Romans 12:2 – Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
To put it another way, people in the days of Judges and our own days are just filthy Canaanites. The Canaanites were enemies of God and His people.
Powerful demonic forces ruled in both the seen and unseen realms of Canaanite culture. The demons who opposed God also seduced God’s people into sin throughout the Old Testament. A Bible encyclopedia says: “From what is now known of Canaanite culture, the head of the Canaanite list of gods was a shadowy personage named El, who was worshiped as the ‘father of man.’ His consorts were Athirat, known to the Israelites as Asherah, Astarte, and Baaltis. El had a son, Baal, a fertility god described in myths as the lord of rain and storm. Baal succeeded his father as head of the pantheon (list of gods) and supposedly resided in the distant northern heavens. A monument found at Ugarit represented him carrying a thunderbolt at his left side and a mace in his right hand.” (1)
Throughout Judges, God’s people continually wander into the worship of the demonic false god Baal and follow the sexual and spiritual practices of the nearby ungodly neighboring Canaanites. Powerful demonic spirits work through anything and everything from religion to spirituality, politics, education, and entertainment to lure people away from pure devotion to the one true God. In the New Testament, this is referred to collectively as the “world” system that is a counterfeit of God’s Kingdom. Ruled by Satan and demons with the help of evildoers, it is an attempt to pull the culture of hell up onto the earth and prevent the culture of Heaven from coming down.
These powerful demonic forces are referred to as a “god” or the “gods” throughout Judges. Demon spirits parading as false gods work together, under Baal the chief god of the Canaanite legion. His name is translated with terms like “master,” “lord,” and “owner.” The Bible, including Judges, speaks of both Baal and Baals. Like any business, government agency, or military fighting unit with human beings, in the unseen realm demonic divine beings also have a chain of command. At the top is the demon “Baal,” and working under them are the various demon “Baals.” Although demons are not male or female with a physical body like human beings, Baal appears as a male demonic deity.
Is there any area of your own life that resembles the Canaanite culture?
- Walter A. Elwell and Barry J. Beitzel, “Canaan, Canaanites,” Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1988), 409.
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