On The Historicity And Morality Of The Canaanite Conquests (Part 1 Of 2)

• Discussion:

          -James Bishop created a series of posts explaining what he thinks is problematic with traditional defenses of God commanding the Israelites to kill the Canaanites. This two part series shows that those objections do not hold water when put under scrutiny. Excerpts from the author are cited in bold and followed with critical commentary: 

          "...Wesley Morriston agrees writing that there “is nothing uniquely “Canaanite” about them. All, or nearly all, of these practices—from sexual intercourse during a woman’s menstrual period to homosexual behavior to bestiality—are still common. Is there any real reason to believe that these things were more common among the Canaanites in the ancient world?”

          While some cultures in the ancient world were worse than others, it is not even claimed that Canaanite culture was the worst that ever existed. There are other instances in the Old Testament of societies that were destroyed by God because of their sin, such as Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19.

          Genesis 15:16 refers to a point of wickedness at which God has no other choice but to act in judgment. His patience with perverse people wanes according to the degree of their perversity. The Canaanites had four hundred years to repent. The real wonder is why God gave them so much time to do so.

          Furthermore, the Canaanite practices were not only morally reprehensible, but also posed a significant threat to the moral and spiritual integrity of the Israelites. The destruction of the Canaanites was a necessary measure to prevent the Israelites from being led astray by these corrupt practices. This divine judgment serves as a reminder of the importance of maintaining moral and spiritual purity in the face of pervasive wickedness.

          "More likely it is that the biblical authors are deliberately depicting their Canaanite enemies in a negative light, thus portraying them in a way that is not entirely fair. One should remember that the Israelites were the supposed exterminators of the Canaanites and we only have their testimony bearing witness to the Canaanites themselves. We have to rely on the killers of the Canaanites to learn about the Canaanites."

          One must remember that Jewish culture taught heavily against lying (Exodus 20:16; Psalm 101:7; Proverbs 12:22; Hosea 4:2). The Old Testament contains clear warnings against modifying the substance of its message (Deuteronomy 4:2; 12:32; Proverbs 30:5-6), which suggests that the texts were written by honest and sincere individuals committed to truthfulness.

          Moreover, the consistency and prevalence of biblical teachings against falsehood further support the credibility of the biblical authors. While it is true that we primarily rely on Israelite testimony to learn about the Canaanites, this does not inherently make their accounts untrustworthy. In fact, the strict cultural and religious emphasis on honesty would have made deliberate deception highly unlikely.

          Even if we have only one side of an event presented by a source, it does not necessarily make it untrue or untrustworthy. If the biblical authors deliberately manipulated the narrative to put themselves in a better light, then why would they have recorded any wars at all? For example, the defeat at Ai in Joshua 7 highlights the Israelites' failure and the consequences of disobedience. Similarly, the recurring theme of the Israelites’ unfaithfulness and punishment throughout the Judges period (Judges 2:11-19) showcases their struggles and failures. If history is written by the winners, how did the Jews manage to tell about their conquerors such as the Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans?

          "Evidence of the Canaanite culture, beliefs, and practices appear to leave out much of what the biblical authors say about them. This suggests that the biblical authors had limited knowledge of the Canaanites. For instance, translations of the Ugaritic texts do not suggest the Canaanites being a particularly “debauched” or “cruel” culture (unless one sees the common ancient practice of animal sacrifice as cruel)."

          Archaeological discoveries can shed light on more obscure parts of the Old Testament, but the insight they provide is limited. How can we be sure that the Ugaritic texts provide a full picture of the Canaanite world?

          Dismissing the biblical authors on an a priori basis is unwarranted until proven correct. It is more likely that our knowledge of the Canaanites is limited rather than theirs. The biblical authors lived thousands of years before us and would have been better suited to speak on these matters. It is unfair to criticize them in the way that James Bishop has because they are no longer alive to defend themselves.

          Furthermore, there could have been other documents further supporting the description of the Canaanites found in the Old Testament that have since perished. We possess only a fraction of the literature produced from that time period. The destruction of documents over time means that much historical evidence has been lost, making it difficult to obtain a complete picture of ancient cultures.

          Therefore, while archaeological discoveries and external texts like the Ugaritic writings provide valuable insights, they should be considered alongside the biblical narrative rather than used to undermine it. The biblical authors, with their close temporal and cultural proximity to the events they describe, offer a perspective that remains crucial for understanding the ancient Canaanite world.