by Ptr. Art Calaguas
Shalom.
Jews world-wide celebrate the Festival of Purim this March 23-24. Purim is the joyous feast that commemorates the survival of the Jews through the courage of Queen Esther and Mordecai who defeated the schemes for their annihilation by Haman, the chief official of King Xerxes (Ahasuerus) of the Persian Empire in the 5th century BC. The story is found in the Book of Esther.
Meanwhile, negotiations for the release of at least some hostages are on-going in Doha, Qatar. The Qataris are joined by the Egyptians and the Americans in working out a deal with the Israelis and the Hamas. After nearly 170 days of the Israel-Hamas War since last October 7, 2023, the 134 kidnapped hostages composed of men, the elderly, 19 women, children and a baby, including 31 bodies of dead hostages are still held captive in Gaza. We should continue to pray for the immediate release of all hostages. May a hostage-prisoner exchange deal be worked out before Ramadan ends this April 9, 2024. May God grant a just end to this war.
In the northern front, Hezbollah has increased the quantity and frequency of its missile barrage on Israel. But so far, neither side apparently wants to go to a full-scale war. Pray that events will not slide into this scenario. Let us continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6-9).
We saw that in Genesis 15:18 the LORD God cut a covenant with Abram explicitly giving to his seed/offspring/descendants the land he was on as had been promised:
בַּיֹּ֣ום הַה֗וּא כָּרַ֧ת יְהוָ֛ה אֶת־אַבְרָ֖ם בְּרִ֣ית לֵאמֹ֑ר לְזַרְעֲךָ֗ נָתַ֙תִּי֙ אֶת־הָאָ֣רֶץ הַזֹּ֔את מִנְּהַ֣ר מִצְרַ֔יִם עַד־הַנָּהָ֥ר הַגָּדֹ֖ל נְהַר־פְּרָֽת׃
The Legacy Standard Bible literally translates this verse as:
18On that day Yahweh cut a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your seed I have given this land, From the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates:
We found in its preceding context a narration of an ancient Near East (ANE) ceremony regarding the ratification of a covenant between a suzerain and his vassal. Genesis 15:19-21 further identifies the current occupants of this land. It is the longest list comprised of 10 different people groups (perhaps signifying completeness) and there are nearly 20 of such lists in the OT, according to The NIV Study Bible. A comparison with an earlier list is perhaps instructive for us to know that this is indeed the land of the Canaanites that the LORD had earlier promised to Abram and his offspring.
Genesis 10:15-19 comes before God’s call to Abram to leave everything behind and go to the land the LORD would show him. These verses actually belong to the Table of Nations that came from Noah after the Flood; and before the Tower of Babel event. In context, it enumerates the descendants of Canaan, the son of Ham, the son of Noah. Genesis 10:6 first lists the sons of Ham: Cush, Mizraim, Put and Canaan. Study Bibles identify Cush with the upper Nile region, south of Egypt (Ethiopia). Mizraim means “two Egypts,” Upper (southern, going into the African continent) and Lower (northern Egypt, bounded by the Mediterranean Sea). Put is in Libya. Canaan is in the Levant, northeast of Egypt and southwest of Mesopotamia, (where the Euphrates river is) bounded on the west by the Mediterranean Sea. The following map from The NIV Study Bible would be helpful:
Next, Genesis 10:15-19 further lists the descendants of Canaan: Sidon, his first-born, and Heth, the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites. The Canaanites spread out and their territory extended from Sidon to Gerar as far as Gaza, and in the direction of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, until Lasha. Genesis 10:20 concludes this list of the descendants of Ham by their families, tongues, lands and nations. The following map from The Jewish Study Bible gives a more detailed picture:
The Amorites, Girgashites, and the Jebusites, all descendants of Canaan, are the same peoples mentioned in Genesis 15:19-21. Apparently, the land, the territory cited in Genesis 10:19 was identified with Canaan. And all its inhabitants, if not more specifically identified, were called Canaanite.
There will be more verses where the LORD reiterates his grant of the land promised to Abram and his offspring. And a lot of these verses will again show varying lists of the nations and peoples occupying the land. Scripture repeats the covenant of land grant and specifies it again and again for all to remember and never forget. And yet, do we remember?
We will continue after a short break to concentrate on our Holy Week observance. May we reflect on the agony and glory of the Cross and the ultimate victory over death in the Resurrection.
God bless us all.