“You shall not fear them, for it is the Lord your God who fights for you” (Deuteronomy 3:22).

Life is a matter of perspective. Glass half empty. Glass half full. Simply put, our view is dependent on whether we trust God or we do not. We confuse belief with trust, which is not the same thing. In our defense, mistrust often resides in our blind spots as we carelessly forget the history of God’s glorious move in our lives. Moments of doubt become glaring spiritual failures amid our super-sized trials while being equally evident to God in our daily dilemmas.  

God is gracious to provide countless in-your-face examples of human mistrust throughout Scripture. Numbers 13 is on my Top 10 list. Moses dispatched twelve tribal leaders to scout the looming Promised Land.

He charged them, “…and see what kind of country it is. Are the people who dwell in it strong or weak, few or many? Is the country in which they dwell good or bad? Are the towns they live in open or fortified? Is the soil rich or poor? Is it wooded or not?” (Numbers 13:18-20a, Tanakh).

This was not to be an exercise in military strategy but a fact-finding mission. Why it was necessary boggles the mind considering that God had already assured the Land was befitting His chosen people. 

Interestingly, Moses also instructed the scouts to make every effort to bring a sampling of fresh fruit from the land (grapes were in season). This was not to satisfy Moses’ personal craving. It was to be proof, an enticement if you will, to the Israelites that what lay ahead was an abundant life provided by the hand of God.  

If we are honest, ladies, there are times when we all need that carrot on a stick to drive us forward.

About ten years ago our 12’ x 6’ tin awning had blown off our tiny patio in a storm. We cherished that outdoor space. We began a plan to have a deck built in its place. Our son’s best friend, James, was to be the builder with our family serving as free labor. He created a beautiful design that was grander than anything we had dreamed of. We were giddy with anticipation.

Before construction could begin, we needed to power wash and paint the exterior of our home. It was July. Somewhere between the first and second coat of paint my gusto evaporated in the hot summer breeze. I was discouraged. Whining ensued. It was then that my wonderful husband who knows me so well sat me down in a lawn chair in the space where the new deck would be.

I watched as he meticulously walked the perimeter measuring the dimensions and hammering twigs in to the ground on the four corners. He commenced to wrap pink twine around each of the pegs and tie them off. He then eased into the chair next to me and said, “Look at what we are working towards. Within this space our family and friends will gather for happy occasions, we will rest and refresh, you will surround it with lush plants and flowers, and we will be so thankful that we powered through the preparation in order to reap the rewards.”

It was the visual motivation I needed. I needed to see the grapes.  

Back to Kadesh. Can we pause a moment and imagine the scene? Perhaps a crowd had gathered to offer the scouts well wishes as they set out for the new land. After a time, folks would have returned to their daily tasks. And yet I wonder if a small but hopeful contingency had held vigil at the encampment’s edge.

I envision a weathered Grandma, eyes darting between the mending in her lap and the distant horizon. A nursing mother rocking her infant slowly, humming a sacred song as she stole glances across the desert floor, praying for twelve tiny figures to appear. Little children playing makeshift games stopped in their tracks as they caught the women’s intense gazes and followed their line of sight to what appeared to them as an ocean of sand. What is taking so long? When will they return? What news will they bring? 

After forty days, the spies returned and began their report on a positive note stating, “We came to the land which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit” (Numbers 13:27), as they proudly displayed a cluster of grapes so large that it required two men to carry it. The land is fertile. Milk and honey. Just as God had promised. Brilliant news!

They continued their report with, “However…” and it all went south from there, “…the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there…We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are…The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them’” (Numbers 13:28,31,32b-33). Adding fuel to the fire, the spies listed the enemy “-Ites” who currently occupied the land.   

The stage was set for the perfect storm. Firstly, this presentation was not given before a private audience with Moses and Aaron, as it should have been. Instead, the entire community attended, hanging on every provocative word. Secondly, the ten spies used inflammatory language (no doubt couched in emotional tones) to ignite panic: The inhabitants are “strong, stronger,” they are of “great height,” the land “devours,” etc. But amid the chaos rang the voice of reason calling for action, “Caleb hushed the people before Moses and said, ‘Let us by all means go up, and we shall gain possession of it, for we shall surely overcome it” (Numbers 13:30 Tanakh).

It was too late. The Israelites had already lost their minds. They groaned for the same Egypt that had enslaved and tortured them and schemed their return. They grieved the mass slaughter of their wives and children that would never happen if they trusted God. Mass hysteria ensued. Moses and Aaron fell prostrate. Joshua and Caleb tore their garments.  

It was then that Joshua and Caleb, seeing reality through the filter of God’s unlimited power, exhorted the entire encampment on His behalf, “The land we traversed and scouted is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord is pleased with us, He will bring us into that land, a land that flows with milk and honey, and give it to us; only you must not rebel against the Lord. Have no fear then of the people of the country, for they are our prey: their protection has departed from them, but the Lord is with us. Have no fear of them!” (Numbers 14:7b-9 Tanakh).

The people’s response was to stone them. God’s wrath fell upon the Israelites. The promise of entering the Land evaporated. 

There is a vast difference between facts and feelings. The Israelites allowed the fear of the ten spies to ignite their emotions, blinding them to the facts that Joshua and Caleb were laying out. They forgot that they were the children of the one true God, who had and would continue to fight for them, provide for them, be present with them. Are we not all guilty of the same?

The millisecond we stop trusting God we begin walking in sin. We follow the loudest voice disregarding the still, small one that beckons us. This. Is. Sin. Mind the view! Look up. Trust God. He will always lead us home. 

Scripture to Consider:

  • “You shall not fear them, for it is the Lord your God who fights for you.” – Deuteronomy 3:22
  • “Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” – Isaiah 53:1