Faithlessness is Chastised

Israel has camped in the wilderness of Paran. As preparation for entering the Promised Land, twelve spies are sent into Canann - one man from each tribe who is a 'leader among them.'

After a 40 day trip they return with their report about the land, its lushness and the people. Sadly the people have intitmidated all but two of the men so their report is discouraging to the Israelites. Only Joshua and Caleb state their confidence that God will deliver them into the land irregardless of who or how strong the inhabitants of the land are. Israel refuses to listen to them and as a consequence rebel and whine (again) about how much better life was in Egypt.

Moses intervenes for the people before the Lord. The Lord will pardon and rebuke the nation. Their entering the land will be delayed by 40 years and the generation of those who rebelled will die in the wilderness. Then God will be faithful to His promise having chastened the faithlessness of the people.

The question before us is how often are God's blessings forfeited and promises delayed because we fail to trust Him fully?