Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Deuteronomy 7:16
And thou shalt consume all the people which the LORD thy God shall deliver thee; thine eye shall have no pity upon them: neither shalt thou serve their gods; for that [will be] a snare unto thee.
16. consume ] Lit. eat up, a common figure, JE, Num 22:4.
shall deliver ] See on Deu 7:2.
The rest of the v. Steuern. takes as an addition, because the theme of Deu 7:12-16 is what Jehovah does; and this, a warning for Israel, breaks the course of the thought. But this is to impute too fine a logic to such a discursive writer.
thine eye shall not pity them ] Deu 13:8, Deu 19:13; Deu 19:21, Deu 25:12, all Sg.; elsewhere in Hex. only in the edit. passage, Gen 45:20, and with a different object, but common in Ezek., of God’s eye on the people, and also found in Jer. and other post-deuteronomic writings. Cp. Deu 7:2, thou shalt not pity them, with another vb.
neither shalt thou serve their gods snare unto thee ] Similarly in edit. Exo 23:33; Exo 34:12. See note on former.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Deu 7:16
Thou shalt consume all the people.
The destruction of the Canaanites
I. The destruction of the Canaanites was in conformity with the ordinary procedure of God in the moral government of the world. If He choose, in punishing sinners, to visit at one time with a flood of waters, at another with fire from heaven, at another with a deadly epidemic, at another with the scourge of war, who shall dare to question the propriety of His choice in the weapons of destruction?
II. The destruction of the Canaanites was in punishment of sin and as such was just towards themselves. The vilest practices were rife among the people. Their very religion was a system of sorcery, sensuality, and depravity. The traces of ancient Syrian worship exhibit the vilest features of pagan idolatry. Their very gods were demons (Psa 106:37). Human sacrifices were offered at their shrines. The grossest abominations were practised in their orgies. If such, then, was the light, what would the darkness be? In other words, if this was the religion of the country, what would the vices of the people be?
III. The destruction of the Canaanites was a spiritual safeguard to the Israelites. We are tempted to ask whether it was well that the Israelites should be made the executioners of Gods wrath upon their brother man. Would they not be tempted to lose sight of their subordination to Gods purpose, and to take up the cause with feelings of proper fanaticism? Again, would not the part to which they were called tend to foster in them cruelty and recklessness of human life? On the contrary, we find that the snare of the Israelites lay in the opposite direction, and that they were ever more ready to spare than to slay. No token appears of any tendency to rapacity or violence having been impressed upon the national mind, while the salutary lessons that were thus taught them are apparent. In no way could the Israelites have been so forcibly convinced of the hatefulness of idolatry and impurity as when they themselves were made Gods ministers of vengeance against the crying evils. They were thus made witnesses against themselves should they ever adopt like abominations.
IV. The destruction of the Canaanites was necessary for the moral preservation of the world. Clearly it was an act of mercy to the little children of the Canaanites, who were cut off before they knew between good and evil. To the Israelites the extirpation of these nations was an act of mercy. Even crippled and curtailed as the Canaanites were, their influence for evil was too strong; but had they remained in larger bodies, and especially had the women been spared, piety would soon have become unknown among the people of God. But if the destruction of the Canaanites was an act of mercy to Israel, and necessary for their spiritual safely, it follows that it was not less a mercy to the whole world, and necessary for the preservation of the spiritual life of the entire family of mankind. The Church of the present day is but the continuation of the Church of the wilderness. Had that been destroyed, the materials of which the Saviour at His coming built the Church of the New Testament would not have been in existence. The impediments in the way of the Gospel would have been tenfold. To the present day the early ruin of the faith of Gods people which would have resulted from the general toleration of the Canaanites would have borne its bitter fruits.
V. The destruction of the Canaanites has a deep symbolical and practical lesson for us all. God changes not; the same principles direct His dealings now as then. The flesh must be mortified and subdued. See Jesus, our Joshua, stretches forth the spear. He commands the conflict; onward, then, and conquer. (G. W. Butler, M. A.)
