I am not looking for answers wondering why I am reading fairy tales, blah blah blah... I am seriously curious about this.A question about Moses and wandering in the wilderness?
None of the spies gave false reports. They all told the truth: the land was flowing with milk and honey and giants lived in the land. Only two of the spies had the faith to proceed into the land while the other spies said that the giants were too powerful to defeat. The Israelites were convinced by the majority and lost faith in God. God, who was leading them by day with a pillar of fire and by night with a pillar of smoke, lead them into the wilderness. The idea that they were lost is a misnomer. Moses grew up in the area and had the freedom to explore. He most likely could have lead them to wherever, but they were to follow God. So God lead them around until an entire generation of faithless died off (except for the two spies, Joshua and Caleb), and a new generation that had not known slavery was left. This generation grew up following God and became the generation that toppled Jericho's walls among other things.
On a side note... God promised to drive out the people before them with hornets. They didnt even have to fight!
Exodus 23:28-31
I will send the hornet ahead of you to drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way. But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you. Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land. I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the River. I will hand over to you the people who live in the land and you will drive them out before you.
Joshua 24:12 Then I sent the hornet before you and it drove out the two kings of the Amorites from before you, but not by your sword or your bow.
It would have just taken a few weeks, however, God was teaching His people, obedience. You have to look at the whole story- the Israelites saw the provision of God - the parting of the red sea, the food that God provided each and every day, and they still grumbled and thought they should be able to go back to Egypt. God would have taken them into the promised land in just a few weeks, but it was the journey that was teaching them the truth about their God. The journey is far more important then the destination!!A question about Moses and wandering in the wilderness?
! Corinthians is St Paul's reading of it :
Yet God was not pleased with most of them, for they were struck down in the desert.
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3 These things happened as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil things, as they did.
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And do not become idolaters, as some of them did, as it is written, "The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to revel."
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Let us not indulge in immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell within a single day.
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Let us not test Christ 4 as some of them did, and suffered death by serpents.
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Do not grumble as some of them did, and suffered death by the destroyer.
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These things happened to them as an example, and they have been written down as a warning to us, upon whom the end of the ages has come. 5
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Therefore, whoever thinks he is standing secure should take care not to fall.
But if you have the inclination, I would get the following :
The Pentateuch as Narrative
by John Sailhamer
Undoubtedly a great many died in the desert but probably not all the priestly class and some others.
Numbers 14
1 That night all the people of the community raised their voices and wept aloud. 2 All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, "If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this desert! 3 Why is the LORD bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn't it be better for us to go back to Egypt?" 4 And they said to each other, "We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt."
So, it was all of the people.
I would guess to show that a society must take punishment even for a few bad apples. Because it was the society that allowed the bad apples to continue on their improper style.
Because they were rebellious and unbelieving.
Remember that the people believed the spies and were afraid. They had no faith in Gods promise.
rebel it took 40 years because the trailmix snacks were backordered %26amp; no one wanted to shoot bambi for food
I don't know what kind of answer you're looking for, since the event never happened.
Moses answers your question in full in Deuteronomy 8:1-5. Quoted here in length:
Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land that the LORD promised on oath to your forefathers. Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years. Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you.
The Israelites were lead in the desert to be refined, so God could know who was a real follower and who was not based on how they acted.
Furthermore, we know from Hebrews that the entire Old Testament and especially the Law was a shadow to what was brought and fulfilled in the New Testament. The Israelites were a type and disciples of Jesus are the antitype. Consider the following and I think the answer will be more clear.
The Israelites were essentially baptized when they passed through the water and their pursuers were destroyed. As a disciple, baptism destroys sin--represented thousands of years ago as Egyptians, which comes to bring us death. Our time in the desert is our lives, where God is teaching us, refining us, and seeing what is on our hearts (present tense verb conjugation fails me for what is happening). Soon, we will have our rest in the land God has prepared for those who will make it through the desert.
I could talk more about it, but if you're interested you should try some exegesis reading about the relationship between the old and new testament. I found "From Shadow to Reality" by John Oakes to be particularly interesting.
Moses was a descendant of Abraham and just obeying God who promised Abraham and his descendants the 'promised land'. From Egypt, Moses with about 1million Jews?? travelled in the Sinai desert and finally came to Mt. Nebo in Jordan. Moses was able to see the promised land but was not allowed to go in. It was Joshua, his succesor who did.
Accdg to my muslim guide in Mt Nebo, the israelites by wandering in the desert for 4o years were prepared by God to be strong people inorder to face their challenges during that time and up to NOW. You know how true is the statement. In addition, the terrain of the desert mountains in Mt Nebo [solid rocks, no trees, no water] is about 1,000 ft. The israelites must really have strong determination and sturdy people that they were able to get out of Sinai desert and still climb Mt. Nebo. From Mt Nebo, you can see green valley of Jericho, to the right is Mt Gilead and to the left is Mt Olives. Nearby Mt Olives is the Dead Sea and also the Red Sea. Further, Michael the archangel lifted Moses up so he saw the adjoining lands, the 'the land flowing with milk and honey'. Milk is supposed to be 'oil' from the neighboring land. The Jordan valley is so rich that its soil is reddish brown since day one. The bible is very accurate on this.
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