Writers Choice

Invasion of Canaan

[Name of the Writer]

[Name of the Institution]

After reading given material, an area that fascinated me the most is the event of invasion of Canaan. While reading the assigned readings, event of invasion of Canaan by Joshua grasped my attention as I realized that one should know more about history that how old civilizations and religious people were defined and explained in Bible and other scriptures. While going through the reading, I got an instinct that I should study more about this event to seek some teachings out of it by analyzing the reasons and background that why it took place. Though I know much about it, still I wanted to add more knowledge about this significant historical event as I have many questions in my mind related to this event.

It is being hypothesized that one of the difficult tasks is the explanation of conquest of Canaan by Joshua who led Israelites after the departure of Moses. There are many conflicting things that I found while studying this event. One of the main things that I cannot figure out even today is that how it has been claimed that God commanded, the Israelites to slaughter all creatures of Canaan. Every time, this question revolves around my mind that how God could give an immoral command. Even I have read many critics, who have raised some concern that being the creator of entire creature how God could be biased. It looks quite strange that God ordered one of his tribe to slaughter all the men, women and children of another tribe. In the Holy Bible, God has mentioned many times that we should forgive others and treat them kindly, so, how God could ask for killing other as it has been mentioned in Bible, that God love harmony. I think the doubts about this invasion are quite reasonable as God cannot be so cruel that He would want killing of any of His creature. There are many stories and conflicting ideas about this event that has been mentioned in the Book of Joshua, but I think if this had happened it was not the way as it has been described. So as a whole, I asserts that this is one of the events that always engage me whenever I go through Bible and holds my attention by incorporating the sense of keenness for investigating more and more. I could say that all religion specifically Christianity never promotes terror and bloodshed as it is the religion of peace and love.

“And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword” (Joshua 6:21)

This verse always raised a question about the generosity of God in my mind. As in the Bible, it has been mentioned that,

“Whoever takes a human life shall surely be put to death” (Leviticus 24:17)

End Notes

Berthelot, Katell. "4 The Torah Between Revelation and Concealment in Rabbinic Traditions Pertaining to the Conquest of the Land of Canaan." Sharing and Hiding Religious Knowledge in Early Judaism, Christianity, and Islam10 (2018): 85.

Dinger, Dennis. Studies in Joshua, Judges, & Ruth. Lulu. com, 2018.