Numbers 13

1 And the LORD said to Moses,

1 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

2 “Send out for yourself men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each of their fathers’ tribes send one man who is a leader among them.”

2 “Send men, that they may spy out the land of Canaan, which I give to the children of Israel. Of every tribe of their fathers, you shall send a man, every one a prince among them.”

3 So at the command of the LORD, Moses sent them out from the Wilderness of Paran. All the men were leaders of the Israelites,

3 Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran according to the commandment of Yahweh. All of them were men who were heads of the children of Israel.

4 and these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua son of Zaccur;

4 These were their names: Of the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur.

5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat son of Hori;

5 Of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori.

6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb son of Jephunneh;

6 Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh.

7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal son of Joseph;

7 Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph.

8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea son of Nun;

8 Of the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea the son of Nun.

9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti son of Raphu;

9 Of the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu.

10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel son of Sodi;

10 Of the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi.

11 from the tribe of Manasseh (a tribe of Joseph), Gaddi son of Susi;

11 Of the tribe of Joseph, of the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi.

12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel son of Gemalli;

12 Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli.

13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur son of Michael;

13 Of the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael.

14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi son of Vophsi;

14 Of the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi.

15 and from the tribe of Gad, Geuel son of Machi.

15 Of the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.

16 These were the names of the men Moses sent to spy out the land; and Moses gave to Hoshea son of Nun the name Joshua.

16 These are the names of the men who Moses sent to spy out the land. Moses called Hoshea the son of Nun Joshua.

17 When Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, he told them, “Go up through the Negev and into the hill country.

17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way by the South, and go up into the hill country.

18 See what the land is like and whether its people are strong or weak, few or many.

18 See the land, what it is; and the people who dwell therein, whether they are strong or weak, whether they are few or many;

19 Is the land where they live good or bad? Are the cities where they dwell open camps or fortifications?

19 and what the land is that they dwell in, whether it is good or bad; and what cities they are that they dwell in, whether in camps, or in strongholds;

20 Is the soil fertile or unproductive? Are there trees in it or not? Be courageous and bring back some of the fruit of the land.” (It was the season for the first ripe grapes.)

20 and what the land is, whether it is fertile or poor, whether there is wood therein, or not. Be courageous, and bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the time of the first-ripe grapes.

21 So they went up and spied out the land from the Wilderness of Zin as far as Rehob, toward Lebo-hamath.

21 So they went up, and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, to the entrance of Hamath.

22 They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, dwelled. It had been built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.

22 They went up by the South, and came to Hebron; and Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were there. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)

23 When they came to the Valley of Eshcol, they cut down a branch with a single cluster of grapes, which they carried on a pole between two men. They also took some pomegranates and figs.

23 They came to the valley of Eshcol, and cut down from there a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bore it on a staff between two. They also brought some of the pomegranates and figs.

24 Because of the cluster of grapes the Israelites cut there, that place was called the Valley of Eshcol.

24 That place was called the valley of Eshcol, because of the cluster which the children of Israel cut down from there.

25 After forty days the men returned from spying out the land,

25 They returned from spying out the land at the end of forty days.

26 and they went back to Moses, Aaron, and the whole congregation of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. They brought back a report for the whole congregation and showed them the fruit of the land.

26 They went and came to Moses, to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, to the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word to them and to all the congregation. They showed them the fruit of the land.

27 And they gave this account to Moses: “We went into the land to which you sent us, and indeed, it is flowing with milk and honey. Here is some of its fruit!

27 They told him, and said, “We came to the land where you sent us. Surely it flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit.

28 Nevertheless, the people living in the land are strong, and the cities are large and fortified. We even saw the descendants of Anak there.

28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. Moreover, we saw the children of Anak there.

29 The Amalekites live in the land of the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live by the sea and along the Jordan.”

29 Amalek dwells in the land of the South. The Hittite, the Jebusite, and the Amorite dwell in the hill country. The Canaanite dwells by the sea, and along the side of the Jordan.”

30 Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “We must go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly conquer it!”

30 Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, “Let’s go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it!”

31 But the men who had gone up with him replied, “We cannot go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are!”

31 But the men who went up with him said, “We aren’t able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.”

32 So they gave the Israelites a bad report about the land that they had spied out: “The land we explored devours its inhabitants, and all the people we saw there are great in stature.

32 They brought up an evil report of the land which they had spied out to the children of Israel, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that eats up its inhabitants; and all the people who we saw in it are men of great stature.

33 We even saw the Nephilim there—the descendants of Anak that come from the Nephilim! We seemed like grasshoppers in our own sight, and we must have seemed the same to them!”

33 There we saw the Nephilim, the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim. We were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.”