Abram was promised land that belonged to other people at that time. This devotional reading looks at who those nations/people groups were.
We talked about how the covenant promised hinged on Abram having a son. Once he did, the promised blessings of the covenant was phenomenal.
Those promises centered around the land that the nation would occupy. There is just one little problem.
The land was already occupied — and by family. Let’s take a look at who these occupiers were.
Let's Put It into Context
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Devotions in the Abraham the Patriarch series
The Covenant Signed
“So the Lord made a covenant with Abram that day and said, ‘I have given this land to your descendants, all the way from the border of Egypt to the great Euphrates River” (Gen. 15: 18 NLT)
In God’s mind, the covenant is a done deal.
God came to Abram because he was struggling to wait. He couldn’t see how he was going to get to point B from where he was at point A.
God said, “Don’t worry. I’ve got this. In my mind, it has already been given to you.”
Why? God doesn’t change. He had given Abram a pledge. That pledge was in stone.
We have to look at the Hebrew here because something is lost in translation. “On that day Hashem cut a brit (covenant) with Avram, saying, Unto thy zera have I given ha’aretz hazot, from the Wadi of Mitzrayim unto the great river, the river Euphrates:” (Gen. 15: 18 OJB emphasis added).
The Hebrew word for cut is karat. What did Abram do to most of the animals? He cut them in half. That allowed the parties to pass through them, showing agreement and acceptance of the covenant.
But it is more than that. If the covenant was broken – one party did not do what was required – the other party could cut him in two!
So, God cut a covenant with Abram.
The covenant was kept for many years. Then, Israel broke it – and was cut into two nations.
The Canaanite Nations
“the land now occupied by the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites” (Gen. 15: 19-21 NLT)
Ownership of land was very important.
God was very specific in His description of the land He was giving Abram. Boundary lines were identified by shared borders with other countries and rivers. On top of that, in the next three verses, God lists the current occupants of the land.
The land wasn’t given to the Israelites because they were such a great nation with such wonderful people. He gave it to them because of the covenant made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Even when their descendants were filled with wickedness, the covenant was not broken.
Well, this list of countries has some thrown in that aren’t usually in a list like this..
Kenites
The Kenites lived in the region of Midian. Midian was a son of Abraham by Keturah (Gen. 25: 2). Later, they also lived in Palestine.
If they are identical to the Midianites, this may be prophecy. It is difficult to be the descendant of Abraham’s son Midian if Abram is still childless. Also, it could have been a name change.
A nomadic people, one of their descendants was Jethro the Kenite priest (also known as Reuel the Midianite), the father-in-law of Moses (Ex. 18: 1). It was Jethro’s suggestion to have Moses appoint a hierarchy system through which disputes that could not be handled within the hierarchy could then be funneled to Moses (Ex. 18: 13-26).
In my mind, it is logical that the Kenites would identical to the Midianites. Surely, there was some cultural connection if not being the ancestors of the Midianites.
Some also think that the was a connection to Cain. This, however, is not found in God’s Word. It is unlikely as Cain’s descendants would have been wiped out by the flood. If there were any who chose to follow the God of Adam, Eve, and Abel, they would have been on the ark.
The Kenite tribe assimilated into Israelite society, while continuing to live a nomadic lifestyle. They cohabited especially with the tribe of Judah (Jdgs. 1: 16) and, to a lesser extent, with Naphtali and Simeon, even intermarrying with them. They settled near Jericho before they moved south to the Negev (Jdgs. 1: 16; I Sam 27: 10).
One such marriage was Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite. She slayed the Canaanite general Sisera in the Book of Judges by driving a tent peg through his temple (Jdgs. 4: 11, 17-23).
The Kenites were known to influence the Israelites’ religious practices, as they were known to worship Yahweh. Some feel they were instrumental in developing monotheism in with the Israelites.
I can see this as Moses would have been influenced greatly by Jethro, whom he lived with 40 years after he had escaped Egypt (Ex. 2: 15; Ac. 7: 30). The again, I can’t.
Prior to going to Egypt, we are not told that the Patriarchs had difficulty with worshiping false gods. It was only after their time in Egypt did they do so. I think it may be more accurate to say that the Kenites helped them return to monotheism.
They were also skilled metalworkers and shepherds. Being metalworkers would tie them to Cain’s line (Gen. 4: 22).
The Kenites were mentioned in account of King Saul and King David. Saul warned the Kenites of the impending destruction of the Amalekites (I Sam. 15: 3-23). David also fought the Amalekites, sharing the spoils with the Kenites (I Sam. 30: 26-31).
The Rekabites/Rechabites were descended from the Kenites (I Chron. 2: 55).
Records are found of the Kenites until the time of the Assyrian captivity, which had been foretold in prophecy.
