Deuteronomy 1 – Moses Remembers the Journey of Israel from Mount Sinai to Kadesh Barnea

A. Introduction: Moses remembers the departure from Mount Sinai (Horeb).

1. (1) These are the words.

These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel on this side of the Jordan in the wilderness, in the plain opposite Suph, between Paran, Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Dizahab.

a. On this side of the Jordan: At this point Israel was camped on the great plains of Moab, able to see across the Jordan River into the Promised Land. This was the land of Canaan that God promised them but which they had not occupied for 400 years.

b. In the wilderness: Israel had come through a long, and difficult journey from Egypt – made even more long and difficult because of their unbelief and the death of the adult generation which first came out of Egypt.

c. These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel: At this pivotal point in Israel’s history – on the threshold of the Promised Land, and ready to adopt a true national identity, Moses spoke to Israel in this book of Deuteronomy. Trapp suggests that the entire book of Deuteronomy was delivered by Moses to Israel in ten days or less.

i. The name Deuteronomy means “second law.” It was the second giving of the Mosaic Law, the first being at Mount Sinai (Exodus 20-23). Moses was compelled to bring this reminder of God’s law to Israel because those ready to enter the Promised Land were only children – if they were born at all – when the law was originally declared at Mount Sinai.

d. Which Moses spoke to all Israel: Essentially, the book of Deuteronomy was a sermon or a series of three sermons, preached by Moses to Israel, and preached with a heavy and zealous heart.

i. Moses’ heart was heavy because he knew that he would not enter the Promised Land of Canaan with Israel. His disobedience to God at Meribah (Numbers 20:1-13) meant that he would not see Israel’s exodus from Egypt through to completion.

ii. Moses’ heart was zealous because he knew that if this new generation (which was a generation of faith, unlike the generation which perished in the wilderness) did not obey the Law of God then God’s covenant would work against them and curse them. So, the LORD passionately pled through a passionate Moses in Deuteronomy, pleading for Israel to choose life! (Deuteronomy 30:19)

iii. Deuteronomy is therefore a book of repetition and a book of preparation. God’s people never outgrow their need to be reminded, as Peter said, I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth (2 Peter 1:12).

iv. In addition to being a series of sermons Moses presented to Israel, Deuteronomy was also a treaty between Yahweh and Israel. Many commentators point out the similarities in the structure of Deuteronomy and ancient treaties between rulers and subjects. “The terms used in these initial verses indicate the nature of the book. ‘These are the words’ (Deuteronomy 1:1) suggest a suzerain-vassal treaty preamble.” (Kalland)

v. The three sermons recorded in Deuteronomy (Deuteronomy 1:1-4:43, Deuteronomy 4:44-26:19, and Deuteronomy 27:1-34:12) were given to Israel in a fairly short period of time, probably all in the same month. The amount of time covered in each of the four books relevant to Israel’s exodus is interesting.

· Exodus covers about 80 years, from the birth of Moses to Israel’s arrival at Mount Sinai.

· Leviticus takes place in the 1 year Israel spent at Mount Sinai.

· Numbers covers about 38 years, starting with Israel at Mount Sinai and continuing until they came to the plains of Moab, on the threshold of Canaan.

· Deuteronomy covers about 1 month, documenting three sermons Moses gave to Israel on the plains of Moab.

e. Moses spoke to all Israel…in the wilderness: Deuteronomy is also a notable book because it was useful to Jesus for instruction and preparation. During His temptation in the wilderness, it seems obvious that Jesus meditated on Deuteronomy because in answering Satan, the Savior quoted from it three times. Deuteronomy was a precious book to Jesus, and truth from Deuteronomy was of practical help to Him.

i. When tempted by Satan to use His divine powers to turn stone into bread, Jesus answered Satan from Deuteronomy 8:3: Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God (Matthew 4:3-4).

ii. When tempted by Satan to tempt God the Father into demonstrating Jesus as Messiah before it was time, Jesus answered Satan from Deuteronomy 6:16: You shall not tempt the Lord your God (Matthew 4:5-7).

iii. When tempted by Satan to short-cut the cross by bowing down to worship the devil, Jesus answered Satan from Deuteronomy 6:13: You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall You serve (Matthew 4:8-10).

iv. Deuteronomy “was that silver brook, that preciously-purling current, out of which the Lord Christ, our Champion, chose all those three smooth stones, wherewith he prostrated the Goliath of hell in that sharp encounter.” (Trapp)

v. “Deuteronomy is one of the greatest books of the Old Testament. Its influence on the domestic and personal religion of all ages has not been surpassed by any other book in the Bible. It is quoted over eighty times in the New Testament and thus it belongs to a small group of four Old Testament books [the others being Genesis, Psalms, and Isaiah] to which the early Christians made frequent reference.” (Thompson)

2. (2-4) The journey from Mount Horeb to Kadesh Barnea.

