Oswald and me. What informs you?

Over the years, actually over the decades with good regularity, I have read a daily meditation composed from talks given by a Scotsman almost 100 years ago. His name is Oswald Chambers. The collection is titled "My Utmost for His Highest." 

For instance, here's today's offering.  August 2.

The Teaching of Adversity

In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. (John 16.33)

The typical view of the Christian life is that it means being delivered from all adversity. But it actually means being delivered in adversity, which is something very different. “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling…” (Psalm 91.1, 10) — the place where you are at one with God.

If you are a child of God, you will certainly encounter adversities, but Jesus says you should not be surprised when they come. “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” He is saying, “There is nothing for you to fear.” The same people who refused to talk about their adversities before they were saved often complain and worry after being born again because they have the wrong idea of what it means to live the life of a saint.
God does not give us overcoming life— He gives us life as we overcome. The strain of life is what builds our strength. If there is no strain, there will be no strength. Are you asking God to give you life, liberty, and joy? He cannot, unless you are willing to accept the strain. And once you face the strain, you will immediately get the strength. Overcome your own timidity and take the first step. Then God will give you nourishment— “To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life…” (Revelation 2.7). If you completely give of yourself physically, you become exhausted. But when you give of yourself spiritually, you get more strength. God never gives us strength for tomorrow, or for the next hour, but only for the strain of the moment. Our temptation is to face adversities from the standpoint of our own common sense. But a saint can “be of good cheer” even when seemingly defeated by adversities, because victory is absurdly impossible to everyone, except God.

Back in the 1970s, I would read it in a small book. Then in the 1990s, I got a larger book.  And since about 2004, I've read it online. And that has allowed me the privilege to share the daily reading much more easily with others on social media and such. Like here on Blogger. 

I read other things most days also, like the Bible, The Real Connection, the NY Times (more than Wordle), ESPN information, and Facebook (is that the same as Oswald? I think not!).  I'm constantly curating my own news of the world and trying to make sense of it, and of my life and then when needful to dispense what I've learned to others. 

Perhaps you feel this way also. 

Perhaps the use of My Utmost would help you. Mac Harnden was a brother in the Lord in Lawrence, Kansas, who in 1974 gave me my first Oswald book and I've never been able to thank him enough.  Give it a try. Most days I agree with most everything Oswald said. I think your faith will grow over time. That's not a bad thing, is it?

They call it Mahomes magic

Over the 7 full years of the artistry that is the work of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, I have heard the phrase Mahomes Magic over and over from commentators and pundits. And I appreciate their descriptions of the left-handed sideline pass or the final run into the end zone in the Titans game or... and the list goes on.

Last week on Christmas Day I saw something that could only be described as artistry. The Chiefss were playing the Steelers and were succeeding in situational football. But one particular play characterised the artistry of the young man Mahomes and this photo shot by someone, maybe even there at the stadium showcases what I mean.

Patrick scrambled to his left and saw his running back, third down specialist Samaje Perine on the ground in Pittsburgh. He saw what no one else would ever see, a receiver looking away from the play, on the ground, and Patrick threw him the ball. And Perine looked up while the ball was in the air and reached out and caught it for a first down. 

I call it artistry because only an artist could see this. Imagine Michelangelo in Italy looking at a block of marble. And he sees inside that block the statue of King David. He begins chipping away at the marble and eventually, you and I can see only one thing, and we could never see it when it was a block; only when he stripped away the dross, the excess, did the artist reveal to us what he saw all along. That's art. That's the Michelangelo Magic. (I prefer to label it artistry)

Seeing what no one else sees is the work of an artist and a work of faith. In fact, the writer of the letter labelled in the Bible as the "Book of Hebrews" says, "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

So yes, Mahomes is a man of faith. And Perine is a man of faith who cooperated with Mahomes on that play and many others in this season. 

When God says of you that he loves you and wants you to know him personally. When he seeks you and brings light to your darkness. When he sent his only son to bear your sins and to die to bring you to himself. When God does all this, you are like Perine, lying on the ground, eyes away from the play, eyes and hands and feet failing you, unable to get up, unable to carry on. When all this happens, what do you think God is trying to do with you? Is God looking at the block of marble and seeing only stone? Or is he looking underneath, seeing what he wants to make of you? 

Yes, God loved the world so much that he gave his only begotten Son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 

Look up and live. 

Look up; the play isn't over.

Look up and see the hand of the Master Playmaker who wants to make us and our lives in his image. 

That's not magic; it's artistry by the Master Artist of Eternity. 

Lesson Twelve: God is faithful and a LONG list of 31 kings

  Living in the Promised Land: A study in the book of Joshua

To view this online as a video: https://youtu.be/nkNbVY1CS-c                                                                                                                         

Lesson Twelve: God is faithful

A.     Introduction

1.     Greetings

2.     Overview. [For those online, see this book overview from The Bible Project (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqOqJlFF_eU )

B.     Today’s lesson: Chapter 12: God is faithful

If you have read this chapter, you know it’s another one of those which begs your discipline. You will find a list of 31 kings. Seriously, a list one-by-one of listed kings. And the serious student would want to investigate who is included and who might be excluded. The serious reader of the Bible for devotional purposes, which many are, would generally give a nod to such a list, and then move on, quickly, dare I say, and find more interesting or more compelling literature, hopefully in the next chapter. 

This situation happens to me regularly, and maybe it does the same to you as you read the Bible. You are reading along, getting a lot. Then suddenly, the chronicler or the psalmist or the historian lays down old information in such a way that I scratch my head. “What?” I say. What’s the point of that genealogy or that shopping list or the pieces of the Tabernacle? Who cared then? And who cares now over 2,000 years later?

That’s our problem as we read chapter 12. In fact, most commentators give almost no mention, much less conversation to this chapter. But here we go.

