📖 Numbers — Chapter 13 (KJV)
Read the complete King James Version chapter below, then explore the passage sections, check what you remember, and keep your private study notes.
Scripture source: Project Gutenberg KJV, ebook 10.
Numbers 13:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Numbers 13:2 RSend thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them.
Numbers 13:3 And Moses by the commandment of the LORD sent them from the wilderness of Paran: all those men were heads of the children of Israel.
Numbers 13:4 And these were their names: of the tribe of Reuben, Shammua the son of Zaccur.
Numbers 13:5 Of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori.
Numbers 13:6 Of the tribe of Judah, RCaleb the son of Jephunneh.
Numbers 13:7 Of the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph.
Numbers 13:8 Of the tribe of Ephraim, TOshea the son of Nun.
Numbers 13:9 Of the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu.
Numbers 13:10 Of the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi.
Numbers 13:11 Of the tribe of Joseph, namely, of the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi.
Numbers 13:12 Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli.
Numbers 13:13 Of the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael.
Numbers 13:14 Of the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi.
Numbers 13:15 Of the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.
Numbers 13:16 These are the names of the men which Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called RTOshea the son of Nun TJehoshua.
Numbers 13:17 And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them, Get you up this way Rsouthward, and go up into the mountain:
Numbers 13:18 And see the land, what it is, and the people that dwelleth therein, whether they be strong or weak, few or many;
Numbers 13:19 And what the land is that they dwell in, whether it be good or bad; and what cities they be that they dwell in, whether in tents, or in strong holds;
Numbers 13:20 And what the land is, Rwhether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the firstripe grapes.
Numbers 13:21 So they went up, and searched the land Rfrom the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath.
Numbers 13:22 And they ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron; where RAhiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)
Numbers 13:23 And they came unto the RTbrook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs.
Numbers 13:24 The place was called the Tbrook TEshcol, because of the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut down from thence.
Numbers 13:25 And they returned from searching of the land after Rforty days.
Numbers 13:26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to RKadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruit of the land.
Numbers 13:27 And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.
Numbers 13:28 Nevertheless the people be Rstrong that dwell in the land, and the cities are walled, and very great: and moreover we saw the children of Anak there.
Numbers 13:29 The RAmalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.
Numbers 13:30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.
Numbers 13:31 But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.
Numbers 13:32 And they Rbrought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are Tmen of a great stature.
Numbers 13:33 And there we Rsaw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.
📚 Study This Chapter
📖 What We’re Reading
Numbers 13:1–20 — Men Sent to Search Canaan
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The LORD directs Moses to send a ruler from each tribe to search Canaan. The men are named, including Caleb, and Moses calls Oshea Jehoshua. They are to examine the people, cities, land, and trees and bring back fruit.
Key Truth: The search is assigned with stated questions about the land the LORD gives Israel.
Check What You Remember
1. How many representatives were sent from each tribe? (Numbers 13:2)
Find it in Numbers 13:2 (KJV).
2. Who represented Judah? (Numbers 13:6)
Find it in Numbers 13:6 (KJV).
3. What name did Moses give Oshea? (Numbers 13:16)
Find it in Numbers 13:16 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Numbers 13:21–25 — Searching and Bringing Fruit
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The men travel through the land and reach Hebron and the brook Eshcol. They cut a cluster of grapes carried by two on a staff, and also bring pomegranates and figs. They return after forty days.
Key Truth: The men return with a record of their search and fruit from the land.
Check What You Remember
1. What fruit was carried by two on a staff? (Numbers 13:23)
Find it in Numbers 13:23 (KJV).
2. What was the brook called? (Numbers 13:24)
Find it in Numbers 13:24 (KJV).
3. How many days did the search last? (Numbers 13:25)
Find it in Numbers 13:25 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Numbers 13:26–33 — Different Responses to the Land
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The men report the land's fruitfulness and the strength of its inhabitants and cities. Caleb urges immediate possession, confident they can overcome. The other men declare they cannot go up and give an evil report, describing themselves as grasshoppers beside the giants.
Key Truth: The report reveals different responses to the same search of the promised land.
Check What You Remember
1. Who urged Israel to go up and possess the land? (Numbers 13:30)
Find it in Numbers 13:30 (KJV).
2. With what two things did the land flow? (Numbers 13:27)
Find it in Numbers 13:27 (KJV).
3. To what did the fearful men compare themselves? (Numbers 13:33)
Find it in Numbers 13:33 (KJV).
Advanced Questions and Answers
Study this chapter’s wording, patterns, contrasts, and meaning in greater depth.
1. How does Moses’s commission extend beyond looking at the soil alone?
2. How does the fruit brought back substantiate part of the report?
3. How does the report turn from fertility to obstacles?
4. How does Caleb’s conclusion contrast with the other men’s?
5. How does the grasshopper comparison intensify the fearful report?
Notes
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