Numbers 13:31

Study note

Setting — The ten spies who accompanied Caleb and Joshua address the Israelite congregation immediately after Caleb’s appeal to occupy the land. They speak to the assembled community at the border of Canaan following their forty-day reconnaissance.

The words — The Hebrew construction לֹא נוּכַל לַעֲלֹת (lo' nu.Khal la.'a.Lot) literally renders “we are not able to go up.” This phrasing emphasizes a perceived lack of capacity rather than a simple refusal.

The thread — The same report of overwhelming opposition is recalled in Deuteronomy 1:28 and contrasted with Joshua’s steadfastness in Joshua 14:8. Hebrews 3:19 later attributes the wilderness generation’s inability to enter to unbelief rather than mere fear.

Why it lands — The text requires a reader to distinguish between honest assessment of strength and rejection of divine instruction. It asks for clear-eyed evaluation of whether resistance to a command stems from limitation or unbelief.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.