“For it was of the LORD to harden their hearts, that they should come against Israel in battle, that he might destroy them utterly, and that they might have no favour, but that he might destroy them, as the LORD commanded Moses.”
My Notes
What Does Joshua 11:20 Mean?
Joshua 11:20 provides the theological explanation for the Canaanite kings' decision to attack Israel rather than surrender: "it was of the LORD to harden their hearts." God hardened their hearts the same way He hardened Pharaoh's—not creating evil in neutral hearts but confirming the direction their hearts had already chosen. The hardening ensured they would fight rather than negotiate, which served God's purpose: their complete destruction.
The phrase "that they might have no favour" (literally "that there would be no grace for them") means the hardening eliminated the possibility of mercy through surrender. If the Canaanite kings had surrendered (as the Gibeonites did through deception in chapter 9), Israel would have been obligated to spare them. The hardening removed that option: by ensuring they fought, God ensured they were destroyed. The hearts that chose war were confirmed in their choice by the God who had already determined the outcome.
The theological difficulty is real: God hardened hearts to ensure destruction. The narrative doesn't soften this or explain it away. It states it plainly and connects it to what God "commanded Moses"—making the hardening part of the same divine plan that included the Exodus, the wilderness, and the conquest. The God who freed Israel from Egypt by hardening Pharaoh's heart conquered Canaan for Israel by hardening the Canaanite hearts. The same method. The same sovereignty. Different theaters.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Does the idea of God hardening hearts to ensure destruction trouble you? How do you hold that tension?
- 2.If God confirms the direction hearts have already chosen, where is your heart already oriented—and is God confirming that direction?
- 3.The hardening eliminated mercy for the Canaanites. Are there 'closed doors' in your life that might be God's sovereign direction rather than random circumstance?
- 4.The same sovereignty that freed Israel conquered Canaan. How does one God's consistent sovereignty comfort you in situations you can't control?
Devotional
God hardened their hearts. So they would fight. So they could be destroyed. So there would be no mercy through surrender. The theological difficulty isn't hidden or softened. It's stated plainly: the LORD made them fight rather than surrender because His plan required their destruction.
The hardening works the same way it worked with Pharaoh: God confirms the direction hearts have already chosen. The Canaanite kings weren't neutral parties forced into aggression. They were nations whose centuries of wickedness (Genesis 15:16: "the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full") had already oriented them against God. The hardening confirmed their trajectory. The hearts that chose defiance were confirmed in defiance by the God who had already determined the consequences.
"That they might have no favour" is the most severe phrase: God eliminated the possibility of mercy. If they'd surrendered, Israel would have been obligated to negotiate. God ensured they wouldn't surrender. The mercy door was closed by divine hardening because the divine plan required the door to be closed. This is sovereignty operating at its most uncomfortable: God directing the outcome by directing the hearts.
The same God who freed you from your Egypt hardened the hearts that needed to be hardened for your deliverance to be complete. The Pharaoh whose stubbornness served your Exodus and the Canaanite kings whose aggression served your conquest were both operating within a sovereignty that uses even resistant hearts to accomplish redemptive purposes. The hearts were real. The choices were real. And the God who governed both was accomplishing something neither the hearts nor the choices could prevent.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts,.... As he hardened the hearts of Pharaoh and the Egyptians, that his…
It was of the Lord to harden their hearts - They had sinned against all the light they had received, and God left them…
We have here the conclusion of this whole matter.
I. A short account is here given of what was done in four things: - 1.…
For it was of the Lord "Forsothe the sentence of the Lord it was," Wyclif. Compare Exo 4:21, "When thou goest to return…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture