Why does Moses tell Israel not to fear the seven stronger nations, and why will their destruction happen by degrees?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

Israel must remember the Lord’s deeds against Pharao and Egypt: he will act against the peoples they fear, send hornets against those who escape or hide, and remain among Israel as a mighty and terrible God. He will consume the nations little by little. Israel will not be able to destroy them altogether, lest the beasts of the earth increase against it.

Chapter breakdown

Moses speaks of the time when the Lord brings Israel into the land it is going to possess and destroys many nations before it. He names the Hethite, Gergezite, Amorrhite, Chanaanite, Pherezite, Hevite, and Jebusite: seven nations much more numerous and stronger than Israel. When the Lord delivers them into Israel’s hand, Israel must utterly destroy them, make no league with them, and show them no mercy. It must not make marriages with them: neither give its daughter to a foreign son nor take a foreign daughter for its son. The warning says she will turn the son away from following the Lord to serve strange gods. The Lord’s anger will be kindled and quickly destroy Israel. Instead, Israel must destroy their altars, break their statues, cut down their groves, and burn their carved images.

Israel is a holy people to the Lord, chosen from all peoples on earth to be specially his own. The Lord has joined himself to them and chosen them because he loves them and keeps the oath sworn to their fathers, not because they outnumber other nations. They are the fewest of any people. He has brought them out with a strong hand and redeemed them from bondage, from the hand of Pharao king of Egypt. They must know he is a strong and faithful God, keeping his covenant and mercy to those who love him and keep his commands for a thousand generations. He immediately repays those who hate him, destroying them and rendering what they deserve without further delay. Israel must therefore keep and do the commands, ceremonies, and judgments given that day.

If Israel hears these judgments, keeps them, and does them, the Lord will keep his covenant and the mercy sworn to their fathers. He will love and multiply them and bless the fruit of their womb and land: their corn, vintage—the grape harvest and wine—oil, herds, and flocks of sheep, in the land sworn to their fathers. They will be blessed among all peoples. No one of either sex will be barren among them, whether people or cattle. The Lord will take away all sickness and will not bring on them the grievous diseases of Egypt they know, but will bring them on their enemies. Israel must consume all the people the Lord delivers to it. Its eye must not spare them, and it must not serve their gods, lest they be its ruin.

If Israel says in its heart that these nations are more numerous and asks how it can destroy them, it must not fear. It must remember what the Lord did to Pharao and all the Egyptians: the exceedingly great plagues their eyes saw, signs, wonders, the strong hand, and the outstretched arm by which he brought them out. He will do the same to all the people they fear. He will also send hornets among them until he destroys and consumes all who have escaped Israel and could hide themselves. They must not fear, because the Lord is in their midst, a mighty and terrible God. The passage names hornets but gives no tracking or smoking-out tactic.

The Lord will consume these nations before Israel little by little and by degrees. Israel will not be able to destroy them altogether, lest the beasts of the earth increase against it. Yet the Lord will deliver the nations before Israel and slay them until they are utterly destroyed. He will deliver their kings into Israel’s hands, and Israel will destroy their names from under heaven. No man will be able to resist Israel until it destroys them. The chapter gives the increase of beasts as the reason alongside gradual destruction. It does not describe settlement capacity or an abandoned countryside.

Israel must burn their carved images with fire. It must not covet the silver and gold they are made of, nor take any part for itself, lest it offend: these things are an abomination to the Lord. Challoner’s separate note says “Graven things” means idols, so called by contempt. Israel must not bring anything of the idol into its house, lest the person become an anathema—accursed—like it. It must detest it as dung and utterly abhor it as uncleanness and filth, because it is an anathema. The warning concerns the person becoming accursed. It does not describe an infection of the house or a recorded act of burning idols.

The story inside

Moses addresses the fear Israel might express on seeing more numerous enemies. His answer points back to deeds they saw in Egypt, naming plagues, signs, wonders, the strong hand, and the outstretched arm. He says the Lord will do the same to the peoples they fear, send hornets against those who escape or hide, and be present among Israel. The next instruction holds together gradual destruction and the announced end: the nations will be consumed by degrees, lest beasts increase, yet they will be destroyed and their kings delivered into Israel’s hand. These are promises and commands in Moses’ speech. The chapter records no battle, commander’s choice, or completed disposal of idol metals.

