Matthew Henry on Deuteronomy 1:19–end
Moses here makes a large rehearsal of the fatal turn which was given to their affairs by their own sins, and God's wrath, when, from the very borders of Canaan, the honour of conquering it, and the pleasure of possessing it, the whole generation was hurried back into the wilderness, and their carcases fell there. It was a memorable story; we read it Num. 13 and 14, but divers circumstances are found here which are not related there.
I. He reminds them of their march from Horeb to Kadesh-barnea (Deu 1:19), through that great and terrible wilderness. This he takes notice of, 1. To make them sensible of the great goodness of God to them, in guiding them through so great a wilderness, and protec…
Read the whole note in the consoleJamieson-Fausset-Brown on Deuteronomy 1:22
ye came . . . and said, We will send men before us, and they shall search us out the land--The proposal to despatch spies emanated from the people through unbelief; but Moses, believing them sincere, gave his cordial assent to this measure, and God on being consulted permitted them to follow the suggestion (see on Num 13:1). The issue proved disastrous to them, only through their own sin and folly.
John Gill on Deuteronomy 1:25
And they took of the fruit of the land in their hands,.... Besides the cluster of grapes, which was carried between two men on a staff; even pomegranates and figs, Numbers 13:23,
and brought it down unto us; who lay encamped at the bottom of the mountain:
and brought us word again; what sort of a land it was:
and said, it is a good land which the Lord our God doth give us; that is, Caleb and Joshua, two of the spies, said this, as the Targum of Jonathan expresses it, and so Jarchi; yea, all of them agreed in this, and said at first that it was a land flowing with milk and honey, Numbers 13:27.
John Calvin on Deuteronomy 1:19-25
Deuteronomy 1:19-25
19. And when we departed from Horeb, we went through all that great and terrible wilderness, which ye saw by the way of the mountain of the Amorites, as the Lord our God commanded us; and we came to Kadesh-barnea.
19. Profecti de Horeb perambulavimus totam solitudinem magnam et terribilem hanc quam vidistis per viam montis Emorrhaei, quemadmodum praeceperat Jehova Deus noster nobis, ac pervenimus usque ad Cades Barnea.
20. And I said unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the Lord our God doth give unto us.
20. Et dixi vobis, Pervenistis usque ad montem Emorrhaei quem Jehova Deus noster dat nobis.
21. Behold, the Lord thy God hath set the lan…
