June 27, 2019
Close to the Finish Line
Numbers 13:1–24
Benjamin George
Central Truth
When our focus is on God, our perspective changes from fear to faith, and our problems, big as they might be, appear small in light of the God of eternity.
Key Verse | Numbers 13:1-2
The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them."
Numbers 13:1–24
Spies Sent into Canaan
1 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel. From each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a chief among them.” 3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of the LORD, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel. 4 And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur; 5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori; 6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; 7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; 8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun; 9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; 10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; 11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is, from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi; 12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; 13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; 14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; 15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi. 16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua.
17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan and said to them, “Go up into the Negeb and go up into the hill country, 18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many, 19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds, 20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there are trees in it or not. Be of good courage and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.
21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo-hamath. 22 They went up into the Negeb and came to Hebron. Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol, 1 13:24 Eshcol means cluster because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there.
Dive Deeper | Numbers 13:1–24
I was 10 years old, and I was racing against my older brother. The first one to finish a lap before the other was the winner. I typically lost against my brother, but in my bones, I knew today was different. I was leading in the race and so excited to finally beat him. As I was coming close to the finish line, I looked back. I wanted to see my brother’s face and where he was. As I was looking back, I didn't see that the concrete ahead of me was uneven. My foot slipped, and I face-planted. I completely lost.
In Numbers 13, the Israelites were so close to the finish line, the Promised Land. In a crucial moment, instead of looking at God, they looked at the giants ahead of them and allowed fear to take control. They looked the wrong way!
The Israelites had been waiting since Egypt for their moment. They sent spies to evaluate the land, so they could devise a battle plan to conquer it. As you will read tomorrow, the spies returned with a mixed report. The majority consensus was, "Don’t go." Yet, Caleb, one of the spies, came to the exact opposite conclusion Read tomorrow's passage and devotional to find out what Caleb saw and to consider why Caleb saw things differently.
Here's a teaser. While the other spies fixated on the challenges, it was Caleb who focused on God. His view of his enemies was relative to his view of God and that made all the difference. It doesn't matter who your enemies are when God is on your side.
Face-planting can be avoided when you look the right way. Instead of fixating on your problems, focus on God, who is bigger than any problem.
Discussion Questions
1. Where are you not trusting God in your life?
2. Share in the comments about a time when you experienced God's faithfulness in your life.
3. What change can you make this week to focus more on God?