For example, God commanded the Israelites, in Deuteronomy 20:10-15, to offer conditions of peace rather than extermination to all others. (972) 941-4565 Israel was not allowed to treat other nations as they treated the Canaanite cities. I probably will not answer every question in this short article, and even some of the answers I give will not satisfy everyone, but I do hope to present a solid biblical argument for the goodness, holiness, love, and justice of our Creator God. 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. Leviticus 27:29 says very plainly that every person devoted to destruction was to be killed. The third goal of the conquest was the protection of Israel. Their sacrificial laws pointed to our need for atonement. At first, the Israelites tried to compromise and worship God the way the Canaanites worshiped their gods. Old Testament scholar Tremper Longman sees five phases of Yahweh war in the Bible. Peter Singer Heavy Petting: Review of Midas Dekkers, Dearest Pet: On Bestiality (London, 2000), Nerve.com, 2001, http://www.nerve.com/opinions/singer/heavypetting/main.asp. In his article Yahweh Wars which was written after Is Yahweh a Moral Monster?, Copan presents two scenarios, one in which everyone was put to death, and the other in which the targets were military leaders and soldiers. Kerby Anderson provides an overview of some ancient Christian heresies that are still being embraced today: legalism, gnosticism, mysticism, and marcionism. {8} In addition, the Israelites would be tempted to imitate Canaanite religious rituals because of their close connection to agricultural rhythms. Longman goes on to cite OT scholar Meredith Kline, who proposes a theory of intrusion ethics. Scripture tells us that the punishment for all sin is death (Gen. 2:17; Rom. If they had sex with just about every living thing they could get their hands on, and they did, then all had to die. As a result, they eventually received the same judgment the Canaanites experienced ( Deut. God's character, When a nation starts burning children as a gift to the gods (Leviticus 18:21) and practices sodomy, bestiality and all sorts of loathsome vices (Leviticus 18:25, 27-30), they, are storing up wrath for [themselves] on the day of wrath when Gods righteous judgment will be revealed (Romans 2:5 ESV). 18:28; Deut 4:2329, 8:1920). 15:5). Much of what follows is horrific, but if we refuse to look, will we really understand the reasons for Gods judgment? 2). 1 (2009): 73-92; www.epsociety.org/library/articles.asp?pid=63. God had warned them against that (Deut. Why did God wait 400 years to give the Israelites the land of Canaan? . Genocide doesn't wait for people to have a change of heart; and certainly not 400 years. 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. Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, in his " ", posits that one of the reasons that Sodom was not given the chance to repent was that even their children were wicked. God sent Jonah to Nineveh, and spared the nation because of their repentance towards God. God promised Canaan to Abraham and his children. Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases on Amazon.com. Could there have been any righteous Canaanites, especially in view of the pervasive, seductive, and corrosive nature of Canaanite sin? Later when Israel disobeys God and allows the Canaanites to continue to live among them, the corruptive and seductive power of Canaanite sin results in the Canaanization of Israel. . Convention on the Punishment and Prevention of the Crime of Genocide, Article II, University of the West of England, at: www.ess.uwe.ac.uk/. Paul Copan, How Could a Loving God Command Genocide, in Thats Just Your Interpretation (Grand Rapid: Baker, 2001), 165. Emphasis added. Instead, the Israelites worshiped the Canaanites gods and did evil (Judg. And so for 400 years more, the Amorites were allowed to live and do as they pleased. The Canaanites had not completely sinned away their day of grace. The phrase the Lords battles or battles of the Lord are found in 1 Sam. 4:1314; Ezek. Their purity laws pointed to the holiness demanded by God. . Israel was not commanded to deal with all other nations the same way they dealt with the Canaanites. What Happened to the Canaanites? - Biblical Archaeology Society Why Did God Tell Joshua To Kill The Canaanites? However, if we properly understand the whole picture we will be able to view Gods actions as full of mercy and fairness in His dealings with His children. Moreover, most atheists do not customarily condemn the very practices that God condemns, for example, idolatry, adultery, and homosexuality. God had given the Canaanites more than four hundred years of probation, during which He sent prophets and warnings. However, if we take the Bible on its own terms, we will recognize that all humans are born guilty and corrupt. They had passed the point of redeemability, and were ripe for judgment. The tragedy of this story is that not only is idolatry an offense