Deuteronomy 7:2-4
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
This command isn't just about conquest; it highlights a crucial, often overlooked detail: "when the LORD your God gives them over to you." This emphasizes that Israel's victory and the harsh measures that followed were entirely dependent on God's direct action and permission, not on their own strength or initiative.
and when the LORD your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them. You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods. Then the anger of the LORD would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Israel is poised to enter the promised land and conquer its inhabitants. God commands them to completely destroy these nations, forbidding any treaties or shows of mercy. This is presented as a divine judgment on their wickedness, meant to protect Israel from corruption and secure their inheritance.
The command to utterly destroy entire nations sounds harsh, even cruel. What's going on here?
A Just Judgment, Not Random Cruelty
It's easy to read this command and feel a sting of discomfort. But the text grounds this severe judgment in God's justice against deep-seated sin.
The command to 'utterly destroy' (Hebrew: herem) meant they were devoted to God for destruction, essentially setting them apart for judgment.
Why was Israel forbidden to make any treaties or show mercy to these specific groups?
Preserving Purity Through Separation
The command to 'make no covenant with them and show no mercy' is a direct consequence of their devoted status.
Ask a follow-up
The intention was not for Israel to become inhumane, but to be fiercely protective of their covenant relationship with the Lord.
Understand the original words
berit · Hebrew Noun
A formal, binding agreement between two parties, often involving promises, obligations, and consequences, frequently used in Scripture to describe God's relationship with His people.
charam · Hebrew Verb
A specialized Hebrew term (cherem) referring to something set apart exclusively for God, often implying total destruction or dedication to judgment, ensuring the purity of Israel from idolatrous influence.
aph · Hebrew Noun
The emotional, righteous response of God to sin, rebellion, or covenant-breaking; it is not a volatile human emotion but a settled, holy opposition to evil that protects His glory.
This passage describes the complete destruction of Jericho, echoing Deuteronomy 7:2's command for utter devastation and the prohibition of making any covenants with the enemy.
1 Samuel 15:3This verse shows Saul's failure to follow God's command for complete destruction, highlighting the severe consequences of showing mercy and making agreements with those God has judged, directly paralleling the prohibition in Deuteronomy 7:2.
Leviticus 18:24-28This passage explains *why* these nations were to be destroyed, stating that their detestable practices defiled the land, justifying the severity of the command in Deuteronomy 7:2 and showing it was a matter of preserving the land's purity.
Exodus 23:32-33This verse directly prohibits making covenants or showing mercy to the inhabitants of the land, reinforcing the same strong command found in Deuteronomy 7:2 and explaining that they would become a snare to Israel.
calvinDeuteronomy 7:1-4: "When the LORD thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou;"
- When the LORD thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and…
clarkeDeuteronomy 7:2: "And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:"
Thou shalt smite them, etc. - These idolatrous nations were to be utterly destroyed, and all the others also which were contiguous to the boundaries of the promised land, provided they did not renounce their idolatry and receive the true faith: for if they did not, then no covenant was to be made with them…
This command isn't just about conquest; it highlights a crucial, often overlooked detail: "when the LORD your God gives them over to you." This emphasizes that Israel's victory and the harsh measures that followed were entirely dependent on God's direct action and permission, not on their own strength or initiative.
Israel is poised to enter the promised land and conquer its inhabitants. God commands them to completely destroy these nations, forbidding any treaties or shows of mercy. This is presented as a divine judgment on their wickedness, meant to protect Israel from corruption and secure their inheritance.
Israel is poised to enter the promised land and conquer its inhabitants. God commands them to completely destroy these nations, forbidding any treaties or shows of mercy. This is presented as a divine judgment on their wickedness, meant to protect Israel from corruption and secure their inheritance.
"and when the LORD your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them, then you must devote them to complete destruction. You shall make no covenant with them and show no mercy to them. You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daug…" — This command isn't just about conquest; it highlights a crucial, often overlooked detail: "when the LORD your God gives them over to you." This emphasizes that Israel's victory and the harsh measur…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026
