Perizzites פְּרִזִּי
Canaanite people group living in the land of Canaan
Who is Perizzites in the Bible?
The Perizzites were a Canaanite people group that inhabited the land of Canaan before the Israelite conquest. They are first mentioned in Genesis 13:7 as living in the land during Abraham's time, and God promised to give their territory to Abraham's descendants (Genesis 15:20). Throughout the Old Testament, the Perizzites are frequently listed among the Canaanite nations that the Israelites were commanded to dispossess, appearing in passages such as Exodus 3:8, Deuteronomy 7:1, and Joshua 3:10. During the conquest of Canaan, many Perizzites were defeated by the Israelites (Joshua 24:11; Judges 1:4-5), though some remained in the land and eventually intermarried with the Israelites (Judges 3:5-6). The Perizzites serve in Scripture as representatives of the pagan inhabitants whom God displaced to fulfill His covenant promise to Abraham's descendants.
Biography
The Perizzites were one of the Canaanite people groups that inhabited the land of Canaan before the Israelite conquest. They are first mentioned in Gen.13.7 as living in the land alongside the Canaanites during the time of Abraham. God promised to give the land of the Perizzites to Abraham's descendants (Gen.15.20). The Perizzites are often listed among the Canaanite nations that the Israelites were to dispossess and drive out (Exo.3.8,17; 23.23; 33.2; 34.11; Deu.7.1; 20.17; Jos.3.10; 9.1; 11.3; 12.8). During the conquest of Canaan, the Perizzites were among the groups defeated by the Israelites (Jos.24.11; Jdg.1.4-5). However, some Perizzites remained in the land, and the Israelites intermarried with them (Jdg.3.5-6). The Perizzites, along with other Canaanite groups, were subjected to forced labor during the reigns of Solomon and later kings (1Ki.9.20-21; 2Ch.8.7-8). Remnants of the Perizzites were still present in the land after the Babylonian exile (Ezr.9.1; Neh.9.8).
In Scripture
9 biblical books ; 6 with study contentGenesis 3 verses
- Genesis 13:7
"And there was discord between the herdsmen of Abram and the herdsmen of Lot. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were also living in the land."
Study Genesis → - Genesis 15:20
"Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites,"
Study Genesis → - Genesis 34:30
"Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought trouble upon me by making me a stench to the Canaanites and Perizzites, the people of this land. We are few in number; if they unite against me and attack me, I and my household will be destroyed.”"
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Exodus 5 verses
- Exodus 3:8
"I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites."
Study Exodus → - Exodus 3:17
"And I have promised to bring you up out of your affliction in Egypt, into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.’"
Study Exodus → - Exodus 23:23
"For My angel will go before you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites, and I will annihilate them."
Study Exodus → - Exodus 33:2
"And I will send an angel before you, and I will drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites."
Study Exodus → - Exodus 34:11
"Observe what I command you this day. I will drive out before you the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites."
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Deuteronomy 2 verses
- Deuteronomy 7:1
"When the LORD your God brings you into the land that you are entering to possess, and He drives out before you many nations—the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you—"
Study Deuteronomy → - Deuteronomy 20:17
"For you must devote them to complete destruction—the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—as the LORD your God has commanded you,"
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Joshua 5 verses
- Joshua 3:10
"He continued, “This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that He will surely drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites."
Study Joshua → - Joshua 9:1
"Now when news of this reached all the kings west of the Jordan—those in the hill country, the foothills, and all along the coast of the Great Sea toward Lebanon (the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites)—"
Study Joshua → - Joshua 11:3
"to the Canaanites in the east and west; to the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, and Jebusites in the hill country; and to the Hivites at the foot of Hermon in the land of Mizpah."
Study Joshua → - Joshua 12:8
"the hill country, the foothills, the Arabah, the slopes, the wilderness, and the Negev—the lands of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites):"
Study Joshua → - Joshua 17:15
"Joshua answered them, “If you have so many people that the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you, go to the forest and clear for yourself an area in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim.”"
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Judges 3 verses
- Judges 1:4
"When Judah attacked, the LORD delivered the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands, and they struck down ten thousand men at Bezek."
- Judges 1:5
"And there they found Adoni-bezek and fought against him, striking down the Canaanites and Perizzites."
- Judges 3:5
"Thus the Israelites continued to live among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites."
1 Kings 1 verse
- 1 Kings 9:20
"As for all the people who remained of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites (the people who were not Israelites)—"
Names & Aliases
| Form | Language | Script | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group | Hebrew | פְּרִזִּי | a Perizzite , one of the Canaanitish tribes |