to Yahweh, but it fails to supply a happy ending for human communities as well. . If a man has intercourse with a horse or a mule, there is no punishment.18 As with incest, the penalty for having sex with animals decreased about the fourteenth century BC.19, There should be no surprise that bestiality would occur among the Canaanites, since their gods practiced it. Of course Dawkins complains that Gods monumental rage whenever his chosen people flirted with a rival god resembles nothing so much as sexual jealousy of the worst kind.5 But does anyone think that if Dawkinss wife left him for a gingerbread man of her own baking, and then she began to tell everyone that he liked to play with his excrement, that Dawkins would tolerate the characterization of his feelings as no more than sexual jealously of the worst kind? all, and God plays fair with all peoples at all times, giving them equal chances for repentance and reformation. 1 (2008): 7-37; www.epsociety.org/library/articles.asp?pid=45. 20:16-17). Probably the ultimate sexual depravity is intercourse with animals. All reproductions of this document must contain the copyright notice (i.e., Copyright 2023 Probe Ministries) and this Copyright/Limitations notice. 7.1-2; 20.16-18). What God commanded Israel to do to the Canaanites wasnt genocideit was capital punishment. These people were not clueless about their responsibility to God; rather, they openly mocked His lordship and committed horrible acts that even the most hardened of us would deem worthy of judgment. 13. Lets start with the flood. Read them in the archive below. Jesus then warned, What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? Such a complaint usually masks an unspoken premise: God shouldnt have killed the children because that wouldnt give them the chance to reject Canaanite sin. What the Israelites are told to do to the Amalekites is exactly what the Amalekites had been doing to Israel. Rusty Wright presents a compelling case for the historicity of Jesus resurrection. Did the Canaanites Have a Chance? 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. God was patient with the Canaanites Why doesn't God offer Sodom and Gemorrah the same chance to repent He The ESV and NIV give a fuller understanding of the term by translating it devote to destruction (the NASB renders it set apart). Paul Rutherford explains the lies he believed and tow which he was in bondage about pornography, until Jesus helped him achieve sexual sobriety. In the worship of their gods, the Canaanites committed other evils. 5:1). Had there been repentance, there would have been no need to execute wrath on evildoers. 4:26; 7:4). [Ed. Idolatry. 5. What the Bible says about Why did God Command Israel to Go to War The Deut. Thanks for stopping by! Baal has sex with his mother Asherah,6 his sister Anat, and his daughter Pidray,7 and none of this is presented pejoratively. 25). The Canaanites, by contrast, were destroyed at the direction of God and primarily because of their sin. To understand what God was doing in Canaan, one must see it within the larger context of redemptive history. The peoples of the land did not repent, just as the survivors of God's plagues will not repent. Did the Ancient Gentiles Have the Hope of Salvation? Such arguments are clearly illogical. 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. Incest. Bereishit 19:4:. Memory,. God is love (1 John 4:16) and He is also just (Psalm 25:8). Skeptics often complain that children were killed in Sodom and Gomorrahs destruction. But this sort of response does not fit with Jesuss own view of the Old Testament. For further information or to subscribe to the CHRISTIAN RESEARCH JOURNAL go to: http://www.equip.org/christian-research-journal/. When the LORD your God brings you into the land that you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you the LORD your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. 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 Deuteronomy 20:18, God gave Israel an explicit reason why it was necessary to wipe out the Canaanites: that they may not teach you to do according to all their abominable practices that they have done for their gods, and so you sin against the LORD your God., It was merciful for God to limit the scope of the. 7 passage provides better support for his position. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1974), 550. What are the major signs of the last days? Divine Judgment and the Canaanite Conquest: A Theological Exploration And how are Christians supposed to apply the erem laws today? Old Testament Mass Killings - bethinking.org Humans do not have the right to do whatever we want. in communications (radio broadcasting) from Moody Bible Institute, an M.A. This is one of the most morally troubling passages in all of Scripture. In his discussion in Moral Monster, Copan refers specifically to Deut. 1:4). 