Numbers 14:1-45  The Reaction of the People of Israel to the Bad Report Sent by the Spies

[Study Aired July 31, 2023]

Num 14:1  And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. 
Num 14:2  And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! 
Num 14:3  And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?
Num 14:4  And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.
Num 14:5  Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. 
Num 14:6  And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: 
Num 14:7  And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. 
Num 14:8  If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey. 
Num 14:9  Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not. 
Num 14:10  But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel. 
Num 14:11  And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? 
Num 14:12  I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they. 
Num 14:13  And Moses said unto the LORD, Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;) 
Num 14:14  And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that thou LORD art among this people, that thou LORD art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night. 
Num 14:15  Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying, 
Num 14:16  Because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness. 
Num 14:17  And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, 
Num 14:18  The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation. 
Num 14:19  Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.
Num 14:20  And the LORD said, I have pardoned according to thy word: 
Num 14:21  But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD. 
Num 14:22  Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; 
Num 14:23  Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it: 
Num 14:24  But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.
Num 14:25  (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley.) To morrow turn you, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea. 
Num 14:26  And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 
Num 14:27  How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me. 
Num 14:28  Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you: 
Num 14:29  Your carcases shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me,
Num 14:30  Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
Num 14:31  But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised. 
Num 14:32  But as for you, your carcases, they shall fall in this wilderness. 
Num 14:33  And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness. 
Num 14:34  After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise. 
Num 14:35  I the LORD have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die. 
Num 14:36  And the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land, 
Num 14:37  Even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the land, died by the plague before the LORD. 
Num 14:38  But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the land, lived still.
Num 14:39  And Moses told these sayings unto all the children of Israel: and the people mourned greatly. 
Num 14:40  And they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up into the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the place which the LORD hath promised: for we have sinned. 
Num 14:41  And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the LORD? but it shall not prosper. 
Num 14:42  Go not up, for the LORD is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies. 
Num 14:43  For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye are turned away from the LORD, therefore the LORD will not be with you. 
Num 14:44  But they presumed to go up unto the hill top: nevertheless the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and Moses, departed not out of the camp. 
Num 14:45  Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them, even unto Hormah. 

Introduction

Today’s study is about what happened to the people of Israel after they received a bad report from those who went to spy out the land. In Babylon, where we are dominated by the flesh, we cannot see how we can overcome the flesh, especially when we see ourselves being defeated over and over again by the giants of our land – the flesh. The reaction of the people of Israel to the bad news by their leaders (the spies sent, with the exception of Caleb and Joshua) is exactly what is happening in every generation to the physical churches of this world (Babylon) to which we belonged at a certain stage in our walk with Christ. This chapter is summarized by the following statement by Peter:

2Pe 2:1  But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them [Bad report about the land], and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
2Pe 2:2  And many shall follow their pernicious ways [the reaction of the people to bad report]; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of [the fact that it is through faith we shall overcome shall be spoken against].

Num 14:1  And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. 
Num 14:2  And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! 
Num 14:3  And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?
Num 14:4  And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.

The reaction of the people of Israel as they received a bad report from the spies sent by Moses was very unfortunate. It was as if they had lost hope that the Lord would bring them to the land of promise. This was the bad report they received from the spies except for Caleb and Joshua:

Num 13:27  And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. 
Num 13:28  Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.
Num 13:29  The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan. 

Num 13:31  But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.
Num 13:32  And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
Num 13:33  And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

As indicated in the previous study, it is in Babylon that we come to see that there is no way we can defeat the beast within our land or the flesh. Instead of putting our faith in the Lord to drive the enemies out of our land, we come to think it is through our own effort that we can possess our bodies. This is the result of the false teachings we receive in Babylon which cause us to think we have our own will to make our own decisions. We end up being worse off.

2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. 
2Pe 2:19  While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.
2Pe 2:20  For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.
2Pe 2:21  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
2Pe 2:22  But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

The reaction of the people of Israel that it would have been better for them to die in Egypt than die in the wilderness caused them to desire leaders to return them to Egypt. As we are aware, what we desire is what drives our actions. No wonder we heap upon ourselves teachers who would remind us of the world’s (Egypt) tradition and wisdom, and therefore we end up dying spiritually in the wilderness of this life. 

2Ti 4:3  For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 
2Ti 4:4  And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Num 14:5  Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel. 
Num 14:6  And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes: 

Moses, Aaron, Caleb and Joshua were four in number. Being four of them means they represent the whole of the elect of every generation. Moses and Aaron falling down on their faces with Caleb and Joshua renting their clothes signify the frustration we go through while we were in Babylon when we come to realize that the churches of this world are taking us nowhere in our quest to know Christ and that their teachings are rather taking us back to the world (Egypt).  That is what causes our departure from Babylon.

Isa 9:16  For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed.

Jer 29:8  For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Let not your prophets and your diviners, that be in the midst of you, deceive you, neither hearken to your dreams which ye cause to be dreamed. 
Jer 29:9  For they prophesy falsely unto you in my name: I have not sent them, saith the LORD. 

Num 14:7  And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. 
Num 14:8  If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.
Num 14:9  Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not. 