It is eleven days’ journey from Horeb by way of Mount Seir to Kadesh Barnea. Now it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spoke to the children of Israel according to all that the LORD had given him as commandments to them, after he had killed Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt in Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who dwelt at Ashtaroth in Edrei.

a. Kadesh Barnea: This was the place where, in Numbers 13-14, Israel believed the report of the unfaithful spies and rebelled against God, refusing to trust God and enter the Promised Land.

b. It is eleven days’ journey from Horeb by way of Mount Seir to Kadesh Barnea: The journey from Mount Horeb to Kadesh Barnea only took eleven days. But from Kadesh Barnea (the threshold of the Promised Land) back to Kadesh Barnea (back to the threshold of the Promised Land) took thirty-eight years.

i. This was because it took thirty-eight years for the generation of unbelief (those who were adults when Israel left Egypt) to die in the wilderness, and for a generation of faith and trust in God to arise in place after them.

ii. In the fortieth year: “This was a melancholy year to the Hebrews in different respects; in the first month of this year Miriam died, Numbers 20; on the first day of the fifth month Aaron died, Numbers 33:38; and about the conclusion of it, Moses himself died.” (Clarke)

c. After he had killed Sihon king of the Amorites…and Og king of Bashan: Israel’s great fear when they first came to Kadesh Barnea and had the opportunity to enter the Promised Land was that they would be crushed by the military prowess of the Canaanites. But when the new generation trusted God and went forward, God immediately gave them victory over two pagan kings (Sihon and Og). As soon as Israel was ready to receive it in faith, God gave them victory over their enemies.

3. (5) Moses the expositor.

On this side of the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses began to explain this law, saying,

a. On this side of the Jordan: Delivering the message recorded in Deuteronomy was one of the last things Moses did to prepare the people of Israel to finally enter the Promised Land. Moses understood that God’s people needed to know the word.

b. Moses began to explain this law: In Deuteronomy, Moses was an expository teacher to Israel. The Hebrew word translated explain comes from the ideas “to dig deeply” or “to mine.” The word itself means to make bare, to make clear, to fully explain. Moses will mine out the riches of God’s truth to the people, using it to prepare them to enter Canaan.

4. (6-8) The command to move on from Mount Horeb.

“The LORD our God spoke to us in Horeb, saying: ‘You have dwelt long enough at this mountain. Turn and take your journey, and go to the mountains of the Amorites, to all the neighboring places in the plain, in the mountains and in the lowland, in the South and on the seacoast, to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river, the River Euphrates. See, I have set the land before you; go in and possess the land which the LORD swore to your fathers—to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—to give to them and their descendants after them.’

a. The LORD our God spoke to us in Horeb: This departure from Mount Sinai (Horeb and Sinai are different names for the same place) was recorded in Numbers 10. However, the Numbers 10 account does not present the details recorded here.

i. The recounting of this journey from Mount Sinai to where Israel presently camped on the plains of Moab was an important testimony of God’s faithfulness. In the coming months, they would cross the Jordan River and trust God to enable them to conquer the Canaanites. That took a lot of trust in God, but it was trust founded on recognition of God’s past faithfulness.

ii. “If every Christian were thus to call his past life into review, he would see equal proofs of God’s gracious regards to his body and soul; equal proofs of eternal mercy in providing for his deliverance.” (Clarke)

b. You have dwelt long enough at this mountain: Simply, God told Israel to move on. A year at Mount Sinai was enough; He did not bring them out of Egypt for them to live forever at Sinai. It was time to move on in faith and take the land of promise.

i. Galatians 4 and Hebrews 12 symbolically identify Mount Sinai with the old covenant of works and law. For the Christian today, it is important to spend some time under the law as it teaches the believer (Galatians 3:24-25), teaching the holy character of God and the need for a Savior. But God never intended the Christian to live their spiritual life at Mount Sinai. In faith, the believer must move on to the Promised Land.

ii. Many Christians today should trust God to live under His grace, having dwelt long enough under a legalistic mentality. “The law is not for men to continue under, but for a time till they be fitted for Christ (Galatians 3:16-25). Humbled they must be, and hammered for a season; sense of misery goes before sense of mercy.” (Trapp)

iii. Charles Spurgeon considered many ways that believers might have dwelt long enough and needed to move on.

· Some live long enough at Sinai, under the law – when they should move on to Calvary.

· Some live long enough at the mount of little faith – when they should move on to greater faith.

· Some live long enough at the mount of endless questioning – when they should find rest in the simplicity of Christ.

· Some live long enough at the mount of planning and scheming – when they should move beyond to action.

c. Turn and take your journey…. See, I have set the land before you: Though it would be a challenge, God had set the Promised Land before Israel – and Moses here remembered when the LORD spoke to them at Sinai and told them to move on and take the land.

i. “Their south border might extend to the mount of the Amorites; their west to the borders of the Mediterranean Sea; their north to Lebanon; and their east border to the river Euphrates: and to this extent Solomon reigned; see 1 Kings 4:21.” (Clarke)

ii. “Indeed, the ideal limits of the land stretched out as far as the Euphrates. Probably only in David’s time was the ideal even approximately realized (2 Samuel 8:3; cf. Genesis 15:18).” (Thompson)

5. (9-18) When Moses appointed tribal leaders among Israel.

“And I spoke to you at that time, saying: ‘I alone am not able to bear you. The LORD your God has multiplied you, and here you are today, as the stars of heaven in multitude. May the LORD God of your fathers make you a thousand times more numerous than you are, and bless you as He has promised you! How can I alone bear your problems and your burdens and your complaints? Choose wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men from among your tribes, and I will make them heads over you.’ And you answered me and said, ‘The thing which you have told us to do is good.’ So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and knowledgeable men, and made them heads over you, leaders of thousands, leaders of hundreds, leaders of fifties, leaders of tens, and officers for your tribes.

“Then I commanded your judges at that time, saying, ‘Hear the cases between your brethren, and judge righteously between a man and his brother or the stranger who is with him. You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small as well as the great; you shall not be afraid in any man’s presence, for the judgment is God’s. The case that is too hard for you, bring to me, and I will hear it.’ And I commanded you at that time all the things which you should do.

a. I alone am not able to bear you: Numbers 11 tells how Moses experienced this crisis when the people complained again about the food God provided. To help Moses bear the burden, God directed him to appoint seventy elders to assist him in holding up under the pressure of leading the nation.

i. As described in Numbers 11, these elders served a valuable role. They were to stand there with Moses (Numbers 11:16), to have the same Spirit as Moses, and to bear the burden of the people with Moses (Numbers 11:17).

b. Choose wise, understanding, and knowledgeable men from among your tribes, and I will make them heads over you: This describes the appointment of elders recorded in Numbers 11. Before that, there was a selection of judges to help Moses (Exodus 18), but that was a separate event.

c. So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and knowledgeable men, and made them heads over you: Moses chose the elders of Israel by using a combination of approval by the congregation, and approval by Moses himself. Moses then instructed the elders in principles of righteous leadership, and by this he relieved himself of many burdens.

i. You shall not show partiality in judgment: “Let not the bold, daring countenance of the rich or mighty induce you to give an unrighteous decision; and let not the abject look of the poor man induce you either to favour him in an unrighteous cause, or to give judgment against him at the demand of the oppressor. Be uncorrupt and incorruptible, for the judgment is God’s; ye minister in the place of God, act like Him.” (Clarke)

B. Moses remembers when in unbelief, Israel refused to enter the Promised Land.

1. (19-21) Moses remembers his exhortation to Israel at Kadesh Barnea.

“So we departed from Horeb, and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw on the way to the mountains of the Amorites, as the LORD our God had commanded us. Then we came to Kadesh Barnea. And I said to you, ‘You have come to the mountains of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us. Look, the LORD your God has set the land before you; go up and possess it, as the LORD God of your fathers has spoken to you; do not fear or be discouraged.’

a. So we departed from Horeb: Israel’s dramatic departure from Mount Sinai was described in Numbers 10:11-36. Organized into tribes, marching in the order commanded by God, guided by the pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night, with the ark of the covenant leading the procession, Israel left Sinai.

i. They made the difficult journey through the wilderness to Kadesh Barnea. “There must have been great relief then in reaching Kadesh Barnea, a large oasis with abundant springs and pastures.” (Merrill)

b. Look, the LORD your God has set the land before you; go up and possess it: By the time Israel made it to Kadesh Barnea, they had seen God’s faithfulness in enabling them to cross the land of the Amorites. Moses was ready to lead the nation into Canaan.

c. Do not fear or be discouraged: This encouragement was important because this was the critical moment for Israel. They were a little more than a year out of Egypt and ready to enter the Promised Land. It was there before them, ready for them to take by faith if they would not fear or be discouraged.

2. (22-23) Moses remembers Israel’s suggestion to send forth spies.

“And every one of you came near to me and said, ‘Let us send men before us, and let them search out the land for us, and bring back word to us of the way by which we should go up, and of the cities into which we shall come.’

“The plan pleased me well; so I took twelve of your men, one man from each tribe.

a. And every one of you came near to me and said, “Let us send men before us”: As Moses remembered what Israel had suggested to him, he looked back with regret. There was no compelling reason to send spies to the Promised Land.

i. God had told them that the land was good (Exodus 3:8, 13:5, Leviticus 20:24). Unless they did not believe the Lord, there was no reason to confirm this through their investigation. God had also told them they would occupy the land of the nations living there (Exodus 3:17, 23:23). Unless they did not believe the LORD, there was no reason to take a look at the enemies and see if God could defeat them.

b. The plan pleased me well: Moses must have remembered this with some measure of regret. The people suggested the plan to send the spies to Canaan and Moses agreed to it. The plan pleased him. Yet when ten of the twelve spies came back with a report filled with fear and unbelief, the nation believed the unfaithful spies, refusing to trust God’s promise and take Canaan.

i. From reading only Numbers 13:2 it might seem that this plan to send spies into Canaan originated with God, not the people. But a careful look shows that Numbers 13:2 dealt mainly with the number of spies to send (12) and how they should be chosen (one from each tribe). Deuteronomy tells us the plan was first suggested by the people, then approved by Moses, then allowed and regulated by God. In a sense, the LORD responded to Israel with the thought, “If you are going to send spies, send twelve, and have them represent the whole nation by sending one from each tribe.”

ii. “Noting the narrative in Numbers 13:1-3, in addition to what is written here, it appears that the people first suggested that this reconnoiter be made, then Moses approved the idea, referred the request to the Lord who agreed to it, and ordered that each tribe send out one representative.” (Kalland)

3. (24-25) Moses remembers the journey and report of the spies.

And they departed and went up into the mountains, and came to the Valley of Eshcol, and spied it out. They also took some of the fruit of the land in their hands and brought it down to us; and they brought back word to us, saying, ‘It is a good land which the LORD our God is giving us.’

a. They brought back word to us: Significantly, Moses didn’t mention the evil report of the unbelieving spies (Numbers 13:28-29). It was almost as if the memory was so painful that Moses didn’t want to think about it.

b. They also took some of the fruit of the land: The returning spies didn’t only tell Israel how good the land was. They also brought back proof, including some of the remarkable fruit in Canaan. This included a huge cluster of grapes, pomegranates, and figs (Numbers 13:23). The name Eshcol can mean “cluster” or “bunch.”

c. It is a good land which the LORD our God is giving us: It was enough that the nation of Israel had the report from the two godly spies, Joshua and Caleb. In addition to that, all the twelve spies were united in saying the land was good and was God’s gift to Israel (Numbers 13:27).

4. (26-33) Moses remembers Israel’s unbelieving rejection of the Promised Land, though he pleaded with them to take the land in faith.

“Nevertheless you would not go up, but rebelled against the command of the LORD your God; and you complained in your tents, and said, ‘Because the LORD hates us, He has brought us out of the land of Egypt to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us. Where can we go up? Our brethren have discouraged our hearts, saying, “The people are greater and taller than we; the cities are great and fortified up to heaven; moreover we have seen the sons of the Anakim there.”’

