What consequences does God outline in Numbers 33:56 for failing to drive out inhabitants? Setting the Scene • After forty years in the wilderness, Israel is on the verge of entering Canaan. • God commands them to “drive out all the inhabitants” (Numbers 33:52). • Verses 55–56 spell out what happens if they refuse. The Specific Warning “Then I will do to you what I had planned to do to them.” (Numbers 33:56) What God Had Planned to Do to the Canaanites • Destroy their idolatrous worship centers (Deuteronomy 7:5). • Cut them off from the land (Deuteronomy 7:2). • Bring judgment for their sins (Genesis 15:16). Consequences for Israel if They Failed 1. Divine judgment would fall on Israel instead of the Canaanites. 2. Loss of covenant blessings and protection (Deuteronomy 28:15–68). 3. Dispossession from the land, exile, and scattering among the nations (Leviticus 26:33). 4. Constant harassment by the very peoples they spared—“they will become snares and traps for you, scourges in your sides and thorns in your eyes” (Joshua 23:13). 5. Ongoing spiritual compromise leading to idolatry and moral decay (Judges 2:1–3). Historical Fulfillment • Judges 2:11–15—Israel spared the nations and quickly fell into idolatry; God “sold them into the hands of their enemies.” • 1 Kings 11—Solomon’s foreign wives turned his heart after other gods, fulfilling the warning. • 2 Kings 17 & 25—The Northern and Southern Kingdoms were exiled; God “did to them” what He had intended for the Canaanites. Timeless Takeaways • God’s commands are given for our protection; partial obedience is disobedience. • Compromise with sin eventually enslaves the compromiser. • God fulfills both promises and warnings with perfect faithfulness (Numbers 23:19). |
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