From the viewpoint of the elect, we must have the faith that the Lord, who has called and chosen us, will drag us along to possess our bodies. That is to say, to have victory over the flesh. If we do not have confidence that He who has called us is capable of completing what He has started in us, then we would end up behaving like the people of Israel. Inasmuch as we understand that in possessing our bodies, we are dealing with a formidable force which is the beast within us, we can see from the eyes of faith that the people of the land are bread to us and that their defense is departed from them. Being bread for us and their defenses departed is the same as the saying that the beast within has been made to be taken and destroyed by the Lord on behalf of the elect.

2Pe 2:12  But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; 

1Jn 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 
1Jn 5:5  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God [through faith]? 

Num 14:10  But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel. 
Num 14:11  And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? 
Num 14:12  I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they. 
Num 14:13  And Moses said unto the LORD, Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;) 
Num 14:14  And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that thou LORD art among this people, that thou LORD art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night. 
Num 14:15  Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying,
Num 14:16  Because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness. 
Num 14:17  And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying, 
Num 14:18  The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.
Num 14:19  Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.
Num 14:20  And the LORD said, I have pardoned according to thy word: 

The fact that the people of Israel wanted to stone Moses, Aaron, Caleb and Joshua means that our message will not be received by the churches of this world. To them, we are spiritually dead. 

Rev 11:8  And their [the elect] dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

Just when the people wanted to stone them, the Lord of glory intervened by appearing in the tabernacle of the congregation. Our realization of the apostasy of the churches of this world and the need to leave Babylon is facilitated by the hatred of the message we carry – to the point of wanting to kill us. Our exit from Babylon is heralded by the appearing of the Lord of glory in our temple to come and judge us (destroy the giants of our land) so we can possess our bodies. 

Mal 3:1  Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. 
Mal 3:2  But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap:
Mal 3:3  And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.

As we are aware, the words of the Lord are written for our admonition of whom the ends of the world have come. When the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation and addressed Moses regarding the fact that He wanted to destroy the people of Israel and make a great nation out of Moses (verses 11-12), Moses responded that the Lord should show mercy to the people. The Lord was actually using this episode to demonstrate to us the role of the elect in the lake of fire, which is for us to show mercy to all humanity even as we have received mercy from Him.

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief: 
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy. 
Rom 11:32  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

Num 14:21  But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD. 
Num 14:22  Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice; 
Num 14:23  Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it: 
Num 14:24  But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.
Num 14:25  (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley.) To morrow turn you, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea. 

The Lord affirming in verse 21 that all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord means that the salvation of all humanity is as sure as the rising of the sun every day. All humanity will have dominion over the flesh at the set time of the Lord. However, in this age, it is the elect who, through faith, are being given dominion over the flesh. This is affirmed in verse 24 when the Lord mentioned Caleb, who symbolized the elect, as the one to possess the land, which is his body, because he had a different spirit. Being of different spirit means we walk by faith and not by sight.

2Sa 14:14  For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him. 

1Co 15:22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. 
1Co 15:24  Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.

In verse 22, the Lord said that the people of Israel had tempted Him ten times and had not hearkened to His voice.  The negative application of ten times refers to the period when we are tried and found wanting. In this case, their trials show clearly that the people of Israel were not ready to hearken to the voice of the Lord. This implies that in Babylon, it is impossible to obey the Lord. 

Gen 31:41  Thus have I been twenty years in thy house; I served thee fourteen years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle: and thou hast changed my wages ten times.

Job 19:3  These ten times have ye reproached me: ye are not ashamed that ye make yourselves strange to me.

As a result of our disobedience to the Lord while we were in Babylon, we become worse off as we are dominated more by the flesh, which is symbolized by the people of Israel being instructed by the Lord to turn away from the promised land toward the Red Sea (verse 25). Therefore, we end up becoming spiritually dead in this wilderness of life (verse 23). 

2Pe 2:20  For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.
2Pe 2:21  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
2Pe 2:22  But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

Num 14:26  And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 
Num 14:27  How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me.
Num 14:28  Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you: 
Num 14:29  Your carcases shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me,
Num 14:30  Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.

Our carcass falling in the wilderness means that we become spiritually dead while we walk through this life of wilderness. This is the same as casting us into outer darkness. However, if we are called and chosen, then the Lord will cause us to be delivered from Babylon and give us the grace to possess the land or become overcomers.

Mat 22:13  Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Mat 25:30  And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Verses 26 -30 also suggest that as long as we are in Babylon, there is no way we can become overcomers. As the Psalmist said, as long as we are by the rivers of Babylon, we cannot sing the Lord’s song in a strange land. It is only the elect, symbolized in verse 30 by Caleb and Joshua, who are destined to overcome the flesh or possess the land.

Psa 137:1  By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. 
Psa 137:2  We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. 
Psa 137:3  For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion.
Psa 137:4  How shall we sing the LORD’S song in a strange land?

Num 14:31  But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised. 
Num 14:32  But as for you, your carcases, they shall fall in this wilderness. 
Num 14:33  And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness. 
Num 14:34  After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise. 
Num 14:35  I the LORD have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die. 