“Then I said to you, ‘Do not be terrified, or afraid of them. The LORD your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you, according to all He did for you in Egypt before your eyes, and in the wilderness where you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a man carries his son, in all the way that you went until you came to this place.’ Yet, for all that, you did not believe the LORD your God, who went in the way before you to search out a place for you to pitch your tents, to show you the way you should go, in the fire by night and in the cloud by day.

a. Nevertheless: In this context, this was a haunting word. It was the exact word in the mouth of the ten fearful spies when they began to give an evil testimony to Israel (Numbers 13:28-33).

i. Essentially, the ten spies and all Israel said, “We went into the land of Canaan and found it to be a wonderful land, just as the LORD said it would be. God’s word was true on that point. Nevertheless (despite all that), we don’t believe God when He said He will enable us to overcome the enemies of the land and to possess it.”

ii. It is a great tragedy when the people of God have seen that His word is true, nevertheless they fail to trust Him for great things in the future. “Remembering the mercies of God in the past, we may rest assured concerning the present and the future.” (Spurgeon)

b. You would not go up, but rebelled…you complained in your tents…. you did not believe the LORD your God: God had repeatedly proven Himself faithful to Israel. They could not point to one instance where He had forsaken them, though the journey had not been easy. Yet they answered God’s faithfulness with rebellion, complaining, and unbelief.

i. They were not persuaded of the love of God, and they found it hard to trust a God whose love they doubted. Christians today should also be persuaded of the love of God. Many believers are hindered in their walk with God because they are not genuinely convinced of God’s love for them. They should ask, “What would it take to finally convince me that God really loves me?” We don’t wait for God to give us everything we want before we love Him. That would be the selfish demand of a short-sighted child, like the child who thinks their parent doesn’t love them because they can’t have all the candy they want.

ii. God has already given the ultimate demonstration of His love: But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). The death of Jesus for guilty sinners was and is the ultimate demonstration of God’s love; He can do nothing greater than what He has already done in Jesus. Now, it is up to us to simply receive His love.

c. The LORD your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you, according to all He did for you in Egypt before your eyes: With these words, Moses did his best to encourage the people to trust God. He called on them to specifically remember God’s past faithfulness and consider that He was able to give them victory in the conquest of the land of Canaan.

i. The spiritual adversary of the believer (Satan) loves to make the believer forget what they should remember (the past victories and miracles of God on our behalf). He also loves to make the believer remember what they should forget (the past of sin and self-life).

ii. You saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a man carries his son: “Never a day without its cross, its lesson, its peril; but never a day that God does not bear us up in His hands, as some mighty river bears up the boat of the missionary explorer.” (Meyer)

d. Yet, for all that, you did not believe the LORD your God: In a sense, it was not sin that kept Israel out of the Promised Land. Instead, it was unbelief (though certainly, unbelief is sin). Israel’s sin could be covered through atoning sacrifice, but their unbelief and doubt of God’s love for them made them unable to put their trust in God.

i. Believers often think that it is some particular sin that hinders them going on with the LORD. It is true that the LORD wants to deal with such sin and get it out of the way, but the way that happens is by deepening the relationship of love and trust in the LORD. Unbelief and lack of trust are the real enemies.

C. Moses remembers the aftermath of Israel’s rebellion at Kadesh Barnea.

1. (34-40) Moses remembers God’s oath of judgment against unbelieving Israel.

“And the LORD heard the sound of your words, and was angry, and took an oath, saying, ‘Surely not one of these men of this evil generation shall see that good land of which I swore to give to your fathers, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him and his children I am giving the land on which he walked, because he wholly followed the LORD.’ The LORD was also angry with me for your sakes, saying, ‘Even you shall not go in there; Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall go in there. Encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.

