The Spies Explore Canaan (Deuteronomy 1:19–25)
1 DRA And there the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: BSB BSB: And the LORD said to Moses,
2 DRA Send men to view the land of Chanaan, which I will give to the children of Israel, one of every tribe, of the rulers. BSB BSB: “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.”
3 DRA Moses did what the Lord had commanded, sending from the desert of Pharan, principal men, whose names are these: BSB BSB: So at the command of the LORD, Moses sent them out from the Wilderness of Paran. All the men were leaders of the Israelites,
4 DRA Of the tribe of Ruben, Sammua the son of Zechur. BSB BSB: and these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua son of Zaccur;
5 DRA Of the tribe of Simeon, Saphat the son of Hurl. BSB BSB: from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat son of Hori;
6 DRA Of the tribe of Juda, Caleb the son of Jephone. BSB BSB: from the tribe of Judah, Caleb son of Jephunneh;
7 DRA Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph. BSB BSB: from the tribe of Issachar, Igal son of Joseph;
8 DRA Of the tribe of Ephraim, Osee the son of Nun. BSB BSB: from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea son of Nun;
9 DRA Of the tribe of Benjamin, Phalti the son of Raphu. BSB BSB: from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti son of Raphu;
10 DRA Of the tribe of Zabulon, Geddiel the son of Sodi. BSB BSB: from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel son of Sodi;
11 DRA Of the tribe of Joseph, of the sceptre of Manasses, Gaddi the son of Susi. BSB BSB: from the tribe of Manasseh (a tribe of Joseph), Gaddi son of Susi;
12 DRA Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli. BSB BSB: from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel son of Gemalli;
13 DRA Of the tribe of Aser, Sthur the son of Michael. BSB BSB: from the tribe of Asher, Sethur son of Michael;
14 DRA Of the tribe of Nephtali, Nahabi the son of Vapsi. BSB BSB: from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi son of Vophsi;
15 DRA Of the tribe of Gad, Guel the son of Machi. BSB BSB: and from the tribe of Gad, Geuel son of Machi.
16 DRA These are the names of the men, whom Moses sent to view the land: and he called Osee the son of Nun, Josue. BSB BSB: 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.
17 DRA And Moses sent them to view the land of Chanaan, and said to them: Go you up by the south side. And when you shall come to the mountains, BSB BSB: When Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, he told them, “Go up through the Negev and into the hill country.
18 DRA View the land, of what sort it is: and the people that are the inhabitants thereof, whether they be strong or weak: few in number or many: BSB BSB: See what the land is like and whether its people are strong or weak, few or many.
19 DRA The land itself, whether it be good or bad: what manner of cities, walled or without walls: BSB BSB: Is the land where they live good or bad? Are the cities where they dwell open camps or fortifications?
20 DRA The ground, fat or barren, woody or without trees. Be of good courage, and bring us of the fruits of the land. Now it was the time when the first ripe grapes are fit to be eaten. BSB BSB: 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.)
21 DRA And when they were gone up, they viewed the land from the desert of Sin, unto Rohob as you enter into Emath. BSB BSB: So they went up and spied out the land from the Wilderness of Zin as far as Rehob, toward Lebo-hamath.
22 DRA And they went up at the south side, and came to Hebron, where were Achiman and Sisai and Tholmai the sons of Enac. For Hebron was built seven years before Tanis the city of Egypt. BSB BSB: 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.
23 DRA And going forward as far as the torrent of the cluster of grapes, they cut off a branch with its cluster of grapes, which two men carried upon a lever. They took also of the pomegranates and of the figs of that place: BSB BSB: 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.
24 DRA Which was called Nehelescol, that is to say, the torrent of the cluster of grapes, because from thence the children of Israel had carried a cluster of grapes. BSB BSB: Because of the cluster of grapes the Israelites cut there, that place was called the Valley of Eshcol.
The Reports of the Spies 25 DRA And they that went to spy out the land returned after forty days, having gone round all the country, BSB BSB: After forty days the men returned from spying out the land,
27 DRA And they related and said: We came into the land to which thou sentest us, which in very deed floweth with milk and honey as may be known by these fruits: BSB BSB: 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!
28 DRA But it hath very strong inhabitants, and the cities are great and walled. We saw there the race of Enac. BSB BSB: Nevertheless, the people living in the land are strong, and the cities are large and fortified. We even saw the descendants of Anak there.
29 DRA Amalec dwelleth in the south, the Hethite and the Jebusite and the Amorrhite in the mountains: but the Chanaanite abideth by the sea and near the streams of the Jordan. BSB BSB: 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.”
30 DRA In the mean time Caleb, to still the murmuring of the people that rose against Moses, said: Let us go up and possess the land, for we shall be able to conquer it. BSB BSB: 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!”
31 DRA But the others, that had been with him, said: No, we are not able to go up to this people, because they are stronger than we. BSB BSB: But the men who had gone up with him replied, “We cannot go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are!”
32 DRA And they spoke ill of the land, which they had viewed, before the children of Israel, saying: The land which we have viewed, devoureth its inhabitants: the people, that we beheld, are of a tall stature. BSB BSB: 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.
33 DRA There we saw certain monsters of the sons of Enac, of the giant kind: in comparison of whom, we seemed like locusts. BSB BSB: 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!”