Israel’s Refusal to Enter the Land(A)

19 “So we departed from Horeb, (B)and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw on the way to the mountains of the Amorites, as the Lord our God had commanded us. Then (C)we came to Kadesh Barnea. 20 And I said to you, ‘You have come to the mountains of the Amorites, which the Lord our God is giving us. 21 Look, the Lord your God has set the land before you; go up and possess it, as the Lord God of your fathers has spoken to you; (D)do not fear or be discouraged.’

22 “And every one of you came near to me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, and let them search out the land for us, and bring back word to us of the way by which we should go up, and of the cities into which we shall come.’

23 “The plan pleased me well; so (E)I took twelve of your men, one man from each tribe. 24 (F)And they departed and went up into the mountains, and came to the Valley of Eshcol, and spied it out. 25 They also took some of the fruit of the land in their hands and brought it down to us; and they brought back word to us, saying, ‘It is a (G)good land which the Lord our God is giving us.’

26 (H)“Nevertheless you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the Lord your God; 27 and you (I)complained in your tents, and said, ‘Because the Lord (J)hates us, He has brought us out of the land of Egypt to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. 28 Where can we go up? Our brethren have [a]discouraged our hearts, saying, (K)“The people are greater and taller than we; the cities are great and fortified up to heaven; moreover we have seen the sons of the (L)Anakim there.” ’

29 “Then I said to you, ‘Do not be terrified, (M)or afraid of them. 30 (N)The Lord your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you, according to all He did for you in Egypt before your eyes, 31 and in the wilderness where you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a (O)man carries his son, in all the way that you went until you came to this place.’ 32 Yet, for all that, (P)you did not believe the Lord your God, 33 (Q)who went in the way before you (R)to search out a place for you to pitch your tents, to show you the way you should go, in the fire by night and in the cloud by day.

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 1:28 Lit. melted

Spies Sent Out

19 Then, as the Lord our God commanded us, we set out from Horeb and went toward the hill country of the Amorites(A) through all that vast and dreadful wilderness(B) that you have seen, and so we reached Kadesh Barnea.(C) 20 Then I said to you, “You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the Lord our God is giving us. 21 See, the Lord your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession(D) of it as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, told you. Do not be afraid;(E) do not be discouraged.”(F)

22 Then all of you came to me and said, “Let us send men ahead to spy(G) out the land(H) for us and bring back a report about the route we are to take and the towns we will come to.”

23 The idea seemed good to me; so I selected(I) twelve of you, one man from each tribe. 24 They left and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshkol(J) and explored it. 25 Taking with them some of the fruit of the land, they brought it down to us and reported,(K) “It is a good land(L) that the Lord our God is giving us.”(M)

Rebellion Against the Lord

26 But you were unwilling to go up;(N) you rebelled(O) against the command of the Lord your God. 27 You grumbled(P) in your tents and said, “The Lord hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us. 28 Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt in fear. They say, ‘The people are stronger and taller(Q) than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky. We even saw the Anakites(R) there.’”

29 Then I said to you, “Do not be terrified; do not be afraid(S) of them.(T) 30 The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight(U) for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, 31 and in the wilderness. There you saw how the Lord your God carried(V) you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place.”(W)

32 In spite of this,(X) you did not trust(Y) in the Lord your God, 33 who went ahead of you on your journey, in fire by night and in a cloud by day,(Z) to search(AA) out places for you to camp and to show you the way you should go.

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