תהלים, פרק מ״ד, פסוק ג׳

The historical memory of conquering the Land of Israel rests entirely on direct Divine intervention. The victory and settlement were not achieved through human military strength, but through the absolute power of God, who reshaped reality to fulfill His promise to His people. Furthermore, God's total control over all creation provides the moral and spiritual justification for transferring the land from its previous inhabitants to the Israelites. Because God founded the earth with His own hands, He holds the absolute right to decide who inherits it. This truth directly counters any claims from the rest of the world that the Israelites took the land by theft [אלשיך].

The primary approach among commentators is that God used His own power to drive out the idolatrous inhabitants. His strike was so decisive that the Israelites did not even need to engage in battle [רד"ק, מצודת דוד]. In doing so, God acted in two parallel ways, focusing on the foreign nations and on Israel. First, He completely uprooted and removed the nations from their place [מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Second, He carefully planted the Israelites in the newly emptied land [רש"י, אבן עזרא, מאירי]. The imagery of planting symbolizes profound stability and permanence, suggesting the people were placed in the land to remain there forever [רד"ק].

When dealing with the Canaanite nations, God brought ruin upon them, breaking the power of the seven nations and thirty-one kings who previously ruled the region [רש"י, אלשיך, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. A distinction is made between the national identity of these groups and their religious practices. God struck them specifically because their religions were deeply corrupt and centered on idolatry [מלבי"ם]. The final act against these nations involved their absolute removal from the land [רש"י, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The sheer terror of God caused some groups to simply rise and flee on their own accord [אלשיך]. However, other commentators understand this action in a much harsher light. Rather than a simple expulsion, they interpret the removal as an act of lethal force and total destruction, ensuring the idolatrous nations were entirely wiped out [רד"ק, מאירי].