Early Access: Sign up to unlock all Pro features free through the end of 2026.
Biblexika

Perizzites

Old TestamentFemaleCanaanites

The Perizzites, a Canaanite people group that inhabited the land of Canaan before the Israelite conquest.

Perizzites illustration
Perizzites

Biography

The Perizzites were one of the indigenous people groups inhabiting the land of Canaan, consistently listed among the nations whose territory God promised to Abraham and his descendants. They appear in the earliest patriarchal narratives, already present when Abraham and Lot grazed their flocks in the land (Genesis 13:7). They are named in God's covenant promise to Abraham in Genesis 15:20 and repeatedly throughout the conquest narratives of Joshua. Unlike the Hittites, Jebusites, or Amorites, the Perizzites are not clearly associated with a specific city or region, and their name may derive from a Hebrew word meaning "rural dwellers" or "villagers." Despite Israel's mandate to dispossess them, Judges 1:4-5 and 3:5-6 record that the Perizzites persisted in the land, and some Israelites intermarried with them.

Significance

The Perizzites function in Scripture as part of the theological framework of God's land promises and Israel's obedience test. Their persistent listing among the Canaanite nations marked for dispossession (Exodus 3:8, 17; Deuteronomy 7:1) established the scope of God's gift to Israel while simultaneously testing Israel's willingness to obey fully. Israel's failure to completely drive out the Perizzites, as noted in Judges 3:5-6, became symptomatic of the broader pattern of incomplete obedience that plagued the settlement period. The Perizzites thus serve as a recurring reminder that partial obedience to God's commands leads to spiritual compromise and eventual entanglement with idolatry.

Verse Appearances (23)

References

  1. Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
  2. Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Translators Individualised Proper Names with all References (TIPNR). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
  3. Wikidata contributors (n.d.) Wikidata. Available at: https://www.wikidata.org. [CC0]
  4. Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]

View all sources & licensing →

See our editorial standards →

Content compiled from public domain scholarship, academic sources, and verified references. Editorial standards · View all sources