What is the Message of Numbers 13?: Faith, Fear, and a Promise

A Mission of Faith and a Report of Fear

The chapter opens at Kadesh, on the border of Canaan, where God instructs Moses to send spies into the land. This is not a mission to determine possibility, but to survey the promise. In Numbers 13:1-25, twelve leaders embark on a forty-day journey, witnessing firsthand the incredible bounty of the land. The real drama unfolds upon their return, when their conflicting reports will force the nation to choose between trusting God's word and succumbing to their fears.

The Commission and the Spies  (Numbers 13:1-16)

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 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua.
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, Gaddi the son of Susi;
¹⁰ and bring some of the fruit of the land.
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, Gaddiel the son of Sodi,
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.

The Exploration of Canaan  (Numbers 13:17-25)

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 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.
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.
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.
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.
²⁵ At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land.

The Majority Report of Doubt  (Numbers 13:26-29)

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 Clash of Perspectives  (Numbers 13:30-33)

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."
¹³ But 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."
¹³ 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.”
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.”