There is a rationale behind the ascription of the origins of Canaan and Moab/Ammon to different forms of incest (son-mother vs. father-daughter). The origins of the Canaanites, toward whom Israelite traditions often direct the most deep-seated antagonism,48 are ascribed to a more serious form of incest; while Moab and Ammon, with whom the antagonism was slightly less, are granted an origin in less serious transgression. Intercourse between father and daughter, while certainly transgressive, was less
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