The Christian failure and its reasons
Though the Israelites have passed out of Egypt and beyond the Red Sea and through the wilderness, they have not passed beyond the domain of struggle and duty; they must go on to possess the land. In its southeastern border dwell the Moabites; north of them are the Amorites, strongly intrenched; above them the Hittites; on the west side, beyond the Jordan, are the Anakim; above these, a mighty nation, the Canaanites; near them the Perizzites, etc.
I. The thing to be done. Too much is our Christianity over-anxious about its beginnings and too careless about its subsequent growth and reach. We are all the time seeking just to get people out of Egypt, we are all the time too unconcerned as to whether these people go on to conquer Canaan for the Lord. Having come to Jesus, the reign of Jesus is to be extended inwardly over the entire soul, outwardly over the entire life. Canaan reached was not Canaan conquered. The converted man is not yet a sanctified man. Evil pride, vanity, jealousy, covetousness, passionateness, discontent, bad habits, etc.
Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites enough are yet resident in even the converted soul.
II. The force by which this conquest is to be accomplished. And thou shalt consume all the people which the Lord thy God shall deliver thee. The soul and God–these are the forces of conflict.
III. Some reasons for the Christian failure.
1. Ceasing of battle. After a while some of the Israelites stopped struggling against the aliens.
2. Fear. These Israelites would not struggle against certain of the aliens, because they had chariots of iron. So some bad habit frightens a Christian from struggle.
3. Success of a sort. And it came to pass when Israel was strong they put the Canaanites to tribute, and did not utterly drive them out. Many a man, professedly Christian, dares not attempt to be the Christian he knows he ought to be because, successful in worldly affairs, his worldly interests will not let him. So he salves his conscience by putting his questionable gain under tribute; gives it, or a portion of it, in charity, etc.
IV. Result. Will be a snare unto thee. Was their failure not a snare? Call to mind the history of the Israelites, the destruction of the ten tribes. The only proof of a real Christianity is a continually advancing self-conquest. (Homiletic Review.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
An occasion of sin and utter destruction. See Exo 23:33; 34:12; Jdg 2:3.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
11-26. Thou shalt therefore keep thecommandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which I commandthee this dayIn the covenant into which God entered withIsrael, He promised to bestow upon them a variety of blessings solong as they continued obedient to Him as their heavenly King. Hepledged His veracity that His infinite perfections would be exertedfor this purpose, as well as for delivering them from every evil towhich, as a people, they would be exposed. That people accordinglywere truly happy as a nation, and found every promise which thefaithful God made to them amply fulfilled, so long as they adhered tothat obedience which was required of them. See a beautifulillustration of this in Ps144:12-15.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And thou shall consume all the people which the Lord thy God shall deliver thee,…. All the inhabitants of the land of Canaan, which the Lord should deliver into their hands; them they were not to spare, but utterly destroy men, women, and children:
thine eye shall have no pity upon them; [See comments on De 7:2],
neither shall thou serve their gods, for that will be a snare unto thee; which will bring into utter ruin and destruction; see
Ex 23:33.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Verses 16-21:
The nations in the Land of Canaan were powerful and warlike. But as mighty as they were, Israel was not to fear them. God promised to be with Israel in the conquest of Canaan as in the deliverance from Egypt.
“Consume,” akal, “eat, devour.” This implies that Israel would gain strength from the conquest of the inhabitants of the Land. But if they failed to consume them as one consumes food, these nations would become a snare or a trap to them.
“Temptations,” massah, “trials, testings.” The thought of enticement to sin is incidental.
“Signs,” oth, also translated “token, miracle,” see Exo 4:8; Exo 4:18.
“Wonder,” mopheth, “miracle,” see Exo 4:21; Exo 7:3.
“Mighty hand,” yad chazaq, “strong, hard hand.”
“Stretched out arm,” zeroa natah, “inclined arm.”
These two latter terms denote the strength and power extended on behalf of Israel. This same power would be mighty against those nations of whom Israel was afraid.
