1Herren sagde nu til Moses:2„Udtag en leder fra hver stamme og send dem af sted for at udspionere det land, jeg vil give jer.”3-15På det tidspunkt lå folket i lejr i Parans ørken. Moses gjorde, som Herren havde befalet. Følgende stammeledere blev udtaget som spioner: Shammua, søn af Zakkur, fra Rubens stamme; Shafat, søn af Hori, fra Simeons stamme; Kaleb, søn af Jefunne, fra Judas stamme; Jigal, søn af Josef, fra Issakars stamme; Hosea, søn af Nun, fra Efraims stamme; Palti, søn af Rafu, fra Benjamins stamme; Gaddiel, søn af Sodi, fra Zebulons stamme; Gaddi, søn af Susi, fra Manasses stamme; Ammiel, søn af Gemalli, fra Dans stamme; Setur, søn af Mikael, fra Ashers stamme; Nahbi, søn af Vafsi, fra Naftalis stamme; og Geuel, søn af Maki, fra Gads stamme.16Det var ved den lejlighed, at Moses ændrede Hoseas navn til Josva.17Inden Moses sendte dem af sted, sagde han: „Gå nordpå gennem Negev[1] op i bjergene18hvor I har overblik og kan danne jer et indtryk af landet og dets indbyggere. Læg mærke til, hvor mange de er, og hvor stærke de er.19-20Læg mærke til, om jorden er frugtbar, om der er mange træer, og om folket bor i åbne landsbyer eller i byer med mure omkring. Drag modigt af sted og kom tilbage med nogle af landets frugter.” Det var nemlig den tid på året, hvor druerne var ved at være modne.21Så tog de af sted og udspionerede landet lige fra Zins ørken til Rehob nær Lebo-Hamat.22På rejsen kom de først gennem Negev og nåede derefter til Hebron—en by så gammel, at den var blevet grundlagt syv år før Zoan i Egypten. I Hebron så de akimanitterne, sheshajitterne og talmajitterne—tre slægter, der nedstammede fra de anakitiske kæmper.23Derefter kom de til et sted, som de kaldte Eshkoldalen. Der tog de en drueklase så stor, at der måtte to mand til at bære den på en stang imellem sig. De plukkede også nogle af landets granatæbler og figner.24Den enorme drueklase, de fandt der, var årsag til, at de kaldte stedet Eshkoldalen.[2]25Efter at have udspioneret landet i 40 dage vendte de tilbage26og aflagde rapport til Moses, Aron og Israels folk, der nu var nået til Kadesh i Parans ørken, og de viste dem de frugter, de havde taget med sig fra landet.27„Da vi kom et stykke ind i det land, du sendte os til, så vi, hvor rigt landet var,” sagde de til Moses. „Det er virkelig et land, der ‚flyder med mælk og honning’. De frugter, vi har med tilbage, er bevis nok.28Men med hensyn til indbyggerne har vi dårlige nyheder: Det er et uhyre stærkt folk, som bor i store, befæstede byer. Ja, vi så tilmed nogle af de berygtede anakitiske kæmper iblandt dem.29I Negev-området bor amalekitterne; i bjerglandet bor hittitterne, jebusitterne og amoritterne; og langs Middelhavet og Jordanfloden bor kana’anæerne.”30Efter den rapport begyndt folket straks at beklage sig over for Moses. Men Kaleb kaldte forsamlingen til ro og orden. „Lad os komme af sted! Vi kan helt afgjort indtage landet,” sagde han.31-33„Det er lettere sagt end gjort,” indvendte de andre spioner. „Glem ikke, at vi her står over for nogle uhyre stærke krigere—selveste Anaks efterkommere. De er kæmper, og vi har ikke en chance imod dem. Da vi så dem, følte vi os på størrelse med græshopper—og sådan ser de nok også på os.” På den måde tog de modet fra folket.
1The 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.” (4.Mos 32,8; 5.Mos 1,22)3So 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.Mos 12,16; 4.Mos 13,26; 4.Mos 32,8; 5.Mos 1,19; 5.Mos 9,23)4And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur;5from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori;6from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh; (4.Mos 13,30; 4.Mos 14,6; 4.Mos 14,30; 4.Mos 26,65; 4.Mos 32,12; 4.Mos 34,19; 5.Mos 1,36; Josva 14,6; Josva 15,13; Dom 1,12; 1.Krøn 4,15)7from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph;8from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun; (2.Mos 24,13; 4.Mos 11,28; 4.Mos 13,16; 4.Mos 14,6; 4.Mos 14,30; 4.Mos 14,38; 5.Mos 32,44; Neh 8,17)9from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu;10from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi;11from the tribe of Joseph (that is, from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi the son of Susi;12from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli;13from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael;14from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi;15from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.16These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua. (4.Mos 13,8)17Moses 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, (4.Mos 13,22; 4.Mos 13,29; 4.Mos 21,1; Josva 15,19; Dom 1,9; Dom 1,15; Dom 1,19)18and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many,19and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds,20and 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. (5.Mos 31,6; 5.Mos 31,23; Neh 9,25; Neh 9,35; Ez 34,14)21So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near Lebo-hamath. (4.Mos 20,1; 4.Mos 33,36; 4.Mos 34,3; 4.Mos 34,8; Josva 15,1)22They 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.) (4.Mos 13,17; 4.Mos 13,33; 5.Mos 1,28; 5.Mos 2,10; 5.Mos 9,2; Josva 11,21; Josva 14,15; Josva 15,14; Dom 1,10; Salm 78,12; Salm 78,43; Es 19,11; Es 19,13; Es 30,4; Ez 30,14)23And 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. (4.Mos 32,9; 5.Mos 1,24)24That place was called the Valley of Eshcol,[1] because of the cluster that the people of Israel cut down from there.
Report of the Spies
25At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land.26And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. They brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. (4.Mos 20,1; 4.Mos 20,16; 4.Mos 32,8; 4.Mos 33,36; 5.Mos 1,19; Josva 14,6)27And they told him, “We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. (2.Mos 3,8; 5.Mos 1,25)28However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there. (5.Mos 1,28; 5.Mos 9,1)29The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb. The Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country. And the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan.” (2.Mos 17,8; 4.Mos 14,25; 4.Mos 14,43)30But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” (4.Mos 14,6; 4.Mos 14,24)31Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” (4.Mos 32,9; 5.Mos 1,28; Josva 14,8)32So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. (4.Mos 14,36; Amos 2,9)33And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” (1.Mos 6,4; Es 40,22)