And the Lord said to Moses, How long will this people provoke (spurn, despise) Me? And how long will it be before they believe Me [trusting in, relying on, clinging to Me], for all the signs which I have performed among them? 12 I will smite them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and will make of you [Moses] a nation greater and mightier than they. 13 But Moses said to the Lord, Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for You brought up this people in Your might from among them. 14 And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that You, Lord, are in the midst of this people [of Israel], that You, Lord, are seen face to face, and that Your cloud stands over them, and that You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. 15 Now if You kill all this people as one man, then the nations that have heard Your fame will say, 16 Because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land which He swore to give to them, therefore He has slain them in the wilderness. 17 And now, I pray You, let the power of my Lord be great, as You have promised, saying, 18 The Lord is long-suffering and slow to anger, and abundant in mercy and loving-kindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but He will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and fourth generation. 19 Pardon, I pray You, the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of Your mercy and loving-kindness, just as You have forgiven [them] from Egypt until now. 20 And the Lord said, I have pardoned according to your word. 21 But truly as I live and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord, 22 Because all those men who have seen My glory and My [miraculous] signs which I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness, yet have tested and proved Me these ten times and have not heeded My voice, 23 Surely they shall not see the land which I swore to give to their fathers; nor shall any who provoked (spurned, despised) Me see it. 24 But My servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it. Numbers 14:11-24 AMP
When the twelve scouts – or spies – brought the report back from their trip into the Promised Land, two (Joshua and Caleb) brought a good report and ten brought an evil report. The people believed the evil report. The majority of the people voted to disbelieve and disobey God and also to stone those who chose to believe and obey Him. Thankfully, the Lord intervened and protected Moses, Aaron, Joshua and Caleb. These men were men of faith and confidence – not in their own ability or in Israel’s ability – but in God’s word and in His ability. They could not agree with the majority, because they would be disagreeing with God! The problem with most people is that they base their own opinion on what everybody else is saying instead of what is right and true. Very few are brave enough – like Caleb – to risk standing up to the majority and to speak the truth!
Most people are not like the ten scouts who cowardly brought a firsthand negative report. Instead, most people pick up the negativity and cowardice secondhand. They always want to know what the “experts” have to say, or what their friends have to say and base their own opinion on that. They blindly follow the herd. They forget to ask, “What does God say?” God’s word is the only truth, the only way and the only life. It is His word that has prevailed and will prevail throughout eternity. When we base our opinions and decisions on God’s word, we base them on the Rock that can never be moved. We must be bold on God’s word and faithfulness!
And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 27 How long will this evil congregation murmur against Me? I have heard the complaints the Israelites murmur against Me. 28 Tell them, As I live, says the Lord, what you have said in My hearing I will do to you: 29 Your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness — of all who were numbered of you, from twenty years old and upward, who have murmured against Me, 30 Surely none shall come into the land in which I swore to make you dwell, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun. 31 But your little ones whom you said would be a prey, them will I bring in and they shall know the land which you have despised and rejected. 32 But as for you, your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness. Numbers 14:26-32 AMP
Those who choose to believe the bad report, follow the rest of the crowd, and refuse to hear or follow God’s word, will suffer and fail. They will never see God’s great promises fulfilled in their lives. This is not God’s fault, but it’s all their own. Before we can obey God’s word, we must know and believe God’s word. The problem and/or cause of failure and defeat are not in God or His word, but in the lack of knowledge of His word. The majority of people lean toward believing the lies of the enemy because he is constantly speaking lies, unbelief, disobedience, and failure to them through multiple sources.
Those who choose to believe and obey God’s word are most often in the minority or standing alone against a tide of negative opinions. We should take courage and know that no matter what the majority say or think – God always has the final word. Take a stand for God’s word and for what is right – even if you stand alone. God will never fail you when you stand on His word! When you are on God’s side, you and He are a majority!
But My servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed Me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it. Numbers 14:24 AMP
Surely none shall come into the land in which I swore to make you dwell, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun. Numbers 14:30 AMP
God kept his word. Not one of the great majority of those who disobeyed Him was privileged to enter into His promises and the Promised Land – only Joshua and Caleb, who believed and trusted – according to the word of the Lord.