A MATTER OF RACIAL DIFFERENCE

Everything goes back to Abram, or so it seems.

Not specifically on this case. I need to go back to Noah and his three sons. Human race blooms again from them since the flood made all living creature disappear. Population of the world began again after Shem, Ham and Japheth produced their own sons (55). Canaan, one of Noah’s grandsons, son of Ham (56,57), plays an important role on this story.

Canaan is the only one cursed by Noah after the flood and he did nothing to receive that curse! (58). Noah was not drunk when he cursed his grandson to be “a servant of servants” unto his brethren. He was wide-awake and rational. Other causes were present that made him curse the little one and it is needed to review them in order to understand his actions.

The sons of Canaan founded cities from where the Canaanites bloomed: Sidon, Heth, Jebusite, Amorite, Girgasite, Hivite, Arkite, Sinite, Arvadite, Zemarite, Hamathite (59), and the land that they occupied and lived in was big, from Sidon to Gaza, including Sodom, Gomorrah and Lasha (60). After many generations, Abram appears in history and the Lord offers him the land where the Canaanites dwelled (61), a big land from the Nile River to the river Euphrates. Abram is already a rich, powerful man with a land promised by God Himself for him and his descendants, but he had no son…

His wife tries to solve the problem and offers Hagar, her servant, as a mistress to Abram (62). Abram accepted the offering (63). He was presently living in the land of Canaan and the maid was Egyptian, a native Canaanite as well. The son, Ishmael, who was born from a Canaanite woman never inherited the wealth of his father; on the contrary, he was cast out with his mother (64) and married another Canaanite from the land of Egypt (65). Being of Canaan descent was enough to disqualify Ishmael.

The rest of the story and the miracle God performs to let Sarah, a sterile woman, become pregnant is very popular among the Jews.

Isaac is born to Sarah, a non-Canaanite woman, and he is the one who inherits the wealth and power of his father Abram (66). If he wanted to continue enjoying all of this wealth he had to do a simple thing: not to marry a Canaanite (67). He is obedient to the rule set. He marries his niece, Rebekah, daughter of Bethuel, son of Nahor; his father’s brother (68) but continues living in the land of Canaan since God promised it to them.

Rebekah had twins, Esau and Jacob. Esau, being the first born, was the legal heir of Isaac but he didn’t inherit the wealth and power since he married Judith and Basemath, both Canaanites. This caused great grief to both Esau’s parents (69). Rebekah talked to her husband Isaac and threatens to commit suicide if he doesn’t do something to prevent Jacob, her favorite, from marrying a Canaanite woman (70). Isaac expressly forbids Jacob to marry a Canaanite girl (71) and advises him to choose a wife among his cousins (72). Knowing that his father was not pleased with his wives (73) Esau marries again with Mahalat, daughter of Ishmael, son of Abraham but she was also a Canaanite. Did he do this to increase his parents’ displeasure?

Later on, when all four wives of Jacob have already given birth and raised their sons, being all of them grown-ups, Dinah, daughter of Jacob and Leah, falls in love with Sachem, son of Hamor the Hivite, a Prince among the Canaanites. She goes to live with him and her brothers feel ashamed for her action. They made an impossible offer in order to allow interracial marriage among their people and the Canaanites. They would accept Dinah to marry Sachem only if the Canaanites men are circumcised. The Canaanites accepted the offer with joy. They dreamed of a common future without restrictions with Jacob’s descent. After circumcision, when all the males of the city are sore and aching, the army of Jacob kills them all (74). They tricked them and exterminated them all. They wouldn’t allow anyone to marry a Canaanite, if they would, that person would immediately be cast out and not considered part of the family or tribe.

This was the heavy tradition regarding Canaan that Jesus inherited when he was born.

55. Genesis 10:1
56. Genesis 10:6
57. Genesis 9:18
58. Genesis 9:25-27
59. Genesis 10: 15-19
60. Genesis 10:19
61. Genesis 15: 18-21
62. Genesis 16:1
63. Genesis 16: 2
64. Genesis 21:10, 14
65. Genesis 21:21
66. Genesis 21: 1-3
67. Genesis 24: 3-4 ; 24:37
68. Genesis 22: 20-23; 24:24
69. Genesis 26: 34-35
70. Genesis 27: 46
71. Genesis 28: 1
72. Genesis 28: 2
73. Genesis 28: 8
74. Genesis Chapter 34