’t matter because Ham’s action afterwards is what caused the curse. Not only did he tell his two brothers, he failed to address the situation. You might be thinking that his motives may have been pure in telling his two brothers. Maybe his brothers were more apt in dealing with this situation than he was. I say that is hogwash. Ham chose to allow his father’s sin to entangle him in his own sin (God only knows how many times I have done that). Many times we tell other people about someone else’s situation out of “love” or “concern”, but we fail to handle it properly. This situation was meant for Ham to deal with, not his brothers. Do we get that? God allowed Ham to see his father in order that Ham could respond appropriately. He failed and a curse was set upon him that affected tens of thousands, maybe millions of people bringing pain and misery for many, many years. Ham should have kept quiet, grabbed the garment, walked backwards, turned his face backwards and covered his father’s nakedness. Most importantly, he should have told no one.

Do we respond to someone else’s sin like Shem and Japheth or do we respond like Ham? I know I have mostly responded like Ham. I know that I have tried to respond like Shem and Japheth, but can be easily ensnared by my own sin. Maybe this is why we do not confront sin like we should. Acting like Shem and Japheth in a response to sin takes extreme caution and there are risks that we may not be willing to take. Paul, in his letter to Timothy (1 Tim 1:5), points out the goal when confronting someone. “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith”. A pure heart is a Spirit-changed heart with a desire for blessing, a good conscience is one that is free of guilt of one’s own sin and a sincere faith is void of deceit. Paul also addresses this topic in his letter to the Galatians. Gal 6:1 – “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.” The one “who is spiritual” is someone who is mature and experienced in the Christian life. Shem and Japheth were spiritual at least in dealing with their father.

I would almost bet my annual salary that most people do not confront sin for three very simple reasons. One, they are just as guilty in either the same sin or one “just as bad”. Two, we don’t want others to examine our lives the way that we examine others. Three, we have a flippant attitude towards sin. I can assure you that God sees all sin the same and nothing escapes His eyes. I can assure you that God hates sin. I can assure you that God wants us to “expose sin” (Eph 5:11); it’s doing the exposing with a pure heart, good conscience and sincere faith that is the hardest part. If we truly love God, then we will love what He loves and hate what He hates. We should not fear what the other person might say nor even do; we must deal rightly with sin out of a heart-felt love for God and the one who is in sin. May God help us!