Article October 16, 1954 Issue

THE LESSON OF PARAN

MABEL REED HYZER

The children of Israel on their journey from Egypt to Canaan reached the vast wilderness of Paran. On the way their divinely directed leader, Moses, had shown them many proofs of the great truth that God protects and guides His children. Now they were in sight of the land which, generations before, God had promised Abraham should be theirs.

Here, in the wilderness, God directed Moses to send twelve men to spy out the land of Canaan. Accordingly these twelve set forth and after forty days returned with their findings. They brought fruit of fine quality which, they said, grew in abundance in Canaan, and they said Canaan was a very desirable land in many ways. But some of the spies reported unfavorably in these words (Num.13:31): "We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we." They then proceeded to represent the Canaanites as giants, compared to whom the Israelites were as grasshoppers. So persuasive were their arguments that those ten men succeeded in mesmerizing that whole vast throng of thousands of Israelites, until their fear was so great they refused to proceed. Instead, they yielded to great discouragement and a sense of frustration.

However, there were two spies who did not fear the Canaanites. These two, Joshua and Caleb, tried to reason with the Israelites. They pointed out that Canaan was a good and desirable land, and they urged that the Canaanites be not feared, saying (Num. 14:9), "The Lord is with us: fear them not." But the people would not listen. They continued to rebel against what they believed the situation to be, and they were afraid. Consequently they remained in the wilderness of Paran for many years. When at last they entered Canaan, of all those who were there at the time of the above incident, and were twenty years of age or older, only Joshua and Caleb remained. These two entered with the new generation of Israel to enjoy the conquered Canaan. Their faith and spiritual understanding made it possible for them to see the fulfillment of the divine promise to Moses to deliver the Israelites from Egyptian slavery and lead them, all the way, into the promised land.

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