1.     The Unity of God’s people

Verses 1-6 highlight the Unity of God’s people. Remember the Og and Sihon stories of Aver Hayarden. The 2 and a half tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half of Menasheh who opted to choose land over there. The territory is expansive and listed with detail. I like that about the Bible. The details are not to be missed. The various creeks and rivers, the hills and Tels, the water holes and the ‘cities or hamlets are all listed to show the ancient boundaries. I like biblical clarity. Although the Bible is not always so clear in its definitions or descriptions, be sure that here in the text today, the answers to defined borders and boundaries was fixed.

I say the unity of God’s people is in view here. Remember the 2 and a half tribes had asked Moses for permission to take land across the river. And with a bit of reluctance and a bit of extra instruction and duty, Moses gave them what they asked. 

There was going to be a question of loyalty and family when that happened, and Moses, who is mentioned here, or should I say, invoked here, made sure that the mishpochah would stay together long after he is gone. 

I don’t mean to sound morbid, but I’m ever thinking in these terms here in Sydney. And that’s one of the reasons I want what we do, in the book shop, in the office, in our fellowship, on Shabbat gatherings, here on the Zoom call, I want what we do to last long after I’m gone. I don’t anticipate that this ending is very soon, but it’s certainly sooner than when I started here in Sydney in 1998.

Some of you might be the 2.5 tribes; some of you are the folks in the later land distribution (which happens beginning next week). Either way, the value of family is huge in the days of Moses and in the days of Bob.

Yeshua himself was asked about place distribution. It took place in Matthew 20. This chapter alone has some powerful teaching about who gets in and when. 

Matt. 20:20 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to Jesus with her sons, bowing down and making a request of Him. ²¹ And He said to her, “What do you wish?” She *said to Him, “Command that in Your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit one on Your right and one on Your left.” ²² But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to Him, “We are able.” ²³ He said to them, “My cup you shall drink; but to sit on My right and on My left, this is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father.”

I show you this scene to highlight that Yeshua, like Moses, yields to God, and that the land or the placement of disciples is going to be something which requires sacrifice and humility. Grabbing for the seats of honour? Not a thing that God smiles on. Asking for place—not itself a bad thing—still leads to the reality of serving together, in family. Drinking the cup of affliction, that is going to happen. The cup of suffering. The cup of our Messiah. That’s part of how we make it in this transitory life.

The unity of God’s people is in view in verses 1-6. 

What lesson we take from that? Perhaps that the Baptists and the Anglicans, the charismatics, and the Brethren, even the non-denominational denominations need to join, no matter where we ‘take our stand’ and serve God, in humility, in love for one another, in the reality of the unity for which Yeshua prayed in his final High Priestly prayer in John 17.

2.     The faithful God is evident (7-24)

I suppose the list of the 31 kings won’t ever make it in your answer to someone’s question: “What’s your favourite section of the Bible?” But it has its purpose. 

God is faithful. You’ve heard that before and you will hear it again. The faithfulness of God means something to me, today and each day. Maybe you have pondered this characteristic of the Almighty, even before this class today. Perhaps you have wondered if the longevity or the permanence of God is something to trust. We use the term ‘faithful’ to describe his ‘being there’ yesterday, today, and forever. Full of faith, that might be another angle on this, but today in this class, I want to highlight our confidence in the God who is still there. 

The verses from 7 to 24 might appear monotonous, and certainly could be read that way. But listen to John Calvin on this section:

“But though each of those now summarily mentioned was previously given more in detail, there is very good reason for here placing before our eyes as it were, a living picture of the goodness of God, proving that there had been a complete ratification and performance of the covenant made with Abraham as given in the word, “unto thy seed will I give this land” (Gen 12.7, 13.15, 22.18).

Paul the apostle said, “God was able to perform what he had promised.” (Romans 4.21)

Dale Davis says of this section, “These verses do not drip with tedium; they tingle with excitement.” (page 109) Davis says the words are not a dull archive; “they are the lyrics of a song.” 

Why is that? you say. Because it’s a listing of every moment and then some, in the history of our people, in the conflicts and the pains and the suffering. It’s a history of God’s actions and God’s successes. IT’s a definition of Promise made/ Action taken/ Promise fulfilled. 

Without going into detail again, God is showcasing himself! He is to be trusted. He promised. You and he can take action together. God will fulfill his promises. Be sure of HIM.

Yesterday our staff spent the whole day in prayer. We were the opening batsmen of the entire JFJ international staff. We had volunteers with us. We had Jonny overseas with us. We even spent some of the day with our team from the Former Soviet Union and prayed for them, and for ourselves. We prayed for Israel and the situation there. We prayed along with the entire international team across the world, as they are still praying just now, it’s still Thursday in the US, and the answers are forthcoming. 

One of the highlights to me was the sympathetic realities of our lives. One of our Russian Jewish sisters wanted prayer for a particular situation, in which one of our Sydney sisters had just gone through. One of our brothers overseas wanted prayer for his shifting house and two of us are in the same experience at this very moment. What I’m saying is that which Paul said to the Corinthians, “

¹³ No temptation has overtaken you, but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.”

 There it is; God is faithful. We all go through things together. Maybe not at the same time, maybe not in the same place, but we all will be tempted. We all will be given suffering moments. We all will ache and hurt and experience tough times in our lives. 

What is our hope in those times? God who is faithful. God will give you a way of escape. God will open doors. God will close doors. He will keep you in his grace and love. Do you believe that? If you don’t, then read this list of kings who are no longer royal. Read the 31 out loud. God is faithful. You will be given the land. You will not be tempted beyond what you are able. He will win the victory. 

3.     Finally, a full victory is forthcoming

When we speak about victory in the Bible, sometimes this has to do with military battles. In our personal faith realm, that is, in the time without dungeons and dragons, we are fighting other forces. We are fighting sloth and laziness. We are fighting depression and demoralization. We are fighting health issues and marital problems. We are waging war with people on the bus, and with ourselves, to be kinder and more human. We are needing God’s faithful grace to carry on his life in the midst of a world which is anything but about him. 

