The Canaanites were the only people God commanded the Israelites to destroy Israel was not allowed to treat other nations as they treated the Canaanite cities. Israel was warned not to let the Canaanites live in their land, but to completely destroy them (Exod. Part of the goal of this essay is to offer evidence to show that God had good reason to command Israel to kill the Canaanites. The non-believer has no objective authority. Bring biblical wisdom to the confusing issues across the world by making a gift to our international work. Thus, the Lord said to Abraham in Genesis 15:16, "the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure." Dr. Michael Gleghorn draws on a work by Dr. Gail R. O'Day, "Jesus as Friend in the Gospel of John," to explore the perspective of Jesus Christ as a Friend. Yahweh derided these handmade gods that cannot speak and must be carried because they cannot walk (Jer. Perhaps what the skeptic is really concerned about is whether the just destruction of the Canaanites is license for Christians to resort to killing the wicked. See also Leupold (1942, 463). Killing of the Canaanites, Robert Driskell received a Bachelor of Arts degree in both Pastoral Ministries and Biblical Studies from Mid-America Christian University in 1995. Rahab spoke of having heard about Israels great God and His mighty miracles. Those on whom God pronounced judgment were wicked, God had given the Canaanites opportunity to repent, are storing up wrath for [themselves] on the day of wrath when Gods righteous judgment will be revealed, The Canaanites were the only people God commanded the Israelites to destroy, God always offered the possibility of redemption. Josephus records that the Jews in Jerusalem were first whipped, and then tormented with all sorts of tortures, before they died, and were then crucified before the wall of the city.So the soldiers, out of the wrath and hatred they bore the Jews, nailed those they caught, one after one way, and another after another, to the crosses, by way of jest, when their multitude was so great, that room was wanting for the crosses, and crosses wanting for the bodies.26 Titus then renamed the region Palestine and for almost 1,900 years one couldnt find Israel on the map. Used by permission. Heres why. God knows who will or will not repent of his or her sin and if He concludes that all the children would have been similarly corrupted, then He is perfectly right to institute capital punishment. Memory,. The peoples of the world at His return will be doing the same things that the Canaanites were doing when God gave it to Israel (Revelation 9:20). Tremper Longman III, The Case for Spiritual Continuity, in C. S. Cowles, Eugene H. Merrill, Daniel L. Gard, and Tremper Longman III, Show Them No Mercy: Four Views on God and Canaanite Genocide (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2003), 185. Lets first frame this question with context. What it Means to Become a New Creation in Christ. 7:22). The new atheists immaculately exemplify what the Bible has proclaimed all along: sin corrupts our authority to judge rightly; what we think is justified prosecution against God Almighty turns out to be, on further illumination, a raucous rant full of the noxious fumes of the sinful heart. Why would Jesus die for basically good folk? In Leviticus 18 God then warns Israel that if they commit similar sins that the land would similarly vomit them out. . Christians believe that all authority belongs to God (Matthew 28:18, Romans 13:1, Colossians 2:10). In all of these respects, Israels laws were signposts to the spiritual realities behind Christs redemptive work for us. This is an online Viewpoint articlefrom theChristian Research Journal. The Canaanites were descendants of Noah. Emphasis added. The quote is from Gail Patches, The Great Debate: Craig, Hitchens ask Does God Exist? Whittier Daily News, April 5, 2009, A1, A4. Christian Answers, Bereishit 19:4:. Old Testament scholar Tremper Longman sees five phases of Yahweh war in the Bible. If you like what you're reading, you can get free daily updates through the RSS feed here. In regard to the Canaanites, God commanded, "In the cities of the nations the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, do not leave alive anything that breathes. But this sort of response does not fit with Jesuss own view of the Old Testament. Thus, Longman says, The war against the Canaanites was simply an earlier phase of the battle that comes to its climax on the cross and its completion at the final judgment.{5}. James B. Pritchard, Harry A. Hoffner, Jr., Incest, Sodomy and Bestiality in the Ancient Near East, in. 20:1618), lest the Israelites learn the Canaanite ways (Exod. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); IGRG: Did God Give The Canaanites aChance. Speaking with Abraham, God predicted that the Canaanites would eventually become so evil that He Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases on Amazon.com. The debate between Craig and Hitchens occurred on April 4, 2009 at Biola University. 1:5). Can the actions of the Israelites legitimately be called genocide? However, the verses that follow, namely verses 16-18, disallowed the same offer to be given to Canaan. This was especially true of the Canaanite societies steeped in abominable practices like child sacrifice and cult prostitution. Yahweh wars are battles recorded in Scripture that are prompted by God for His purposes and won by His power.