Since Joshua battled seven nations to win back the Promised Land, it is easy to think those listed in Genesis 15 had some connection to those seven nations. That is not always the case.
Kenizzites
Since Joshua battled seven nations to win back the Promised Land, it is easy to think those listed in Genesis 15 had some connection to those seven nations. That is not always the case.
The Kenizzites were a non-Canaanite people. Still, God told Abram that their land was included.
The tribe may have originated from the Edomite sheik Kenaz, possibly the grandson of Esau (Gen. 36: 11). This would make the inclusion in the list prophecy. Theen again, some reject this as prophecy of an independent people group.
It is believed that the origin of the tribe were some other nomadic or hunter group living in parts of Arabia. This would be around the southern borders of Canaan. Other feel it is closer to the Negev, placing it in Judah’s territory.
By the time the Israelites returned from Egypt, this group had been assimilated into another Canaanite group (Josh. 3: 10) Then, some think this integration came before or during the exodus from Egypt (Ex. 12: 37-38).
The most notable Kenizzite was Caleb, one of the two loyal spies (Num. 13: 16). Caleb was the son of Jephunnah the Kenizzite (Num. 32: 12; Josh. 14: 6). (This group did not descend from Caleb’s grandfather Kenaz.)
This seems to contradict Numbers 13: 6, as Caleb was listed as the spy representing the tribe of Judah. If the Kenizzites came from descendants of Esau, they would have to be grafted into the Israelite society, possibly into the tribe of Judah – making Caleb the first gentile that we know of to have been assimilated into God’s family.
Another possibility is that Kenaz was a descendant of Dinah. He also could have descended from Othniel, the first judge of Israel and nephew of Caleb (Jdgs. 1: 13). This would make Kenaz Caleb’s younger brother.
But then again, Caleb had a grandson named Kenaz (I Chron. 4: 15).
Kadmonites
Kadmonites were descendants of Shem that lived near the area of Mesopotamia. They have been described as the easterners because their land was in the north-east part of Palestine, east of the Jordan. It is possible that the term the easterners applied to a group of people, just as the Canaanites applied to the seven nations, not just the nation of Canaan.
It was to this land that Abraham sent his sons by Keturah (Gen. 25: 6).
Genesis 15: 19 is the only place is where the nomadic Kadmonites are mentioned. This is a list of nations whose lands would be transferred to Israel.
The usual lists contain God’s instructs who the Israelites were to conquer in the Promised Land. Those lists contain a limited number. “When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are about to enter and occupy, he will clear away many nations ahead of you: the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. These seven nations are greater and more numerous than you” (Deut. 7: 1 NLT). Some resources I read felt it was understood that we should read the names of those nations in every list.
It sounds like the reasons only those are listed is because they were more numerous than the Israelites. That infers that the Kenites, Kenizzites, and Kadmonites were smaller nations than Israel.
If so, they would be on the list that God told Israel not to make treaties with them. Even though descendants of Shem would be fighting descendants of Shem, that would have made them ones that would not have treaties.
I’m sure that those not listed in the usual list of seven nations followed the plan that God had for them. We didn’t need to know anything else about them.
Hittites
Well, whether they were well known or little know depends on who is writing the artidle.
Little is known about the Hittites, also known as Hethites. That was used as evidence that the Bible was not accurate (even though they were mentioned more than 50 times). However, archaeologists have since discovered proof that they were a mighty nation in the 15th and 16th centuries, the size of their empire rivaling that of the Roman Empire.
Much is known about the Hittites because their empire equaled that of Egypt’s.
The Hittites were descendants of Canaan, the grandson of Noah (Gen. 10: 15). Their territory was (currently) part of northern Syria and eastern Turkey.
- “Canaan fathered Sidon his firstborn and Heth” (Gen. 10: 15 ESV).“Canaan’s oldest son was Sidon, the ancestor of the Sidonians. Canaan was also the ancestor of the Hittites” (Gen. 10: 15 NLT).
- “from the Negev wilderness in the south to the Lebanon mountains in the north, from the Euphrates River in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west, including all the land of the Hittites” (Josh. 1: 4 NLT emphasis added).
During Abraham’s lifetime, the Hittites settled in the Hill Country around Hebron. It is from the Hittites that Abraham brough the cave that became his burial place (Gen. 23: 3).
They were a race of giants, which were feared by others. One of David’s mighty men, Uriah, was a Hittite (II Sam. 11: 3). Two of Easau’s wives were Hittite women.
The Hittites were one of the seven enemies of the Israelites in the Promised Land. They were punished for their pagan worship (Ex. 23: 28-33). However, Joshua did not annihilate them as God directed (Josh. 3: 10).
Eventually, the Hittites were assimilated into surrounding cultures.
Perizzites
The Perizzites were an undisciplined group of people. They lived in rural villages in the fertile open country south and southwest of Mt. Carmel.
