God Commanded Genocide in the Old Testament: A Response

Introduction

This article is my humble attempt at refuting the claim that the conquest of Canaan is incompatible with the all-loving God of the Bible. Preemptively however, I would like to acknowledge the moral and emotional difficulty of this discussion. Logical defences to this critic may not resolve the psychological weight of this topic. This article merely aims to demonstrate three primary historical angles of answering this objection; Ancient Warfare Rhetoric, Righteous Divine Judgement, and Divine Warning. In my view, the second two strategies particularly give us a sound theological answer that fits into redemption history, helping us to grow in our limited understanding, and ultimately to trust God and not ourselves. 

Objection Framing

One of the most striking and challenging objections to Christianity. Usually framed as ‘the God of the Bible commanded Genocide in the Old Testament’. In essence, this critique is a sum of two presuppositions. The first being that the statement is actually true, that God did actually command a real genocide, specifically portrayed in Deuteronomy chapter 7 and 20 as well as in Joshua 6 through 11. And secondly, that an all-loving God is incompatible with these commands. Thus, they argue that the Christian God is either unlikely to exist, not truly all-loving, that this is a biblical contradiction, or all the above. The objection however hinges on at least one of these presuppositions being true, either that God did actually command literal Genocide, or that his actions were inconsistent with his existence as an all-loving God.

Historical or Public Objection Quotes

Relevant to this issue, Marcion of Sinope was a heretic from antiquity writing around 144 AD in Rome. While none of his writings remain today, he became quite renowned in his time, and we have the writings of Church Fathers who strictly opposed his teachings. This helps us to have a robust understanding of what he taught. 

For example Irenaeus wrote “Marcion of Pontus succeeded him, and developed his doctrine. In so doing, he advanced the most daring blasphemy against Him who is proclaimed as God by the law and the prophets, declaring Him to be the author of evils, to take delight in war, to be infirm of purpose, and even to be contrary to Himself. But Jesus being derived from that father who is above the God that made the world, and coming into Judea in the times of Pontius Pilate the governor, who was the procurator of Tiberius Caesar, was manifested in the form of a man to those who were in Judea, abolishing the prophets and the law, and all the works of that God who made the world, whom also he calls Cosmocrator.” [1^] Marcion was also directly referenced and opposed by Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Hippolytus of Rome, Origen and others. 

Admittedly, this seems quite obtuse to the modern Christian. The idea that Jesus’s father is a greater God than the creator God of the Old Testament. However it demonstrates the extremes some have gone to when wrestling with and trying to reconcile this objection. 

As shown, the objection at hand is ancient. However it remains today one of the most formidable refutations of Christianity today. Prominent polemicist Alex O’Connor has used this argument on numerous occasions, namely in conversations with Cliffe and Stuart Knechtle, Dr. William Lain Craig, and Dinesh D'Souza. Essentially, arguing that God’s recorded actions are incompatible with the biblical doctrine of Divine Goodness.  

For example in his conversation with D’Souva, O’Connor finished his lengthy argument with a concluding question “So, just to answer just to ask a direct yes or no question, I'd appreciate a direct yes or no to this. The God that you believe in is the moral author of the universe morally justifiably commanded the slaughter of innocent children and women. Yes or no?” [2^] In the same dialogue, O’Connor stated “The God that you believe in is acting like a tribal war god”.

Response

After researching this issue both incidentally and purposefully for this article, I have come across three main angles used by Christians to refute this critique.

Firstly, that the Bible is using ancient warfare rhetoric and hyperbole. This may be the most commonly deployed approach. And whilst I do agree with the argumentation and evidence used to support it, I personally don't think this is the strongest way to subdue this concern, especially in the mind of the objector. This is because it can simply be combated with a statement such as “Okay, well if we were to assume that the bible is speaking literally, then do you now agree God is in the wrong?”. It's not a satisfying argument intellectually on its own. By only saying the Bible is using ancient warfare rhetoric and exaggeration, you are actually subtly agreeing that it would be Immoral for God to have decreed more harshly. If not, then why make the argument, without referencing the more important concern at hand. However, I will say that it does seem to be true, that what occurred was not actually a genocide, and hyperbole was used. After the conquest, the text itself repeatedly talks about the existence of groups of surviving Canaanites  (Joshua 13:1; 15:63; 16:10; 17:12-13; Judges 1:27-33). In Exodus, traditionally viewed to be written by the same author as Deuteronomy, God promises to drive them out little by little “But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you. Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land.” (Exodus 23:29). Clearly, the bible does not claim that a genocide occured, whilst ancient warefare rhetoric and hyperbole like this is extremely common. 

In my view, the second two strategies used to tackle this are more conclusive. Namely, these are Divine Judgment, and Divine warning. To put it differently, God is both righteous in judging the Canaanites, whilst also giving the rest of humanity a typological warning about the coming wrath of God. 

Leviticus 18:25-28 gives us evidence for both of these angles simultaneously. “²⁵ Even the land was defiled; so I punished it for its sin, and the land vomited out its inhabitants. ²⁶ But you must keep my decrees and my laws. The native-born and the foreigners residing among you must not do any of these detestable things, ²⁷ for all these things were done by the people who lived in the land before you, and the land became defiled. ²⁸ And if you defile the land, it will vomit you out as it vomited out the nations that were before you.” 

