The Land and of Canaan cannot be ignored in tracing the history of Israel as a nation. Canaan is one of the ancient names of Palestine. From Biblical account, we see Abraham as the founder of the Hebrew nation leaving Ur of the Chaldees for the land of Canaan (Genesis 12:5). When Abraham was 99 years old, God appeared to him and revealed His covenant: “You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish My covenant as an everlasting covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.” (Genesis 17:4-8)
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Except from Biblical account, nothing much was known about the land of Canaan and its people until 1928 when an archaeological excavation in Northern Syria unearthed detailed information about the lifestyle of the people, their religion, their government, and their culture.
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One day in 1928, (during Spring) a Syrian farmer while tilling his fields with a tilling equipment suddenly noticed that a blade of his equipment hit something hard. Upon closer examination, the farmer noticed that the blade of his tilling equipment has accidentally chipped off the top of a big hole in the ground. This “accident” led to the excavation of historical objects like ancient texts on clay tablets. And, thus, started the excavation of a Canaanite city.
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One interesting finding based on the archaeological discovery of Canaanite civilization confirmed what the Old Testament states: That the religion and lifestyle of the ancient Canaanites were immoral, wicked, and sexually perverted.
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The word Canaanite is a loose term used to describe the people living in the Promised Land before the Israelites led by Joshua who invaded the place. Thus, Canaanite refers to the Phoenicians, Philistines, Ammonites, Hittites, Jobusites, Amorites and Hivites.
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The religion of the Canaanites was characterized by bestiality and brutality. Take the case of the religion of the Canaanite Ammonites. The national God was Molech and the highlight in the worship of Molech was the sacrificial burning of children. From biblical accounts, we see two Judean kings (Ahaz and Manasseh) sacrificing their own sons as worship offering. The killing of children as a common practice of the Canaanite religion was again substantiated by archaeological discoveries. An archaeologist named Macalister discovered the ruins of a Canaanite temple in 1904-1909. Inside the temple were found hundreds of urns containing the bones of children, ages 4-12 who were burned alive. It would also surprise many to know that the so-called practice of “foundation sacrifice” – whereby the blood and body of a child is stuffed in walls, doors, bridges, and houses during construction – can be traced to the Canaanite religious practice.
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As one Biblical scholar said: “Canaan was a wicked nation left by God to test the Israelites.” In the words of the bible: “They (Canaanites) were left to test the Israelites to see whether they would obey the Lord’s commands, which he had given their forefathers through Moses.” (Judges 3:4)
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Be joyful and forgiving!