While the Perizzites were not listed in Genesis 10, this was part of the land that caused the dispute between Abram and Lot (Gen. 13: 7). When God commissioned Moses from the burning bush, He include the Perizzite nation when identifying the land of milk and honey. Later, these were one of the lands surveilled by the ten spies in Numbers 13.
Jacob mentioned the Perizzites after Simeon and Levi killed Hamor the Hivite’s son Shechem for raping Dinah (Gen. 34: 30 NLT). As they known for their military capabilities, it makes sense the brothers would want the men disabled before attacking them.
Though the Perizzites were one of the nations that Israel was to destroy to obtain the Promised Land, they did not succeed. Instead, Perizzites lived among them (Jdgs. 3: 5).
This land would eventually be assigned to Ephraim, Manasseh, and Judah (Josh. 17: 15). However, the people of the nation were not completely driven out. They lived among the Israelites as slave laborers (I Kgs. 9: 20-21).
Rephaites
I think this is more a people group than a nation. Rephaites were consistently described as having greater-than-average height. In fact, Rephaim can be translated as giant. Because of their size and great numbers, they were considered mighty warriors, even demigods.
It is from them the Anakim, which were also known as Rephaites, may have descended. Note: Giants were known by several names in the land of Canaan: Rephaim, Zuzim (the Ammonite name), Emim (the Moabite name), and Anakim (the Canaanite name).
The Rephaim existed before Abraham’s time. In fact, King Kedorlaomer and his allies defeated the Rephaites at Ashteroth-karnaim before defeating the kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela and capturing (Gen. 14: 5-12). This would place them in the Bashan region.
They still occupied the land of Canaan, Bashan, and Moab when the Israelites came to secure the Promised Land after the exodus from Egypt.
Moses defeated King Og of Bashan, one of the last of the Rephaim, before they got to the Promised Land (Josh. 12: 4 NLT). Still, there were some left in King David’s time. One included one of Goliath’s brothers.
Amorites
From the last devotion, we put off discussing the Amorites. “After four generations your descendants will return here to this land, for the sins of the Amorites do not yet warrant their destruction” (Gen. 15: 16 NLT).
Why was the Amorites singled out?
In all my research about these nations/people groups/whatever they were, the only one that I can remember being identified as powerful is the Amorites. This designation came about because the Amorites were fierce warriors. They were also described as barbaric.
They were also one of the original occupants of the land. Their name is translated as highlanders or hillmen.
The Amorite territory extended from the Arnon River to Mount Hermon. This included some of the Hill Country and the Jordan River. This is the modern-day Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and parts of Jordan and Syria.
Then again, the term Amorites may refer to a group of nations. This sounds logical as some of the others in the list are considered branches of the Amorites. At times, it is used interchangeably with Canaanites.
Also a descendant of Ham’s son Canaan, the Amorites would have been a formidable foe to the Israelites. They were thought to be a nomadic people. It is interesting to note that one of Abram’s allies when rescuing Lot was Mamre the Amorite (Gen. 14: 13).
One of the Amorite kings defeated was King Og.
Under King Solomon, the Amorites also were forced into labor to build Solomon’s many projects. (I Kgs. 9: 20-21). They had made peace by the time of Samuel (I Sam. 7: 14).
Canaanites
We have to be careful to realize who the word Canaanites mean. It could mean the descendants of Ham’s son, Canaan. Or it could also be used to refer to the seven nations of the region as a group. Those seven nations are the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites.
The Canaanites were known as being motivated by greed and lust. Their goal was acquire worldly wealth, shown by their advanced trade networks. These trade routes were developed because Canaan was located in the center of the ancient world. But it also led to military units traversing the territory, also.
But where does God want to be? His Tabernacles was always in the middle of camp. Here, His people could be in the center from which His Word was disseminated.
The region was unpredictable. It had both fertile land and unpredictable weather.
Hebron is in the land of the Canaanites. It was associated with the Cave of Machpelah near Mamre, where Abraham (Gen. 25: 9), Sarah (Gen. 23: 19), Isaac (Gen. 35: 29), Rebecca (Gen. 49: 31), Jacob (Gen. 50: 13), and Leah (Gen. 49: 31) were buried. A wall was built around the cave by Herod the Great.
Canaan is listed as one of the seven enemy nations of Israel occupying the Promised Land. They were not destroyed as directed by God, instead lived among the Israelites (Jdgs. 3: 5).
The town of Hebron, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, was given to the Levitical clan of Kohath and was a City of Refuge. The fields and surrounding villages were given to Caleb (Josh. 21: 3-12; I Chron. 6: 54-56).
David was anointed at Hebron and used this as his capital for seven years (II Sam. 2: 1-3). “So there at Hebron, King David made a covenant before the Lord with all the elders of Israel. And they anointed him king of Israel” (II Sam. 5: 3 NLT).