“Hornet,” see Exo 23:28. History records instance of armies being forced to retreat before swarms of attacking insects. The Roman army under Julian was forced to change its route in the retreat from Parthia, because of great swarms of flies and gnats. The God who made the hornets could easily direct them to attack the foes of His people.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
16. And thou shalt consume all the people. It is plain from the second part of the verse wherefore He commands the people of Canaan to be destroyed, when He forbids their gods to be worshipped. This precept, therefore, corresponds with the others, where He dooms in like manner these nations to utter destruction. I now pass over what I have explained elsewhere, i.e., that the vengeance which God exercised against these obstinate and ten-times lost people cannot be ascribed to cruelty. For since 400 years ago it had been said to Abraham that their iniquity was not yet full, they could not be treated with severity equal to their deserts, when they had so licentiously and wickedly abused God’s long-suffering. But we must take notice of God’s design in so particularly enjoining on the Israelites utterly to destroy whatever should be found there; for besides that He had once doomed them all to the destruction they merited, He would have the land also, in which His name was to be invoked, purged from all pollutions. Now, if any of the old inhabitants had survived, they would soon have endeavored to revive their corruptions, and since the Israelites were otherwise more disposed than enough to superstition, they would easily have been attracted to the worship of idols. This, then, is the reason why God forbids them to shew these people any humanity or clemency, as I have reminded you to be clear from the context; for these things stand in connection, that they should not spare the nations nor worship their gods. The reason which is subjoined, “for it will be a snare or stumblingblock to you,” must be extended to the whole context, viz., that it would be fatal to the Jews if they should spare the nations which would allure them to impiety.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
b. DIFFICULTIES OF THE HOLY WAR (Deu. 7:17-26)
17 If thou shalt say in thy heart, These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them? 18 thou shalt not be afraid of them: thou shalt well remember what Jehovah thy God did unto Pharaoh, and unto all Egypt; 19 the great trials which thine eyes saw, and the signs, and the wonders, and the mighty hand, and the outstretched arm, whereby Jehovah thy God brought thee out: so shall Jehovah thy God do unto all the peoples of whom thou art afraid. 20 Moreover Jehovah thy God will send the hornet among them, until they that are left, and hide themselves, perish from before thee. 21 Thou shalt not be affrighted at them; for Jehovah thy God is in the midst of thee, a great God and a terrible. 22 And Jehovah thy God will cast out those nations before thee by little and little: thou mayest not consume them at once, lest the beast of the field increase upon thee. 23 But Jehovah thy God will deliver them up before thee, and will discomfit them with a great discomfiture, until they be destroyed. And he will deliver their kinds into thy hand, and thou shalt make their name to perish from under heaven: there shall no man be able to stand before thee, until thou have destroyed them. 25 The graven images of their gods shall ye burn with fire; thou shalt not covet the silver or the gold that is on them, nor take it unto thee, lest thou be snared therein; for it is an abomination to Jehovah thy God. 26 And thou shalt not bring an abomination into thy house, and become a devoted thing like unto it: thou shalt utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it; for it is a devoted thing.
THOUGHT QUESTIONS 7:1726
167.
The conquest of Canaan has no lesson for us if we have no conquest of self or sin or need to which we can make application. Please make application!
168.
Memory has a great power when used right, how?
169.
Are we to understand that God used literal hornets in aiding Israel? Discuss.
170.
In what sense was God to be considered terrible?
171.
Explain in your own words Deu. 7:22.
172.
There can be no neutral ground. There can be no moderation with sin. detect, utterly abhor, why is this true? What is a snare?
AMPLIFIED TRANSLATION 7:1726
17 If you say in your [mind and] heart, These nations are more than I; how can I dispossess them?
18 You shall not be afraid of them, but remember (earnestly) what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh, and to all Egypt,
19 The great trials which your eyes saw, the signs, the wonders, the mighty hand, and the outstretched arm by which the Lord your God brought you out; so shall the Lord your God do to all the people of whom you are afraid.
20 Moreover the Lord your God will send the hornet among them, until those who are left and hide themselves from you are destroyed.
