[Numbers 13] Believing the Good Report. In this chapter, the twelve spies go into Canaan’s land to bring back a report to Moses and the people. God seldom allows us to go into a situation without our eyes open to what is ahead. He will keep you informed, and nothing will take you by surprise IF you listen. The choice the spies had to make and the choice you must make is whether or not you believe the GOOD report of God’s sovereignty over every obstacle or will you believe what the circumstances say?
[Num 13:1-33 KJV] 1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them. 3 And Moses by the commandment of the LORD sent them from the wilderness of Paran: all those men [were] heads of the children of Israel. 4 And these [were] their names: of the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur. 5 Of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori. 6 Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh. 7 Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph. 8 Of the tribe of Ephraim, Oshea the son of Nun. 9 Of the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu. 10 Of the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi. 11 Of the tribe of Joseph, [namely], of the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi. 12 Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli. 13 Of the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael. 14 Of the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi. 15 Of the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These [are] the names of the men which Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Oshea the son of Nun Jehoshua. 17 And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them, Get you up this [way] southward, and go up into the mountain: 18 And see the land, what it [is]; and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they [be] strong or weak, few or many; 19 And what the land [is] that they dwell in, whether it [be] good or bad; and what cities [they be] that they dwell in, whether in tents, or in strong holds; 20 And what the land [is], whether it [be] fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time [was] the time of the firstripe grapes. 21 So they went up, and searched the land from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath. 22 And they ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron; where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, [were]. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and [they brought] of the pomegranates, and of the figs. 24 The place was called the brook Eshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut down from thence. 25 And they returned from searching of the land after forty days. 26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this [is] the fruit of it. 28 Nevertheless the people [be] strong that dwell in the land, and the cities [are] walled, [and] very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan. 30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it. 31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they [are] stronger than we. 32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, [is] a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it [are] men of a great stature. 33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, [which come] of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
The Lord instructs Moses to send in twelve princes to spy out the goodness of the land. Notice that it was the time of first ripe grapes. When you are in transition you need to know that there is an immediate harvest available. There is always a first fruits blessing for immediate obedience. Of all the twelve princes Moses is specifically instructed to send Joshua. Joshua is the Hebrew Hellenized name for Jesus. Joshua is a type of Christ. If you are going into the camp of the enemy be sure to take JESUS with you. Be sure you are listening to the GOOD report and not allowing yourself to be overwhelmed by what you see in the natural.
In every challenge, you must decide – do you eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil or the tree of life? Your mind will analyze, assess, qualify, evaluate, and appraise but in the final analysis, let your SPIRIT MAN make have the final say over your decision-making process. God is a God of process. We must follow His process if we are to attain God’s highest purpose and your greatest desires:
John 5:19 – Do what you see the Father do.
Matt. 7:1 – Have no opinion about the consequences.
John 12:24 – Relinquish the Outcome
Hebrew 11:8 – Make the Chaos Decision.
If you will do these things, you will walk yourself into total breakthrough and a whole new geography of favor in life and the things of God.
In v. 21-23, we see the order of the place names that the spies searched out in this mission. That order took them from Zim to Rehob, from Hebron to Eschol, and back to Parah and Kadesh. The names of these places speak prophetically to us. The entrance into Canaan and conquest did not start on a mountain top of exhilaration. They started out from the wilderness of Zin (emphasis on the word “wild-erness). The Hebrew word Zin means “flat place.” Many times, we feel flat in our spirits and flat in our emotions. We may find ourselves flat financially and relationally and without motivation, but go forward anyway. Do not allow your soul-man to impede your forward momentum. Go forward!
When they proceeded from Zin, they came to Rehob. Rehob means a wide place. Most believers despise broad places because there are too many choices. We want God to give us specific and exact instructions, but you need to understand that God delights in the choices you make and making those choices to prosper and through His sovereignty to deposit you exactly where He wanted you in the first place. After coming into Rehob, they are then faced with Hamath. Hamath means “a wall.” Do you ever feel like you have come up against a wall? What do you do? Go back to the flat place? No! Keep going!
Moving out of the flat place through the broad plain of too many options and then facing the wall of obstruction in Hamath, what is the way forward? This is a stuck place; how do you get past it? Go to Hebron. Hebron means “to couple, to associate.” It describes a “society, the seat of association and authority.” In other words, God sets the solitary in families. You are a principality and a power, but you are not alone. When you are flat emotionally, confused by too many choices, and up against a wall, we usually start pointing fingers. If you come together at Hebron instead of blaming and complaining, you will gather then the fruit of Eschol. The grapes and first fruits so great it took two men to carry the cluster. It takes two! It takes association and connection to take the first fruits of the spoil in your Canaan! Do you understand?
In vs. 26-30, the spies give their report to Moses and the people. Would that they had stopped talking after describing how good the land was. The land was a fruitful land. It was everything God promised it would be. The spies were in the land for 40 days, gathering this information. Forty is the number of testing. God’s promise will stand up to the test of scrutiny. Yes, there were giants in the land, and you will have opposition, but what is that when the God of the universe has certified His assistance to you in every challenge?
In v. 28, the spies get over into unbelief, and it spreads to the people. They describe the opposition. Let that be a lesson to you. Don’t dwell too long on the things that are opposing you. When you are moving forward into new challenges, always remember “new level – new devil.” When you spy out the land and hear and see what God has promised you – you will encounter the CHILDREN OF ANAK. Who are the children of Anak? The name Anak means “neck.” The neck represents the will of man. Have you ever prayed and said, “yes God, I believe your promise, but it is going to require cooperation from other people, my spouse, my children, etc., and they are not on board…” Don’t let the doctrine of free will torpedo your faith in what God has promised. God has a ways and means committee to move even the hardest of hearts. He moved the heart of Pharaoh. If He moved the heart of the most powerful man in the earth, can He not move the hearts of those that necessarily will be involved in your victory? No, He will not lobotomize people to make them align with His plan for your life. But He is capable beyond all your understanding to move men into alignment with His will. He will take someone moving away from Him and turn the map under their feet, so they move TOWARD YOU for the same reason they were MOVING AWAY from you. If they persist and rebel without remedy – God will REMOVE that person from your life and give you someone showing the fruits of righteousness where God’s plan for you is concerned.
