Israel’s Mandate as God’s First-Born Son:
This is the mandate from God to the Israelites, summarized succinctly by Moses.  Yahweh has chosen the nation Israel to be His own portion. From the Tower of Babel event, all the nations of the world were scattered about, and effectively placed under control of other fallen Elohim, fallen-angels, so-called “gods.” This is why they worship idols and demons, practice the occult and witchcraft, and make human and child sacrifices. They are following evil teachings by these evil beings. But, not so with Israel.  Israel is God’s portion.  They are to be “set-apart” and holy.  They are to follow the one true God, Yahweh, and shirk all other evil pagan cults and practices. Israel is God’s “first-born” son, a holy and priestly nation, meant to lead back all the other fallen-away children of God, and not to be ensnared by their paganism and demonic idolatry (as embodied with the Canaanites).

Thus, Moses adjures the Israelites: “When the Lord your God brings you into the land which you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than yourselves, and when the Lord your God gives them over to you, and you defeat them; then you must utterly destroy them; you shall make no covenant with them, and show no mercy to them. You shall not make marriages with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons.  For they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods; then the anger of the Lord would be kindled against you, and he would destroy you quickly. But thus shall you deal with them: you shall break down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars, and hew down their Asherim, and burn their graven images with fire. For you are a people holy to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his own possession, out of all the peoples that are on the face of the earth.” (Deut. 7:1-6)

The Hidden Drama:
The Canaanites represent evil and sin, so we should have no compromise with evil and sin.  The Lord tells them: “your eye shall not pity them; neither shall you serve their gods, for that would be a snare to you.” (Deut. 7:16)  In some respects, this is a war between the one, true God Yahweh, and the plethora of false gods, fallen-angels, demons, principalities and powers.  The Israelites and the Canaanites are almost secondary characters in the divine drama going on with God judging the fallen angels who have enslaved humanity.  It is a divine drama happening of God undoing, bit by bit, through Israel all the evils that the fallen angels have inflicted upon humanity.

Keep the Lord’s Commandments – Blessings and Curses:
Because of all this, the Lord reminds Israel: “You shall therefore be careful to do the commandment, and the statutes, and the ordinances, which I command you this day.” (Deut. 7:11)  If the Israelites keep the Commandments of God, “You shall be blessed above all peoples.”  On the other hand, the Israelites are to spurn the evil of paganism.  “The graven images of their gods you shall burn with fire; you shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them, or take it for yourselves, lest you be ensnared by it; for it is an abomination to the Lord your God. And you shall not bring an abominable thing into your house, and become accursed like it; you shall utterly detest and abhor it; for it is an accursed thing.” (Deut. 7:25-26)

God Will Send “Hornets”:
The Lord tells the Israelites not to worry, even though these other nations are bigger and stronger than they are, because the one true God is on their side.  He tells them: “Moreover the Lord your God will send hornets among them, until those who are left and hide themselves from you are destroyed. You shall not be in dread of them; for the Lord your God is in the midst of you, a great and terrible God.” (Deut. 7:20-21)  What these hornets are is up for debate.  This is mentioned also in Exodus 23:28. It is possible that God has just directed actual literal hornets to chase these peoples off of the land. There is an abundance of aggressive types hornets in Palestine. Or, it is possible that the “Angel of the Lord” is going before them, harassing the Canaanites in one form or another, or with a plague of some sort.