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When the 12 spies were dispatched to gather
intelligence concerning the land flowing with milk and honey, Moses and Aaron
had no idea of the effect that report would have on the people. The debriefing
got really ugly. At first, you question why the leadership was not briefed
and evaluated before presenting it to the people. Situations could have been
addressed behind closed doors rather than in an unwieldy public forum (Num
13:26). I really believe that Moses thought this was going to be a favorable
report and looked forward to hearing it among the people.
I think through this open forum God
wanted to reveal to Moses and Aaron that the people were not spiritually ready to
enter the Promised Land for He knows the heart of man (Jer 17:9, 10). God knew
there could be no successful campaign with the current mindset of the vast
majority of the people. This invasion was going to require great courage from
everyone, but the report by ten of the twelve spies revealed that the people
had great fear and little faith, and no stomach for a fight. You get the
impression the people wanted the milk and honey of the land without any effort,
looking and expecting some Divine entitlement apart from faith. It got really
ugly when ten of the twelve spies gave a bad report that turned out to be a mixture
of truth and lies, and the people believed the lies rather than the truth of
the other two spies representing God’s will in the matter.
The ten spies indicated that “It [the land] truly flows with milk and
honey, and this is its fruit” (Num
13:27; cf. Ex 3:8). It is the only positive remark in the report. Then
quickly follows the “nevertheless,” and everything goes south because they are telling
of their “fact” finding mission through the eyes of personal fear rather than
through eyes of faith, completely forgetting the presence and power of God! So
they maintained that the people are strong; the cities are fortified and very
large; and giants were spotted living in the land (Num 13:28). Then they verified
there were diverse cultures living in the land (Num 13:29; cf. Ex 3:8), but all
were powerful foes.
Caleb saw where this was all heading
and spoke up, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able
to overcome it” (Num 13:30). But the ten countered “we are not able” because
the people in the land were “stronger than we” (Num 13:31). All they had seen was a land from their
vantage point that “devours its inhabitants” (suggesting who wants to live in
such a hostile place?), and the men are of great stature (Num 13:32). They saw
with their own eyes the giants and felt like insects in comparison, easily
swatted (Num 13:33). Then came the great pity party, the congregation was beside
themselves and wept that night (Num 14:1) as if God was not in their presence
or on the throne!
Then they directed their complaints toward
Moses and Aaron because they were certain they were all going to die if they
entered the Promised Land (Num 14:2-3a-b). “If only we had died in this wilderness”
was going to be a self-fulfilling prophecy (cf. Num 14:35)! Now they question
the goodness and greatness of God in all of this – “Why has the LORD brought us
to this land to fall by the sword…” (Num 14:3). Now there is talk to select another leader
and return to Egypt (Num 14:4) without
God (though they didn’t say it).
Moses
and Aaron fell on their faces before the congregation (Num 14:5), but Joshua
and Caleb tore their clothes and pleaded with the people that the land was “exceedingly
good” (Num 14:7) in an attempt to turn the thinking of the congregation toward
God (Num 14:8, 9). This was not what the people wanted to hear; for them, the circumstances
spoke to the contrary! And now the people are ready to stone Joshua and Caleb to
death (Num 14:10a).
Then the LORD makes His presence known to all to gain control of
the situation (Num 14:10b). There would not be any stoning, no new leadership,
or going back to Egypt, only death in the wilderness for the next forty years
(Num 14:32). What just took place was pardonable but permanent – the people
without realizing had just traded their future in the land flowing with milk
and honey for the barren and austere wilderness of death. We would call it a
desert, a wasteland with no other purpose but to die for those who protested
entering the Promised Land. Incidentally, the ten spies that generated the bad
report of the land were Shammua, Shaphat, Igal, Palti, Gaddiel, Gaddi, Ammiel,
Sethur, Nahbi, Geuel, Num 13:4-5,7, 9-15; these ten men died of a plague from
the LORD (Num 14:37) for sinning against the LORD and lying in order to cover
up their own cowardice and unbelief.
Did you know that of the 603,550 men of war [Ex 12:37; Ex 38:26]
who came out of Egypt (ca. 1440’s B.C.), only two men of war entered the land
from that group (Num 14:29, 30-32; 26:64-65; Deut 2:14) some forty years later?
Most of us know that it was Joshua and Caleb but that staggering statistic above
may not be as familiar and reveals the extent of how serious the rebellion was
against God. Another mathematical angle would be that only 1 out of every
301,775 warriors eventually entered the Promised Land who was twenty years or
older at the time of the great rebellion at Kadesh Barnea some forty years
earlier. The math is simple; the total is two.
What made Joshua and Caleb different than the other 603,548 men
of war? Our M-g text states that it was a “different spirit” or attitude. What
made the “difference?” The text goes on to say he “followed Me fully,” said of
Joshua as well (Num 32:12). It would be fair to say Joshua had the same spirit
as Caleb – “different” than all the rest (cf. Jos 14:6-8). One other thing
about that huge number concerning the men of war, God is all-knowing and knows
the heart of everyone that joined in the rebellion and refused to enter the
Promised Land (Psa 139:1-4; Eccl 12:14; Jer 17:10; 23:24).
