2 Send thou men, that they may search out the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel. Ye shall send a man of every tribe of his fathers, each a prince among them.
3 And Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran: according to the commandment of Jehovah, all of them heads of the children of Israel.
4 And these are their names: for the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur;
5 for the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori;
6 for the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh;
7 for the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph;
8 for the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun;
9 for the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu;
10 for the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi;
11 for the tribe of Joseph, for the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi;
12 for the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli;
13 for the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael;
14 for the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi;
15 for the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.
16 These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to search out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun, Jehoshua.
17 And Moses sent them to search out the land of Canaan, and said to them, Go up this way by the south and go up into the hill-country,
18 and ye shall see the land, what it is; and the people that dwell in it, whether they are strong or weak, few or many;
19 and what the land is that they dwell in, whether it is good or bad; and what cities they are that they dwell in, whether in camps, or in strongholds;
20 and what the land is, whether it is fat or lean, whether there are trees in it, or not. And take courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the first grapes.
21 And they went up, and searched out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, where one comes towards Hamath.
22 And they went up by the south, and came to Hebron; and Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were there. Now Hebron had been built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.
23 And they came as far as the valley of Eshcol, and cut down thence a branch with one bunch of grapes, and they bore it between two upon a pole; and [they brought] of the pomegranates, and of the figs.
24 That place was called the valley of Eshcol, because of the grapes which the children of Israel had cut down there.
25 And they returned from searching out the land after forty days.
26 And they came, and went to Moses and to Aaron, and to the whole assembly of the children of Israel, to the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word to them, and to the whole assembly; and shewed them the fruit of the land.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Numbers 13
Commentary on Numbers 13 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 13
It is a memorable and very melancholy story which is related in this and the following chapter, of the turning back of Israel from the borders of Canaan, when they were just ready to set foot in it, and the sentencing of them to wander and perish in the wilderness for their unbelief and murmuring. It is referred to Ps. 95:7, etc., and improved for warning to Christians, Heb. 3:7, etc. In this chapter we have,
Num 13:1-20
Here we have,
Num 13:21-25
We have here a short account of the survey which the spies made of the promised land.
Num 13:26-33
It is a wonder how the people of Israel had patience to stay forty days for the return of their spies, when they were just ready to enter Canaan, under all the assurances of success they could have from the divine power, and a constant series of miracles that had hitherto attended them; but they distrusted God's power and promise, and were willing to be held in suspense by their own counsels, rather than be brought to a certainty by God's covenant. How much do we stand in our own light by our unbelief! Well, at length the messengers return, but they agree not in their report.