At last the children of Israel came, in their wanderings, to the wilderness of Paran in the border of the land of Canaan. From this point the Lord told Moses to send men to search the land which He was going to give them. He was to select a ruler from each tribe for this purpose. No man was chosen from Levi, for the work of that tribe was connected with the sanctuary. You will perhaps remember that the name of Israel had been named upon Ephraim and Manasseh, the two sons of Joseph; and instead of taking a ruler from among the Levites one was chosen from the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh each; this made the complete number—twelve. We will mention by name two of these rulers who became specially prominent; one was Joshua, the son of Nun; the other was Caleb, the son of Jephunneh.
Moses directed the twelve which way to go; and he told them to find out what the land was—whether it was good or bad, fat or lean, and whether or not there was wood in it; they were also to learn about the people—whether they were strong or weak, whether they were few or many, and if they dwelt in tents or in strong holds. With these instructions, and bidding them be of good courage, he sent them forth to spy the land.
After forty days’ searching of the land, the twelve men returned to the wilderness of Paran, where the congregation of Israel were still encamped. They brought with them pomegranates, figs, and other fruit from its rich stores, as Moses had told them to do; from the brooks of Eschol they brought a cluster of grapes which was so large it was carried by two of the men ; the branch upon which it hung was laid upon a staff, and it was borne between them. They reported the land as surely flowing with milk and honey, and showed the fruit as a proof of it. Thus far their report was good, and according to what the Lord had said He would bring them into but when they spoke of the people, they reported them as greater and taller than themselves, and said there were giants among them. They said, too, that their cities were “great and walled up to heaven.” The conclusion that all reached, except Caleb and Joshua, was that they were not able to go against the Canaanites because they were too strong. They gave also, an evil report of the land, saying, “It is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof.”
This report brought deep sorrow again to the children of Israel; in their despondence, the oft-recurring wish, that they had died in Egypt, or in the wilderness, took possession of them once more. In their rebellion of heart they went so far as to say that the Lord hated them, and because of this He had brought them out of Egypt to deliver them into the hand of the Amorites to destroy them.
How dreadful to show such a heart of unbelief after the many proofs of God’s loving care!
But how happy for those who trust in the Lord, as Joshua and Caleb did, and thus honor Him!
ML 03/27/1904