Yes — God commanded the destruction of the Canaanites because their wickedness had reached full measure after 400 years of patience.
Rather than turning from their sin, the Canaanites degenerated further into immorality and wickedness. By the time Israel crossed the Jordan, God in justice told Joshua to spare no one, warning that if Israel did not cleanse the land, they would become just like them.
Genesis 15:16 — God directly states the reason for the delay: the iniquity of the Amorites (representing the Canaanite peoples) was not yet full.
Genesis 15:13 — God told Abram that his descendants would be afflicted in a foreign land for 400 years before returning, giving the Canaanites time for their iniquity to ripen.
In Genesis 15:13, God told Abram that his descendants would be strangers in a land that was not theirs, would serve that people, and would be afflicted for four hundred years. Then in Genesis 15:16 God gave the reason for the wait and the timing of the return: "But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full." This passage is the foundation of the biblical answer. The Amorites are used for the Canaanite peoples generally, and their sin had not yet reached the point where God's judgment was required. God did not act hastily, and He did not command Israel to take the land until the wickedness of the inhabitants was complete.
Les Feldick explains that God gave the Canaanite peoples four hundred years to clean up their act. Instead of repenting, they continued on an immoral plane and degenerated down, down, down until God could in justice tell Israel, "Don't spare a one." Les points to Genesis 15:16 as the reason: Israel had to wait until the Canaanites' iniquity was full. When Israel finally crossed the Jordan, God's instruction was to kill all the Canaanites, sparing no one, because if even one remained, they would be like a rotten apple in the barrel. Les emphasizes that God patiently let Israel suffer in Egypt so that the Amorites and Canaanites could prove the worthiness of the judgment that was coming on them. Les also stresses what happened because Israel did not carry out the command. They incorporated the Canaanites into their lifestyle, and within a couple generations Israel turned her back on Jehovah and went headlong after the gods of the Canaanites. Israel walked in the statutes of the heathen and ended up serving idols just like the peoples God had cast out.
According to Les, God told Abram He would give the Canaanites 400 years. After that time, their iniquity was full, and God could in justice command Israel to cleanse the land. The delay showed God's patience; the Canaanites had centuries to straighten up their act but instead went deeper into sin.
Les answers this directly: "Unfair? Unjust? No." The Canaanites had 400 years to change, but they continued to degenerate. God let His own people suffer in Egypt while the Amorites and Canaanites proved the worthiness of the judgment that would come upon them. Once their iniquity was full, God's instruction to Joshua was to kill them all without exception.
Israel got soft-hearted and chose to make servants of the Canaanites instead of putting them to death. They incorporated the Canaanites into their lifestyle, and within a couple generations Israel turned from Jehovah to the gods of the Canaanites. The history of Israel in the book of Judges, Les notes, was a roller coaster as a good judge would bring a spiritual height and then the nation would fall back into idolatry.
Abraham Asks for Proof
Les sets the stage by showing how Abraham asked for proof of inheriting the land, leading into the covenant in which God made the promises about the land.
The 400-Year Opportunity
God gave the Canaanites 400 years to clean up their act; when they instead degenerated, He was fair in commanding Israel to cleanse the land.
Spare No One
The Canaanites had gone so deep into sin that God told Joshua to kill them all, because leaving even one would spoil the nation.
The Canaanites' Moral Decline
The Canaanites began on an immoral plane and kept going down until God could in justice say, "Don't spare one."
The Reason for the Delay
Because the iniquity of the Canaanites was not yet full, God gave them 400 years to straighten up their act.
Israel's Adoption of Heathen Statutes
Israel eventually walked in the statutes of the heathen, exactly like the Canaanite peoples God had cast out before them.
The Roller-Coaster of Judges
The effect of the Canaanites upon Israel was to take them into idolatry, producing a cycle of spiritual highs and lows under the judges.
Proving the Judgment Worthy
God patiently let Israel suffer in Egypt so the Amorites and Canaanites could prove the worthiness of the coming judgment; Israel's failure to carry it out brought them down to the same level.
Genesis 15:13: And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;
God tells Abram that his descendants would be strangers and afflicted 400 years, establishing the timeline before the Canaanites' judgment.
Genesis 15:16: But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.
This verse is the direct answer: the return to the land was delayed until the iniquity of the Amorites (the Canaanite peoples) was full.
Yes. God told Abraham that his offspring would be in bondage for 400 years and that the reason was the iniquity of the Amorites was not yet full. Les says God gave the Canaanite people 400 years to straighten up their act.
Because their iniquity was full. They had degenerated so deep into sin and wickedness that God was perfectly fair in telling Joshua to kill them all. Leaving any of them would be like putting a rotten apple in the barrel.
Israel got soft-hearted, made servants of the Canaanites, and incorporated them into their lifestyle. Within a couple generations Israel turned from Jehovah and went after the gods of the Canaanites.
Watch the Teaching: Why God Commanded Israel to Destroy Entire Nations — Deuteronomy 7