Chapter Thirteen
Spies Sent into Canaan, the Promised Land
13:1 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.” 3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the LORD, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel. 4 And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; 5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; 6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; 8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun; 9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is, from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua.
Now approaching the Promised Land, the text seems to imply that God was requesting the people of Israel to check out the land of Canaan. But that is not the situation, He is not requesting the reconnaissance; He is allowing them to reconnoiter for themselves, per their request. The book of Deuteronomy opens with Moses recalling some of the events of their journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. In chapter one he notes: “Then we set out from Horeb and went through all that great and terrifying wilderness that you saw, on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, as the LORD our God commanded us. And we came to Kadesh-barnea. And I said to you, ‘You have come to the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us. See, the LORD your God has set the land before you. Go up, take possession, as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has told you. Do not fear or be dismayed.’ Then all of you came near me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, that they may explore the land for us and bring us word again of the way by which we must go up and the cities into which we shall come.’ The thing seemed good to me, and I took twelve men from you, one man from each tribe. And they turned and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied it out. And they took in their hands some of the fruit of the land and brought it down to us, and brought us word again and said, ‘It is a good land that the LORD our God is giving us.’” (Deuteronomy 1:19-25) The spying was the idea of the people, not God’s. Here again, similar to the invitation of Moses’ father-in-law Hobab to guide them where to camp in the wilderness (see Numbers 10:31), the idea of sending people into a land promised by YHWH to determine which way to go and which towns to enter, reveals a disturbing lack of trust in God, but instead of any admonishment or discipline, He allows them to proceed.
While in the wilderness of Paran,[1] one representative from the leaders of each tribe was selected, presumably considered trustworthy by their fellow tribe members. Each of the twelve names listed appears for the first time in Scripture, however, Joshua (Hebrew ‘yehô·šǔª’,[2] meaning “YHWH delivers,” the Greek equivalent of ‘Jesus’), who first appeared in Exodus 17:9, is also known as Hoshea (Hebrew ‘hô·šēª’,[3] meaning ‘deliverance’ or ‘salvation’). It is believed that Moses changed his name from ‘Hoshea’ to ‘Joshua’, however, it seems likely that God changed his name, like many other of His servants.[4]
Note that the tribe of Levi is not represented, the text does not offer any explanation, however the Levities were exempt from the military duty and had other responsibilities resulting in them often not being listed.[5] Some point out that since they were not to be allocated any major land, they may not have been too concerned about what lies ahead. However, more than likely they recognized the error in questioning God regarding the land and probably thought sending a representative was rightfully a waste of time.
13:17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, “Go up into the Negeb and go up into the hill country, 18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, 20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there are trees in it or not. Be of good courage and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.
Moses sends the representatives north into Canaan, apparently they were south of the Negeb (also known as Negev, the southernmost territory of Canaan),[6] and were to continue north until they reach the hill country and then return. They were to evaluate the land and assess the inhabitants. While knowledge regarding the military strength of the people and intelligence of how they build their defenses would be vital for any manmade-military campaign or invasion, what difference would it make for the Israelites? They were on God’s side; He already knew all that and more! Plus, regardless of being rich or poor, having a few trees or an abundance of trees, or how good the fruit of the land was, again, they were on God’s side, if He promised something, was their report going to change that reality? Was Moses using this adventure hoping that they would come back with glowing reports to aid in removing any doubts and fears the people of Israel might have about entering occupied territory? Or did Moses know the hearts and minds of these spies, understanding that they would choose retreat over trusting God, something better to realize as a small group than have several million people panic? This spying exercise was a way to bring to the surface for everyone to see (including for us reading many years later), the lack of faith in God this generation had.
13:21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo-hamath. 22 They went up into the Negeb and came to Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol, because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there.
The spies departed for the Promised Land; their trip is summarized here with minimal detail. They begin in the wilderness of Zin (considered the southern boundary of Canaan), located between the wilderness of Paran and the Negeb, then to Rehob (exact location is unknown, several archaeological sites have been found with the same name), near Lebo-hamath (meaning near the entrance of Hamath, which is believed to be the modern city of Hama in Syria), essentially saying they traveled from the southern border to the northern region of Canaan. When they came to Hebron (approximately 18 miles south of modern-day Jerusalem, a little less than half the distance to Rehob), they encountered the descendants of Anak, who, being from the Nephilim, were giant-sized people.[7]
The narrative stops to give a parenthetical statement that Hebron was seven years older than Zoan located in Egypt. Zoan (or Tanis in the Greek), was a delta city where many of the sages of Egypt called home (see Isaiah 19:11-13), perhaps the royal residence of Ramses II. There is some debate as to why this bit of information is provided here, however it does tell us that Hebron was old and well established.