{4}. 28:7. Isnt there an inconsistency here? 10 Biblical Steps Towards Restoration After Sexual Sin, Baptism Quotes: 27 Inspirational Christian Sayings, 25 Encouraging Bible Verses About Strength, Words of Encouragement: 30 Uplifting Quotes. Cf. This document is the sole property of Probe Ministries. A Clear Christian Perspective, The Apologetics of Jesus: A Defense of His Deity, Bridging to Common Ground: Communicating Christ Across the Cultural Divide, How I Know Christianity Is True A Defense of the Gospel, Yahweh War and the Conquest of Canaan A Biblical Worldview Perspective, Personal Development/Relationships Emails, Trusting God on the Other Side of Bizarre, Cohfessions of a Missionary Addicted to Porn. Wouldnt even infants, as they grew, begin to ask, What practices did my parents do which resulted in your killing them? As sad as this is, it also points to the horror of sin. 15:5). After all, he spoke approvingly of the destruction of Sodom, a pagan city that also included men, women, and children (Luke 17:28-29). Parents can corrupt their children.29. Dawkins objects that it adds injury to insult that the unfortunate beast is to be killed too.23 But Dawkins doesnt seem to grasp that no one would want to have animals around who were used to having sex with humans.24 Moreover, this might also explain why God used a flood to destroy what Dawkins called the presumably blameless animals in the days of Noah.25 If pre-flood humankind frequently had sex with every imaginable animal, then even though it wasnt the animals fault, it would be harmful to allow these animals to be a part of Gods start-over society. Before He redeemed humankind, He needed to unambiguously demonstrate what exactly He was redeeming them from: a blatant and unrestrained evil that resulted in a worthless, nasty, and cruel existence. 2001 W. Plano Parkway, Suite 2000 in communications (radio broadcasting) from Moody Bible Institute, an M.A. When Joshua led the people across the Jordan River into Canaan, he was fulfilling this promise. A biblical example of this would be Gods treatment of the city of Nineveh. . God had given the Midianites, Amalekites and other Canaanites 400 years to repent of their unbelievably evil practices (sacrificing children on red-hot idols being one of them), and they hadn't (Genesis 15:13-16). (972) 941-4565 M.G. He points out how Yahweh Wars, i.e. These twentieth-century examples were basically people killing people simply because they hated them and/or wanted their land. He gave them the law so that they may know Him and His ways. But He said to Abraham that the promise would take a long time to be fulfilled for the iniquity of the Amorites, or the people of Canaan, is not yet full (v. 16). The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (around 2100 BC) came 600 years before Israel destroyed the Canaanite nation. Divine Judgment and the Canaanite Conquest: A Theological Exploration After all, the Old Testament unequivocally commands that those who do any one of these things deserves to die. With Miller, I think they can. What Does It Mean for the Saints to Judge Angels? Just as God had demonstrated his knowledge of who would repent in the Canaanite cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, before he destroyed Jerusalem He told Jeremiah that if He could find even one righteous person He would spare the entire city (Jer. God promised Canaan to Abraham and his children. For one thing, the Canaanites worshipped other gods. They were fully aware that God had chosen Israel to be a tool in His hands in bringing judgement to the nations. Driving them out wasnt simply a way of making room for Israel. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. First, the Lord's command to enact erem was preceded by a long period of divine patience and longsuffering in the face of Canaanite wickedness (gross forms of idolatry, immorality, and injustice, including the sacrifice of children). And then these same skeptics turn around and say if there is a God of justice, why does He permit the wicked to rule the world and bring sorrow and suffering on the innocent? One of the problem passages she asked about is "Why does God order, I am a Christian and spend time talking with others often about God, but I have been speechless when they bring up the issue, for example, in I Samuel 15:1-3, Rick Wade served as a Probe research associate for 17 years. But the war is not over. Why Did God Tell Joshua To Kill The Canaanites? God sought to reveal His standards of righteousness to a thoroughly corrupted humankind, and He chose Israel out of the nations to exhibit the requirements for relationship with Him (Deut. Read them in the archive below. The modernistic notion that Melchizedek was merely the "high god" priest of the Canaanites (e.g., Baal), worshipped in pre-Israelite Jerusalem, is absurd (Hicks 1962, 343). What does it mean that "the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its For me to do so would be murder. [emailprotected] genocidal . God did not just decide to command the Israelites to destroy all the inhabitants of Canaan simply because he promised Abraham that his descendants would inherit it; he commanded them to do it because the Canaanites were wicked, evil, sinful