SEV Biblia, Chapter 13:32
Y vituperaron entre los hijos de Israel la tierra que habían reconocido, diciendo: La tierra por donde pasamos para reconocerla, es tierra que traga a sus moradores; y todo el pueblo que vimos en medio de ella, son hombres de gran estatura.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Numbers 13:32
Verse 32. Men of a great stature] twdm yŤna anshey middoth, men of measures-two men's height; i. e., exceedingly tall men.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 32. And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel , etc.] Before, they gave a good report of the land itself, as a very fruitful one, answering to their expectations and wishes; but now they change their language, and give a different account of it; which shows their want of integrity, and to what length an opposition carried them, to say things contrary to their real sentiments, and to what they themselves had said before: saying, the land through which we have gone to search it, [is] a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof ; the meaning seems to be, that it was so barren and unfruitful that it did not produce food sufficient for the inhabitants of it, who were ready to starve, and many did starve through want, and so was the reverse of what they had before said; for which reason, Gussetius thinks the sense is, that the land was the food and nourishment of its inhabitants, and that there was such plenty in it that it wanted not any foreign assistance in any respect whatever. Some think that it was continually embroiled in civil wars, in which they destroyed one another; but then this was no argument against, but for their going up against them, since through the divisions among themselves they might reasonably hope the better to succeed; or it ate them up with diseases, as the Targum of Jonathan adds, and so they would represent it, though a fruitful land, yet a very unhealthful one, in which the natives could not live, and much less strangers; and so Aben Ezra and Ben Gersom interpret it of the badness of the air of the country, as being very unwholesome and pernicious. Jarchi represents them as saying, that wherever they came they saw them burying their dead, as if there was a plague among them; and be it so that there was, which is not unlikely, since the Lord promised to send hornets before them, which some interpret of diseases sent, ( Exodus 23:28); and which was in their favour, since hereby the number of their enemies would be lessened, and they would be weakened, and in a bad condition to oppose them: and all the people that we saw in it [are] men of a great stature ; or men of measures f178 , of a large measure, above the common measure of men; but it may be justly questioned whether they spoke truth; for though they might see some that exceeded in height men in common, yet it is not credible that all they saw were of such a size; since they were not only at Hebron and saw the giants there who were such, but they went through the land, as in the preceding clause, and all they met with cannot be supposed to be of such a measure.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 26-33 - We may wonder that the people of Israel staid forty days for the retur of their spies, when they were ready to enter Canaan, under all the assurances of success they could have from the Divine power, and the miracles that had hitherto attended them. But they distrusted God' power and promise. How much we stand in our own light by our unbelief At length the messengers returned; but the greater part discouraged the people from going forward to Canaan. Justly are the Israelites left to this temptation, for putting confidence in the judgment of men, when they had the word of God to trust in. Though they had found the land a good as God had said, yet they would not believe it to be as sure as he had said, but despaired of having it, though Eternal Truth had engage it to them. This was the representation of the evil spies. Caleb however, encouraged them to go forward, though seconded by Joshua only He does not say, Let us go up and conquer it; but, Let us go an possess it. Difficulties that are in the way of salvation, dwindle an vanish before a lively, active faith in the power and promise of God All things are possible, if they are promised, to him that believes but carnal sense and carnal professors are not to be trusted. Unbelie overlooks the promises and power of God, magnifies every danger an difficulty, and fills the heart with discouragement. May the Lord hel us to believe! we shall then find all things possible __________________________________________________________________
Original Hebrew
ויציאו 3318 דבת 1681 הארץ 776 אשׁר 834 תרו 8446 אתה 853 אל 413 בני 1121 ישׂראל 3478 לאמר 559 הארץ 776 אשׁר 834 עברנו 5674 בה לתור 8446 אתה 853 ארץ 776 אכלת 398 יושׁביה 3427 הוא 1931 וכל 3605 העם 5971 אשׁר 834 ראינו 7200 בתוכה 8432 אנשׁי 376 מדות׃ 4060
