August 9, 2010 Lesson 8 of Numbers 13:1-14:10a. The spies are sent into the Land.

To what places in Canaan did the spies go? Look up Hebron and the Valley of Eshcol on a map. What were they commissioned to discover, and what report did they give? Answer: The spies reported what they feared in their heart. They reported that there were giants who could easily defeat them. They lost faith in God that He would help them through any battle. They were promised the land, and yet they didn’t have the faith needed to bring back positive report. They did report, however, positively about the fruits of the land.


What lay behind the opposing views expressed in 13:30 and 31? Were Caleb and Joshua being unrealistically optimistic and refusing to face facts? What was the outcome of the people’s fear and unbelief? Notice how few believed, and the frequent occurrence of the word ‘all’ in 14:1-10. Cf. Heb 4:1-2. Answer: Caleb and Joshua had not lost faith in God, which prompted their report that it was possible to defeat the people in the land. This “negativism” spread in the camp.


Note: 13:32. ‘The land we explored devours those living in it’: this probably refers to the constant wars between its people, and their ferocity in internecine strife.