But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.” (Numbers 13:31-33)

They Are Stronger Than We

Excitement filled the air as the Hebrews approached the land God had promised to Abraham. The years of bondage in Egypt were over, and a new land lay before the newly formed nation of Israel. God had shown His power to deliver the people and give them a law to be His own special people. Under Moses’ leadership, the land of Canaan spread before the anxious people, filled with anticipation and hope. Twelve men were chosen to spy out the land, to observe its fortifications, economy, and the types of people dwelling there. Leaders from every tribe were selected to report on the land’s conditions, whether the people who dwelled in it were strong or weak, few or many.

After forty days of spying out the land, the twelve men returned. They brought evidence of the land’s immense bounty (one cluster of grapes had to be carried between two men on a pole). They also brought some of the pomegranates and figs. The land was lush with the bounty of the land, flowing with milk and honey. Ten men were discouraged by what they saw of the people and the strength of the armies. They told the congregation that the people of the land were strong, that the cities were fortified and very large. It also concerned the ten spies, the descendants of Anak, who lived in the land. These were men of giant stature towering over the people. This frightened the ten spies, who discouraged the people.

The report from the ten spies caused the congregation to lift up their voices, crying out to the Lord all night. There was an insurrection to have new leaders and return to Egypt. The hearts of the people melted at the news of the ten spies. The men had convinced the people that they could not go up against the Amalekites, Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites, and Canaanites. They convinced them that the people of the land were stronger than the nation of Israel. The tragedy of this message was how easily Israel had rejected Moses and Aaron and turned their backs on God, their deliverer. Lost in the fear of the giants of Anak and the strong fortified cities was remembering how often the Lord God had delivered the Hebrews and cared for them.

Rebellion begins with forgetting the power of God. The Hebrews were in bondage to the Egyptian slave masters. While the people greatly outnumbered their captors, there was nothing the Hebrews could do to save themselves. Moses came to the people with great signs and wonders to show the power of God over the nation of Israel. The plagues brought upon Egypt were not done as window dressing to impress the people. Every plague attacked a section of the nation of Egypt and dismantled its economy, military, government, and home. When the ten plagues were finished, God’s power had destroyed the greatest nation on earth. The Hebrews stood at the edge of the Red Sea, fearful that they were going to die at the hands of the Egyptian army. God delivered them and destroyed the army.

The Lord provided manna to the people when they complained about having nothing to eat. At Rephidim, there was no water to drink, and God gave the people an abundance of water when Moses smote the rock. The Amalekites came against the Hebrews, who were not trained in war. By God’s grace, Joshua defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. At Mount Sinai, the presence of the Lord brought fear to the hearts of the people as they saw the glory of God on the mountain. There were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. Three thousand Hebrews were killed in the rebellion of the golden calf. Nadab and Abihu were killed for offering strange fire before the Lord.

The ten men convinced the people after returning from spying out the land that the people of the land were stronger than they were. They thought the people of the land were stronger than Israel. After all that God did and how He showed His great power, the people turned away from the Lord and refused to enter the land of promise. The heart of the people trusted in their own strength. As a result, three generations of Hebrews died in the wilderness. Who was stronger than God? The people were fearful because they did not trust in God. When men look to their own strength and wisdom for deliverance, they will only find bondage. God showed His power in so many ways, and the people still believed they could not conquer the land. Joshua and Caleb sought to dissuade the people, but to no avail.

God has provided the greatest power to deliver man from sin in His Son, Jesus Christ, but the world cannot believe there is anything to save in a carpenter’s son from Nazareth. The wisdom of man cannot accept the gift of God. There is nothing to consider from a man hanging from a cross. What the world cannot see is that the cross is the full measure of God’s power. Satan is not stronger than the will of a heart willing to follow after the Son of God. There is power in His blood. The glory of God is found in Jesus Christ. Only by His power is there salvation.