I. Let us notice the =Ca'naan-ites=, the peoples who were dispossessed
by the Is'ra-el-ites.
1. They were of =one stock=, according to the Scriptures, belonging to
the Ham'ite race, and all descended from the family of Ca'naan (Gen. 10.
15-19).
2. They were divided into =various tribes=, from seven to ten nations,
arranged mainly as follows: 1.) On the seacoast plain, the Phi-lis'tines
on the south, the Ca'naan-ites in the middle, and the Phoe-ni'cians, or
Zi-do'ni-ans, on the north of Mount Car'mel. 2.) In the mountain region,
the Am'or-ites in the south, the Jeb'u-sites around Je-ru'sa-lem, the
Hi'vites in the center of the land, and the Hit'tites in the north. 3.)
The Jor'dan valley was held by the Ca'naan-ites. 4.) On the eastern
table-land, the Mo'ab-ites east of the Dead Sea, the Am'or-ites east of
the Jor'dan, and the Ba'shan-ites in the north.
3. Their =government= was =local=. Not only was each tribe independent,
but each little locality, often each city, had its own "king," or chief.
There was no unity of government, and scarcely any combination to resist
the invasion of Is'ra-el, a fact which made the conquest far less
difficult.
4. They were =idolatrous= and, as a result, grossly =immoral=. Idolatry
is always associated with immorality; for the worship of idols is a
deification of sensuality. Ba'al and Ash'e-rah (plural Ash'to-reth) were
the male and female divinities worshiped by most of these races (Judg.
2. 13).
5. They had been =weakened= before the coming of the Is'ra-el-ites
either by war or by pestilence. The allusions in Exod. 23. 28; Deut. 7.
20; and Josh. 24. 12, have been referred to an invasion before that of
Israel, or to some plague, which destroyed the native races.