Theologians often use the term “Now and not yet.” This describes the tension between what is and what will be. It highlights that we are winners, victors because Yeshua won the final battle against sin and death when he died on the cross. It means we are winners, and we are going to heaven because of Messiah’s victory there. 

At the same time, it’s ‘not yet’ because we still live in this mortality. Our bodies are fading, some faster than others, but to be sure, we are going to pass on to the next life. And there, and only there, will death have no more claim on us. And in the next life, yes, full of heavenly glory and pain-lessness, in the future, in the ‘not yet’ we will see Yeshua face to face. We will know as we are known. This mortal will take on immortality. What a day of rejoicing that will be. Amen? 

So, when I read chapter 12, I see a claim by the Lord of his own faithfulness, and I see a ‘not yet’ in the victory of the Jewish people. Our own televisions this week have shown us that the Jewish people are still trying to claim the territory promised to Abraham. There still are battles there with missiles and counter missiles named the Iron Dome. 

There will be a day when Yeshua, as our Messiah, puts his foot down on the Mount of Olives and declares final victory. When the ‘not yet’ becomes the ‘now.’ When faith becomes sight. Until that day we wait, not without hope, but with the sure anchor of our souls, on the Faithful God, who will do it. Amen?

Invitation

Dear friends, do you have such a commitment to the Lord of Lords today? Have you met the one who was cursed on the Roman tree for you in Jerusalem? if you have never asked Yeshua to be your Saviour, today as we keep learning from Joshua, would you choose to believe the Lord of life?   Would you be willing to take a stand for him who took a stand and died on a Roman cross for you? We love Yeshua because in his death he accomplished salvation for all people. He took the curse we deserved to give us his righteousness which he deserved.

Without that kipporah (sacrifice) we would be hopeless, but because Yeshua died in our place on Passover, as the Passover lamb, and his blood was applied to the doorposts of our hearts, we can be forgiven. 

If you’d like to receive that today, just now, join me as we pray.

Say something like this: “Father in Yeshua’s name, forgive me my sin, I was wrong to dismiss you and to disbelieve in you. I need your mercy. I deserve punishment but you are kind and merciful and I receive your grace. I repent. I receive Yeshua as my saviour and Lord. I will live because of my faith in Messiah Yeshua. Amen.

If you prayed that, please let us know of your profession by writing straightaway, won’t you?Bob@JewsforJesus.org.au We’d love to hear from you.

 

Conclusion

We are delighted you have joined us today. Please join us next week and learn with the others how you can stay on track in 2021 and beyond.   I hope to see you next week as we continue our studies in Joshua.  You will certainly see yourself in the readings and in the lessons. Next week we start the section of the book we call, “Possessing the Land” and will look at chapter 13, in what I call “Inheritance lessons” and see what lessons we can draw for ourselves from the events there!

Hope to see you then… until then, Shabbat shalom!

 

 

 

Bibliography

Butler, Trent C., Word Biblical Commentary, Volume 7. Joshua. Word, Waco, 1983.

Davis, Dale Ralph, Joshua: No Falling Words, Christian Focus, Fearn, Ross-shire, Scotland, 2019.

Hess, Richard. Tyndale Commentary Complete. 

Meyer, F.B., Joshua and the Land of Promise, Christian Literature Crusade, Ft Washington PA, 1977.

Pritchard, James, “The Bible reports on Gibeon.” Penn Museum, Expedition, 1961. Volume 3, Issue 4.

Sanders, J. Oswald, Promised-Land Living, Moody Press, Chicago, 1984.

Toms, Paul, This land is your land. Gospel Light Publishing, Glendale CA, 1977.

Weirsbe, Warren. Be Strong: Putting God's Power to Work in Your Life. David C. Cook Publishing, Colorado Springs, 2010.

-------------------

D-Groups for this week

1)              Monday 11 am Sydney time. Led by James Howse

2)              Monday 7 pm, Sydney time, led by James White

(Contact our office for zoom details)

If you’d like to host a D-Group either online or in person, please contact bob@jewsforjesus.org.au for further details. It’s time to step up. Ponder this—who will be in your D-Group?

 

The Book of Joshua:   Outline.

 

C.     Entering the Land (Chapters 1-4)

a.     Chapter 1: A funeral and a promise (Leadership Lesson 1)

b.     Chapter 2: A harlot saves the day 

c.      Chapter 3: Go against the flow (Part 1)

d.     Chapter 4: Go against the flow (Part 2)

 

D.    Taking the Land (5-12)

a.     Chapter 5: Roll away iniquity: a study in sacraments 

b.     Chapter 6: Joshua fit d’battle ob Jericho

c.      Chapter 7: Getting it very wrong: Achan and his mistakes

d.     Chapter 8: Combat and Covenant

e.     Chapter 9: Common sense is not so common

f.      Chapter 10: Southern dominance

g.     Chapter 11: How not to win

h.     Chapter 12: God is faithful

 

E.     Possessing the Land (13-21)

a.     Chapter 13: Inheritance lessons

b.     Chapter 14:  For example

c.      Chapter 15: Geography lesson

d.     Chapter 16: Trends of note (Part 1)

e.     Chapter 17: Trends of note (Part 2)

f.      Chapter 18: Apportionment (Part 1)

g.     Chapter 19: Apportionment (Part 2)

h.     Chapter 20: Provisions (Part 1)

i.       Chapter 21: Provisions (Part 2)

 

F.     Retaining the Land (22-24)

a.     Chapter 22: Can an altar alter anything?

b.     Chapter 23: Staying on edge

c.      Chapter 24: Three funerals and Renewing the covenant

 

The Seven Nations

 

1.     Amorite

2.     Canaanite

3.     Girgashite

4.     Hittite

5.     Hivite

6.     Jebusite 

7.     Perizzite 

 

 

