Deuteronomy 20:17 Meaning: Why Did God Command the Total Destruction of the Canaanites?

The Hebrew verb behind 'utterly destroy' is charam (H2763). It means to put something under the ban, to devote it to the Lord for total destruction. The verse actually uses a double form, hacharem tacharimem, which intensifies the force: 'you shall certainly utterly destroy.' This is not ordinary warfare. It is a sacred act of judgment, like the destruction of Jericho. The word for 'commanded' is tsavah (H6680), a strong word used of God giving an order that carries his full authority. Then the six nations are named: Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites. Each name represents a people group that had occupied the land for centuries, practicing child sacrifice, cult prostitution, and other practices that were an abomination to God. The severity of the command matches the severity of the corruption. Yet some Jewish traditions, as noted by commentators, held that if these peoples repented and fled or made peace, they could be spared. That is how Rahab and the Gibeonites survived.

Christians have read this verse in different ways. Some take it as a literal command that was fully carried out as described in Joshua. They see it as God's judgment on nations that had filled up their sin, and as a protection for Israel from idolatry. Others, like Adam Clarke (Methodist), argue that the command meant political annihilation, destroying the nations' identity as independent peoples, not necessarily killing every individual. He points to the survival of Rahab and the Gibeonites as evidence that the Israelites themselves did not understand it as total genocide. Still others, drawing on the Cambridge Bible commentary, see the principle that Israel was not to allow mercy where there was risk to the purity of their religion. This was a unique command for a specific time and place, not a pattern for all wars. All traditions agree that the command shows God's severe judgment on sin and his desire for a holy people.

A common mistake is to read this verse in isolation and conclude that God is cruel or bloodthirsty. In fact, the command must be understood in its full biblical context. These nations had practiced extreme evil, including child sacrifice and temple prostitution, for centuries. God had waited patiently (Genesis 15:16). The command was also limited: it applied only to these specific nations at this specific time, not to all enemies. And many Israelites did not interpret it as killing every person; some understood it as removing the nations' political and religious power, allowing individuals to flee or convert.

This verse asks you to take sin seriously, both the sin around you and the sin within you. The command to 'utterly destroy' was about removing anything that would lead God's people away from him. This week, consider the influences in your life that quietly pull your heart from God: a habit, a relationship, a persistent compromise. You are not called to destroy people, but you are called to ruthlessly remove whatever competes with your loyalty to Christ. It may be painful. But the alternative is worse. Let the severity of this command drive you to thankfulness for Jesus, who took the judgment we deserved so we could be made holy.