These verses show us that as we die to the old man through the judgment of the Lord. The new man after the image of Christ is born who is destined to possess the land.

Rom 6:6  Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

Eph 4:22  That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;

Eph 4:24  And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Col 3:10  And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:

Num 14:36  And the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land, 
Num 14:37  Even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the land, died by the plague before the LORD. 
Num 14:38  But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the land, lived still.
Num 14:39  And Moses told these sayings unto all the children of Israel: and the people mourned greatly.

As stated in verse 37, those who brought an evil report of the land ended up dying by plague before the Lord. When we come to assess our flesh as being unconquerable, that is, bringing an evil report of the land, we end up becoming spiritually dead by the design of the Lord. When we abandon our faith in Christ that we are well able to overcome the flesh through Christ and begin to walk by sight, we forsake the great salvation that the Lord has provided for us. However, if we are called and chosen before the foundation of the world, symbolized by Caleb and Joshua in verse 38, then we shall surely come to the realization that the Lord is able to bring us to our safe haven. 

2Co 5:7  For we walk by faith, not by sight:

All those who as a result of fear turned back from going to war with Gideon against the Midianites symbolize those who say that the flesh is unconquerable, and therefore they are not going to be part of the victory parade or the marriage supper. They also represent those who bowed down on their knees to drink water. Bowing down your knees to drink water means you are not testing the spirit to see if it is of the Lord. That is, we accept the fact that the beast of our flesh is not conquerable. 

Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

Jdg 7:2  And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me. 
Jdg 7:3  Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from mount Gilead. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand.
Jdg 7:4  And the LORD said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there: and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. 
Jdg 7:5  So he brought down the people unto the water: and the LORD said unto Gideon, Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself; likewise every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink.
Jdg 7:6  And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water. 
Jdg 7:7  And the LORD said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thine hand: and let all the other people go every man unto his place. 

Num 14:40  And they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up into the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the place which the LORD hath promised: for we have sinned. 
Num 14:41  And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the LORD? but it shall not prosper. 
Num 14:42  Go not up, for the LORD is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies. 
Num 14:43  For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye are turned away from the LORD, therefore the LORD will not be with you. 
Num 14:44  But they presumed to go up unto the hill top: nevertheless the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and Moses, departed not out of the camp. 
Num 14:45  Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them, even unto Hormah. 

These verses show us that when we transgress the commandments of the Lord, whatever we do shall not prosper. In other words, when we are dominated by the flesh, there is no way that we can have victory over the flesh or the beast within. There are several examples in the word of the Lord that bring this truth to light. For example, when the children of Eli continued to sin against the Lord, the people of Israel were easily defeated by the Philistines. 

1Sa 3:11  And the LORD said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle.
1Sa 3:12  In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end. 
1Sa 3:13  For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. 
1Sa 3:14  And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever.

1Sa 4:10  And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.
1Sa 4:11  And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.

The ark being taken means that the little knowledge we know about Christ is taken away, and we end up being worse off, that is, we become spiritually dead. These things were written for our admonition so that we do not lust after evil things but stay focused on Christ knowing that we, His elect, are the ones upon whom the ends of the world are come.

1Co 10:1  Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
1Co 10:2  And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 
1Co 10:3  And did all eat the same spiritual meat; 
1Co 10:4  And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. 
1Co 10:5  But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. 
1Co 10:6  Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. 

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

May the Lord be merciful to us to continue to abide in Him as we wait for His coming. Amen!!

Number 13:1-33  The Spies sent to Canaan and Their Report

[Study Aired July 24, 2023]

Num 13:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 13:2  Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them.
Num 13:3  And Moses by the commandment of the LORD sent them from the wilderness of Paran: all those men were heads of the children of Israel. 
Num 13:4  And these were their names: of the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur. 
Num 13:5  Of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori. 
Num 13:6  Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh. 
Num 13:7  Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph. 
Num 13:8  Of the tribe of Ephraim, Oshea the son of Nun. 
Num 13:9  Of the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu. 
Num 13:10  Of the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi. 
Num 13:11  Of the tribe of Joseph, namely, of the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi. 
Num 13:12  Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli. 
Num 13:13  Of the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael. 
Num 13:14  Of the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi. 
Num 13:15  Of the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 
Num 13:16  These are the names of the men which Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Oshea the son of Nun Jehoshua. 
Num 13:17  And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them, Get you up this way southward, and go up into the mountain: 
Num 13:18  And see the land, what it is; and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they be strong or weak, few or many; 
Num 13:19  And what the land is that they dwell in, whether it be good or bad; and what cities they be that they dwell in, whether in tents, or in strong holds; 
Num 13:20  And what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the firstripe grapes.
Num 13:21  So they went up, and searched the land from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath. 
Num 13:22  And they ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron; where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 
Num 13:23  And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs. 
Num 13:24  The place was called the brook Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut down from thence. 
Num 13:25  And they returned from searching of the land after forty days. 
Num 13:26  And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land. 
Num 13:27  And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. 
Num 13:28  Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. 
Num 13:29  The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan. 
Num 13:30  And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. 
Num 13:31  But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. 
Num 13:32  And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. 
Num 13:33  And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

Introduction

Chapter 13 deals with the Lord’s command for the people of Israel to know about the strength of the people living in the land of Canaan, the nature of the land and the fruits of the land He had promised them. This will help the people of Israel to know how to possess the land. In military operations, this is called reconnaissance operation (or simply recon) which seeks to obtain information about enemy forces, the terrain, and core activities in an enemy’s area.

As we have indicated in the study of the Book of Numbers, the Book is principally about the raising of an army by the Lord to carry out His agenda here on earth. As commander of the Lord’s army, the Lord’s modus operandi as He enlists us in His army is to help us know the land (our bodies) which He wants us to possess. When the Lord called Abraham, his role was to just go through the land of Canaan and live there as a stranger, not a possessor of the land. During his stay on the land of Canaan, he was to know the goodness of the land and the challenges it posed, with the view of understanding what it takes to dispossess the people of the land promised to his descendants. This role was subsequently transferred to Isaac and Jacob.

In the lives of the patriarchs, they faced overwhelming challenges to bring them to the conclusion that only by faith could they overcome. In other words, it was only through the Lord that they could possess the land by faith since the people living in the land were a formidable force. As a deposit guarantee that the Lord would give the land to his descendants, Abraham, by faith, bought a portion of the land to serve as a burial ground for his family. In a similar vein, the Lord has given us the Holy Spirit as a deposit guarantee that we shall overcome the flesh!!

Gen 49:29  And he (Jacob) charged them, and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto my people: bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 
Gen 49:30  In the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a buryingplace.
Gen 49:31  There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Leah. 
Gen 49:32  The purchase of the field and of the cave that is therein was from the children of Heth. 
Gen 49:33  And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his people. 

Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 
Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.  

Heb 11:8  By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. 
Heb 11:9  By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:
Heb 11:10  For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. 

Heb 11:13  These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. 
Heb 11:14  For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. 
Heb 11:15  And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.

The whole episode of Moses sending out the spies was for them to come to the same conclusion as the patriarchs, that it takes only faith to possess the land, which is our bodies. However, unlike the patriarchs, most of the spies were thinking of their own ability to overcome the giants of the land, but not what the Lord can do, hence giving a bad report of the land.  As we walk with the Lord, our focus should be on what the Lord can do and not what our situation dictates or what we can do. The walk of faith is based wholly on what the Lord can do!

Rom 4:18  Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
Rom 4:19  And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb: 
Rom 4:20  He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; 
Rom 4:21  And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 
Rom 4:22  And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.

Num 13:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 13:2  Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, everyone a ruler among them.

It was the Lord’s initiative for the people of Israel to know the state of the land and the people living in it. As we are aware, the land represents our bodies which we must possess. Our bodies represent the flesh, and therefore this call by the Lord is to know the nature of our flesh. However, not all the people of the world, signified here by the people of Israel, are given to know the flesh. As verse 2 indicates, this call to search the land is only given to the rulers of the people. In applying the principle of calling those things which are not as though they were, we can see that it is the elect, future rulers of the earth, who are given this mandate to understand everything about the flesh of which we must possess or overcome in this life.

Rom 4:17  (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.  

Num 13:3  And Moses by the commandment of the LORD sent them from the wilderness of Paran: all those men were heads of the children of Israel. 
Num 13:4  And these were their names: of the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur. 
Num 13:5  Of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori. 
Num 13:6  Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh. 
Num 13:7  Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph. 
Num 13:8  Of the tribe of Ephraim, Oshea the son of Nun. 
Num 13:9  Of the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu. 
Num 13:10  Of the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi. 
Num 13:11  Of the tribe of Joseph, namely, of the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi. 
Num 13:12  Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli. 
Num 13:13  Of the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael. 
Num 13:14  Of the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi. 
Num 13:15  Of the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 
Num 13:16  These are the names of the men which Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Oshea the son of Nun Jehoshua. 

Moses sending the leaders from the twelve tribes of the people of Israel signifies the Lord Jesus Christ, requiring His elect from every tribe and every generation to understand the nature of the flesh as we go through life. Moses changing the name of Oshea to Jehoshua is to remind us that the Lord will deliver us (Oshea means deliverer) from our flesh as we go through life and in the final analysis, we shall be overcomers or saved by the Lord (Jehoshua means Jehovah saved). 

2Ti 4:18  And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Num 13:17  And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them, Get you up this way southward, and go up into the mountain: 

It is significant that the spies started their journey of assessing the land from the south before going up into the mountain. Southward signifies that we are close to the sea of flesh. Thus, starting their journey southward means that we all start to know the flesh as unbelievers when we are dominated by the flesh as we produce the deeds of the flesh. 

Eze 48:28  And by the border of Gad, at the south side southward, the border shall be even from Tamar unto the waters of strife in Kadesh, and to the river toward the great sea.

Gal 5:19  Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 
Gal 5:20  Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 
Gal 5:21  Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

It is imperative, as the Lord’s elect, that we begin our journey from the south to know more about the flesh with which we will deal later in our lives. This is because in the Book of Revelation, it is when we are close to the sea that we see the beast rise up out of the sea. 

