The Relationship Between the Motif of Memory/Remembrance and One of Its Aspects Concerning the Command to Exterminate the Canaanites in Deuteronomy 7

Authors

  • Volodymyr Lukin

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29357/2789-1577.2025.23.1.3

Keywords:

covenant, Yahweh, holiness, violence, memory, Deuteronomy

Abstract

This article explores the specific features of the theological connection between the motif of memory/remembrance and one of its aspects, namely, the command to exterminate the seven nations of Canaan. It is argued that viewing the world through the lens of covenant doctrine, which defines the foundation and essence of the connection itself in the book of Deuteronomy, is imperative in nature. As a result, the study does not dispute the legitimacy of violence. Instead, it reasserts necessity for this practice in the context of God's evolving relationship with His people at specific border periods of the event-time continuum. That means that the violence mentioned in the book of Deuteronomy 7 is theologically vindicated. Also, for the first time in a discussion of this kind, the necessary negative and positive elements (destruction and freedom) that shaped the content and form of corporate memory generated by two fundamental events in the history of the people of Israel (Egypt and the conquest of Canaan) were identified. The text highlights both the theoretical and practical nuances of “remembrance,” and the specifics of its worldview theological adversary — the motif of forgetting.

References

  1. Anderson, Edward. “City names as memorials in the Old Testament theology.” PhD diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 2002.
  2. Balberg, Mira. “The Torah Is Bound to Be Forgotten: A History of an Ahistorical Trope.” Jewish Studies Quarterly 30 vol. 4 (2023): 440–462.
  3. Balberg, Mira. “Unforgettable Forgotten Things: Transformations in the Laws of Forgotten Produce (shikhehah) in Early Rabbinic Literature.” Oqimta 5 (2019): 1–33.
  4. Bornapé, Allan. “El Problema del “...” en el Pentateuco y su Dimensión Ritual.” DavarLogos 4.1 (2005): 1–16.
  5. Braulik, Georg. “Das Deuteronomium und die Gedächtniskultur Israels. Redaktionsgeschichtliche Beobachtungen zur Verwendung Noalmd.” In Biblische Theologie und gesellschaftlicher Wandel. Für Norbert Lohfink. Herder, 1993, 9–31.
  6. Brit, Brian. “Remembering Narrative in Deuteronomy.” In The Oxford Handbook of Biblical Narrative, ed. Danna Fewell, 157–167. Oxford University Press, 2016.
  7. Brueggemann, Walter. Deuteronomy. Abingdon Press, 2001.
  8. Carstens, Pernille, Trine Hasselbalch, Niels Lemche, eds. Cultural Memory in Biblical Exegesis. Gorgias Press, 2012.
  9. Clines, David. The Dictionary of Classical Hebrew: Zayin-Teth. v.3. 105–109. Sheffield, 1996.
  10. Copan, Paul, Matthew Flannagan. Did God Really Command Genocide? Coming to Terms with the Justice of God. Baker Books, 2014.
  11. Daffern, Megan. “The Semantic Field of ‘Remembering’ in the Psalms.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament v.41.1 (2016): 79–97.
  12. Dagher, Milad. “Sacral War in Israel: Covenantal Synthesis of Ancient Israelite and Prophetic Traditions.” PhD diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 2013.
  13. David, Jayaray. “The Nature and Function of the Concept of the Election of Israel in the Book of Deuteronomy: А Perspective from Nationhood.” PhD diss., University of Gloucestershire, 2010.
  14. Deeley, Katharine. “The Rhetoric of Memory: A Study of the Persuasive Function of the Memory Commands in Deuteronomy 5–26.” PhD diss., Northwestern University, 1989.
  15. Devries, Simon. 1 Kings WBC v.12. Dallas: Word Books, 1985.