1: The Pentateuch (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, n.d.), 484-485. Probe fulfills this mission through our Mind Games conferences for youth and adults, our 3-minute daily radio program, and our extensive Web site at www.probe.org. Although early Canaanite laws proscribed either death or banishment for most forms of incest, after the fourteenth century BC, the penalties were reduced to no more than the payment of a fine.8 In the larger ANE context, it is helpful to consider that in an Egyptian dream book dreams of having sex with your mother or your sister were considered good omens.9, Adultery. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (around 2100 BC) came 600 years before Israel destroyed the Canaanite nation. 18 records briefly the moral degradation of the Canaanites. Israel had a unique calling as Gods chosen covenant people. It has been suggested that such obliteration language was hyperbolic.{10} Commands to destroy everyone are sometimes followed by commands not to intermarry, such as in Deut. When God told Abraham He was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham pleaded for them, and God agreed in his mercy that if but only ten righteous people were found, He wouldnt do it. Christians today are engaged in warfare on this level. 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. We all recognize this when we accuse some authority who presumes to take life as playing GodGod is under no obligation whatsoever to extend my life for another second. Canaanite tribes (especially the Hittites) greatly exceeded the boundaries that Israel was told to conquer. The completely negative connotations of genocide make it hard to look at the biblical events without a jaundiced eye. In other words, we now wage war in prayer and in the realm of ideas. Paul Copan, Is Yahweh a Moral Monster?, Philosophia Christi 10, no. The Spirit of God comes on Jephthah, but the military leader's efforts still end in tragedy. If He wanted to strike me dead right now, thats His prerogative (Reasonable Faith . Women were no less guilty than men, and in many cases they were the principal instigators. Why were Ananias and Sapphira not given a chance to repent? Acts 5:1-11 Further, in Deuteronomy 20, Moses said they were only to kill the adult males in far away cities (vv. There are several aspects of Yahweh war. There had been a patient waiting from Abrahams time for the sin of the Amorites[to reach] its full measure (Toward Old Testament Ethics, Walter Kaiser, Jr., p, 267,Zondervan, 1983). The evidence says no. God didnt. Israel was warned not to let the Canaanites live in their land, but to completely destroy them (Exod. God was concerned that, if the Canaanites remained in the land, they would draw the Israelites into their evil practices. Canaan, because of its sin, was to be heremdevoted to destruction. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. Previous post: 10 Biblical Steps Towards Restoration After Sexual Sin, Next post: Baptism Quotes: 27 Inspirational Christian Sayings. Real Answers. Third, God gave the Canaanites ample time to repent. 7). 18:7-8 ). They were fully aware that God had chosen Israel to be a tool in His hands in bringing judgement to the nations. Bring biblical wisdom to the confusing issues across the world by making a gift to our international work. But this is precisely the thing that the unbeliever loses in denying the existence of God. PDF What Do We Do with the Canaanites? It was merciful for God to allow the Canaanites to remain in the land as long as they did. Because of such things, biologist and prominent atheist Richard Dawkins describes God as a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser . 1:5). Concerning the destruction of the Canaanites, atheists especially like to exploit the Christian condemnation of genocide. The passages that record Gods command to slaughter the Canaanite cities have even caused many Christians some confusion. 3. They say they refuse to believe in any being that could be so cruel and heartless. Seems a bit harsh right? These nations were cut off to prevent the corruption of Israel and the rest of the world (Deuteronomy 20:16-18). And He will ultimately save righteous and also punish the unrighteous He that believes on the Son has everlasting life: and he that believes not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abides on him (John 3:36). Robert has written 111 articles on What Christians Want To Know! Can the actions of the Israelites legitimately be called genocide? 