Rev 13:1  And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

As Moses commanded, the spies started their survey from the south before moving to the mountains. Moving away from the south to the mountains means we have come to know Christ, but we are still carnal and therefore, the beast within us has become an insurmountable mountain to us. This is the experience of Paul and all the elect as we encounter the mountains:

Rom 7:14  For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. 
Rom 7:15  For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. 
Rom 7:16  If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.
Rom 7:17  Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 
Rom 7:18  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 
Rom 7:19  For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. 
Rom 7:20  Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 
Rom 7:21  I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. 
Rom 7:22  For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: 
Rom 7:23  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

Num 13:18  And see the land, what it is; and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they be strong or weak, few or many; 
Num 13:19  And what the land is that they dwell in, whether it be good or bad; and what cities they be that they dwell in, whether in tents, or in strong holds; 
Num 13:20  And what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the firstripe grapes.

During our walk here on earth, we start our lives by the sea of flesh before we are given to know Christ. However, although we have come to know Christ, we are still carnal. 

Psa 51:5  Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. (Demonstrate our lives living close to the sea of flesh).

1Co 3:1  And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. 
1Co 3:2  I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. 
1Co 3:3  For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?

It is in our carnal state that we get to see what the land is and the strength of the beast living in our land. The fruit of the land refers to the fruit of the spirit that is produced from our bodies. In verse 20, we are made aware that the spies went to survey the land at the time of the first ripe grapes. This is to let us know that in this age the Lord wants us to know our flesh and the beast controlling it, as we are the first ripe grapes or the firstfruits. In other words, those who come to see in this age, the nature of the flesh, the powerful beast that controls it and the fact that it is only in Christ that we can possess the land, are the ones who become the firstfruits. 

Jas 1:18  Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

Rev 14:4  These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.

Num 13:21  So they went up, and searched the land from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath. 
Num 13:22  And they ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron; where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 

Searching the land beginning from the wilderness of Zin and going through Rehob and Hamath, and finally ending up in Hebron is significant. Zin means ‘prick’. To prick means to pierce. We start our journey of coming to know the flesh in Egypt when we come to trust in the system of the world (Egypt) as we focus on the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. If we are called and chosen, then our trust in the flesh would rather hurt us (pierce us – meaning of Zin). We end up piercing ourselves with many sorrows as a result of our trust in worldly riches.

Isa 36:6  Lo, thou trustest in the staff of this broken reed, on Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust in him. 

1Ti 6:10  For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

In Isaiah 36:6, Pharaoh, king of Egypt, refers to the flesh or the beast within, whom we have come to trust.

When we start our journey in Christ, we flee from Zin and come to Rehob which means ‘the broad place’. Our lives in Babylon depict a life of the broad place as we find ourselves in the midst of many who are called but not the chosen few.

Mat 7:13  “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 
Mat 7:14  For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. 

In Babylon, we get to know more of the flesh as we are dominated by the flesh since we are carnal. Through the teachings we receive in Babylon, we come to accept our carnal state as godliness. Through these false teachings, we strengthen the idols of our hearts. In other words, we build walls to shut out the truth of the words of the Lord. This means we have moved from Rehob (a broad place) to Hamoth which means walled. After Hamoth, we come to Hebron which means seat of association. The seat of association here is the same as Babylon.  It is in Hebron that the spies encountered the giants of the land. This is how we spiritually encounter the giants in our land:

Rom 7:15  For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 
Rom 7:16  Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. 
Rom 7:17  So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 
Rom 7:18  For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.
Rom 7:19  For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 
Rom 7:20  Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 
Rom 7:21  So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 
Rom 7:22  For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being,
Rom 7:23  but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.
Rom 7:24  Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?

Going through the experience of not being able to do the good we know we should do means we have come to realize the giants – Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai – in our land. It is while we are in Babylon (Hebron) that we come to know the giants. It is instructive to note in verse 22 that Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt. Zoan means ‘the place of departure’. What we are being told spiritually is that even before we leave the world, the Lord has prepared Hebron (Babylon) for us to go to for a complete period of our lives (seven years) immediately after our departure (Zoan) from the world (Egypt).

Jer 29:8  For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, 
Jer 29:9  for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the LORD. 
Jer 29:10  “For thus says the LORD: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. 
Jer 29:11  For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Num 13:23  And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs.
Num 13:24  The place was called the brook Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut down from thence.

It is when we leave Babylon and come to the brook of Eshcol that we can have evidence of the fruitfulness of our bodies (land) as we produce the fruit of the spirit. A brook means a stream or river. Eschol means ‘cluster’ and cluster stands for a group of similar things or people positioned or occurring closely together. As we are aware, the brook signifies the truth of the word of the Lord. This means that it is only after we have left Babylon (Hebron) and come in the midst of the gathering of the elect (Eschol or cluster) or the church of the firstborn that we come to experience the truth of the word of the Lord. That is when we can produce the fruit of the spirit which is the evidence of the good land (our bodies) which we now possess. The fact that the fruit was borne between two people on a staff is very insightful. According to Strong, in this context, the staff represents a shaking, wavering or a bar of yoke. It is intuitive to note that the Bible sometimes uses shaking to mean judgment.

