Devoted to Destruction
In the Hebrew Bible, the directives for Israel’s taking of the land of Canaan are not found in a single manual or battle code, but are woven into a long narrative stretching from the wilderness traditions through the conquest stories and later theological reflections. These passages combine promise, command, warning, and interpretation, and they are framed as acts of covenant obedience rather than simple military expansion.
The story begins with the promise of land to the ancestors. In Genesis, God promises Abraham and his descendants a land already inhabited by other peoples. At this stage, however, there is no command to seize it by force. Instead, the text stresses patience and divine timing. In Genesis 15, God tells Abraham that his descendants will not take possession until “the iniquity of the Amorites is complete,” suggesting that the later conquest is understood as a form of divine judgment rather than ethnic aggression.
The explicit instructions appear most clearly in the books associated with Moses, especially Deuteronomy. As Israel stands on the edge of the land, Moses delivers speeches that interpret the coming conquest theologically. In Deuteronomy 7, Israel is commanded to “devote to destruction” the peoples of the land, listing groups such as the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, and others. The rationale given is not racial superiority or territorial ambition, but religious fidelity. The inhabitants are portrayed as practicing idolatry that would lead Israel away from exclusive loyalty to the LORD. The command to destroy altars, sacred poles, and idols is emphasized alongside the command to eliminate the peoples themselves, showing that the primary concern is the eradication of rival worship.
Deuteronomy 20 provides a more nuanced set of instructions. Cities outside the land may be offered terms of peace and subjected to forced labor if they surrender, but cities within the land promised to Israel are treated differently. For these, the text commands that “nothing that breathes” is to be left alive. Again, the explanation is theological: the danger is that these peoples would teach Israel to follow their gods and practices. The violence is framed as preventative, aimed at preserving covenant faithfulness.
The book of Joshua narrates the carrying out of these commands. The conquest stories, such as the destruction of Jericho in Joshua 6, explicitly describe the city being “devoted to the LORD,” with men, women, children, and animals killed, and valuables placed in the treasury of the sanctuary. The language used here reflects the concept of herem, or total dedication to God, which includes destruction. Other campaigns in Joshua are summarized in sweeping statements that entire regions were struck down and left without survivors, reinforcing the impression of complete obedience to the divine command.
At the same time, the narrative itself introduces tensions. Rahab and her family are spared at Jericho, and later groups such as the Gibeonites survive through deception and treaty. These episodes complicate the absolute language of destruction and show that mercy and incorporation are possible, even within the conquest framework.
The book of Judges then reflects on Israel’s failure to complete the conquest. Repeatedly, it states that Israel did not drive out certain peoples and instead lived among them. This failure is presented as the root cause of later religious compromise and social chaos. The theological lesson is clear: incomplete obedience leads to idolatry and judgment.
Later biblical books reinterpret these conquest traditions. Prophets often allude to the Canaanite practices to explain Israel’s own judgment. The same logic once applied to the inhabitants of the land is now turned against Israel itself when it adopts similar behaviors. This suggests that the conquest was never meant as a blanket endorsement of violence, but as a specific, time-bound act of divine judgment within a covenantal framework.
Taken together, the Hebrew Bible presents the taking of the Holy Land as a sacred drama rather than a military handbook. The commands to kill the inhabitants are grounded in theological concerns about holiness, idolatry, and covenant loyalty, and they are narrated as acts initiated and justified by God, not by human ambition. At the same time, the broader canon reflects on these events critically, using them to teach later generations about obedience, judgment, and the dangers of assimilating destructive religious practices.
What is the "Ban" in the Old Testament Bible?
The "ban" (herem) in the Old Testament is a divine command to completely destroy, or "devote" to God, enemy cities, people, and property, prohibiting the taking of spoil or prisoners. It was an act of judgment designed to eradicate idolatry and prevent Canaanite influence on Israel.
Key Aspects of the Ban:
The term appears roughly 30 times as a noun (cherem) and 50 times as a verb (charam), often signifying the total, irreversible destruction of a place or people.
Journeys in Transjordan - Deuteronomy 2
32 Sihon and all his forces came out to meet us in battle at Jahaz.33 But the Lord our God gave him to us. We struck him down, along with his sons, and all his forces.34 At that time, we captured all of Sihon’s cities, and we placed every town, men, women, and children, under the ban. We left no survivors. 35 The only things we kept for ourselves were the animals and the plunder from the towns we had taken.
The Destruction of Jerico – Joshua Chapter 6
1 Now Jericho was closed up tightly because of the Israelites. No one went out or came in. 2 The Lord said to Joshua, “Look. I have given Jericho and its king into your power, along with its mighty warriors. 3 Circle the city with all the soldiers, going around the city one time. Do this for six days. 4 Have seven priests carry seven trumpets made from rams’ horns in front of the chest. On the seventh day, circle the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets.
15 On the seventh day, they got up at dawn. They circled the city in this way seven times. It was only on that day that they circled the city seven times. 16 The seventh time, the priests blew the trumpets. Then Joshua said to the people, “Shout, because the Lord has given you the city! 17 The city and everything in it is to be utterly wiped out as something reserved for the Lord.
20 Then the people shouted. They blew the trumpets. As soon as the people heard the trumpet blast, they shouted a loud war cry. Then the wall collapsed. The people went up against the city, attacking straight ahead. They captured the city. 21 Without mercy, they wiped out everything in the city as something reserved for God, man and woman, young and old, cattle, sheep, and donkeys.
Devoted Things. Leviticus 27
28 Also note that everything someone devotes to the Lord from their possessions, whether humans, animals, or pieces of land from their family property, cannot be sold or bought back. Every devoted thing is most holy to the Lord.29 No human beings that have been devoted can be bought back; they must be executed.
Samuel Rejects Saul’s Kingship. 1st Samuel 15-3
3 So go! Attack the Amalekites; put everything that belongs to them under the ban. Spare no one. Kill men and women, children and infants, oxen and sheep, camels and donkeys.”