Josh. 12:1   Now these are the ^akings of the land whom the sons of Israel ¹defeated, and whose land they possessed beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise, from the valley of the Arnon as far as Mount Hermon, and all the Arabah to the east: ² Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and ruled ^afrom Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, both the middle of the valley and half of Gilead, even as far as the brook Jabbok, the border of the sons of Ammon; ³ and the ^aArabah as far as the Sea of ¹Chinneroth toward the east, and as far as the sea of the Arabah, even the Salt Sea, eastward ²toward ^bBeth-jeshimoth, and on the south, ³at the foot of the slopes of Pisgah; ⁴ and the territory of Og king of Bashan, one of ^athe remnant of Rephaim, who lived at ^bAshtaroth and at Edrei, ⁵ and ruled over Mount Hermon and ^aSalecah and all Bashan, as far as ^bthe border of the Geshurites and the Maacathites, and half of Gilead, as far as the border of Sihon king of Heshbon. ⁶ Moses the servant of the LORD and the sons of Israel ¹defeated them; and ^aMoses the servant of the LORD gave it to the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh as a possession.

 

Josh. 12:7   Now these are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the sons of Israel ¹defeated beyond the Jordan toward the west, from Baal-gad in the valley of Lebanon even as far as ^aMount Halak, which rises toward Seir; and Joshua gave it to the tribes of Israel as a possession according to their divisions, ⁸ in ^athe hill country, in the lowland, in the Arabah, on the slopes, and in the wilderness, and in the ¹Negev; the Hittite, the Amorite and the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite and the Jebusite: ⁹ the ^aking of Jericho, one; the ^bking of Ai, which is beside Bethel, one; ¹⁰ the ^aking of Jerusalem, one; the king of Hebron, one; ¹¹ the king of Jarmuth, one; the king of Lachish, one; ¹² the king of Eglon, one; the king of Gezer, one; ¹³ the king of Debir, one; the king of Geder, one; ¹⁴the king of Hormah, one; the king of ^aArad, one; ¹⁵ the king of Libnah, one; the king of Adullam, one; ¹⁶ the king of Makkedah, one; the king of Bethel, one; ¹⁷ the king of Tappuah, one; the ^aking of Hepher, one; ¹⁸ the king of ^aAphek, one; the king of Lasharon, one; ¹⁹ the king of Madon, one; the king of Hazor, one; ²⁰ the king of Shimron-meron, one; the king of Achshaph, one; ²¹ the king of Taanach, one; the king of Megiddo, one; ²² the king of ^aKedesh, one; the king of Jokneam in Carmel, one; ²³ the king of Dor in the ¹heights of Dor, one; the king of ^aGoiim in Gilgal, one; ²⁴ the king of Tirzah, one: ^ain all, thirty-one kings.

Woody Allen and what's true

Over the years I've written in this blog about famous people including Woody Allen. Maybe my favourite is this one.  He and I were in a barber shop in New York City and my shirt spoke to him, but I didn't. Lately HBO in the USA and Fox Showcase here in Australia have been airing a mini-series titled "Allen v. Farrow." The series features the relevant events circa 1992, when a child sex scandal involving Dylan Farrow, their adopted daughter, and Woody became national and international news.

The producers have done a marvellous job in blending history and interviews, information sourced from hundreds of boxes formerly hidden the last 2+ decades and the music of Orlando Perez Rosso, Miguel Bezanilla and David Das. It's a captivating series so far.

What prompts my writing today before the series finale next week is a line I heard in episode 3. Mia looks into the camera and quotes Woody. 

"It doesn't matter what is true; what matters is what's believed." - attributed to Woody Allen.

If that's a direct quote, that's significant to the writer/ director/ actor's case. Even if it's not a direct quote, it made me think today about matters of faith and religion as well as epistemology. 

Two XIX century authors said this about truth--

"Beauty is truth, truth beauty,—that is all

    Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know."  (John Keats, Ode on a Grecian Urn, 1820).  

And this one, "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." (Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, 1813)

Whatever these two romantics inferred, consider this from The Bard. 

"When my love swears that she is made of truth, 

I do believe her, though I know she lies."

In this 138th Sonnet, Shakespeare preferred the deception of his lover's lie to the truth. And he uses the term "I do believe her." 

What is it about 'faith' and 'belief' that is considered a trump card to truth? Why do we choose to believe a falsehood when we know better?

The following is from Sociology of Religion, Volume 38, Issue 4, Winter 1977, Pages 368–388, Actually only the Abstract. I do not have access to the article itself.

"The accommodation between social science and religion of recent decades depended in part on the widespread conviction that there is no scientific basis for determining whether religious beliefs are true and whether religious practices are good. This conviction is based on dubious assumptions that have blinded sociologists to the judgments concerning religious beliefs and practice that are implicit in their theories. Put simply, general theory has implied that although there is much in religion that is good, religious beliefs are not true."

I guess the Allen v Farrow series triggered a lot of emotions in me.  Truth really does matter. What actually happened or didn't happen matters. What people say matters. And then, if we are honest, honest to what we perceive to be true, or what the truth-tellers say about truth, then we should believe those truths. 

Sociologist Ron McGivern wrote in a Soc 101 book printed in Canada this about religion/ belief systems:

"What is religion? Pioneer sociologist Émile Durkheim described it with the ethereal statement that it consists of “things that surpass the limits of our knowledge” (1915). He went on to elaborate: Religion is “a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say set apart and forbidden, beliefs and practices which unite into one single moral community, called a church, all those who adhere to them” (1915). Some people associate religion with places of worship (a synagogue or church), others with a practice (confession or meditation), and still others with a concept that guides their daily lives (like dharma or sin). All of these people can agree that religion is a system of beliefs, values, and practices concerning what a person holds sacred or considers to be spiritually significant."(https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontosociology/chapter/chapter-15-religion/) 

Children are taught about Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny in some circles. And the 'oh, just let them have their imagination and beliefs' dismissal of the narrative doesn't sit well with some truth-tellers. Here's the problem. Faith or belief should follow truth. 

I don't believe and thus a thought is true. I find truth and thus I should believe it. 

