What happened during the conquest of Canaan?

Response

God called Abraham to go to an unknown land that would be revealed to him, “Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: “, (Genesis 12:1). The Lord led Abraham to that land, Canaan, but Abraham lived there as a “stranger,” and God promised that his descendants would own it, “And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”, (Genesis 17:8). God also told Abraham that his descendants would be captive in a foreign nation for about 400 years but that God would bring them back to the land He had promised. They would conquer the land, and this conquering would be a judgment upon the inhabitants of the land at that time (Genesis 15:13-16).

Abraham’s grandson Jacob (Israel) went down to Egypt with all his family, about 70 in all (Genesis 46). They lived and thrived in Egypt for many years until they became so strong and numerous that the Pharaoh felt threatened by them, so he enslaved them (Exodus 1:1-14). God delivered them from Egypt (Exodus 2—12), and they journeyed back to the Promised Land.

As the Israelites were preparing to go in and take possession of Canaan through conquest, twelve spies were sent on ahead to scout out the land. They all agreed that the land was good and that the people there were strong. Ten of the spies said they were incapable of taking the land, while only two, Joshua and Caleb, trusted that the Lord would give them the victory.

Hem the land (Numbers 13). The people listened to the ten spies and revolted. Consequently, God declared that none of those adults alive at the time would enter the Promised Land except Joshua and Caleb (Numbers 14).

When that generation, including Moses, passed away in the intervening years, Joshua was finally prepared to lead a new generation of Israelites to conquer the Promised Land. The Old Testament book of Joshua narrates the conquest, and below is a brief summary:

The primary target was the city of Jericho in the central part of Canaan (Joshua 2). God dried up the Jordan River, the boundary of Canaan, enabling the entire nation to cross on dry ground (Joshua 3). However, the assault on Jericho was unorthodox. It was orchestrated in a manner that would unmistakably attribute the victory to God. Instead of besieging the city, the people were instructed to march around it for seven days. On the seventh day, the walls collapsed, and Israel overran the city, exterminating all the inhabitants (except Rahab and her family. See Joshua 2). The Israelites were prohibited from taking any spoils, as everything was to be consecrated to God (Joshua 6).

The subsequent target was the city of Ai. The Israelite army anticipated an easy triumph, but to their surprise, the men of the city defeated Israel. It was revealed that God was not on their side due to an Israelite man having taken forbidden items from Jericho. Once this issue was addressed, Israel conquered Ai (Joshua 7—8). Following the victory at Ai, Joshua reaffirmed the covenant with the people at Mount Ebal (Joshua 8:30-35).

It is crucial to recall that, during this period, Canaan was not a unified nation but a region where kings governed cities and territories. A coalition of five Amorite kings decided to unite and launch a preemptive strike against Israel, but they were all vanquished (Joshua 10). Subsequently, another group of kings in the north…

Half of Canaan also formed a confederacy to attack the Israelites; they, too, were defeated (Joshua 11). Joshua and the people of Israel continued the conquest until all of Canaan was subdued «So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the LORD said unto Moses; and Joshua gave it for an inheritance unto Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. And the land rested from war.», (Joshua 11:23). Israel’s strategy seems to have been to defeat the strongest cities first (Joshua 12) and then to divide the territory among the individual tribes and allow each tribe to finish conquering their own territory (Joshua 13—22).

During the conquest of Canaan, God intervened miraculously on several occasions, including the day the sun stood still (Joshua 10). Israel was largely successful in defeating or driving out the Canaanites; however, they were not completely successful. Sometimes they left pockets of Canaanites to continue to rule themselves, and sometimes they enslaved the Canaanites (Judges 1). Both of these things had been forbidden by God, who told Israel to drive them out completely «and when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them: », (Deuteronomy 7:2). As a result, the Canaanites remaining in the land became a temptation and a snare to the people of Israel. At times Israel would worship the Canaanites’ gods, and at times God would allow those remaining pagans to rule over them. The book of Judges tells the story.

Today, there are many who find fault with a God who would order “genocide.” However, the Bible makes it clear that God was sending Israel into the Promised Land to punish the people who were living there for their wickedness. Certainly God has the right to administer justice.

Minister judgment in this manner.