Joshua 11:20
“For it was of Yahweh to harden their hearts, to come against Israel in battle, that he might utterly destroy them, that they might have no favor, but that he might destroy them, as Yahweh commanded Moses.”
What does Joshua 11:20 mean?
This verse describes one of the Bible's most troubling passages about God's involvement in warfare and human choice. Joshua is explaining why the Canaanite kings came out to fight Israel, attributing their decision to God hardening their hearts, similar to what happened with Pharaoh in Exodus. The text suggests God orchestrated their resistance so that their defeat would be complete and serve as judgment. This raises genuine questions many readers wrestle with: How do we understand God's role in human decisions? Does hardening hearts mean God overrides free will, or does it mean God allows people's own resistance and pride to reach their limit? The ancient Israelites saw God's hand in all outcomes, but that doesn't necessarily settle the deeper theological tension. Reading this honestly means acknowledging the difficulty rather than offering easy answers. What matters is bringing your real questions to God, who isn't threatened by our struggle to understand these hard passages.