Heb 12:25  See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:
Heb 12:26  Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. 
Heb 12:27  And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. 

As witnesses of Christ (the two carrying the bunch of fruit), it is only through judgment (the staff with fruit borne by the two spies) that we can produce evidence of the goodness of the land as we produce righteousness as the fruit of the spirit.

Gal 5:22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 
Gal 5:23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Gal 5:24  And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. 

In another perspective, the good grapes of the land signify the elect as shown in the following verse:

Hos 9:10  Like grapes in the wilderness, I found Israel. Like the first fruit on the fig tree in its first season, I saw your fathers. But they came to Baal-peor and consecrated themselves to the thing of shame, and became detestable like the thing they loved.

Since the spies were going to show the fruit to the people of Israel to show the goodness of the land, we, His elect, are therefore the evidence to all of humanity (the people of Israel) that it is possible to produce the fruit of the spirit in this life or age. The fruit we bear, or our good works, will cause all humanity to come and praise the Lord in the next age.

Mat 5:16  In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Num 13:25  And they returned from searching of the land after forty days. 
Num 13:26  And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land. 

The spies returned to the people of Israel to give a report after searching the land for forty days. In the Bible, the number forty refers to the period of the trial of our lives by the Lord to show what is within each one of us. This means that the number forty shows us the period of our lives where we have come to assess our flesh to know that we can of ourselves do nothing to defeat the beast within us, except the Lord intervenes.

Psa 95:7  For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. Today if ye will hear his voice, 
Psa 95:8  Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: 
Psa 95:9  When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work.
Psa 95:10  Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways: 
Psa 95:11  Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.

Num 13:27  And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. 
Num 13:28  Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. 
Num 13:29  The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.

In their assessment of the beast within, the spies admitted that possessing the land was good as they saw a land flowing with milk and honey. We must understand that at that time in our lives when the Lord caused us to know the flesh with which we are dealing, we were carnal, and therefore all we knew was the milk of the word of the Lord which to us tasted sweet in our mouth. Our failures as a result of being dominated by the flesh bring us to the conclusion that the flesh is a formidable force to deal with. In other words, it is impossible to possess our bodies, forgetting the fact that it is the Lord who will defeat the enemy on our behalf. This report of our flesh in Babylon is what the people of the world (represented by the people of Israel) also take as their assessment of the flesh. This is the assessment of our flesh during our time in Babylon and the people of the world:

Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? Who is able to make war with him?

In other words, the world and the world believe that nobody can defeat the flesh. 

Num 13:30  And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.

In this case Caleb represents the elect. When we leave Babylon and come to the church of the firstborn, our eyes are opened to realize that although the flesh is impossible to subdue, through Christ we can overcome its influence. 

Rom 8:37  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

1Co 15:57  But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

2Co 2:14  Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.

Caleb’s stance was that in Christ we can overcome the flesh. As we shall see in the next chapter, Joshua, who is also a symbol of the elect, also held that same view of victory through Christ. All we have to do is to believe that He who has started a good work in us will drag us to the finish line of overcoming the flesh! Caleb demonstrated to us that we need to walk in faith if we are to possess the land, which is our bodies, despite the formidable strength of the flesh.

1Jn 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

Heb 11:30  By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days. 
Heb 11:31  By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace. 
Heb 11:32  And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:
Heb 11:33  Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 
Heb 11:34  Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. 
Heb 11:35  Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: 

Num 13:31  But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we. 
Num 13:32  And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature. 
Num 13:33  And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

In Babylon, where we are dominated by the flesh, we cannot see how we can overcome the flesh, especially when we see ourselves being defeated over and over again by the giants of our land – the flesh.

2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. 
2Pe 2:19  While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.
2Pe 2:20  For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.
2Pe 2:21  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
2Pe 2:22  But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

May the Lord give us the grace to walk by faith and not by sight. Amen!!

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Awesome Hands - part 160: “Be strong and of a good courage” - Discussion

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Awesome Hands – part 160

“Be strong and of a good courage”

November 30, 2019

This awesome hands study marks the end of one journey and the beginning of a new one for the people of Israel.

With this mentioning of the word hand, we find ourselves reading about the death of Moses and the birth of Joshua of Nun leading the people of Israel into the promised land.

Being that we will be primarily reading out of Joshua today, I wanted to make sure we read the two times that hands are mentioned here at the end of Deuteronomy 34.

Deu 34:5  So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD.
Deu 34:6  And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Bethpeor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day.
Deu 34:7  And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old when he died: his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated.
Deu 34:8  And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days: so the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended.
Deu 34:9  And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him: and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as the LORD commanded Moses.
Deu 34:10  And there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,
Deu 34:11  In all the signs and the wonders, which the LORD sent him to do in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land,
Deu 34:12  And in all that mighty hand, and in all the great terror which Moses shewed in the sight of all Israel.

Moses was mourned for 30 days which tells us there is always a price for the flesh to be mourned. It isn’t something that we just suddenly get over when we discover that our old man is dying.

