1. With regard to the =native races=. They were not destroyed nor driven
away, as had been commanded.[10] They remained as subject people in some
places, as the ruling race on the seacoast and in the Jor'dan valley. We
see their influence, always injurious, throughout all Is'ra-el's
history (Exod. 23. 31-33; Deut. 7. 1-5); and some think that the present
inhabitants of the country belong to the original Ca'naan-ite stock.
2. The =Is'ra-el-ites= did not occupy all the country. They possessed
most of the mountain region, but none of the seacoast plain on the
Jor'dan valley. They were like the Swiss in modern times, living among
the mountains. Even in the New Testament period the lowlands were
occupied mainly by Gen'tiles.
3. The =landed system= was peculiar. =Estates= were inalienable. They
might be leased, but not sold; and on the year of jubilee (every
fiftieth year) all land reverted to the family originally owning it.
Thus every family had its ancestral home, the poor were protected, and
riches were kept within bounds.
4. The =government= was a republic of families without an executive
head, except when a judge was raised up to meet special needs. Each
tribe had its own rulers, but there was no central authority after
Josh'u-a (Judg. 21. 25). This had its evils, for it led to national
weakness; but it had its benefits: 1.) It kept Is'ra-el from becoming a
great worldly kingdom like E'gypt and As-syr'i-a, which would have
thwarted the divine purpose. 2.) It promoted individuality and personal
energy of character. There would have been no "Age of Heroes" if
Is'ra-el had been a kingdom like E'gypt.
5. The =religious system= was simple. There was but one altar at Shi'loh
for all the land and for all the tribes, and the people were required to
visit it for the three great feasts (Deut. 12. 11, 14; Josh. 18. 1).
This was the religious bond which united the people. If it had been
maintained they would have needed no other constitution, and even its
partial observance kept the people one nation.
6. The =character= of the people was diverse. Throughout the history we
trace the working of two distinct elements: There was the true
Is'ra-el--the earnest, religious, God-worshiping section, the Is'ra-el
of Josh'u-a and Gid'e-on and Sam'u-el. Then there was the underlying
mass of the people--secular, ignorant, prone to idolatry, the Is'ra-el
that worshiped Ba'al and Ash'to-reth, and sought alliance with the
heathen. One element was the hope of the nation; the other was its bane.
We shall constantly see the evidences of these two elements in the story
of the Is'ra-el-ites.