21 You shall not dread them; for the Lord your God is among you, a mighty and terrible God.
22 And the Lord your God will clear out those nations before you little by little; you may not consume them quickly, lest the beasts of the field increase among you.
23 But the Lord your God will give them over to you, and will confuse them with a mighty panic until they are destroyed.
24 And He will give their kings into your hand, and you shall make their name perish from under the heavens; there shall no man be able to stand before you, until you have destroyed them.
25 The graven images of their gods you shall burn with fire; you shall not desire the silver or gold that is on them, nor take it for yourself, lest you be ensnared by it; for it is an abomination to the Lord your God
26 Neither shall you bring an abomination (an idol) into your house, lest you become an accursed thing like it; but you shall utterly detest and abhor it, for it is an accursed thing.
COMMENT 7:1726
Note that we have here:
(1)
The apparent superiority of the foe (Deu. 7:17-21)
(2)
The gradual nature of the conquest (Deu. 7:22)
(3)
The rewards and demands of faithfulness (Deu. 7:20-21; Deu. 7:23-26)
The foe was far superior in both numbers and physical equipment. But Jehovah, the Lord of hosts was with Israel! And he demanded one great basic quality of his peopleconfidence in his abilityunbounded faith!
IF THOU SHALT SAY IN THY HEART, THESE NATIONS ARE MORE THAN I (Deu. 7:17)The very attitude that had kept them out of the promised land before (Deu. 1:26-33, Num. 13:32 to Num. 14:4)
HOW CAN I DISPOSSESS THEM? (Deu. 7:17)One cannot read these lines without thinking of the many impossible and apparently insurmountable difficulties that sometimes face the people of God today. And doubtfully the question is asked, How can I do it? How can I overcome it? The answer is, YOU cant! But God is able. This does not mean idly sitting back and supposing that all will work out. But it does mean simply doing what we can in the Lords work, with a child-like faith in our Master, knowing that we labor for him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us (Eph. 3:20).
THOU SHALT WELL REMEMBER WHAT JEHOVAH THY GOD DID UNTO PHAROAH, AND UNTO ALL EGYPT (Deu. 7:18)Nothing is more helpful for the child of God, when anticipating the future with its difficulties and impossibilities, than to reflect upon what God has done for his children in the past. As he has done, so will he do! See Deu. 4:32-39.
JEHOVAH . . . WILL SEND THE HORNET AMONG THEM (Deu. 7:20)The Hebrew word for hornet or wasp (tsirah) is used only two other times in the Old Testament. Youngs literal translation has locust. And I will send the hornet before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite from before thee (Exo. 23:28). And God could say through Joshua, about twenty-five years later, And I sent the hornet before you which drove them out from before you, even the two kings of the Amorites [Sihon and Og? (Deu. 3:7; Deu. 4:47), or two of the Amorite kings mentioned in Joshua 10?]; not with thy sword, nor with thy bow (Jos. 24:12).
I take these verses all literally, believing that God actually did employ wasps or hornets to assist Israel in battle. Why couldnt he? I reject, then, such figurative renderings for hornet (tsirah) as leprosy (Smith-Goodspeed), a plague (The Torah), raiders (Lamsa), depression, discouragement (Baumgartner). Gesenius, while admitting that hornet is the rendering which accords with the ancient versions and the Hebrew, states that it seems hardly capable of being literally understood and says here it is to be understood metaphorically as designating ills and calamities of various kinds. The common versions (A.V., A.S.V., R.S.V.) as well as Berkely, Rotherham, Moffatt, and The Amplified Old Testament, consistently translate hornet however, and the other renderings seems to be more interpretation than translation. (The non-literal idea is perhaps best explained in the note adapted from Lange in the Amplified O.T. . . . the hornet with the article, meaning collective as a species or kind, is thus evidently to be understood, as Deu. 2:25, of the terrors of God which should go before Israel, with which also Jos. 24:12 and Psa. 44:2 fully agree.)