They then travel to the Valley of Eshcol (or “Brook of Eshcol,” believed to be near Mamre, north of Hebron),[8] where they find what sounds like some sizable grape clusters (big enough to require putting one on a pole to be carried by two people). They also picked some pomegranates and figs to bring back for their report. They named that location Valley of Eschol as the Hebrew ‘ěš·kôl’,[9] refers to a cluster of something, in this context, clusters of grapes.
The Spies Report Back
13:25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. 26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.”
The twelve spies return to Kadesh[10] located in the wilderness of Paran, after spending forty days traveling through the central regions of the Promised Land. In what might be described as a “good news first” report, they show Moses, Aaron, and the people of Israel the fruit they picked and told them that the land indeed flows with milk and honey (see Exodus 3:8, 17; 13:5; 33:3; Leviticus 20:24). The good news ends with an undoubtedly well-emphasized, ‘however’, then the bad news follows. The people in the land are big, strong and have fortified cities, they even saw the descendants of Anak there (at this time the smiles on the faces of the people were undoubtedly replaced with the look of panic or horror). The report continued with a summary of the people group locations. The Amalekites were found in the Negeb region; the Hittites, the Jebusites and Amorites dwell in the mountainous regions and the Canaanites near the sea (Mediterranean) and along the Jordan River. They knew that the land would be occupied with some powerful opponents (see Genesis 15:18-21), however this information should not have created a panic among the people, but it did. Perhaps it was the mention of the Anakim that generated the most fear. (Descendants of Anak, who were also in the line of the Rephaites, see Deuteronomy 2:20-21).
13:30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” 32 So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. 33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.”
Caleb, from the tribe of Judah, silences the crowd and tries to encourage the people to consider mobilizing immediately and occupy the land, as he believes they can prevail. But then the others that were with him on this trip speak up saying there is no way! They even mention that they saw the Nephilim (not mentioned in the Bible since before Noah’s flood, see Genesis 6:4), referring to the sons of Anak who came from the Nephilim, which were undoubtedly the biggest obstacle in the minds of the people. Then, perhaps to add a dramatic touch to the presentation, they said that they seemed like grasshoppers in comparison.
It is important to note at this time that Caleb was not alone with this point of view, Joshua was also in agreement (see Numbers 14:6-9).
Considerations
The apostle Paul wrote: “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31b) That verse encapsulates the simple truth, if God says something or promises something, it will come true regardless of how man evaluates and believes contrary. Paul is trying to help Christians realize that God won’t do a partial job, going part of the way and then expect someone else to finish or take something to completion (see Philippians 1:6). God will always finish what He started and fulfill all promises given, that is His nature. For a Christian it starts with believing that when they die, they will go to heaven, just as Jesus promised. There is no force that can stop that (see Romans 8:38-39). But He doesn’t stop at that promise, He promises to be and remain with each and every Christian and bless them.
It was also true for the Israelites. God told them that the land He wanted them to dwell in had people already occupying the land, and He promised them that they would prevail. How could they now, after listening to these spies, think that God was not able to lead them to victory or would renege on His promise? After all, these people witnessed the ten plagues in Egypt, crossed the Red Sea, experienced bitter water change to sweet water, watched water come out of a rock and trembled before God at Mount Sinai. Sadly, as pointed out earlier,[11] this event sets the stage for the people to be punished, “wandering the desert,” waiting for this unbelieving generation to pass away. Caleb and Joshua will be the only two spies to make it into the Promised Land.
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[1] See commentary under Genesis 14:5-7 and the Considerations under Genesis 21:18-21 regarding the location of Paran.
[2] Strong’s Hebrew 3091.
[3] Strong’s Hebrew 1954.
[4] See Considerations under Genesis 32:32.
[5] See Considerations under Genesis 48:.21-22 regarding the twelve tribes.
[6] See commentary under Genesis 12:8-9.
[7] See commentary under Genesis 6:4; 14:5-7; 23:1-2. See also Deuteronomy 9:2.
[8] See commentary under Genesis 13:14-18.
[9] Strong’s Hebrew 812.
[10] See commentary under Genesis 14:5-7, regarding Kadesh, see also Genesis 20:1.
[11] See commentary under Numbers 13:17-20 above.