2:11). He teaches theology at Westminster Academy in Memphis, Tennessee. Or better yet why didnt God give Canaan a chance to repent? Predictably so, their values conflict with what God hates. Skeptics say if God is a God of love why did He bring destruction on certain nations of the world? He is passionate about understanding the Bible and helping others do the same. You cannot have moral laws without a moral Lawgiver. Bible Verses, Quotes, Christian Answers, Songs and More. Even though the Ruler of the universe displays mercy and gives to men time to repent, there ultimately must be a day of judgement. A common attack today on Christianity has to do with the character of the God of the Old Testament{1}. God is a God of . Copyright 2010-2023 Telling Ministries LLC. Richard Dawkins and other new atheists herald Gods ordering of the destruction of Canaanite cities to be divine ethnic cleansing and genocides.1 With righteous indignation, Dawkins opines that the God of the Old Testament is the most unpleasant character in all of fiction.2 But was the killing of the Canaanites an example of divine genocide? Help train Christians to boldly share the good news of Jesus Christ in a way that clearly communicates to this secular age. 10:6; 1 Kings 14:22; 2 Kings 17:10). At first, the Israelites tried to compromise and worship God the way the Canaanites worshiped their gods. God and the Canaanites: A Biblical Perspective - Probe Ministries 33:56; Lev. A miracle child heralded by divine announcement, he grows up to become a one-man army against Israel's enemies. Who is more qualified than the Creator to decide how long one lives? God knows what is best for humankind, but He allowed free creatures to rebel and find out on their own that He is right. Maybe this was just an example of Ancient Near Eastern military language.{11}. 18:28). He is also a God who takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. God has delivered Israel and set them apart as His people. Then they would simply abandon worship of the true God. Parents can corrupt their children.29. When the LORD your God brings you into the land that you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations more numerous and mightier than you, and when the LORD your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. Atheists use this fact to condemn the character of God. What about these people prompted such a harsh judgment? (Deut. They reason something along these lines: (1) Christians condemn genocide. 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. Abraham asked the Lord this exact question in Genesis 18 regarding the coming destruction of two Canaanite citiesSodom and Gomorrah: Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? com; Question and Answer Archive, Question #16). They could have repented of their evil, followed God, and been spared judgment. Was John the Baptist the only person that understood Christs mission. In short, Israel was Canaanized. THE CANAANITES- God's Justness in Perspective It's clear from history, God gave them ample time to repent, but they refused (Gen. 15:16; Deut. 2:34; 3:3, 6). Non-Christians often point to the Old Testaments erem laws to reject Christianity altogether. The Extermination of the Canaanites - Knowing the Bible All rights reserved. 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. The Amorites' sin had not escaped God's notice. In Deuteronomy 9:4-6, God Himself explains the reason for His command to slaughter the Canaanites. Not even 10 righteous people could be found. He believes the latter is the correct interpretation. It doesnt stop there. As a result, they eventually received the same judgment the Canaanites experienced (Deut. The Canaanites worshiped other gods, which the Old Testament frequently denounced as no more than sticks or pottery made by human hands that could not see or hear or eat or smell (Deut. 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). He can give and take life as He chooses. Rahab spoke of having heard about Israels great God and His mighty miracles. Then theres Sodom, God tells Abraham that because of the wickedness of Sodom He will destroy it. In Jdg. Sue Bohlin processes how she is handling the crisis of tongue cancer by trusting Gods goodness. Will More People Go To Hell Than Go To Heaven? When Jesus came, He shifted the battle to the spiritual realm; He fought spiritual powers and authorities. Robert is happily married and lives in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Even so, many who acknowledge Gods existence still have trouble accepting the morality of Scripture. Israel was not commanded to deal with all other nations the same way they dealt with the Canaanites. The people of the land had heard about all that had happened with the Israelites from the time they escaped Egypt. He begins with the Christian worldview and Rick Wade explores the meaning of the word defense in 1 Peter 3:15, suggesting that all Christians can do Rick Wade provides an expanded discussion of the issues around the Israelites battles against the Canaanites. 10. And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it (Jeremiah 18:7-10 ESV). What Does It Mean for the Saints to Judge Angels? . The problem with new atheist divine genocide claims is rather simple: God hates sin, but the new atheists do not.35 Consequently, they complain of divine genocide in the face of Canaanite sin! 34:1516). The question has been raised whether God really intended the Israelites to kill all the people. Dan. I have two questions: 1. Their task was to prepare the way for the arrival of the Messiah. 