Gravity is true and always was true, long before Sir Isaac Newton discovered and clarified much scientific data about it. That people believe in gravity or not is irrelevant. If you don't believe it exists, please don't walk off the top of a roof of a skyscraper. Your 'faith' will not save you; you will die. 

Faith therefore should follow substantiated truth claims. 

We love the stories of heroes who rise in the midst of overwhelming odds and win battles against oppressors or who defeat much larger enemies in the boxing ring or the football field or in a land far away. The reason those hero-stories are so vivid is that they are so rarely found. Most of the time the lesser is ruled by the dominant. Most of the time the weaker team loses to the stronger. Most of the time the house wins in Las Vegas to the disappointment of the 'believing' jackpot loser.  Faith doesn't make things happen in most of those stories. 

In real life, in your life, in my life today, let's let truth dominate. Things like facts matter. Truth matters. Sorry, Woody Allen, the truth does matter. There really is no Easter Bunny. There really is gravity. 

Here's another set of truths that I discovered long after my birth. Jesus really did exist. He really did live in what we now call Israel. He really did die at the hands of Roman soldiers. They really did bury him in a sealed tomb. After three days, over 500 Jews really saw him alive; many ate with him and talked with him after his death. 

What you believe about those facts...that's where you make your religion. That's when you either dismiss or take this on board. Faith really should follow substantiated truth claims. Amen?

Whose report will you believe? (Lesson 6 in the series on the Book of Numbers)

 Wandering in the Wilderness: Reflections from the book of Numbers. 3500 years to Covid-19

A multi-week series given in 2020-21

Lesson Six (Numbers Chapters 13-14) 

To view this online as a video:  https://youtu.be/u8f6rfIJryk  

Lesson Six:  Land evaluations: Reconnaissance, Reports and Rejection

A.                Introduction

1.     Greetings

Shalom to each of you here on the Zoom call and those who will watch this class lecture on YouTube later. Our usual program during these talks is to conduct an overview of the Bible section in the first 25 minutes and then let everyone on the call into a conversation about all the themes or ideas that I will bring up for the last 30 minutes or so. Further discussion happens even deeper in our D-Groups that happen over the next week or maybe some will conduct a D-Group on Shabbat. 

I’m going to recommend that you who are watching this on YouTube should read the next two Bible chapters before you listen/ watch the rest of this. They are chapters 13-14. Then press play on your machine and re-join us. Thanks.

2.     Overview

[For those online, see this book overview from The Bible Project (https://youtu.be/tp5MIrMZFqo)] We saw how this book breaks into three major geographic and chronological sections. The first was found in chapters 1 through 10. Geographically we were at Sinai at the time. Today in our 6t^h class we move out from Sinai into the 2^nd section of the book, travels from Sinai going to Moab, just outside the Promised Land.

Some of you are new to our Zoom call and I especially welcome you, whether here in Australia or from overseas. You are muted at the beginning, but in a short while, our host will allow the usually lively conversations and questions.

B. Today’s outline:

            1. We look at reconnaissance (13.1-24)

            2. Whose report will you believe? (13.25-14.19)

            3. The consequences of faith or unbelief (14.20-45)

First:

1.              We look at reconnaissance (13.1-33)

Moses hears from the Lord (verses 1-3) that he is to send men to explore the land. You have heard them called the 12 spies. They aren’t really 007 type folks with espionage and underhandedness as their game. They are more like surveyors, explorers like Bourke and Wills, or Lewis and Clark. They are not going to conquer or ruin. They are going in for a season to find out what things are like in the Land of Promise. 

Remember, one of our major themes in this book is that the Jewish people, wandering in the wilderness, are not designed for wildernesses. Their home is elsewhere, and here Moses calls on 12 men, one from each tribe, to go and evaluate what’s ahead for them. We read it here:

“Go up there into the Negev; then go up into the hill country. ¹⁸ “See what the land is like, and whether the people who live in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many. ¹⁹ “How is the land in which they live, is it good or bad? And how are the cities in which they live, are they like open camps or with fortifications? ²⁰ “How is the land, is it fat or lean? Are there trees in it or not? Make an effort then to get some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the time of the first ripe grapes.” (13.17-20)

The 12 spies, as we will use the ordinary nomenclature, go out on a reconnaissance mission. What are the people like? What is the land like? What about cities and foliage. Get the lowdown as we are going there, and we want to be prepared. Burleigh Griffin would have done the same thing coming to Canberra. The men were being sent to check things out and then to report back to Moses their findings. Fairly simple, right?

Two things to say about the men. Joshua and Caleb are not highlighted in the list. No one is really highlighted unless you might think Shamua ben Zakor of Reuben. He’s the first one listed. I always hear and remember the first item in a list. When my wife asks me to get a few things at the grocery store, that’s always a standout. Shamua’s name has to do with listening and Zakor has to do with remembering. If I were going to send a team, I would usually appoint a team leader and a man with both first-born credentials being from Reuben and also with a name that highlights the Jewish people’s responsibilities in listening to and remembering God himself, I’d put Shamua ben Zakor right up the top.  Those of you who know the story know that Caleb ben Yefunah and Joshua ben Nun are the standouts, however. God often chooses differently than we do, you know?

The other thing to mention is that the listed tribes do not include Levi, but both Manasheh and Efraim. These then are not tribes by birth but rather land-based, hinting that the folks could have gone in, surveyed the land, found property they each liked, and said, ‘Let’s go in; I’ve got my eyes on Tel Aviv or Haifa, the Galilee or the hills around Salem, etc.” It’s as if God and Moses wanted the men to go in and choose their bunks at the campground before they had to go in and conquer it later in the story. 

Their route is shown here, from south of the Negev to up to Rehov which is not Rehovoth. They went right up-the-gut of the future land of Israel. They saw the whole scene. It took about 6 weeks. 