JEHOVAH . . . WILL CAST OUT THOSE NATIONS BEFORE THEE BY LITTLE AND LITTLEIn fact, they were forbidden to cast them all out at once, LEST THE BEASTS OF THE FIELD INCREASE UPON THEE (Deu. 7:22)That is, they were not to be driven out in one year, lest the land before desolate, and the beasts of the field multiply against thee (See Exo. 23:29-30). A number of years would be needed before the Israelites themselves were sufficiently numerous to fill the whole land occupied by the seven nations mentioned in Deu. 7:1 and especially the even broader borders outlined in the promised landDeu. 1:7, Deu. 1:24.
THOU SHALT NOT COVET THE SILVER OR THE GOLD THAT IS ON THEM [idols or images]) NOR TAKE IT UNTO THEE, LEST THOU BE SNARED THEREIN (Deu. 7:25)Some of the ancient idols were plated over with gold, and God saw that the value of the metal and the excellence of the workmanship might be an inducement for the Israelites to preserve them; and this might lead, remotely at least, to idolatry. As the idols were accursed, all those who had them, or any thing appertaining to them, were accursed also, Deu. 7:26. (Clarke)
There are moral and spiritual implications here that are for our learning. The very gold and silver on the idols was to be burned with fire. No part of the idol was to be coveted, let alone taken! There was always the temptation that they would be snared therein (Cf. also Deu. 7:16). Similarly the Lord would have every Christian destroy and obliterate every vestige of sin in his life. Jesus taught us to pray, And bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one (Mat. 6:13). Paul taught, But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof (Rom. 13:14).
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(16) Thou shalt consume (literally, eat up) all the people which the Lord thy God shall deliver thee.When delivered to Israel, they are delivered for execution; but the time of delivery is in the hand of Jehovah. (Comp. the words of Caleb and Joshua in Num. 14:9 : They are bread for us: their shadow is departed from them, and the Lord is with us.)
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
They Must Thoroughly Cleanse The Land of Both Its Peoples and Its Idolatry, And He Himself Will Be With Them To Enable Them To Do It ( Deu 7:16-26 ).
This reference to their enemies who hate them leads back to the subject of the destruction of their enemies in the land. The land must be thoroughly cleansed of them. And they need not be afraid of them because Yahweh Himself will be with them to deliver them.
(In this passage it is ‘thou’ (the nation as a whole) all the way through except once in Deu 7:25).
Analysis in the words of Moses:
a You shall consume all the peoples whom Yahweh your God shall deliver to you. Your eye shall not pity them, nor shall you serve their gods, for that will be a snare to you (Deu 7:16).
b If you shall say in your heart, “These nations are more than I. How can I dispossess them? You shall not be afraid of them (Deu 7:17-18 a).
c You will well remember what Yahweh your God did to Pharaoh, and to all Egypt, the great trials which your eyes saw, and the signs, and the wonders, and the mighty hand, and the outstretched arm, by which Yahweh your God brought you out. So shall Yahweh your God do to all the peoples of whom you are afraid (Deu 7:18-19).
d Moreover Yahweh your God will send the hornet among them, until those who are left, and hide themselves, perish from before you (Deu 7:20).
e You shall not be frightened at them (Deu 7:21 a)
e For Yahweh your God is in the midst of you, a great God and a terrible (Deu 7:21 b).
d Yahweh your God will cast out those nations before you by little and little. You may not consume them at once, lest the beasts of the field increase upon you (Deu 7:22).
c But Yahweh your God will deliver them up before you, and will discomfit them with a great discomfiture, until they are destroyed (Deu 7:23).
b He will deliver their kings into your hand, and you shall make their name to perish from under heaven. There shall no man be able to stand before you, until you have destroyed them (Deu 7:24).
a The graven images of their gods you (ye) shall burn with fire. You (thou) shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them, nor take it to you, lest you be snared in it, for it is an abomination to Yahweh your God and you shall not bring an abomination into your house, and become a devoted thing like it. You shall utterly detest it, and you shall utterly abhor it, for it is a devoted thing (Deu 7:25-26).