people. Furthermore, justice must respond to the moral failure of sin. Gods enemies were dealt a crushing blow through Christs victory on the cross, but they will not finally be defeated until Christ returns to establish everlasting justice on earth. Although Abraham was Gods friend and the Lord wanted to give to him the land of Canaan for an inheritance. This article first appeared in the Christian Research Journal, volume 44, number 2 (2021). Phase five of Yahweh war will be the final battle of history when Jesus returns and will once again be military in nature. Canaan, because of its sin, was to be heremdevoted to destruction. According to the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Old Testament), when God called forth his people out of slavery in Egypt and back to the land of their forefathers, he directed them to kill all the Canaanite clans who were living in the land (Deut. Isnt that a better alternative? This is why it is so important for us to get our doctrine of humanity right. In phase three, when Israel and Judah were in exile, God promised to come in the future as a warrior to rescue them from their oppressors (cf. He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. Then, in AD 70, forty years after Jesus was crucified, the Roman emperor Titus destroyed Jerusalem. If the Israelites started to get a little slack in their obligations to Yahweh, they would turn to other gods. When we look at the Canaanites we must realize that God gave them 400 years to repent. And so for 400 years more, the Amorites were allowed to live and do as they pleased. God loves each of us as if there were only one of us"- Augustine. 22 Christian Quotes and Sayings About God. They are insisting that God and Christianity are in fact poisonous and must diligently be resisted and defeated. God's character, Also, God made it clear in His conversation with Abraham regarding the Canaanite cities of Sodom and Gomorrah that He knows who would or would not repent, and in the case of those cities, not one person would heed the warning and even Lots family had to be forcibly pulled away from the coming destruction. Genesis 15:13-16 God tells Abraham that his descendants will be enslaved for 400 years. Another observation is that the instruction is frequently to dispossess the Canaanites or move them out rather than to destroy them. Kyle, Canaan, in The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, James Orr, ed. Hittite Laws: 199 states, If anyone has intercourse with a pig or a dog, he shall die. . Under the sanctuary in the ancient city of Gezer, urns containing the burnt bones of children have been found. Kyle Dillon (MDiv, Covenant Theological Seminary) serves as an assistant pastor at Riveroaks Reformed Presbyterian Church in Germantown, Tennessee. it was an act of the judicial holiness of God manifesting itself in righteousness and judgment.{6}. 7 passage provides better support for his position. Sue Bohlin reflects on how God has led her to trust Him through the trial of tongue cancer surgery. If we see humans as being basically good or innocent, then of course we will react with indignation to the Bibleseremlaws. This wasnt merely punishment, however. I think God meant it quite literally. The question has been raised whether God really intended the Israelites to kill all the people. So lets not kid ourselves: at the end of the day no amount of explanation will cause todays illuminati (or brights, as some new atheists like to be called) to consider Gods commands justified.36 But our job as Christians is to proclaim unambiguously, especially to strongholds set up against knowledge of God, that humankind is sinful, that the wages of sin is death, and that by trusting Christs sacrifice we can be saved from the wrath of God and enjoy resurrection life in and with Him forever. Genocide doesn't wait for people to have a change of heart; and certainly not 400 years. Change). Bestiality. Some Christians have responded by driving a wedge between the Old Testament and the New, claiming that Jesuss ethics improved upon the brutal practices of ancient Israel. 2:11). Covenant Theological Seminary) serves as an assistant pastor at Riveroaks Reformed Presbyterian Church in Germantown, Tennessee. Minor judges Izban, Elon, and Abdon get brief mentions. The "new atheists" call God's commands to kill the Canaanites "genocide," but a closer look at the horror of the Canaanites' sinfulness, exhibited in rampant idolatry, incest, adultery, child sacrifice, homosexuality, and bestiality, reveals that God's reason for commanding their death was not genocide but capital punishment. . You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them. There are several aspects of Yahweh war. 1. The Amorites had a chance to repent and be saved, just as the Assyrians in Nineveh did during in the time of Jonah. Rick's interests focus on apologetics, Christianity and culture, and the changing currents in Western thought. So theeremlaws still apply, but in a spiritual sense rather than a physical sense. Israel was not commanded to deal with all other nations the same way they dealt with the Canaanites. Every forecast of prophecy of doom came with an implied unless attached to it: If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. Did the Ancient Gentiles Have the Hope of Salvation? They are dated to somewhere between 2000 and 1500 BC, between the time of Abraham and the Exodus.