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. This news had terrified the city of Jericho and Rahab had put her faith in God (Joshua 2:10-14). And its not simply forced eviction we are talking about here; its the slaughter of entire nations, down to the last man, woman, and child. What place should they have in our preaching and practice? To answer these questions, we must understand the place of the erem laws in the history of redemption. That being said, I do not think God had the Israelites comb the land to find and destroy every person; they were to devote to destruction the people who remained in the cities when they attacked. If I can find 50 good people will you spare Sodom God says sure. Claiming Have you ever felt like an alien in your own culture? What if there are fifty righteous people in the city?Far be it from you to do such a thingto kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. (2) Yahwehs command to kill the Canaanites was an act of divine genocide. 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). Can these be put together? 1:27-2:5, we read that tribe after tribe of Israelites did not drive out all the inhabitants of the cities they conquered. Who Were the Canaanites in the Bible - History and Importance The Gospel Coalition supports the church by providing resources that are trusted and timely, winsome and wise, and centered on the gospel of Jesus Christ. This wasnt merely punishment, however. If God didnt mean to kill everyone in nearby cities, then what distinction was being made? Third, if one holds that there is an age of accountability for children, and that those younger than that are received into heaven with God at their death, although the means of death were frightful and harsh, the Canaanite childrens experience after death would be better than if theyd continued to live among such a sinful people. 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. In phase four there was a major change. It was merciful for God to bring an end to the. The object of warfare moves from the Canaanites, who are the object of Gods wrath for their sin, to the spiritual powers and principalities, and then finally to the utter destruction of all evil, human and spiritual.[2]. Servants were sent to the tenants of the vineyard, but had been mistreated, and so the owner of the vineyard sent his son, but the tenants killed the son. Under the sanctuary in the ancient city of Gezer, urns containing the burnt bones of children have been found. 1 Chronicles 16:11 Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! Here we encounter the issue of authority. Israel had been enslaved in Egypt for 400 years. Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion (Boston: Mariner Books, 2008), 51. In Leviticus 18 God then warns Israel that if they commit similar sins that the land would similarly vomit them out. Dt. However, it is crucial to note that in the same passage, God declares the Israelites no less wicked than the Canaanites, deserving the same fate: However recently an atheist friend told me God was cruel and unloving and used examples from the old testament to prove it. God and the Canaanities | Bible.org I think God meant it quite literally. C.F. [a] capriciously malevolent bully.{2}. In phase one, God fought the flesh-and-blood enemies of Israel. In the old testament God tells Joshua to kill all the Canaanites, including women and children. But the war is not over. 23:12-13 where Joshua also warns the people against intermarrying. In Luke 20 Jesus told the Jews the parable of the tenants and the vineyard. www.probe.org. 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. James B. Pritchard, Harry A. Hoffner, Jr., Incest, Sodomy and Bestiality in the Ancient Near East, in. After all, the Old Testament unequivocally commands that those who do any one of these things deserves to die. If Jesus had died to redeem humankind prior to humankinds comprehending the depth of their sin, then people would question the need for Jesus death. Spoiler alert: God did give Canaan a chance to repent. He blogs at, How J. K. Rowling Played, then Lost, the Polarization Game, GAFCON IV: Lessons from a Communion in Birth Pains, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Christian Nationalism, What to Do When Your Child Is Addicted to Video Games, Radical Christian Gentleness in an Era of Addictive Outrage, The FAQs: Anglican Group Calls on Church of Englands Leader to Repent, Whats the Earliest Evidence for Christianity? We dont live in a theocracy anymore and, as Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 10:45, we dont fight with the weapons of the world, but we demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God (NIV). Then they would simply abandon worship of the true God. But instead of repenting when things went badly, they concluded that their misfortune was because they stopped burning incense to the Queen of Heaven, Inanna/Ishtar (Jer.
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