2._Of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man. _If all had been taken from one tribe, or from any single portion of the people, their fidelity might have been suspected by the others. God, therefore, would have each tribe assured by its own witness, in order that their report might be more... [ Continue Reading ]
18._And see the land what it is. _The counsel of Moses had this object, that the people might be made aware how rich and fertile the land was; for a barren country does not support a large population; and the healthfulness of a locality is inferred from the rigor of its inhabitants, tie, therefore,... [ Continue Reading ]
22._And they ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron. _Their direct course was not, indeed, towards the south, but they _proceeded _along the southern border, until they came to Rehob and Hamath, after having passed the mountains. Hebron, however, in which Abraham had sojourned, is specified fro... [ Continue Reading ]
25._And they returned from searching of the land. _The activity and diligence of the twelve men is commended, who in so short a time examined the whole of the land from the desert of Sin to the sea, and along the whole course of the Jordan; and this, too, in the hottest part of the year, when the gr... [ Continue Reading ]
30._And Caleb stilled the people before Moses. _That is, he restrained the murmurs of the people before Moses, against whom they had begun to rise tumultuously. Hence it appears that much was said on both sides which is passed over in silence, for there would have been no need of restraining the vio... [ Continue Reading ]
32._But the men that went up with him said. _We here see, as in a mirror, how impiety gradually gathers audaciousness in evil. At the outset, the authors of the rebellion were ambiguous in their expressions, and contented themselves with obscure insinuations; they now throw aside all shame, and open... [ Continue Reading ]