Harsh Commands, Harsh Times: Why God Ordered the Death of Children in Tribal Warfare

Harsh Commands, Harsh Times: Why God Ordered the Death of Children in Tribal Warfare

One of the most disturbing topics in Scripture is God’s command for Israel to completely destroy entire populations—men, women, and even children—especially in cities like Jericho, Ai, and among the Amalekites (Deut. 20:16–18; 1 Sam. 15:3). To modern Western minds, this seems unthinkable. But to understand these commands, we must abandon our sanitized lenses and step into the ancient Near Eastern world—a world of tribal honor, vengeance, and generational warfare.

These weren’t peaceful agrarian families just minding their business. These were honor-driven clans where children were raised with one goal: restore the family’s legacy, avenge their people, and never forget who killed their fathers. These weren’t “cute kids with coloring books.” These were future warriors—trained early to hate Yahweh and His people, much like we see in modern terrorist training camps where young boys in Afghanistan or Syria are taught to wield RPGs and wear suicide vests. 

The ideology is planted young, and the thirst for vengeance grows with age. Crucially, the Israelites didn’t have massive fortresses or walled cities to fall back on like their enemies did. They were vulnerable. They lived in tents for generations during the wilderness period and later in scattered, small towns throughout the land. They couldn’t afford to leave behind ideological enemies to grow up and retaliate. This wasn't cruelty. It was survival.

We even see how this danger plays out in the story of Hadad the Edomite (1 Kings 11:14–25). As a child, Hadad escaped the slaughter of Edom under King David. He grew up in Egypt, was protected by Pharaoh, and later returned to become a thorn in Solomon’s side. His survival as a child led to long-term political and military consequences. Imagine this multiplied across dozens of Canaanite cities and clans.

This is why God commanded total destruction in specific cases. It wasn’t blind genocide—it was God's wisdom of what would happen if even a remnant of hostility was left behind. These were not “innocent children” in a modern sense, but ideological time bombs in a culture where vengeance was sacred duty.

Conclusion

Was it harsh? Yes. But so was the world. To show mercy to the next generation of warriors, trained in hate, would have been to sign Israel’s death sentence. God’s commands, while offensive to modern sensibilities, were perfectly suited to the honor-shame world of tribal warfare. They ensured the survival of a covenant people who had no political alliances, no walled cities, and no backup plan—only God.