Later, Absalom revolted against King David here (II Sam. 15: 7-10).
Hebron fell within the kingdom of Judah.
Edomites controlled the land after the Babylonian captivity. It was ruled by Muslim dynasties from the 6th century. Currently, it is ruled by the Palestinians as part of the West Bank.
Girgashites
The Girgashites were descendants of Canaan, the grandson of Noah (Gen. 10: 16). It is believed they were a branch of the Hivites.
Since the Girgashites are listed among the seven Canaanite nation, we can consider them to be bigger than the Israelites. (Considering it is estimated that 1 to 2 million Israelites came out of Egypt, that is more 7 to 14 million people in the seven nations.)
However, not much is known about the Girgashite nation — either from a biblical perspective or an historical/archaeological perspective. This leads us to believe that they were less prominent than the other groups.
We are not even told for sure where they are located. It may have been in the hill country of Canaan, near to the Sea of Galilee. “So they arrived in the region of the Gerasenes, across the lake from Galilee” (Lk. 8: 26 NLT). It is kind of hard to say because they are not credited as inhabiting any major cities.
According to the Midrash, a collection of rabbinical interpretations of the Torah, the Girgashites quickly and voluntarily got out of Dodge when they heard the Israelites were coming. They supposedly went to Africa – where Ham was supposed to go in the first place.
In other words, that may or may not be true. If Joshua defeated the southern, northern, and central kingdoms, it may be assumed he got the Girgashites somewhere in there.
But as with the other nations, the Girgashite nation wasn’t completely defeated. Ezra 9-10 and Nehemiah 13: 23-27 discuss the intermarriages between the Girgashites and the Israelites.
Jebusites
A descendant of Ham’s son Canaan, the Jebusites were a branch of the Amorites. They were located in the Hill Country (Num. 13: 29). Jebus/Salem/Jerusalem (Gen 14: 18-20) is one of their major cities.
Despite being defeated a couple of times by Joshua (Josh. 10: 5; Josh. 11: 3), they remained in the hill country for a long time. Jerusalem came to be an Israelite city when King David conquered it in 1003 BC (II Sam. 5: 6-10). This was a fete because the area around Jerusalem was thought to be impenetrable. It was from the Jebusites that he bought the land for the Temple (II Sam. 24: 18-25).
Eventually, Solomon forced the Jebusites into building his many projects. This also led to them living among the Israelites for many years (I Kgs. 9: 20-21).
The Jebusites, too, showed how God did not want them to live among the Israelites if they were going to keep their wicked ways. The intermarriage of the Jebusites and Israelites, led them away from God.
Making the Connections
I had never thought about Caleb being a Gentile who had been grafted into the family of God. I mean, this was one of only two spies who came back revved to go into the Promised Land and take their inheritance.
This was the man that asked for Hebron as his inheritance (Josh. 14: 13-14). He was the one who would be getting Abraham’s tomb in Mamre as his land.
Would the Israelites do that? Or was it just when they became the Jews that they got snobbish and considered Gentiles second-class citizens?
But this drives home the fact – once again – that God wanted the Gentiles to come worship Him. The Gospel was always meant to be given to the Gentiles.
Remember, Abram was told that all nations in the world would be blessed because of Him (Gen. 12: 3).
God doesn’t seem them as Jew or Gentile. “There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Gal. 3: 28 NLT).
True, we many not know much about these nations. We do know the outcome. “When you crossed the Jordan River and came to Jericho, the men of Jericho fought against you, as did the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. But I gave you victory over them” (Josh. 24: 11 NLT).
God kept His promise to Abram. He was faithful.
I am sure probably some people in today’s society would be asking if total defeat was necessary — even if it went with the concept of a loving God. The answer would be an emphatic yes!
“When the Lord your God hands these nations over to you and you conquer them, you must completely destroy them. Make no treaties with them and show them no mercy. You must not intermarry with them. Do not let your daughters and sons marry their sons and daughters, for they will lead your children away from me to worship other gods. Then the anger of the Lord will burn against you, and he will quickly destroy you” (Deut. 7: 2-4 NLT).
Thee seven nations were bad news for the Israelites because they would lead them away from God. God gave them the choice — and the chances — to turn from their wicked ways and worship Him.
What were their sins?
- They sacrificed children (Deut. 12: 31).
- They worshiped Ashearah poles (Deut. 12: 3).
- They practiced sorts of forms of magic and witchcraft (Deut. 18: 9-12).
- They worshiped false gods (Josh. 24: 15).
In other words, they worshiped Satan instead of God.
How Do We Apply This?
- Repent of our sins and follow God.
Father God. There is so much that we don’t know about these nations/people groups. What we do now is they sinned against You and were defeated. Help us to learn from their bad example and do the opposite. Amen.
What do you think?
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