Joshua 9:3-10:43
Luke 16:19-17:10
Psalm 83:1-18
Proverbs 13:4
If God is love, how could he order Israel to kill all the people in the cities they came to?
First we must see why the Bible called the Canaanites evil. Among other things, Canaanite religion involved child sacrifice. It was a practice that increased the more their cities expanded. Unlike other ancient civilizations where such practices died out, the Canaanites perpetuated it.
Second, a study of the verses reveals a very different story. God did not issue a command for genocide, and Israel did not slay all the Canaanites. God issued two specific commands concerning the Canaanites east of the Jordan River (Deuteronomy 2:26-36, 3:1-11) and six commands concerning Canaanites in general (Exodus 23:31-33, 34:11-16, Numbers 33:50-56, Deuteronomy 7:1-5, 12:2-3, 20:10-18). The two specific commands were for the conquest of the kingdoms east of the Jordan. Of the six general commands, only Deuteronomy 7:1-5 demands the total destruction of the Canaanites. Deuteronomy 20:10-18 qualifies this by specifically mentioning the destruction of Canaanite cities. The other four concern driving them out, destroying their idols and not making any treaties with them.
For more on this subject, check out this blog post.
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