  16. Edelman, Dianna, Johannes Ro, eds. Collective Memory and Collective Identity: Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomistic History in Their Context. De Gruyter, 2021.
  17. Edwards, Nathan. “The Judgment of God in MT Esther: Considering the Violence in Esther as a Case of ḤEREM.” PhD diss., Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2023.
  18. Ellman, Barat. “Memory and Covenant: The Role of Israel’s and God’s Memory in Sustaining the Deuteronomic and Priestly Covenants.” PhD diss., Jewish Theological Seminary, 2011.
  19. Finsterbusch, Karin. Deuteronomium Eine Einführung. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2012.
  20. Fraade, Steven. “Memory and Loss in Early Rabbinic Text and Ritual.” In Memory and Identity in Ancient Judaism and Early Christianit: A Conversation with Barry Schwartz. Ed. by Tom Thatcher, 113–130. SBL Press, 2014.
  21. Fröhlich Ida, ed. David in Cultural Memory. Peeters, 2019.
  22. Goldingay, John. Daniel WBC v.30. Dallas: Word Books, 1989.
  23. Gregory, Bradley. The Role of Memory in the Wisdom of Solomon, Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha vol. 31,1 (2021): 49–61.
  24. Greifenhagen, Franz. Egypt on the Pentateuch’s Ideological Map: Constructing Biblical Israel’s Identity. Sheffield, 2003.
  25. Hendel, Ronald. Remembering Abraham Culture, Memory, and History in the Hebrew Bible. Oxford University Press, 2005.
  26. Hofreiter, Christian. Making Sense of Old Testament Genocide: Christian Interpretations of Herem Passages. Oxford University Press, 2018.
  27. Hwang, Jerry. “The Rhetoric of Remembrance: A Investigation of the Fathers in Deuteronomy.” PhD diss., Wheaton College, 2009.
  28. Kirk Alan and Tom Thatcher, ed. Memory, Tradition, And Text: Uses of the Past in Early Christianity. SBL, 2005.
  29. Kok, Marina. “Remembered Space: Memory and Identity in Psalms 137–145.” PhD diss., University of Pretoria, 2020.
  30. Korzec, Cezary, ed. Bible Caught in Violence. Peter Lang, 2019.
  31. Kwiatkowski, Dariusz. “Il Libro del Deuteronomio Come Fonte Teologica Della Dimensione Anamnetica dell’Anno Liturgico.” Poznańskie Studia Teologiczne 38 (2021): 205–217.
  32. Langille, Timothy. “Reshaping the Persistent Past: A Study of Collective Trauma and Memory in Second Temple Judaism.” PhD diss., University Toronto, 2014.
  33. Leslie, Allen. New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis. Ed. by Willem VanGemeren, 1100–1106. Zondervan, 1997.
  34. Leveen, Adriane. “Variations on a Theme: Differing Conceptions of Memory in the Book of Numbers.” JSOT 27.2 (2002): 201–221.
  35. Lohfink, Norbert. “The Destruction of the Seven Nations in Deuteronomy and the Mimetic Theory.” Contagion: Journal of Violence, Mimesis, and Culture, v. 2 Issue 1 (1995): 103–117.
  36. Lohr, Joel “Chosen and unchosen conceptions of election in the Pentateuch and Jewish-Christian interpretation.” PhD diss., University of Durham, 2007.
  37. López, Félix. “‘Un peuple consacré’ analyse critique de Deutéronome VII.” Vetus Testamentum, v. 32, Fasc. 4 (Oct., 1982): 438–463.
  38. Lundbom, Jack. Deuteronomy: A Commentary. Eerdmans, 2013.
  39. MacDonald, Nathan. Not Bread Alone: The Uses of Food in the Old Testament. Оxford University Press, 2008.
  40. May, Jonathan. Covenant Loyalty and the Goodness of God: A Study in the Theology оf James. PhD diss., University of Glasgow, 2002.
  41. Nascimento Lucas, Manutenção e Preservação da Memória No Deuteronômio: Estudo De Dois Textos, Revista Vértices No. 15 (2013): 59–73.
  42. Neipp, Daryl. “The dilemma of genocide in the Old Testament.” PhD diss., Liberty University, 2012. Glick, Mina. “Herem in Biblical law and narrative.” PhD diss., University of Pennsylvania, 2007.