Note that in ‘a’ they were to consume all the peoples whom Yahweh their God delivered to them without pity (because they had been ‘devoted’ to Yahweh), nor were they to serve their gods, for that would be a snare to them, and in the parallel it is stressed that they are to destroy those gods in the form of graven images and not bring ‘devoted’ things which are an abomination into their houses otherwise they too would become ‘devoted’ to Yahweh because they had turned to idolatry (‘devoted’ means ‘devoted to destruction). In ‘b’ they begin to fear in their hearts saying, “These nations are more than I. How can I dispossess them?” But they are not to be afraid of them, for in the parallel He will deliver their kings into their hand, and they will thus make their name perish from under heaven. No man will be able to stand before them until they have destroyed them. In ‘c’ they are to well remember what Yahweh their God did to Pharaoh, and to all Egypt, and recognise that so would Yahweh their God do to all the peoples of whom they were afraid, and in the parallel they are to be sure that Yahweh their God will deliver them up before them, and will discomfit them with a great discomfiture, until they are destroyed. In ‘d’ Yahweh their God will send the hornet among them, until those who are left, and hide themselves, perish from before them, while in the parallel, while in the parallel Yahweh their God will cast out those nations before them little by little. They may not consume them at once, lest wild beasts increase in their vicinity. In ‘e’ they are not to be frightened at them, for in the parallel Yahweh their God is in the midst of them, a great God and a terrible.
Deu 7:16
‘ And you shall consume all the peoples whom Yahweh your God shall deliver to you. Your eye shall not pity them, nor shall you serve their gods, for that will be a snare to you.’
He repeats again the command in verses 2-4, which will further be repeated in Deu 7:22-26. All this repetition is in order to drive it deep into their heads and hearts so that it becomes second nature to them (which sadly for their future it did not). Positive living was to be accompanied by a resolute turning from sin. They were to consume all the peoples whom Yahweh delivered up to them. They were not to spare them. They were not to have compassion on them. Nor were they to spare their gods. For this was Yahweh’s land, and only what was responsive to Him could be allowed to live there. If they failed in all this it would be a snare to them, a trap that would entice them to their own destruction. It is this that is one of the basic themes of the chapter, with Yahweh’s choice of Israel, and His promise to fight on their behalf being the supports and encouragements which make it both the divine will and possible of fulfilment. For if they failed in this the dream would collapse. Unless the land was purged the blessed future would not be capable of fulfilment. Sin must be fully dealt with if righteousness is to prosper.
There is the warning here that we too should continually search our hearts in order to ensure that no idol has possessed them and limited our love for Christ. It is true of us also that if sin is not dealt with, righteousness will not prosper. If it was so important that the land should be cleansed from all that was corrupt, how much more important is it for us that we too should remove from our lives all that corrupts. It is not enough to be positive. We must also root out all that is negative.
Deu 7:17-19
‘ If you shall say in your heart, “These nations are more than I. How can I dispossess them? You shall not be afraid of them. You shall well remember what Yahweh your God did to Pharaoh, and to all Egypt, the great trials which your eyes saw, and the signs, and the wonders, and the mighty hand, and the outstretched arm, by which Yahweh your God brought you out. So shall Yahweh your God do to all the peoples of whom you are afraid.’
He now makes allowance for their possible fears, for he is aware of their weaknesses that so often reveal themselves. He acknowledges that they might well begin to fear, and ask how they can hope to cope with peoples more numerous than themselves, and better armed. But he assures them that it is not a problem. They are not to be afraid. They are to remember what Yahweh did in Egypt to Pharaoh and to all Egypt, and the great trials and tests that their eyes saw, for Yahweh tried Pharaoh until Pharaoh broke and gave way. And they are to remember the signs and wonders, and the mighty hand and outstretched arm (also working through Moses’ outstretched arm), Yahweh’s arm laid bare, by all of which Yahweh brought them out of Egypt. So will He do to all who oppose them, and all the people whom they have to meet, and of whom they are afraid.
Deu 7:20
‘ Moreover Yahweh your God will send the hornet among them, until those who are left, and hide themselves, perish from before you.’