Lessons worth keeping

1
Israel’s choice is grounded in the Lord’s love and oath. Moses explicitly denies superior numbers as its cause and calls Israel the fewest of peoples; keeping commands remains required.
2
The promised blessings have a stated condition. Israel must hear, keep, and do the judgments. The listed promises include children, produce, herds, freedom from sickness, and the Lord’s covenant mercy.
3
The fear answer and gradual destruction both have named grounds. Moses recalls Egypt and the Lord’s presence for courage, then gives the possible increase of beasts as the reason alongside destroying the nations by degrees.

Test your recall

What reason does Moses give for consuming the nations by degrees rather than destroying them altogether?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 19361–19385
Deuteronomy Chapter 7 No league nor fellowship to be made with the Chanaanites: God promiseth his people his blessing and assistance, if they keep his commandments. 7:1. When the Lord thy God shall have brought thee into the land, which thou art going in to possess, and shall have destroyed many nations before thee, the Hethite, and the Gergezite, and the Amorrhite, and the Chanaanite, and the Pherezite, and the Hevite, and the Jebusite, seven nations much more numerous than thou art, and stronger than thou: 7:2. And the Lord thy God shall have delivered them to thee, thou shalt utterly destroy them. Thou shalt make no league with them, nor shew mercy to them: 7:3. Neither shalt thou make marriages with them. Thou shalt not give thy daughter to his son, nor take his daughter for thy son: 7:4. For she will turn away thy son from following me, that he may rather serve strange gods, and the wrath of the Lord will be kindled, and will quickly destroy thee. 7:5. But thus rather shall you deal with them: Destroy their altars, and break their statues, and cut down their groves, and burn their graven things.
Lines 19387–19407
7:6. Because thou art a holy people to the Lord thy God. The Lord thy God hath chosen thee, to be his peculiar people of all peoples that are upon the earth. 7:7. Not because you surpass all nations in number, is the Lord joined unto you, and hath chosen you, for you are the fewest of any people: 7:8. But because the Lord hath loved you, and hath kept his oath, which he swore to your fathers: and hath brought you out with a strong hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, out of the hand of Pharao the king of Egypt. 7:9. And thou shalt know that the Lord thy God, he is a strong and faithful God, keeping his covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments, unto a thousand generations: 7:10. And repaying forthwith them that hate him, so as to destroy them, without further delay immediately rendering to them what they deserve. 7:11. Keep therefore the precepts and ceremonies and judgments, which I command thee this day to do.
Lines 19409–19427
7:12. If after thou hast heard these judgments, thou keep and do them, the Lord thy God will also keep his covenant to thee, and the mercy which he swore to thy fathers: 7:13. And he will love thee and multiply thee, and will bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy vintage, thy oil, and thy herds, and the flocks of thy sheep upon the land, for which he swore to thy fathers that he would give it thee. 7:14. Blessed shalt thou be among all people. No one shall be barren among you of either sex, neither of men nor cattle. 7:15. The Lord will take away from thee all sickness: and the grievous infirmities of Egypt, which thou knowest, he will not bring upon thee, but upon thy enemies. 7:16. Thou shalt consume all the people, which the Lord thy God will deliver to thee. Thy eye shall not spare them, neither shalt thou serve their gods, lest they be thy ruin.
Lines 19429–19445
7:17. If thou say in thy heart: These nations are more than I, how shall I be able to destroy them? 7:18. Fear not, but remember what the Lord thy God did to Pharao and to all the Egyptians, 7:19. The exceeding great plagues, which thy eyes saw, and the signs and wonders, and the strong hand, and the stretched out arm, with which the Lord thy God brought thee out: so will he do to all the people, whom thou fearest. 7:20. Moreover the Lord thy God will send also hornets among them, until he destroy and consume all that have escaped thee, and could hide themselves. 7:21. Thou shalt not fear them, because the Lord thy God is in the midst of thee, a God mighty and terrible:
Lines 19447–19456
7:22. He will consume these nations in thy sight by little and little and by degrees. Thou wilt not be able to destroy them altogether: lest perhaps the beasts of the earth should increase upon thee. 7:23. But the Lord thy God shall deliver them in thy sight: and shall slay them until they be utterly destroyed. 7:24. And he shall deliver their kings into thy hands, and thou shalt destroy their names from under Heaven: no man shall be able to resist thee, until thou destroy them.
Lines 19458–19470
7:25. Their graven things thou shalt burn with fire: thou shalt not covet the silver and gold of which they are made, neither shalt thou take to thee any thing thereof, lest thou offend, because it is an abomination to the Lord thy God. Graven things.... Idols, so called by contempt. 7:26. Neither shalt thou bring any thing of the idol into thy house, lest thou become an anathema, like it. Thou shalt detest it as dung, and shalt utterly abhor it as uncleanness and filth, because it is an anathema.