The word “spirit” (Heb, rûach) has a range of
meanings depending upon its usage. It refers here to “motions of the mind and
character” (E.W. Bullinger, Companion Bible Notes), a mindset (cf.
Psa 32:2, spirit) or inner disposition (cf. Josh 2:11, courage, rûach), an attitude in alignment with
God’s will and purposes with a disregard to the obstacles (negatives) and an
attitude and behavior devoted to the opportunities (positives). This different
spirit is illustrated by his own words, “We are well able to overcome” (Num
13:30); “Do not rebel against the LORD” (Num 14:9); and “I wholly
followed the LORD my God” (Jos 14:8).
Imagine being one of those men of war who will live out the rest
of their days in a barren wasteland without any purpose other than waiting to
die! You knew; you blew it, and the sentence was irreversible. The notable
difference between Joshua and Caleb from all the other men of war was that they
feared and trusted the LORD without reservation, and God rewarded them for
their faith in Him. The ten spies reacted to their fears, but Joshua and Caleb
reacted to their faith (Num 13:30). These characteristics separated these men
from the herd and gave them a purpose and a future, but they would still have
to wait forty years for that rebellious generation to die off before the nation
would be offered a second opportunity to enter the Promised Land. Unfortunately
for the sons, they had to bear the brunt of their father’s infidelity (Num 14:33).
Interestingly, we never hear of Joshua or Caleb complaining or accusing God of
being unfair; after all, they didn’t rebel but were stuck in the wilderness for
four decades by the unfaithfulness of others (cf. Daniel and company spending
the rest of their lives in Babylon in faithfulness to Him.). Again, this was
evidence of a “different spirit.” Whatever God’s will was for them was met with
wholly following the LORD either way.
“Fully” is the same Heb word translated as “wholly” in Num 32:12. I
like the NIV’s translation of “fully” as “wholeheartedly,” for it is connected
with the heart which is connected with the prime directive in all of Scripture to
love the LORD with the totality of our being: heart, soul, and strength (Deut
6:5). Such was the case of Joshua and Caleb; they loved, served, and followed
the Lord with all their being intellectually, emotionally, and volitionally.
Such a full following is the natural byproduct of loving the LORD (cf. Jos
22:5; 23:11; Jn 14:15). A heart that is full like a glass of water has no room
for anything else.
Every time I read this story of the spies reporting back to the
people, I ask myself a very probing question, “If I lived back then would I
have sided with the “same spirit” of the rebellion? Would fear rule my heart or
faith? I am glad I wasn’t living back then! Unless you think less of me; how
about you, would you have the “same spirit” or a “different spirit?” We have
all been guilty of unbelief at one time or another. The common denominator of
the “same spirit” back then was the sin of unbelief (Heb 3:7-11, 12)….
Do you and I have a “different spirit,” really, right now as you
read these words? We know in the life of Joshua and Caleb that they feared and
trusted the LORD without reservation, but do we? As Joshua gave final
instructions to the men of war that lived across the east side of the Jordan
after the land rested from war, he expanded upon a “different spirit” without really
calling it that.
“But take careful heed … to love the LORD your God, to walk in
all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him
with all your heart and with all your soul” (Jos 22:5). This is the heart and
soul of a “different spirit.” This sounds similar to the prime directive of all
of Scripture found in Deut 6:5; Mt 22:37; Mk 12:30, 33; Lk 10:27).
As Joshua advanced in age, he gathered the people, and expanded
upon a “different spirit.”
- Be courageous to remain centered on the Truth of God’s Word, Josh 23:6.
- Avoid idolatry, or anything or anyone that competes with the will of God for your life, Josh 23:7.
- Cling to the LORD, Josh 23:8-9.
- The LORD is on your side, Josh 23:10
- Love the LORD your God, Josh 23:11
Finally, Joshua
assembled all the people in Shechem and rehearsed what the LORD had done for
them. By the time we get to verse 14, again, he gave some insight into a “different
spirit.”
- Fear the LORD, Josh 24:14
- Serve Him in sincerity and truth, Josh 24:14
- Put away idols and serve the LORD, Josh 24:14
- For me and my house, we will serve the LORD, Josh 24:15
This was the “different
spirit” that Joshua and Caleb manifested in their lives, all their lives,
unlike the “same spirit” group who saw Egypt (a type of the world) as more
attractive than being in the center of God’s will for their lives. It cost them
dearly.
Moses interceded for the people (Num 14:19), and the LORD
pardoned them (Num 14:20), but they would have to live with the consequences of
their disobedience though forgiven (Num 14:22-23, 29). Since these things were
written for our benefit (Rom 15:4), it is not a stretch to say God desires for
us to have a different spirit, one
that fears and trusts the Lord at all times and not like the “same spirit” of worldliness
and unbelief, the common spirit of rebellious man.
One thing we know of Joshua and Caleb; they were a spiritual
breed apart from their contemporaries, men with a “different spirit.” God blessed
them for it. He will do the same for us! Do we even desire to follow the LORD
fully or wholeheartedly? It demands of us a “different spirit” or attitude. The
bodies strewn all over the wilderness remind me that half-heartedness won’t cut
it in service to the King of kings and Lord of lords. Only a “different spirit”
will do. <><
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