{7}. God, as judge, used Israel to carry out His judgment on these people. They made a religion of lust. What the Bible says about Opportunity to Repent ", "How Can a Just God Order the Slaughter of Men, Women and Children? There is no justice in the world today, and therefore there must be a day when the wrongs of the present life are made right. 13. Looking a four outcomes of the resurrection, Dr. Zukeran shows us that the greatest defense of the deity of Jesus was made by Jesus Himself. Doesnt the new atheists complaint ring hollow, since they are often at the forefront of defending a womans right to suction, dismember, or scald to death her unborn baby at any time and for any reason? {14} The only test we can put to God is consistency with His own nature and word. The story of Canaanite incest, adultery, child sacrifice, homosexuality, and bestiality flow out of the plot line of idolatry. When angels arrive, however, the men of the city try to rape them and not only does Lot not find anyone who will repent, Lot himself tarries so long that the angels take Lot and his family by the arms and all but drag them out of the city. He believes the latter is the correct interpretation. The Spirit of God comes on Jephthah, but the military leader's efforts still end in tragedy. God mercifully provides time and opportunity for repentance from idolatry and spiritual fornication with this world ( II Peter 3:9 ). Now after all of this God gives marching orders. (The Answer May Surprise You), It was merciful for God to protect the Israelites from idolatry. Rick Wade provides an expanded discussion of the issues around the Israelites battles against the Canaanites. I consider Jesus the be the perfect example of how to be good, Jesus would never hurt anyone. Abraham starts bargaining with God. Eternal Insecurity Once I Was Saved, But Now Am Lost? However, once the biblical doctrines of God and of sin are taken into consideration, the background scenery changes and the picture looks very different. The ESV and NIV give a fuller understanding of the term by translating it devote to destruction (the NASB renders it set apart). Moreover, given the evidence of Canaanite sin, it is no stretch to realize that even many young children would have already learned Canaanite ways. If they did not destroy them, the land would vomit them out just as it had vomited out the Canaanites (Num. 12:4, 30, 31). The people have rebelled against God and spend 40 years in the desert. In Leviticus 18 and elsewhere, for example, the Bible reveals that God punished the Canaanites for specific grievous evils. Further information about Probe's materials and ministry may be obtained by contacting us at: Probe Ministries This clearly shows Gods mercy on sinners, and that He gives them a time of probation that they may repent. An obvious objection to the idea that God was judging the Canaanites is that it would be unfair for Him to do so if they had no opportunity to repent and be saved. note: please see Probes article Do Babies Go to Hell? by Probes founder Jimmy Williams.]. It was merciful for God to bring an end to the. The Bible calls Noah a preacher of righteousness thats because before the flood Noah tried to save others by preaching repentance! Robert believes that the Bible contains the truth that God wants us to base our lives upon. God is a God of . However, according to Kline, sometimes we get snapshots of Gods final judgment intruding into the flow of history, foreshadowing the reality to come. Baal has sex with his mother Asherah,6 his sister Anat, and his daughter Pidray,7 and none of this is presented pejoratively. Such arguments are clearly illogical. God gave us life, and He has the right to take it away. But this is precisely the thing that the unbeliever loses in denying the existence of God. At first, the Israelites tried to compromise and worship God the way the Canaanites worshiped their gods. This news had terrified the city of Jericho and Rahab had put her faith in God (Joshua 2:10-14). God had decided to judge Nineveh because they were evil (Jonah 1:2). PDF What Do We Do with the Canaanites? You cannot have moral laws without a moral Lawgiver. For the Canaanites, it was time for Gods judgment. These nations were cut off to prevent the corruption of Israel and the rest of the world (Deuteronomy 20:16-18). The second premise is false, however. Further, in Deuteronomy 20, Moses said they were only to kill the adult males in far away cities (vv. God and the Canaanities | Bible.org [1] Tremper Longman, The Case for Spiritual Continuity, inShow Them No Mercy: 4 Views on God and Canaanite Genocide, ed. Thanks for stopping by! Before joining Probe Ministries, Rick worked in the ship repair industry in Norfolk, VA. 12:4, 30, 31). A book review of In Quest of the Historical Adam: A Biblical and Scientific Exploration by William Lane Craig (Eerdmans, 2021), Let Faith Oust Fact: A Review of The Whale, No Mindful Matter: The Explanatory Failure of Scientific Materialism, Una pregunta que los mormones no pueden responder, Connect with the Christian Research Institute. in Christian Thought (theology/philosophy of religion) from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and a Master of Humanities (emphasis in philosophy) from the University of Dallas. Why Your Church