 On return they brought back stories and no doubt, fables if you will, of the land and their impressions of the Land. They brought back a cluster of grapes-- one cluster so large that it took two men to carry it on a pole across their shoulders. They brought back stories and evidence; their testimony was corroborated by themselves. 

When the spies returned, they made their reports.

Verse 28 introduces a thematic change, a major change. Verse 27 says, “we went as you told us. We saw. We did what you wanted. We saw the good land. Yes, look, here’s the fruit, the hard evidence.” BUT…. And they also brought more information. Large and strong and fortified…in other words a reality check to the investigation. And wasn’t that what Moses sent them to find out? What was wrong with their report? A surveyor brings back what all the data so that the leadership can make proper conclusions?

You see, there’s nothing wrong with their data recitation. 

Until verse 30. Joshua leads another crowd in saying, “Let’s take the land!” He’s also been privy to the views of the land. He’s been with the other 11 surveyors and saw what they saw. But he’s remembering the other words that came from Moses to the people. Joshua was a student of the Lord, a disciple of Moses, and believed what Moses said.  

Ex. 3:8 “So I have come down to deliver them from the power of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite.

Ex. 3:17 “So I said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite, to a land flowing with milk and honey.”’

Ex. 13:5 “It shall be when the LORD brings you to the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Hivite and the Jebusite, which He swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, ^cthat you shall ¹observe this rite in this month.

Ex. 33:3 “Go up to a land ^aflowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up in your midst, because you are ^1ban obstinate people, and ^cI might destroy you on the way.”

Lev. 20:24 ‘Hence I have said to you, “^aYou are to possess their land, and I Myself will give it to you to possess it, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am the LORD your God, who has ^bseparated you from the peoples.

Num. 13:27 Thus they told him, and said, “We went in to the land where you sent us; and ^ait certainly does flow with milk and honey, and ^bthis is its fruit.

On the basis of the promises, Joshua believed and tried to rally the people to believe. Listen, the 10 (we learn that Caleb also believed like Joshua) knew the promises. That’s why in verse 27 they say, “

^“it certainly does flow with milk and honey, and this is its fruit.

But their unbelief was augmented by the sight of the size of the enemies and the land. Their problems they saw were real, but so was God. And yet, the 10 disregarded the power of God, the promises of God, the providence and capability of the Almighty. They chose unbelief. Joshua and Caleb chose faith and belief. 

Verse 31 shows their choice and their fear. They were seeing the battle between the Amalekites and the other people versus the Jewish people. 

כִּֽי־חָזָ֥ק ה֖וּא מִמֶּֽנּוּ

We who know the Lord, we know that the battle is between the enemies and the Lord himself. Their strength may dominate us, but their strength will pale compared to that of the Lord.

2.     Whose report will you believe (14.1

That’s how chapter 14 begins. 

וַתִּשָּׂא֙ כָּל־הָ֣עֵדָ֔ה וַֽיִּתְּנ֖וּ אֶת־קוֹלָ֑ם

The witnesses (that is, all the people) lifted or carried, and gave their voices. I see this as a progression. It’s almost like Bolero by Maurice Ravel. The steady low and base sounds at the beginning of that one-movement piece, written about 100 years ago, still rivets me to this day. Then after a while, the sounds beyond the percussion add to the beauty of this piece. 

In our case, here in Kadesh-Barnea, the Jewish people, called the witnesses are lifting and placing and giving their voices. It’s a crescendo and sadly it’s a chorus of unbelief.  What do they say? 

Verse 2, they grumble and they sound off in hysteria as one voice against Moses and Aaron. Note, Miriam is not included. What’s their gripe? They are looking back to the place from which they came. 

It would have been better in Egypt. Why did you bring us out here to die? They even sound noble in their protection of their families: “Our wives and little ones will become plunder” (v.3)

Imagine yourself in your tent and you’ve been waiting at Kadesh for 6 weeks. The leader of your tribe of say, Gad or Naftali, has been away with the other 11 leaders. And you wait for their return. Then they return and bring massive evidence of the Anakim or other giants and their food. You’ve never seen anything like this. And the leadership ‘announces’ that things are going to be tough if we try to take that land. You remember that you were a slave to Pharaoh 15 months ago. You hear that there is a minority report offered by a couple of men from another tribe. Hoshea, but Moses calls him Joshua and some other guy. What is the report that you should listen to? Whose report will you believe?

The issue is a matter of real faith. Faith is taking God at his word. Faith grows when you hear what God says and you say in your heart, “Yes!” It’s not a matter of seeing good and bad out there and evaluations. It’s a matter of saying ‘yes’ to the Lord of life and to what he has said. Yes, that’s simple. Yes, that’s what you say to the promises of God. All the promises of God are ‘yes’ and ‘amen’ in Yeshua (2 Cor. 1.20) For as many as are the promises of God, in Him they are yes; therefore also through Him is our Amen to the glory of God through us. (NASB)

Let’s imagine you are now in the small room with Moses and Aaron, and Caleb and Joshua. Four men among the 3 million men and women and children of Israel. Moses might say, “Joshua, are you sure, mate?” Aaron might turn to Caleb and ask for a reassuring comment. But that doesn’t seem to happen. Why not? Because God had already told them the Land was theirs and they were to take it, slowly but carefully. 

The text tells us that Moses and Aaron fell on their faces and prostrated themselves. Some commentators think they were bowing before the people, to beg for mercy. But I agree with Rudd here “The act of prostration by Moses (and Aaron) is typical (Numbers 16:4, 22; 17:10; 20:6) in the book of Numbers… It seems reasonable to see an intercessory element here. The action denotes at the very least an attitude of self-abasement or deference before one of higher rank… This makes it unlikely that the prostration is before the people. .. לִפְנֵי must mean “in front of.”

What are the real leaders doing? They are praying to the Almighty. They are hearing again the promises of God. They are reminding themselves of the nature and the power of God. Amen? I practice this with some infrequency. When I hear from heaven about something and know that’s what we are to do, then I keep that in my heart by prayer. I remind myself again and again in journal or in writing or in these classes that God is sovereign and will make his ways known and accomplish his purpose.