For Yahweh will fight for them. He will send on their enemies all kinds of catastrophes, natural and otherwise, like the descent of hornets on unsuspecting people (compare Exo 23:28; Jos 24:12). It is possible that ‘send the hornet’ was a saying which signified promised catastrophe. Nothing was more fearful than a swarm of hornets. The result would be that those who were left would hide themselves, but it would do them no good. Their enemies would perish from before them. This promise was important. The point was that Yahweh had all kinds of ‘secret weapons’ that He could release which were not the normal weapons of warfare.
“Hornet” (tsi‘rah). The word only occurs here, and in Exo 23:28 and Jos 24:12. Some would translate as ‘depression, discouragement’ but a more positive foe appears to be in mind. It comes from the root word which means being ‘struck with a skin disease’. Hornets viciously attack the skin. This promise may have been in mind in Rev 9:1-11.
But the context may suggest that the description has the Angel of Yahweh in mind, pictured in terms of the fearsome hornet, swarming down on the enemy and causing them to flee in terror. The Israelite attacks in all quarters may well have seemed like swarms of hornets, coming from nowhere and buzzing round their cities and towns. Compare how the Amorites had come down on their fathers like bees (Deu 1:44).
All knew, or had heard and been warned, of what happened when a swarm of hornets descended. Woe betide whatever was beneath. The bravest of armies would desperately run for cover before such a foe, for there was no fighting them. Then they would cower and hope that they did not select them as their target. All they could do was run, and hide, and hope, and seek to cover themselves, while aware that the hornets would seek many of them out. (Compare Deu 1:44, but there they were only bees, here they are hornets). So would God use His own weapons as though they were hornets, to seek out their enemies. The hornet in mind may even have been of thoughts buzzing in the mind which frightened their foes to death (compare Deu 2:25; Deu 11:25; Exo 15:14-16; Exo 23:27).
Deu 7:21
‘ You shall not be frightened at them, for Yahweh your God is in the midst of you, a great God and a terrible.’
If their foe seemed terrible, let them consider their great and terrible God, the One from Whom they had withdrawn when the covenant was given (Deu 5:5; Deu 5:25). There will be no need then to be frightened, for their great and terrible God Who is among them would come and give them victory, in the same way as He had revealed His greatness and His terribleness in Egypt.
Deu 7:22
‘ And Yahweh your God will cast out those nations before you by little and little. You may not consume them at once, lest the beasts of the field increase upon you.’
Yahweh is not unaware of the problems before them. He will certainly cast out the nations from before them. But He will not destroy these nations all at once. He will do it little by little. This is so that the land may not become unoccupied, and thus be taken over by a multitude of wild beasts. While initially the first thrust would be devastating, settlement of the whole land would take considerably longer, as the book of Joshua makes apparent. It could not just happen overnight. Settlement took time and effort. Of course, His people were not intended during this process to live among the Canaanites. Once they occupied each area of land, where ‘their feet stepped’, it had to be cleared of Canaanites. But it would take time. Meanwhile Canaanites would be allowed to live where Israel had not yet settled (but not, of course, associated with – Deu 7:1-5).
Thus God even had a purpose in delaying the driving out of the Canaanites. This question is a complicated one. The delay was partly due to lethargy, disobedience and unbelief. But God turned it also to good purposes. It would teach them war (Jdg 3:2), it would test whether they were willing to obey His commandments (Jdg 3:4), and as here it would keep the land in good condition until they possessed it. And we must remember that Canaan was not just all open country. It was not easy to settle. The settling of a land like Canaan with its forests, and mountains, and plains and multiplicity of cities would take a great deal of effort and time. Israel had to learn how to live there gradually. Doing too much too soon would have been fatal.
