Creator, Father, King #101

Jericho and everything in it must be completely destroyed as an offering to the LORD.

THE TOWERING WALLS OF Jericho were ready to fall. Israel’s first conquest in the land of Canaan was at hand.

“Shout!” Joshua told his troops. “For the LORD has given you the town!” Joshua continued: “Jericho and everything in it must be completely destroyed as an offering to the Lord” (Joshua 6:16-17).

This directive was in obedience to God’s earlier command through Moses in Deuteronomy 7:2: “When the LORD your God hands these nations over to you and you conquer them, you must completely destroy them.” In other words, Israel was to kill every man, woman, and child—not just in Jericho, but everywhere in Canaan.

Some people read this and question God’s goodness. They ask, “How can a loving God give such an order?” But when we truly understand God’s character, we see how this command is perfectly consistent with his holiness, justice, and overall plan of salvation.

What’s It Mean?

It’s critical that we think correctly about God, and this is a subject we can easily misinterpret. So we need to remember a few key truths in light of today’s verse:

• When God renders judgment, it is always perfectly just.
• As Creator, God rules over the entire earth and can allot land to whomever he chooses, whenever he desires.
• As sinful creatures, all humans—including the ancient Canaanites—are subject to God’s judgment. We owe God everything, but he owes us nothing. Any good he gives us above the outpouring of his justly deserved wrath is beautiful mercy and grace.

The Canaanites were a notoriously wicked, idolatrous people that God had patiently given many centuries to repent, but they didn’t. So in his sovereign plan, he used Israel to execute judgment—not because Israel was more righteous than the Canaanites, but because he had chosen to use Israel for his sovereign purposes (Deuteronomy 7; 9:1-6).

God also knew that if the Canaanites lingered in the land, they would drag Israel into their godless practices (Deuteronomy 7:4).

Additionally, God chose Israel to be a holy people set apart to the Lord (Deuteronomy 7:6) and the nation through which the Messiah would come—the Savior for both Jews and Gentiles.

Sin is egregious before a holy God. Were it not for God’s mercy and grace, our fate would be like the Canaanites’. Praise the Lord for Jesus, who bore God’s righteous wrath toward sin on our behalf!

Now What?

To better understand this difficult subject, read Deuteronomy 7–12.

Did You Know?

Israel never fully eradicated the Canaanites from the Promised Land.