God had the Israelites wipe out the Canaanites because they were exceedingly evil people full of vile practices like child sacrifice and sexual immorality. They were in the promised land, and so God had them wiped out. This is also to keep Israel, as a nation, morally pure (Exo. 23:23-33; Lev. 18:24β28). Still, Israel would fall into idolatry (Num. 25:3; Judges 2:11-12; Psalm 106:28). So that from it, the fulfillment of the promise to bring the Messiah through the nation of Israel would manifest (Gen. 12:3). It is only for the Messiah, Jesus, who died for our sins can we be redeemed. Though the destruction of the people of Canaan is difficult for us to comprehend, it pales in comparison to the severity of eternal damnation. God, in Christ, delivers us from that damnation through our faith and trust in Jesus (Rom. 3:28; 10: 9-10; Eph. 2:8-9).
Canaan was the son of Ham (Genesis 9:22). It appears that the Canaanites were the descendants of Canaan. In the Table of Nations (Genesis 10:15-19), Canaan was the father of 11 groups that spread out in that area.
“One of the earliest known references to the people of Canaan is in a tablet from Mari (15th century BC) in which a military officer reported his surveillance of βthieves and Canaanites.β The Canaanites were listed as a group on the Memphis stele (inscribed column) of the Egyptian pharaoh Amenophis II (c. 1440 BC). The land of Canaan was mentioned in a 15th-century inscription of Idrimi, king of Aleppo (west of Ugarit), who fled to the Canaanite seaport of Ammiya and then became ruler of Alalakh (north of Ugarit).” (Elwell, Walter A., and Barry J. Beitzel. 1988. In Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.)
Religion of the Canaanites
The Canaanites were polytheists, and one of the gods they served was Baal. Baal appears to be another name for Moloch, the god of the Amorites. The Bible speaks of Baal as a deity to which children were offered by burning them alive.
- Jer. 19:5, “and have built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as burnt offerings to Baal, a thing which I never commanded or spoke of, nor did it ever enter My mind;”
- Jer. 32:35, “They built the high places of Baal that are in the valley of Ben-hinnom to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire to Molech, which I had not commanded them nor had it entered My mind that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.”
The Bible and Genocide
Many critics of the Bible complain about God sending the Israelites to wipe out entire people groups. They call this genocide and say that it is immoral. First, if they want to say something is or is not moral, they must develop a universal moral standard that applies to all people. But it can’t be based on opinion or mere practicality – things that are subjective. Without a universal moral system, they can only offer their opinions. But opinions don’t make something right or wrong.
Second, God has the right to do with his creation as He desires. He is the sovereign Lord. If people are evil and are sacrificing babies by burning them alive, God has the right to take them out. Their sin would be great, and God is executing them according to the Law He revealed.
Third,Β It is important to understand that in the biblical position, God was severe with the people of Israel and with the enemies of Israel. The ultimate reason was that he would keep the messianic line pure through which the Messiah, God in the flesh (John 1:1, 14), would be born, and by His sacrifice on the cross (Acts 20:28; 1 Pet. 2:24),Β we can be redeemed from the consequences of our sin and escape eternal damnation (Matthew 25:46; John 3:16).