Needs Vacation Bible School, Gods Amazing Conversions Through Dreams and Visions Part Three, Gods Amazing Conversions Through Dreams and Visions Part Two, Ice Dragon: Legend of the Blue Daisies Movie Review, Phoenix Wilder And The Great Elephant Adventure Movie Review, The Boxcar Children: Surprise Island Movie Review. The people of the land had heard about all that had happened with the Israelites from the time they escaped Egypt. Thus, they were all without excuse for not worshiping God. It seems from God's promise to Abraham that they were wicked and idolatrous people. Here we encounter the issue of authority. Jesus power was shown in His healings and exorcisms and preeminently in His victory in the heavenlies by His death and resurrection (see Col. 2:13-15). Plano TX 75075 He is passionate about understanding the Bible and helping others do the same. God would hardly have chosen a Baal-worshipper to be a type, prophetically previewing his Son (Hebrews 7:3). Why did God wait 400 years to give the Israelites the land of Canaan? In Luke 20 Jesus told the Jews the parable of the tenants and the vineyard. An even more detestable practice was that of child sacrifice. He was keeping track of the measure of their sins, and, during Abraham's time, it was not yet "full." So the Amorites were warned that judgment was coming. The strategic location where the Canaanites were settled carries great. However, if we properly understand the whole picture we will be able to view God 's actions as full of mercy and fairness in His dealings with His children. 1 (2008): 7-37; www.epsociety.org/library/articles.asp?pid=45. . Since the land wasnt empty, this could only be accomplished by driving the Canaanites out. The Canaanites, by contrast, were destroyed at the direction of God and primarily because of their sin. Other ungodly acts routinely engaged in by the Canaanites included adultery, bestiality, and homosexuality (Leviticus 18:20-30). Scholar Glen Miller points out that dispossession words are used by a three-to-one margin over destruction words.{12}. The Canaanites: How Could a Just God Command His People to Destroy an And He said to Abraham, you and your children to the fourth generation must be patient too. However recently an atheist friend told me God was cruel and unloving and used examples from the old testament to prove it. Even so, many who acknowledge Gods existence still have trouble accepting the morality of Scripture. The full text of this article in PDF format can be obtained by clicking here. Of course not. One should note that Joshuas commands in Deuteronomy 23 are given before the Israelites have completed their sweep through the land, so of course there are Canaanites there to marry. All reproductions of this document must contain the copyright notice (i.e., Copyright 2023 Probe Ministries) and this Copyright/Limitations notice. Based on the Biblical evidence, however, this objection dissolves away for two reasons: 1. Gods character is such that He gives nations an appropriate amount of time to repent. Notes All Rights Reserved. Moreover, most atheists do not customarily condemn the very practices that God condemns, for example, idolatry, adultery, and homosexuality. Was God just in destroying the Canaanites? That atheists are incapable of judging spiritual matters leads some Christians to wonder why we even need to answer them at all, especially if they lack any objective, moral, or epistemological foundation for their claims. Paul wrote to the Ephesians, For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against . Had there been repentance, there would have been no need to execute wrath on evildoers. God promised Abraham (Genesis 15), that his seed would inherit the land of Canaan. 7.1-2; 20.16-18). Leviticus 27:29 says very plainly that every person devoted to destruction was to be killed. 4:26; 7:4). Lets start with the flood. They could have repented of their evil, followed God, and been spared judgment. Israel was not commanded to deal with all other nations the same way they dealt with the Canaanites. . Gods first inclination is to save Canaan rather than destroy it. God knew it would take the destruction of the nations. Tagged as: In Genesis 15:16, God told Abraham that his descendants would have to remain slaves in Egypt for 400 years before taking possession of Canaan, "for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete." Why did God judge the Canaanites as wicked despite never appearing to 9. the people of Sodom, surrounded the house, both young and old, the entire populace from every end[of the city]. These ideas may provide little consolation. . Jesus then warned, What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? Probe Ministries is a non-profit ministry whose mission is to assist the church in renewing the minds of believers with a Christian worldview and to equip the church to engage the world for Christ. Subsequently, God sent prophets to warn Israel of their coming destruction, but they didnt repent and God said that they became like Sodom to me and He visited destruction on Israel for committing the same sins. For further information Este artculo es una exclusiva en lnea de Christian Research Journal. In phase two, God fought against Israel when it broke its side of its covenant with God (cf.
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