NOTES for Num 14:1-45

Fainthearted Israel murmurs again! Frightened by difficulties, the people do not want to follow Moses into the Promised Land. The situation described here contains a serious warning: by rebelling against God's plan, we doom ourselves to fruitless wandering in the wilderness. Following God's will requires trust in the Creator from us, and this implies overcoming fears by the power of His Spirit and love. For its unbelief Israel is deprived of God's help and is forced to wait forty years, until the generation of Egyptian slaves dies out and a new generation of God's people grows up.