Search

Labels

Archives

Shofar Communications, Inc.. Powered by Blogger.
Thursday, March 12, 2009

Numbers 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.

For further study - Numbers 13:1-33

This is the story of Moses dispatching the twelve spies, one from each of the tribes of Israel, to enter the Promised Land to determine if all of the Israelites could enter the land at that time. You may already know the results of the mission by these twelve leaders of the tribes of Israel.

Ten came back and said the land was filled with giants who would destroy the invading Jewish nation. In fact, in the eyes of these ten spies, they perceive themselves to be "grasshoppers" as compared to the inhabitants of the land that God has promised the Jewish people.

However, there were two of the spies, Joshua and Caleb, who came back with a great report. Moses had told all the spies to scout out the lay of the land and be sure to bring some fruit back from their mission, verse 20. At least two of the spies, Caleb and Joshua, had gone over to Hebron, the oldest Jewish community in the history of the world - a Jewish town established by Abraham when he was promised all of the land.

There, near a brook, the brook of Eshcol, they cut down a bunch of grapes that took two men together to bear the grapes out of the land and bring them back to Moses. This is evidence of how God would provide for His people and that the land was indeed as the two spies reported, a “land of milk and honey”, verse 27.

The other ten spies reported that the enemy would kill the Jewish people if they went into the land. The Israelites believed the ten spies and as a result wandered in the wilderness for the next 39 years.

Remember, Hebron, was the burial place for the patriarchs of Israel, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and the second most sacred piece of real estate for the Jewish people. Today it is a very controversial location - a place of violence between the Jews and the Palestinians.

This entire event speaks volumes about the lack of belief among the Jewish people. As the Lord gave them the land 3,500 years ago, and at that time they failed to take it, so today His promise of returning the people to the land is not truly believed by many of the Jewish people.

God's promises to the Jewish people are true and forever. However, these promises must be accepted by faith. One day, seemingly some day soon, God will fulfill His promises to the Jewish people including giving them all of the land He has promised them.

PRAYER THOT: Help me, dear Lord, to believe Your promises for me as I move towards Your return to gather me to be with you, forever.