Deuteronomy 7:20

20 And, moreover, Yahweh your God will send the hornets among them until [both] the survivors and the fugitives {are destroyed} {before you}.

Deuteronomy 7:20 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 7:20

Moreover, the Lord thy God will send the hornet among them,
&c.] Not a single one, but several of them, and which may be understood of creatures so called, which resemble wasps, only twice as large, an insect very bold and venomous; see ( Exodus 23:28 ) . Aben Ezra interprets it of the leprosy:

until they that are left, and hide themselves from thee, be destroyed;
such of the Canaanites who escaped the sword of the Israelites, and hid themselves in holes and caverns of the earth; these the hornets would find out and sting them to death, until they were all destroyed. Thus God can make use of small creatures, even insects, to destroy nations the most populous and mighty.

Deuteronomy 7:20 In-Context

18 [then remember] you must not be afraid of them; you must well remember what Yahweh your God did to Pharaoh and to all [of] Egypt:

19 the great trials that your eyes saw and the signs and the wonders and the [workings of] the strong hand and the outstretched arm [by] which Yahweh your God brought you out; so Yahweh your God will do to all [of] the peoples {because of whom} you [are] in fear {before them}.

20 And, moreover, Yahweh your God will send the hornets among them until [both] the survivors and the fugitives {are destroyed} {before you}.

21 You must not [be in dread] from the presence of them, because Yahweh your God, [who is] in your midst, [is] a great and awesome God.

22 And Yahweh your God will clear away these nations {from before you} little by little; you will not be able to finish them off quickly, {lest} the {wild animals} {multiply} {against you}.

Footnotes

• [a]. Hebrew "hornet"
• [b]. Literally "the destroying of"
• [c]. Literally "from your faces"