Joshua and Caleb tear their clothes and then announce the minority report. They try to calm the fears; they try to rally the troops. Believe us, they cry. We have the goods, because God has our back. We will win! Let’s go! Don’t rebel. Don’t be afraid. 

But the people rebel and fear. They pick up rocks in the desert oasis and begin throwing the rocks at these two. Their answer is a clear and unequivocal NO!

God immediately is ready to dump Israel. He calls on Moses to listen to God’s declarations about our people. God basically says, “I’m done with these folks. I’m going to start over with you as the main guy and remove all those Hebrews.”

Moses intercedes now, in the strength of his relationship with the Lord, and negotiates a deal. Let them live. Otherwise, the Egyptians will hear about how you knocked them off after you tried to rescue them. Your fame will be tarnished. For the sake of your great name, don’t kill them all. And pardon them, please. (V. 19)

            3. The consequences of faith or unbelief (14.20-45)

What’s God’s answer? Verse 21, I will forgive and all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord. That actually sounds like another promise in the midst of the following termination notice. God says that all the people who brought the bad/evil report would die by a plague. (v. 37) He says that since the people believed the bad report that they would die within 40 years and never make it into the Promised Land. (v. 35) Why 40 years? One for each day the surveyors were checking things out in Canaan. (v. 34) What does God call their mistake? (v. 33:  harlotry!)

Verse 22, God says, ‘You saw so much.’ And yet we disbelieved. What a waste, eh?

So whose report will you believe? When God says things like “love your neighbour” and you disregard them, what will God say to you. When God says, “Jesus is my Messiah. Listen to him.” (Mark 9.7) What will your response be? The rabbis might say no. They might be in the majority. Whose report will you believe?

The consequences of faith are clear. Joshua and Caleb will lead the next generation into the Land of Promise. The consequences of unbelief are clearer yet. NO entry into God’s promises. If as Paul wrote, the promises of God in Yeshua are yes and amen, then the consequences of rejecting God’s promises are failing to get what God wants for us. What a shame. What a loss. 

Invitation

Dear friends, if you have never asked Yeshua to be your Savior, today on this first day of Hanukkah 5781, on this day of dedication, would you choose the right report? Would you choose to believe in the One whom God sent? Will you choose to believe the One who on this day, Hanukkah nearly 2,000 years ago, Yeshua stood in the Portico of Solomon in the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. He declared “I and the Father are one.” (John 10.30) Some folks picked up stones to stone him because Yeshua was declaring himself equal with the Father. Whose report will you believe? 

If you want to receive Yeshua as your messiah and boss, and saviour, then pray with me just now. Ask him to save and deliver you. Repent of your sins and accept his love and mercy and forgiveness. That’s it. And then let us know of your profession by writing straightaway, won’t you? Bob@JewsforJesus.org.au We’d love to hear from you.

Conclusion

Stay with us during these weeks and learn with the others how you can stay on track in 2021 and beyond. And in the D-Groups, you will work this out with others, as a community on the march. If you have not yet joined a weekly Discipleship Group, please re-consider that and join us as we dig deeper.

I hope to see you next Friday 10 am Sydney time, as we study chapters 15 and 16, and learn about tsitsit, about unintentional sinning, about Sabbath keeping and the rebellion within the ranks of the travelling Israelites under Dathan and Korah—among the first people who died and went straight to hell in the Bible. Hope to see you then, and until then, please guard your lips from kvetching, learn to thank God, believe even if the report is the minority report, and shout Hallelujah to the Lord of life for all he has done for us all. Shabbat shalom!

 

The three theses:

1)     The goal of our wandering was another place: Israel

2)     God is to be central to our marching and in our living

3)     Authority of the Lord and his anointed is not to be missed

 

 

Bibliography

Budd, Philip, Word Biblical Commentary, Volume 5. Numbers. Word, Waco, 1984.

Hertz, Rabbi Dr JH, The Pentateuch and Haftorahs, Soncino, London, 1978. 

Pakula, Martin, Numbers: Homeward Bound, Aquilla Press, Sydney, 2006.

Weirsbe, Warren. Be Counted. David C. Cook Publishing, Colorado Springs,1999.

-------------------

D-Groups for this week

1)              Tuesday 11 am Sydney time. Led by James Howse

2)              Monday 10 am Sydney time, led by Rebekah Bronn

3)              Thursday 7 pm, Sydney time, led by James White

(Contact our office for zoom details)

If you’d like to host a D-Group either online or in person, please contact bob@jewsforjesus.org.au for further details. It’s time to step up. Ponder this—who will be in your D-Group?

 

Actual text:

 

13 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ² “Send out men for yourself to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am going to give the sons of Israel; you shall send a man from each of their fathers’ tribes, every one a leader among them.” ³ So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran at the ^[a]command of the Lord, all of them men who were heads of the sons of Israel. ⁴ These then 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, 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 and from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. ¹⁶ These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land; but Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun, ^[b]Joshua.

¹⁷ When Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, he said to them, “Go up there into the ^[c]Negev; then go up into the hill country. ¹⁸ See what the land is like, and whether the people who live in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many. ¹⁹ And how is the land in which they live, is it good or bad? And how are the cities in which they live, are the people in open camps or in fortifications? ²⁰ And how is the land, is it ^[d]productive or unproductive? Are there trees in it or not? And show yourselves courageous and get some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.

²¹ So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin as far as Rehob, ^[e]at Lebo-hamath. ²² When they had gone up into the Negev, ^[f]they came to Hebron where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the ^[g]descendants of Anak were. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)

²³ Then they came to the ^[h]Valley of ^[i]Eshcol, and from there they cut off a branch with a single cluster of grapes; and they carried it on a pole between two men, with some of the pomegranates and the figs. ²⁴ That place was called the Valley of ^[j]Eshcol, because of the cluster which the sons of Israel cut off from there.