Why then did God not simply keep the wild beasts out? Had not Lev 26:6 said that He would remove savage beasts from the land? One answer is that He tends not to interfere in the workings of nature where it is not necessary. Men learn from facing the problems of life. Too easy a settlement would have led to sin all the quicker. And besides the land would not stay still. Even without wild beasts it would become overgrown and return to the wild. But as with the Canaanites, he would remove savage beasts from the land gradually. And their arrival in too large numbers was meanwhile being hindered by the presence of the Canaanites. he was not giving them a wild and barren land, but a cultivated one and one good to live in.
Deu 7:23
‘ But Yahweh your God will deliver them up before you, and will discomfit them with a great discomfiture, until they are destroyed.’
Nevertheless in the end He would deliver all their enemies up to them. He would discomfit them with great discomfiture until they were destroyed. He would ensure the eradication of evil from the land as long as they remained faithful.
Deu 7:24
‘ And he will deliver their kings into your hand, and you shall make their name to perish from under heaven. There shall no man be able to stand before you, until you have destroyed them.’
Their kings would be able to do nothing about it. They might seem to Israel to be important and powerful but before Yahweh they would be helpless. They would be delivered into their hands. And their names would perish and be forgotten in the world of their day. ‘From under heaven’ simply means ‘from the world’. None would be able to stand against Israel, until all were destroyed. It is difficult to see how God could have made it more clear that while He was fighting for them they would be invincible.
Deu 7:25
‘ The graven images of their gods you (ye) shall burn with fire. You (thou) shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them, nor take it to you, lest you be snared in it, for it is an abomination to Yahweh your God.’
But in receiving all this help they must remember His instructions. They were to burn their graven images with fire, totally and completely. They were not to look at the silver and gold on them, or covet it, or seek to take it for themselves. For it could become a snare to them as they remembered where it came from. And it was an abomination to Yahweh. The idea of idolatry as an abomination is constant in Scripture, as is Yahweh’s abomination of anything that keeps us from Him.
We too must remember that gold and silver might seem desirable, but if it comes at the cost of our love for God or makes us compromise it is too costly.
Deu 7:26
‘ And you shall not bring an abomination into your house, and become a devoted thing like it. You shall utterly detest it, and you shall utterly abhor it, for it is a devoted thing.’
Thus they must not bring such an abomination into their residences. It was devoted to destruction. And were they to do so let them recognise that they might themselves become a ‘devoted’ thing, themselves being devoted to destruction, because they had taken what was ‘devoted to Yahweh’ (see Joshua 7) into their residence. Rather they were to detest and abhor any such thing. Here we are reminded that as with holiness the contact with a ‘devoted’ thing can cause the contacter to be ‘devoted’ to destruction.
If only we would take these severe instructions to heart we might be more severe with sin in our own lives. It reminds us that sin must not be tolerated. It has to be rooted out. It has to be driven out. It has to be destroyed. Whenever we see anything in our lives that is interfering with His pre-eminence in our hearts we must not spare it. We must rid ourselves of it completely. Only then can Christ reign truly in our lives.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
shalt consume. This command never fully obeyed. Compare Ezr 9:1, and see Exo 23:24, Exo 23:32; Exo 34:12-17.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
consume: Deu 7:2
thine eye: Deu 13:8, Deu 19:13, Deu 19:21, Deu 25:12, Jer 21:7
for that will: Deu 12:30, Deu 12:31, Exo 23:33, Exo 34:12-16, Num 33:55, Jos 23:13-16, Jdg 2:3, Jdg 2:12, Jdg 3:6, Jdg 8:27, Psa 106:36, 1Co 15:33
Reciprocal: Gen 45:20 – regard not Exo 23:32 – nor with Deu 9:3 – he shall Deu 13:15 – destroying it utterly Deu 20:16 – General Deu 31:4 – General Jos 6:21 – utterly Jos 10:28 – them Jos 11:6 – horses Jdg 2:2 – And ye shall 1Sa 7:14 – peace 2Sa 21:2 – in his zeal Psa 106:34 – concerning
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
7:16 And thou shalt consume all the people which the LORD thy God shall deliver thee; {g} thine eye shall have no pity upon them: neither shalt thou serve their gods; for that [will be] a snare unto thee.
(g) We should not be merciful when God commands severity.