The Twelve Spies

Biblical Text and Narrative

The primary text is Numbers 13–14, and Moses recalls the episode in Deuteronomy 1:19-46. While Israel was encamped in the Wilderness of Paran, Moses sent twelve men, a leader from each tribe, to explore the land of Canaan. The tribe of Levi is not included in the list. The names are as follows (Numbers 13:4-15):

• Shammua of the tribe of Reuben, Shaphat of the tribe of Simeon, Caleb of the tribe of Judah, Igal of the tribe of Issachar
• Hoshea of the tribe of Ephraim, Palti of the tribe of Benjamin, Gaddiel of the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddi of the tribe of Manasseh
• Ammiel of the tribe of Dan, Sethur of the tribe of Asher, Nahbi of the tribe of Naphtali, Geuel of the tribe of Gad

On this occasion Moses renamed Hoshea, calling him Joshua (Numbers 13:16). This is the Joshua who later led Israel. The spies surveyed the land for forty days. At Hebron they saw the descendants of Anak, and in the Valley of Eshcol they cut down a single cluster of grapes, which two men carried back on a pole.

When they returned to Kadesh, the spies reported that the land "floweth with milk and honey." Ten of them, however, said that the cities were fortified and the inhabitants strong, and that Israel could not go up against them. Declaring that they had been "as grasshoppers" in their own sight, they brought up an evil report of the land (Numbers 13:33). On hearing this, the people wept all night and proposed to appoint a leader and return to Egypt. Caleb and Joshua tore their clothes and urged the people, "the LORD is with us: fear them not" (Numbers 14:9).

God, counting each day of the spying as a year, made the people wander in the wilderness for forty years (Numbers 14:34). He declared that everyone twenty years old and upward, except Caleb and Joshua, would die in the wilderness, and the ten who had brought up the evil report died by a plague. Afterward the people went up into the hill country without having been commanded to do so and were defeated by the Amalekites and the Canaanites (Numbers 14:39-45).

Background

This event delayed Israel's entry into Canaan and became the direct cause of the forty years in the wilderness. The descendants of Anak are described as people of great stature, and the text connects them with the Nephilim. Scholars differ on the exact location of Kadesh and on the date of the event.

Significance Across Scripture

Years later, Caleb, then eighty-five years old, recalled the time he had spied out the land at the age of forty and asked for the hill country of Hebron as his inheritance (Joshua 14:6-14). In the New Testament, Hebrews 3:7–4:11 quotes Psalm 95, states that the wilderness generation could not enter into rest "because of unbelief," and presents this as a warning to the church. 1 Corinthians 10:11-12 likewise regards the experiences of the wilderness generation as "written for our admonition."

Interpretation and Issues

• Who initiated the mission: In Numbers 13:1-2, God commands that the spies be sent. In Deuteronomy 1:22-23, by contrast, the people make the request first, and Moses approves it. Jewish tradition and Christian commentators reconcile the two accounts in various ways. Some interpret the spying itself as an expression of unbelief, while others regard it as a legitimate procedure that God permitted.
• Majority and minority: The contrast between the ten and the two is often read as a lesson that the majority is not always right.
• Distinguishing popular embellishments: Sermons sometimes present this event as a contrast between positive and negative thinking. In the text, however, Caleb and Joshua based their appeal not on optimism about the circumstances but on faith in the promise that "the LORD is with us." Furthermore, the sending of two spies to Jericho, whom Rahab hid (Joshua 2), is a separate event.

In the Korean Church

In Korean church preaching, the faith of Caleb and Joshua and Caleb's request, "give me this mountain" (Joshua 14:12), are frequently cited. This verse is widely used to encourage believers who are beginning a new undertaking or facing difficulties. The expression "as grasshoppers" is also commonly quoted in sermons that warn against fear and self-deprecation.