The Canaanite nations were to be utterly destroyed because of their extreme wickedness and to prevent Israel from being led into idolatry and sin. God’s command to destroy them was not arbitrary or cruel, it was an act of judgment upon nations that had filled their measure of iniquity and a safeguard to preserve Israel’s holiness.
“But of the cities of these peoples which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance, you shall let nothing that breathes remain alive, but you shall utterly destroy them… that they may not teach you to do according to all their abominations which they have done for their gods, and you sin against the Lord your God.” (Deuteronomy 20:16–18)
The Canaanites were known for practices such as child sacrifice, cult prostitution, and sorcery. These abominations defiled the land and provoked God’s wrath. Israel was not chosen because of its own righteousness but because God was using them to execute judgment.
“It is not because of your righteousness… but because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God drives them out from before you.” (Deuteronomy 9:5)
God’s command was not about race or conquest, it was about removing a spiritual cancer that would otherwise corrupt His people. Any compromise with the Canaanites would result in apostasy and destruction. Therefore, complete removal was necessary to establish a pure foundation for life in the Promised Land and to fulfill God’s ultimate plan of salvation.