Obviously, Moses was physically dead, but in type and shadow we all do the same for the old lives we once lived when we finally come to realize what our calling truly entails - life coming forth from death.

The children of Israel could not go forth toward a land that flows with milk and honey until the old man died.

Before Moses died, there was the very important act of Moses making sure the children of Israel knew whom they should follow. Moses laid his hands on Joshua and the children of Israel hearkened unto him.

Notice though that this act was directed by the Lord because we are told that Joshua “did as the Lord commanded Moses.

This is nothing different than what we are told by Paul since he shows us the same pattern.

1Co 11:1  Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.

Our next mentions of the word “hand” is found in Joshua 2. However, we must properly set the scene for what Israel is doing leading up to chapter 2.

Jos 1:2  Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel.
Jos 1:3  Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses.
Jos 1:4  From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast.
Jos 1:5  There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
Jos 1:6  Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.
Jos 1:10  Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying,
Jos 1:11  Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare you victuals; for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the LORD your God giveth you to possess it.

I think it is important to read chapter one because it shows us that the Lord prepares our steps way before we are ready to walk them.

We see the death of Moses, which was a heavy thing to endure for Israel, and now the Lord is sending the Israelites to the promised land.

In type, this is very telling for how it is the Lord deals with us. The “old man” Moses is mourned for 30 days. Jesus was “about 30” when His ministry started which started after He was baptized and went into the wilderness for 40 days to be tempted of the devil.

Baptism is representative of the old man dying in this type and shadow.

Luk 3:21  Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened,
Luk 3:22  And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.
Luk 3:23  And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli,

Likewise, the Israelites are about to cross the river Jordan and be “baptized” in type and shadow.

Before they go into the land, Joshua sends two men to spy out the land.

A harlot named Rahab helps them by concocting a plan to help them survive this spy mission they are involved in. This story is better than any James Bond 007 movie you can watch today

The next mentioning of the Hebrew word “yad” is not mentioned until verses 19 and 24, but this whole chapter is a really good read. So, we are going to read most of it and talk about the finer details throughout the rest of this study.

Jos 2:1  And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there.
Jos 2:2  And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night of the children of Israel to search out the country.
Jos 2:3  And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country.
Jos 2:4  And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were:
Jos 2:5  And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out: whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them.

Now, we have the king of Jericho sending for Rahab to find out where these spies are. It would be kind of hard to miss this huge gathering of people just across the river which could be on the march at any time.

Therefore, it is not a stretch to imagine that this king was having the Israelites watched to see what their next move was.

Notice that Rahab lies to the king and tells Jericho that she doesn’t know where these men are. Her life and her entire house are now in peril due to what is happening, and I am sure we can all imagine what it must have felt like to be in such distress.

On one side, you have the nation you live in demanding you tell them where the spies are that just lodged in your house, and on the other, you have two men representing what is about to be an invading army come to take over the land.

Indeed, Lord deliver me in my distresses is a relatable mindset here for Rahab!

Jos 2:6  But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof.
Jos 2:7  And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the fords: and as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate.
Jos 2:8  And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof;

I can’t help but think of Matthew 10 when Jesus tells us to “fear not therefore”.  In Matthew 10, Jesus is telling His disciples that they will face persecution because He faced persecution among other things.

He tells them this so that they can understand, that as the master is, so are the followers.

Mat 10:23  But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.
Mat 10:24  The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.
Mat 10:25  It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household?

What Jesus is telling them is meant to comfort them because “the unknown” really bothers us mere mortals. We really struggle with the unknown in anything we are dealing with. We, as humans, struggle with the “what if’s” of life.

Jesus, knowing this about His disciples, tells them in Matthew 10 what will happen when you follow Him indeed. He also tells us what mindset to have.

You might be asking yourself how this relates to Rahab and the two spies? Well, the spies go into a strange land at the command of Joshua and they suddenly find themselves being very close to being caught very close to when they started spying out the land. Then, you have Rahab on the other side of the equation who is stuck behind a rock and hard place. I’d say they all had reason to be in distress. Their lives were all in immediate danger.

Yet, we are told by Jesus:

Mat 10:26  Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.
Mat 10:27  What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetops.
Mat 10:28  And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Mat 10:29  Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.
Mat 10:30  But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Mat 10:31  Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.

Now we find our harlot Rahab on a rooftop with the spies of the Lord, and we are about to hear her preach a little bit. We are going to hear her speak about what she knows to be truth starring her in the face.

Jos 2:9  And she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you.
Jos 2:10  For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed.
Jos 2:11  And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath.

Preach it sister, preach it. “For the LORD your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath” is saying something coming from this harlot woman who is NOT an Israelite in the flesh.

Yet, she still knows what is happening and she is preparing for the inevitable day of the visitation of the Lord with His armies. What then is left to do? She prays.

Jos 2:12  Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father's house, and give me a true token:
Jos 2:13  And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death.

Yes, she doesn’t pray to the Lord, I know. Yet, she prays to the spies right in front of her because this is what she is able to do. I’d say she is showing a lot of faith here. She is asking for a deal.

