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Deuteronomy 1:34-38, When the Lord heard what you said, he was angry and solemnly swore: “No one from this evil generation shall see the good land I swore to give your ancestors,  except Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land he set his feet on, because he followed the Lord wholeheartedly.” Because of you the Lord became angry with me also and said, “You shall not enter it, either.  But your assistant, Joshua son of Nun, will enter it. Encourage him, because he will lead Israel to inherit it.

Today begins our journey into the book of Deuteronomy.  The purpose of this book is to be a covenant renewal, a reaffirmation of the commitment made between God and his people at Mt. Sinai.  Thus, this first chapter provides an overview of what occurred from the point that God made a covenant with the people and then during the forty years that Moses led the people in the desert. 

In today's focus verses, we see the consequences of the Israelites' covenant disobedience.  They did not trust God and obey his commands to take the land that the Lord was giving to them.  As a result, God promised that those of that generation would not enter the promised land, including Moses.  In fact, only Joshua and Caleb, the two trusting explorers who advocated on behalf of following God's commands to take over the Amorites' land, would be allowed to enter with the younger generation.  Joshua would take over the leadership from Moses at the appropriate time. 

As I read this text, I can almost hear Moses' frustration with the people.  He seems to blame them for not being able to see the promised land.  Yet, God made it clear that it was Moses' own lack of trust that kept him from entering the land.  In Numbers 20, Moses had a rock and water incident that clearly demonstrated his own lack of trust.  You may want to read through it later for more context. 

For me, this all points to humanity's brokenness and disobedience.  Would we have been more faithful and trusting than the Israelites?  Probably not.  But God knew that.  He knew that there had to be another way.  So he made another way:  Jesus Christ.  More on this in the days to come.

Let's pray...God,  We know that we are sinful and disobedient. We see ourselves in the plight of the Israelites.  How thankful we are that you created a way for us to be reconciled to you, to have a relationship with holy God.  Thank you for Jesus, Lord.  In Your Name, Amen.