  43. Lukin, Volodymyr. “The transformation of the Old Testament concept of the priesthood in New Testament context.” PhD diss., Christian Humanitarian Economic Open University 2014. [In Russian].
  44. Lyons, William. A History of Modern Scholarship on the Biblical Word Herem: The
  45. Contributions of Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Peter C. Craigie, and Tremper Longman, III. Mellen Press, 2010.
  46. Niditch, Susan. War in the Hebrew Bible: A Study in the Ethics of Violence. Oxford University Press, 1993.
  47. O'Brien, Julia, Chris Franke. The Aesthetics of Violence in the Prophets. Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2010.
  48. Ophir, Adi. In the Beginning Was the State: Divine Violence in the Hebrew Bible. Fordham University Press, 2022.
  49. Pakkala, Juha. Intolerant Monolatry in the Deuteronomistic History. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1999.
  50. Parker, Cynthia. “Deuteronomy’s Place: An Analysis of the Placial Structure of Deuteronomy.” PhD diss., University of Gloucestershire, 2014.
  51. Perrin, Andrew. “Remembering the Past, Cultivating a Character: Memory and the Formation of Daniel in the Aramaic Pseudo-Daniel Texts (4Q243–244; 4Q245).” In Vision, Narrative, and Wisdom in the Aramaic Texts from Qumran. Ed. by Mette Bundvad, Kasper Siegismund, 6–30. Brill, 2020.
  52. Person, Raymond. Scribal Memory and Word Selection: Text Criticism of the Hebrew Bible. SBL, 2023.
  53. Petry, Sven. Die Entgrenzung JHWHs: Monolatrie, Bilderverbot und Monotheismus im Deuteronomium, in Deuterojesaja und im Ezechielbuch. Mohr Siebeck, 2007.
  54. Pickett, Winston. “The meaning and function of ‘ T’B/O’EVAH’ in the Hebrew Bible (Abomination, Old Testament).” PhD diss., Union College, 1985.
  55. Pioske, Daniel D. Memory in a Time of Prose: Studies in Epistemology, Hebrew Scribalism, and the Biblical Past. Oxford University Press, 2018.
  56. Pioske, Daniel D. David's Jerusalem: Between Memory and History. Routledge, 2015.
  57. Pioske, Daniel D. “Retracing a Remembered Past Methodological Remarks on Memory, History, and the Hebrew Bible.” Biblical Interpretation 23 (2015): 291–315.
  58. Pioske, Daniel D. “The Case of Early Iron Age Khirbet Qeiyafa and Jerusalem.” Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 127/1 (2015): 78–95.
  59. Pitkänen, Pekka, “War in Deuteronomy.” In The Oxford Handbook of Deuteronomy. Ed. by Don Benjamin, 146–159. Oxford University Press, 2025.
  60. Ray, Ellis. “An Examination of the Covenant Promises of Exodus 19.5–6 and Their Theological Significance for Israel.” PhD diss., Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1988.
  61. Reeder, Caryn. “Community Violence in Deuteronomy.” In The Cambridge Companion To The Hebrew Bible And Ethics, ed. C. L. Crouch, 36-50. Cambridge University Press, 2021.
  62. Ribeiro, Valdivino, Hébert Vieira Barros, Rosemary Francisca Neves Silva. “Memória, Resistência e Alegria no Deuteronômio.” Fragmentos De Cultura, Goiânia, v. 25, n. 3, (2015): 417–427.
  63. Huebenthal, Sandra. Memory Theory in New Testament Studies: Exploring New Perspectives. Brill, 2024.
  64. Sánchez, Edesio. Deuteronomio: Introducción y Comentario. Ediciones Kairos, 2002.
  65. Schäfer-Lichtenberger Von Christa. “JHWH, Israel und die Völker aus der Perspektive von Dtn 7.” Biblische Zeitschrift Volume 40, Issue 2 (1996): 194–218.
  66. Schaper, Joachim. “The Living Word Engraved in Stone: The Interrelationship of the Oral and the Written and the Culture of Memory in the Books of Deuteronomy and Joshua.” In Memory in the Bible and Antiquity. Ed. by Stuckenbruck Loren T., Stephen C. Barton, Benjamin G. Wold, 9–23. Mohr Siebeck, 2007.