Moreover your little ones and your children, who you say will be victims, who today have no knowledge of good and evil, they shall go in there; to them I will give it, and they shall possess it. But as for you, turn and take your journey into the wilderness by the Way of the Red Sea.’

a. Was angry, and took an oath: In response to Israel’s unbelief and lack of trust in God’s love, God swore an oath (Psalm 95:11) that the adult generation which came out of Egypt would not inherit the Promised Land, but would instead die in the wilderness.

b. Except Caleb the son of Jephunneh: The only exceptions were Caleb and Joshua. These were the faithful two among the twelve spies who came back with the report from the Promised Land (Numbers 14:6-10).

c. Even you shall not go in there: Even Moses himself would not enter the Promised Land. Though this was not specifically announced in Numbers 14 (coming later in Numbers 20), it could be inferred then, because Moses was not among the only exceptions named (Joshua and Caleb).

d. Joshua…. he shall cause Israel to inherit it: Moses was one of the great men of the Bible and all history. Yet, as great as Moses was, he could not and would not lead Israel into the Promised Land. That was left up to one who came after Moses, Joshua.

i. Encourage him: God commanded Moses to encourage Joshua, even understanding that Joshua would succeed him. It was good for Moses to give the encouragement, and it was good for Joshua to receive it. The work of Moses in leading Israel to Canaan would be completed through Joshua.

ii. Moses was the great lawgiver and represented a relationship with God through the law. This could give a person a “wilderness” kind of relationship with God but could never bring them into a “Promised Land” kind of relationship with God. Only Joshua could do that. It is significant that the Hebrew name Joshua exactly corresponds to the name Jesus. Only Jesus can bring us into a Promised Land relationship with God.

e. Moreover your little ones and your children, who you say will be victims…they shall possess it: Israel’s great excuse for their unbelief at Kadesh Barnea was, “If we attempt to take the land, our children will be killed” (Numbers 14:3). God answered their unbelieving excuse by saying, “You will be killed, and your children will possess the land.”

i. “Anything, in fact, will serve as an excuse, when the heart is bent on compromise.” (Spurgeon)

ii. It is sobering to consider how easily, how quickly, and how completely, God sees through the excuses people offer. We often feel confident in our excuses because other people find it difficult to challenge them. But God sees through excuses and understands everyone’s true motivations.

2. (41-46) Moses remembers their half-hearted repentance and futile invasion attempt.

“Then you answered and said to me, ‘We have sinned against the LORD; we will go up and fight, just as the LORD our God commanded us.’ And when everyone of you had girded on his weapons of war, you were ready to go up into the mountain.

“And the LORD said to me, ‘Tell them, “Do not go up nor fight, for I am not among you; lest you be defeated before your enemies.”’ So I spoke to you; yet you would not listen, but rebelled against the command of the LORD, and presumptuously went up into the mountain. And the Amorites who dwelt in that mountain came out against you and chased you as bees do, and drove you back from Seir to Hormah. Then you returned and wept before the LORD, but the LORD would not listen to your voice nor give ear to you.

“So you remained in Kadesh many days, according to the days that you spent there.

a. We have sinned against the LORD; we will go up and fight: After hearing the consequences of their rejection of God, Israel had a change of heart. Yet they went out in their own strength and not in faith, because God did not lead them.

i. “True to human nature, as soon as access to Canaan was denied that early rebellious generation (Deuteronomy 1:35, 40), they decided that that precisely was what they would do.” (Merrill)

b. Rebelled against the command of the LORD: They did this amid their supposed repentance. Their sorrow was not over grieving the heart of God but over thirty-eight more years in the wilderness. God therefore saw that even in their shallow repentance, they rebelled against His command.

c. The Amorites who dwelt in that mountain came out against you and chased you as bees do: The invasion attempted in their own wisdom and strength ended in disaster. After their total defeat, then they wept. But again, this was over the consequences of getting caught, not over grieving the heart of God, and not over their sin of not trusting the great love of God.

i. “The Amorites’ pursuit ‘like a swarm of bees’ describes numerical greatness, persistence, and ferocity.” (Kalland)

d. So you remained in Kadesh many days: The rest of Deuteronomy will say nothing about these many years when Israel started at Kadesh and then returned there, yet mostly traveling as nomads in the broader wilderness. Even the book of Numbers gives very little record of what happened in these more than thirty-five years. Numbers makes mention only of the rebellion of Korah (Numbers 16:1-40), the complaining of Israel (Numbers 16:41-17:13), the death of Miriam (Numbers 20:1), and Israel’s rebellion at Meribah (Numbers 20:2-13).

i. “Even though the way of the wilderness had been a terrible one, they had not been left to grope their way through it alone. God had constantly moved before them, choosing them the place of encampment at every pause, indicating where they should pitch their tents.” (Morgan)

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