The Wilderness Years

none of the people who saw my glory and the signs I did in Egypt and in the desert, yet tested me these ten times and did not listen to my voice,

will see the land I swore to their ancestors! None of those who treated me with contempt will see it.

But my servant Kalev, because he had a different Spirit with him and has fully followed me - him I will bring into the land he entered, and it will belong to his descendants.

"Now, since the 'Amaleki and the Kena'ani are living in the valley, tomorrow turn around and get yourselves into the desert along the way to the Sea of Suf."

ADONAI said to Moshe and Aharon,

"How long am I to put up with this evil community who keep grumbling about me? I have heard the complaints of the people of Isra'el, which they continue to raise against me.

Tell them this: 'As surely as I live, ADONAI swears, as surely as you have spoken in my ears, I will do this to you:

your carcasses will fall in this desert! Every single one of you who were included in the census over the age of twenty, you who have complained against me,

will certainly not enter the land about which I raised my hand to swear that I would have you live in it - except for Kalev the son of Y'funeh and Y'hoshua the son of Nun.

But your little ones, who you said would be taken as booty - them I will bring in. They will know the land you have rejected.

But you, your carcasses will fall in this desert;

and your children will wander about in the desert for forty years bearing the consequences of your prostitutions until the desert eats up your carcasses.

It will be a year for every day you spent reconnoitering the land that you will bear the consequences of your offenses - forty days, forty years. Then you will know what it means to oppose me!

I, ADONAI, have spoken.' I will certainly do this to this whole evil community who have assembled together against me - they will be destroyed in this desert and die there."

The men whom Moshe had sent to reconnoiter the land and who, when they returned, made the entire community complain against him by giving an unfavorable report about the land -

those men who gave the unfavorable report about the land died by the plague in the presence of ADONAI.

Of the men who went to reconnoiter the land, only Y'hoshua the son of Nun and Kalev the son of Y'funeh remained alive.

When Moshe told these things to all the people of Isra'el, the people felt great remorse.

They arose early the next morning, came up to the top of the mountain and said, "Here we are, and we did sin, but now we'll go up to the place ADONAI promised."

Moshe answered, "Why are you opposing what ADONAI said? You won't succeed!

Don't go up there, because ADONAI isn't with you. If you do, your enemies will defeat you.

The 'Amalekim and the Kena'anim are there ahead of you, and you will be struck down by the sword. The reason will be that you have turned away from following ADONAI, so that ADONAI won't be with you."

But they were presumptuous and went on up toward the high parts of the hill-country, even though the ark for the covenant of ADONAI - and Moshe - stayed in the camp.

So the 'Amalekim and the Kena'anim living in that hill-country descended, struck them down and beat them back all the way to Hormah.

ADONAI said to Moshe,