  67. Schmitt, Rüdiger “Yahweh’s Wars in the Pentateuch and their Function for the Cultural Memory of Ancient Israel.” In Cultural Memory in Biblical Exegesis. Ed. by Pernille Carstens, Trine Hasselbalch, 229–243. Gorgias Press, 2012.
  68. Schwartz Baruch, “Reexamining the Fate of the ‘Canaanites’.” In Torah Traditions, in Sefer Moshe: The Moshe Weinfeld Jubilee Volume: Studies in the Bible and the Ancient Near East, Qumran, and Post-Biblical, ed. Chaim Cohen, Avi Hurvitz, Shalom Paul, 151–170. Eisenbrauns, 2004.
  69. Spencer, James. “Remembering Sabbath: An application of sociological method in the exposition of the Old Testament.” PhD diss., Northwestern University, 1989.
  70. Stephen, Campbell. “Remembering the Unexperienced: Cultural Memory, Canon Consciousness, and the Book of Deuteronomy.” PhD diss., Durham University, 2019.
  71. Stern, Philip. The Biblical Herem: A Window on Israel's Religious Experience. Brown Judaic Studies, 1991.
  72. Stuckenbruck Loren T., Stephen C. Barton, Benjamin G. Wold, eds. Memory in the Bible and Antiquity. Mohr Siebeck, 2007.
  73. Taschner, Johannes. Die Mosereden Im Deuteronomium: Eine Kanonorientierte Untersuchung. Mohr Siebeck, 2007.
  74. Thomas, Heath, Jeremy Evans, and Paul Copan, eds. Holy War in the Bible: Christian Morality and an Old Testament Problem. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2013.
  75. Tigay, Jeffrey. Deuteronomy. Jewish Publication Society of America, 2003.
  76. van Ruiten, Jacques. “The Canaanites in Deuteronomy 7 and the Book of Jubilees.” In Violence in the Hebrew Bible: Between Text and Reception. Ed. by Jacques van Ruiten, Koert van Bekkum, 144–145. Brill, 2020.
  77. Versluis, Arie. The Command to Exterminate the Canaanites: Deuteronomy 7. Brill, 2017. Weinfeld, Moshe. Deuteronomy 1–11: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary: Anchor Bible 5. New York: Doubleday, 1991.
  78. Williamson N.G.M., Ezra, Nehemiah WBC v.16. Dallas: Word Books, 1985.
  79. Woods, Edward. Deuteronomy: An Introduction and Commentary. IVP Academic, 2011.
  80. Wright, Jacob. War, Memory, and National Identity in the Hebrew Bible. Cambridge University Press, 2020.
  81. Hrafov Andreǐ, Slovar′ bybleǐskoho yvryta [Словарь библейского иврита]. Moskva: «Tekst», 2019.
  82. Графов Андрей, Словарь библейского иврита. Москва: «Текст», 2019.

Downloads

Published

2025-05-26

How to Cite

Lukin, Volodymyr. 2025. “The Relationship Between the Motif of Memory/Remembrance and One of Its Aspects Concerning the Command to Exterminate the Canaanites in Deuteronomy 7”. Theological Reflections: Eastern European Journal of Theology 23 (1):46-63. https://doi.org/10.29357/2789-1577.2025.23.1.3.

Issue

Vol. 23 No. 1 (2025): Theological Reflections: Eastern European Journal of Theology

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2025 Volodymyr Lukin

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

All articles published in the Journal are distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

By submitting an article for publication in Theological Reflections: Eastern European Journal of Theology the author grants the editors the right to publish the article and distribute it in electronic and print form.

The author reserves all copyrights and the right to use the materials of the article in whole or in part for educational purposes, to write his own dissertations, to prepare abstracts, conference reports, oral presentations, etc., as well as post electronic copies of articles (including the final electronic version downloaded from the journal’s official website) on non-commercial web-resources without the consent of the editorial board and founders.