Numbers 13
1 Then Yahweh spoke to Moses. He said,
And the LORD said to Moses,
2 “Send some men to examine the land of Canaan, which I have given to the people of Israel. Send a man from every tribe of their ancestors. Each man must be a leader among them.”
“Send out for yourself men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each of their fathers’ tribes send one man who is a leader among them.”
3 Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, so that they might obey Yahweh's command. All of them were leaders among the people of Israel.
So at the consent of the LORD, Moses sent them out from the Wilderness of Paran. All the men were leaders of the Israelites,
4 These were their names: from the tribe of Reuben, Shammua son of Zaccur;
and these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua son of Zaccur;
5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat son of Hori;
from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat son of Hori;
6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb son of Jephunneh;
from the tribe of Judah, Caleb son of Jephunneh;
7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal son of Joseph;
from the tribe of Issachar, Igal son of Joseph;
8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea son of Nun;
from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea son of Nun;
9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti son of Raphu;
from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti son of Raphu;
10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel son of Sodi;
from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel son of Sodi;
11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is to say, from the tribe Manasseh), Gaddi son of Susi;
from the tribe of Manasseh (a tribe of Joseph), Gaddi son of Susi;
12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel son of Gemalli;
from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel son of Gemalli;
13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur son of Michael;
from the tribe of Asher, Sethur son of Michael;
14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi son of Vophsi;
from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi son of Vophsi;
15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel son of Maki.
and from the tribe of Gad, Geuel son of Machi.
16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to examine the land. Moses called Hoshea son of Nun by the name of Joshua.
These were the names of the men Moses sent to spy out the land; and Moses gave to Hoshea son of Nun the name Joshua.
17 Moses sent them to examine the land of Canaan. He said to them, “Approach from the Negev and go up into the hill country.
When Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, he told them, “Go up through the Negev and into the hill country.
18 Examine the land to see what it is like. Observe the people who live there, whether they are strong or weak, and whether they are few or many.
See what the land is like and whether its people are strong or weak, few or many.
19 See what the land is like where they live. Is it good or bad? What cities are there? Are they like camps, or are they fortified cities?
Is the land where they live good or bad? Are the cities where they dwell open camps or fortifications?
20 See what the land is like, whether it is good for growing crops or not, and whether there are trees there or not. Be brave and bring back samples of the land's produce.” Now the time was the season for the first ripe grapes.
Is the soil fertile or unproductive? Are there trees in it or not? Be courageous, and bring back some of the fruit of the land.” (It was the season for the first ripe grapes.)
21 So the men went up and examined the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo Hamath.
So they went up and spied out the land from the Wilderness of Zin as far as Rehob, toward Lebo-hamath.
22 They went up from the Negev and arrived at Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, clans descended from Anak, were there. Now Hebron had been built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.
They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, dwelled. It had been built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.
23 When they reached the Valley of Eshkol, they cut down a branch with a cluster of grapes. They carried it on a staff between two of their group. They also brought pomegranates and figs.
When they came to the Valley of Eshcol, they cut down a branch with a single cluster of grapes, which they carried on a pole between two men. They also took some pomegranates and figs.
24 That place was named the Valley of Eshkol, because of the grape cluster that the people of Israel cut down there.
Because of the cluster of grapes the Israelites cut there, that place was called the Valley of Eshcol.
25 After forty days, they returned from examining the land.
After forty days the men returned from spying out the land,
26 They came back to Moses, Aaron, and all the community of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the community, and showed them the produce from the land.
and they went back to Moses, Aaron, and the whole congregation of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. They brought back a report for the whole congregation and showed them the fruit of the land.
27 They told Moses, “We reached the land to which you sent us. It certainly flows with milk and honey. Here is some produce from it.
And they gave this account to Moses: “We went into the land to which you sent us, and indeed, it is flowing with milk and honey. Here is some of its fruit!
28 However, the people who make their homes there are strong. The cities are fortified and very large. We also saw descendants of Anak there.
Nevertheless, the people living in the land are strong, and the cities are large and fortified. We even saw the descendants of Anak there.
29 The Amalekites live in the Negev. The Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites have their homes in the hill country. The Canaanites live by the sea and along the Jordan River.”
The Amalekites live in the land of the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live by the sea and along the Jordan.”
30 Then Caleb silenced the people who were before Moses and said, “Let us go up and take possession of the land, for we are certainly able to conquer it.”
Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “We must go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly conquer it!”
31 But the other men who had gone with him said, “We are not able to attack the people because they are stronger than we are.”
But the men who had gone up with him replied, “We cannot go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are!”
32 So they spread around a discouraging report to the people of Israel about the land that they had examined. They said, “The land that we looked at is a land that eats up its inhabitants. All the people whom we saw there are people of great height.
So they gave the Israelites a bad report about the land that they had spied out: “The land we explored devours its inhabitants, and all the people we saw there are great in stature.
33 There we saw giants, descendants of Anak, people who came from giants. In our own sight we were like grasshoppers in comparison with them, and this is what we were in their sight, too.”
We even saw the Nephilim there—the descendants of Anak that come from the Nephilim! We seemed like grasshoppers in our own sight, and we must have seemed the same to them!”