She is doing whatever it is that is needed to preserve her house in the face of what is sitting on her proverbial doorstep.

So yes, she prays to these two ambassadors for Israel. It is much like the centurion solder speaking with Jesus. Let us enter into the “village of comfort”, Capernaum.

Luk 7:1  Now when he had ended all his sayings in the audience of the people, he entered into Capernaum.
Luk 7:2  And a certain centurion's servant, who was dear unto him, was sick, and ready to die.
Luk 7:3  And when he heard of Jesus, he sent unto him the elders of the Jews, beseeching him that he would come and heal his servant.
Luk 7:4  And when they came to Jesus, they besought him instantly, saying, That he was worthy for whom he should do this:
Luk 7:5  For he loveth our nation, and he hath built us a synagogue.
Luk 7:6  Then Jesus went with them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying unto him, Lord, trouble not thyself: for I am not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my roof:
Luk 7:7  Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: but say in a word, and my servant shall be healed.
Luk 7:8  For I also am a man set under authority, having under me soldiers, and I say unto one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.
Luk 7:9  When Jesus heard these things, he marvelled at him, and turned him about, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.

See, harlot Rahab knows she is not anything special and she certainly knows that she is a part of the country that is being visited by the people of God.

She is about to be besieged, unlike the centurion soldier, but both scenarios find these people in one of the hardest to deal with distresses – imminent death.

One is on the rooftop, and one sends outside of his house to find the people of God. In both cases, these people go outside to find what they need to help those inside.

This is simply just an acknowledgment that what is needed is found outside their current households, countries and comfort zones. In other words, they need the Lord.

They acknowledge the current truth of the reality they are in and then they search out a way to remedy it with the help of the Lord.

Jos 2:14  And the men answered her, Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the LORD hath given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee.
Jos 2:15  Then she let them down by a cord through the window: for her house was upon the town wall, and she dwelt upon the wall.
Jos 2:16  And she said unto them, Get you to the mountain, lest the pursuers meet you; and hide yourselves there three days, until the pursuers be returned: and afterward may ye go your way.

Again, we see a process being worked by the Lord. When we are looking for a prayer to be answered by the Lord, and we pray for it “according to thy will”, accepting whatever the will of the Lord is in the matter, then it will be answered accordingly. This should give us rest enough to be still and know God because He is in control.

The spies continue to prepare for what this “deal” entails.

Jos 2:17  And the men said unto her, We will be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us swear.
Jos 2:18  Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee.
Jos 2:19  And it shall be, that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless: and whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him.
Jos 2:20  And if thou utter this our business, then we will be quit of thine oath which thou hast made us to swear.
Jos 2:21  And she said, According unto your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed: and she bound the scarlet line in the window.

We have to use a little imagination at this point and know that Rahab was then on a mission to inform all of her household what was about to transpire.

We don’t know if she went and told her family about what happened or if she simply cooked everyone a gigantic meal so that they were all under her roof that night.

However, she knew what the conditions of the deal were and when Israel goes about conquering this area, those people had to know to stay in the house or else they would be slain.

Above and beyond that, we do not know what she did in order for her house to be saved, but we know it was.

Jos 2:22  And they went, and came unto the mountain, and abode there three days, until the pursuers were returned: and the pursuers sought them throughout all the way, but found them not.
Jos 2:23  So the two men returned, and descended from the mountain, and passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and told him all things that befell them:
Jos 2:24  And they said unto Joshua, Truly the LORD hath delivered into our hands all the land; for even all the inhabitants of the country do faint because of us.

We don’t find out later what happened to Rahab until chapter 6, but I will quote the verse here to let us know the result.

Jos 6:25  And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father's household, and all that she had; and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day; because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

The Lord alone is faithful. Thankfully, He imparts to us His faith so that we can joy in being faithful to the Lord also. Without faith we can not please Him; yet, He gives us that very faith to please Him.

Heb 11:6  But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Heb 10:23  Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised

Heb 11:31  By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.

Indeed, what more can I say than what the author of Hebrews says about faith?

Heb 11:32  And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:
Heb 11:33  Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,

And a few verses later:

Heb 11:39  And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:
Heb 11:40  God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

Yet, in all this Faith alone is dead. Isn’t that something? Does that sound blasphemous? Well, it isn’t blasphemous, and we just read a whole story with it in this example of Rahab.

Jas 2:20  But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
Jas 2:21  Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?
Jas 2:22  Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?
Jas 2:23  And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.
Jas 2:24  Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.
Jas 2:25  Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?
Jas 2:26  For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

What then are the works that must accompany Faith? The “works” are many, but they are all the works of the “hands” of the Lord which has been talked about at length in the past so many studies in the awesome hands series.

2Th 1:10  When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day.
2Th 1:11  Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power:
2Th 1:12  That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

1Pe 1:17  And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:

1Pe 1:21  Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.
1Pe 1:22  Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
1Pe 1:23  Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

It is easier said than done, as is with most things in this life, but loving God with all our heart, soul strength and mind, and loving out neighbor as ourselves goes hand and hand with unfeigned love of the brethren with a pure heart.

That is all that is needed to possess the work of faith with power, “That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you”.