The Spies’ Reports

²⁵ When they returned from spying out the land, at the end of forty days,²⁶ they went on and came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, ^[k]in the wilderness of Paran at Kadesh; and they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. ²⁷ So they reported to him and said, “We came into the land where you sent us, and it certainly does flow with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. ²⁸ Nevertheless, the people who live in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And indeed, we saw the ^[l]descendants of Anak there! ²⁹ Amalek is living in the land of the Negev, the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites are living in the hill country, and the Canaanites are living by the sea and by the side of the Jordan.”

³⁰ Then Caleb quieted the people ^[m]before Moses and said, “We should by all means go up and take possession of it, for we will certainly prevail over it.” ³¹ But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, because they are too strong for us.” ³² So they brought a bad report of the land which they had spied out to the sons of Israel, saying, “The land through which we have gone to spy out is a land that devours its inhabitants; and all the people whom we saw in it are people of great stature. ³³ We also saw the ^[n]Nephilim there (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim); and we were like ^[o]grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”

The People Rebel

14 Then all the congregation ^[p]raised their voices and cried out, and the people wept ^[q]that night. ² And all the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron; and the entire congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or even if we had died in this wilderness! ³ So why is the Lord bringing us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become plunder! Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” ⁴ So they said to one another, “Let’s appoint a leader and return to Egypt!”

⁵ Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces in the presence of all the assembly of the congregation of the sons of Israel. ⁶ And Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, of those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes; ⁷ and they spoke to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, saying, “The land which we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. ⁸ If the Lord is pleased with us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us—a land which flows with milk and honey.⁹ Only do not rebel against the Lord; and do not fear the people of the land, for they will be our ^[r]prey. Their ^[s]protection is gone from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them.” ¹⁰ But all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Then the glory of the Lord appeared in the tent of meeting to all the sons of Israel.

Moses Pleads for the People

¹¹ And the Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people be disrespectful to Me? And how long will they not ^[t]believe in Me, despite all the signs that I have performed in their midst? ¹² I will strike them with ^[u]plague and dispossess them, and I will make you into a nation greater and mightier than they.”

¹³ But Moses said to the Lord, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for by Your strength You brought this people up from their midst, ¹⁴ and they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that You, Lord, are in the midst of this people, because You, Lord, are seen eye to eye, while Your cloud stands over them; and You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day, and in a pillar of fire by night. ¹⁵ Now if You put this people to death ^[v]all at once, then the nations who have heard of Your fame will ^[w]say,¹⁶ ‘Since the Lord could not bring this people into the land which He promised them by oath, He slaughtered them in the wilderness.’ ¹⁷ So now, please, let the power of the Lord be great, just as You have declared, saying, ¹⁸ ‘The Lord is slow to anger and abundant in mercy, forgiving wrongdoing and violation of His Law; but He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, inflicting the ^[x]punishment of the fathers on the children ^[y]to the third and the fourth generations.’ ¹⁹ Please forgive the guilt of this people in accordance with the greatness of Your mercy, just as You also have forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”

The Lord Pardons and Rebukes

²⁰ So the Lord said, “I have forgiven them in accordance with your word;²¹ however, as I live, ^[z]all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord.²² Certainly all the people who have seen My glory and My signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have put Me to the test these ten times and have not listened to My voice, ²³ shall by no means see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who were disrespectful to Me see it. ²⁴ But as for My servant Caleb, because he has had a different spirit and has followed Me fully, I will bring him into the land which he ^[aa]entered, and his ^[ab]descendants shall take possession of it.²⁵ Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites live in the valleys; turn tomorrow and set out for the wilderness by the way of the ^[ac]Red Sea.”

²⁶ The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron again, saying, ²⁷ “How long shall I put up with this evil congregation who are grumbling against Me? I have heard the complaints of the sons of Israel which they are ^[ad]voicing against Me. ²⁸ Say to them, ‘As I live,’ declares the Lord, ‘just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you; ²⁹ your dead bodies will fall in this wilderness, all your ^[ae]numbered men according to your complete number from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against Me. ³⁰ By no means will you come into the land where I ^[af]swore to settle you, except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun. ³¹ Your children, however, whom you said would become plunder—I will bring them in, and they will know the land which you have rejected. ³² But as for you, your dead bodies will fall in this wilderness. ³³ Also, your sons will be shepherds in the wilderness for forty years, and they will ^[ag]suffer for your unfaithfulness, until your bodies perish in the wilderness. ³⁴ In accordance with the number of days that you spied out the land, forty days, for every day you shall suffer the punishment for your ^[ah]guilt a year, that is, forty years, and you will know My opposition. ³⁵ I, the Lord, have spoken, I certainly will do this to all this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me. They shall be worn out in this wilderness, and there they shall die.’”

³⁶ As for the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, and who returned and led all the congregation to grumble against him by bringing a bad report about the land, ³⁷ those men who brought the bad report of the land also died by a plague in the presence of the Lord. ³⁸ But Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive out of those men who went to spy out the land.

Israel Repulsed

³⁹ Now when Moses spoke these words to all the sons of Israel, the people mourned greatly. ⁴⁰ In the morning, however, they got up early and went up to the ^[ai]ridge of the hill country, saying, “Here we are; and we will go up to the place which the Lord has ^[aj]promised, for ^[ak]we have sinned.” ⁴¹ But Moses said, “Why then are you violating the ^[al]command of the Lord, when doing so will not succeed? ⁴² Do not go up, for the Lord is not among you, ^[am]to prevent you from being defeated ^[an]by your enemies. ⁴³ For the Amalekites and the Canaanites will be there ^[ao]to confront you, and you will fall by the sword, since you have turned back from following the Lord. And the Lord will not be with you.” ⁴⁴ But they foolishly dared to go up to the ^[ap]ridge of the hill country; neither the ark of the covenant of the Lord nor Moses left the camp. ⁴⁵ Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country came down, and struck them and scattered them as far as Hormah.