In this passage we see both that the land was punished for its sin at that time, whilst God warns the Israelites that they will also be punished and removed from the land if found deserving.

Let's unpack the divine punishment defence. 

The Bible upholds that God can rightfully judge his creation. He is not wrong in doing so. If all humanity are deserving of God's wrath (Ephesians 2:3), how much more so are the Canaanites! They simply experienced the physical elements of this judgement earlier than others. Let us not downplay the unique evil of this group of people. The Bible specifically records them as guilty of child sacrifice by burning (Deuteronomy 12:31, 18:10), bestiality (Leviticus 18:23-24), severe occult practices (Deuteronomy 18:9-12), to name just a few of their horrors. 

It's important to also note that the LORD was patient for hundreds of years before bringing this judgment upon them (Genesis 15:16), and that the Canaanites knew not only about the God of the Israelites, and his revelation. This is clear in Rehab’s testimony (a Canaanite woman) “and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed.” (Joshua 2:9-10). As exemplified, God spared certain people from destruction such as Rehab, as well as the Gibeonites (Josua 9:18), and other groups of Canaanites (Joshua 16:10).

Having proven God's right to judge the Canaanites, I now aim to unpack that this judgement serves a purpose as a future warning. 

We know that God’s judgements in the Old Testament are shadows of the wrath to come. When talking about God’s judgement on the Israelites in the wilderness before entering the promised land, Paul writes “These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come.” (1 Corinthians 10:11). More specifically, we know that the Israelites journey into the promised land had a ‘type / antitype’ relationship with the coming of Jesus and the new creation. The writer of Hebrews, when writing about the promised land, writes “Instead, they were longing for a better country - a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.” (Hebrews 11:16). Moreover, in chapter 4, it is written “For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day.” (Hebrews 4:8). Interesting sidenote: some translations translate that verse as Jesus, whilst some translate it as Joshua.

Thus, the coming into the promised land involved divine judgment, rightfully administered by God, just as the final coming into the new creation will involve a prior judgment. 

Moreover, according to covenant theology, this warning can apply to all Christians today. As the biblical corpus of redemption history is unfolded, “the land” is expanded to all creation, and the people of God (or seeds of Abraham) are expanded and clarified to be everyone who has faith in Jesus. 

Moreso (ironically having considered Marcion's thoughts about the Son being incompatible with the Old Testament God) the one to bring the coming judgement is the risen Jesus himself. (Revelation 19:11-15).

Key Passages 

“All have turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.” (Psalm 14:3). Hence, the divine holy creator has the right to judge, and his judgements are inherently righteous. 

“All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.” (Ephesians 2:3). I find this passage particularly interesting. We are sinful right down to our very nature. 

The following verses destroy the ancient heresy of Marcion, and show us that Jesus is the divine agent in the final judgements to come. “In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead…” (2 Timothy 4:1)

“I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.” (Revelation 19:11-15) 

“Kiss his son, or he will be angry and your way will lead to your destruction, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.” (Psalm 2:12)

Divine judgement, along with its forewarnings and temporal consequences, is not an intellectual problem for Christians. Whilst the Christian should be challenged and troubled as they feel genuine sadness towards the subjects of God's wrath, it does not at all compromise or contradict the logical robustness of our doctrines derived from scripture. Doctrines including Divine Goodness, Divine Justice, the Immutability of God, and so on. They are all upheld, particularly in view of the cross.

Historical or Public Responses

Gavin Ortlund has published an extensive video on this topic that I found extremely helpful in preparing this article https://youtu.be/ssP-wQv2v5g?si=TqinHIr2O7uTVJhX. This is not his only time exploring the topic. 

Another great resource to review is this video by Dr. Jordan B Cooper https://youtu.be/fMdhimhociE?si=vmjA_rOkG3iavfYu. This is the most in depth treatment I have found in video format. He walks us through the views of public figures such as Peter Enns, Greg Boyd and John Walton, who either dismiss the conquest as allegory, contradiction, or unjust. He then acknowledges the moral difficulty of the issue, discusses the inscrutability of God, and frames the event in context with the entire Biblical cannon as a one-time, unique necessary event ordained by God in order to establish an Israelite nation that would bring forth the Messiah. Cooper also mentions that temporal punishment does not equate with eternal damnation, particularly for Children (in his view, which I would argue is Biblical). He explains how the conquest does not endorse future ‘Holy Wars’, because its only eschatological parallel is the final judgement to come. Moreover, God’s ultimate self-revelation of his character has been made known through his son Jesus, and his self-sacrifice. 

Conclusion 

To wrap up, I will again state that this article will not remove the moral challenge from this issue. It is rightful to be empathetic and to have an emotional response to this issue. However, in contrast to what critics claim, the conquest of Canaan does not cause an intellectual problem to arise in Christian doctrine. Christians can take comfort in knowing that this event is not in contradiction to God's character, ultimately revealed in Jesus Christ.

[1^] Irenaeus. Against Heresies. Book I, Chapter 27, §2. Translated by Alexander Roberts and William Rambaut. In Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 1, edited by Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, and A. Cleveland Coxe. Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1885. Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0103127.htm 

[2^] Pangburn. (2025, June 17). Christianity promotes genocide in the Bible! – Alex O'Connor [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jl2PJzDrR3g