Many of the Biblical events described in scriptures have been drawn into question by Scientists for centuries. With the new technologies and advancements in science over the recent decades, scientists have been able to disprove a few of these stories.
Recently, a genetic study has revealed that the descendants of the Canaanites are alive and thriving in the Middle East. According to the Old Testament, God had ordered the Israelites to slaughter every Canaanite in the land. Due to recent findings, It appears that this event never took place.
The Old Testament
There are many places in the Old Testament where genocide is ordered by God. This particular mention of such a slaughter appears in Deuteronomy 20:16 (KJV), "But of the cities of these people, which the Lord thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth."
The next verse goes on to mention the names of the tribes to be slaughtered, which includes the Canaanites. DNA evidence has now proven this Biblical event never happened.
The Bible states that the Canaanites and their cities were completely destroyed, but genetic evidence states otherwise. Archeologists have uncovered no evidence that these cities were annihilated between the Iron and Bronze Ages.
In fact, many of the of the cities - such as Sidon and Tyre - are still inhabited to this day.
Many atheists have used verses such as these to explain why they do not adhere to any religion.
Genetic Evidence
Besides archeological evidence, scientists have also uncovered genetic proof of the survival of the Canaanites.
The 3,700-year old remains of five Canaanites were unearthed in the city of Sidon.
Researchers were able to sequence their entire genome and compare it to modern-day Lebanese people. The results were groundbreaking.
Geneticists discovered that 90% of Lebanese ancestry is directly related to the Canaanites. The ancient DNA sequence was compared to 99 Lebanese participants in this study.
In addition to being the descendants of the Canaanites, researchers also found DNA links of a smaller degree to Eurasian ancestry.
This is most likely from conquests by the Assyrians, Persians, and Macedonians.
The Canaanites have also been referred to by historians as Phoenicians. Some of them were said to have traveled across the sea to establish colonies in the Mediterranean.
No matter where they were said to have been, the genetic evidence of their survival throughout history is clear. The Canaanites are still very much alive.
