(א) וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר ה' אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֥ה לֵּאמֹֽר׃ (ב) שְׁלַח־לְךָ֣ אֲנָשִׁ֗ים וְיָתֻ֙רוּ֙ אֶת־אֶ֣רֶץ כְּנַ֔עַן אֲשֶׁר־אֲנִ֥י נֹתֵ֖ן לִבְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל אִ֣ישׁ אֶחָד֩ אִ֨ישׁ אֶחָ֜ד לְמַטֵּ֤ה אֲבֹתָיו֙ תִּשְׁלָ֔חוּ כֹּ֖ל נָשִׂ֥יא בָהֶֽם׃ (ג) וַיִּשְׁלַ֨ח אֹתָ֥ם מֹשֶׁ֛ה מִמִּדְבַּ֥ר פָּארָ֖ן עַל־פִּ֣י ה' כֻּלָּ֣ם אֲנָשִׁ֔ים רָאשֵׁ֥י בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל הֵֽמָּה׃ (ד) וְאֵ֖לֶּה שְׁמוֹתָ֑ם ... (יז) וַיִּשְׁלַ֤ח אֹתָם֙ מֹשֶׁ֔ה לָת֖וּר אֶת־אֶ֣רֶץ כְּנָ֑עַן וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲלֵקֶ֗ם עֲל֥וּ זֶה֙ בַּנֶּ֔גֶב וַעֲלִיתֶ֖ם אֶת־הָהָֽר׃ (יח) וּרְאִיתֶ֥ם אֶת־הָאָ֖רֶץ מַה־הִ֑וא וְאֶת־הָעָם֙ הַיֹּשֵׁ֣ב עָלֶ֔יהָ הֶחָזָ֥ק הוּא֙ הֲרָפֶ֔ה הַמְעַ֥ט ה֖וּא אִם־רָֽב׃ (יט) וּמָ֣ה הָאָ֗רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־הוּא֙ יֹשֵׁ֣ב בָּ֔הּ הֲטוֹבָ֥ה הִ֖וא אִם־רָעָ֑ה וּמָ֣ה הֶֽעָרִ֗ים אֲשֶׁר־הוּא֙ יוֹשֵׁ֣ב בָּהֵ֔נָּה הַבְּמַֽחֲנִ֖ים אִ֥ם בְּמִבְצָרִֽים׃ ... (כה) וַיָּשֻׁ֖בוּ מִתּ֣וּר הָאָ֑רֶץ מִקֵּ֖ץ אַרְבָּעִ֥ים יֽוֹם׃ (כו) וַיֵּלְכ֡וּ וַיָּבֹאוּ֩ אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֨ה וְאֶֽל־אַהֲרֹ֜ן וְאֶל־כָּל־עֲדַ֧ת בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל אֶל־מִדְבַּ֥ר פָּארָ֖ן קָדֵ֑שָׁה וַיָּשִׁ֨יבוּ אוֹתָ֤ם דָּבָר֙ וְאֶת־כָּל־הָ֣עֵדָ֔ה וַיַּרְא֖וּם אֶת־פְּרִ֥י הָאָֽרֶץ׃ (כז) וַיְסַפְּרוּ־לוֹ֙ וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ בָּ֕אנוּ אֶל־הָאָ֖רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֣ר שְׁלַחְתָּ֑נוּ וְ֠גַם זָבַ֨ת חָלָ֥ב וּדְבַ֛שׁ הִ֖וא וְזֶה־פִּרְיָֽהּ׃ (כח) אֶ֚פֶס כִּֽי־עַ֣ז הָעָ֔ם הַיֹּשֵׁ֖ב בָּאָ֑רֶץ וְהֶֽעָרִ֗ים בְּצֻר֤וֹת גְּדֹלֹת֙ מְאֹ֔ד וְגַם־יְלִדֵ֥י הָֽעֲנָ֖ק רָאִ֥ינוּ שָֽׁם׃ (כט) עֲמָלֵ֥ק יוֹשֵׁ֖ב בְּאֶ֣רֶץ הַנֶּ֑גֶב וְ֠הַֽחִתִּי וְהַיְבוּסִ֤י וְהָֽאֱמֹרִי֙ יוֹשֵׁ֣ב בָּהָ֔ר וְהַֽכְּנַעֲנִי֙ יֹשֵׁ֣ב עַל־הַיָּ֔ם וְעַ֖ל יַ֥ד הַיַּרְדֵּֽן׃ (ל) וַיַּ֧הַס כָּלֵ֛ב אֶת־הָעָ֖ם אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֑ה וַיֹּ֗אמֶר עָלֹ֤ה נַעֲלֶה֙ וְיָרַ֣שְׁנוּ אֹתָ֔הּ כִּֽי־יָכ֥וֹל נוּכַ֖ל לָֽהּ׃ (לא) וְהָ֨אֲנָשִׁ֜ים אֲשֶׁר־עָל֤וּ עִמּוֹ֙ אָֽמְר֔וּ לֹ֥א נוּכַ֖ל לַעֲל֣וֹת אֶל־הָעָ֑ם כִּֽי־חָזָ֥ק ה֖וּא מִמֶּֽנּוּ׃ (לב) וַיּוֹצִ֜יאוּ דִּבַּ֤ת הָאָ֙רֶץ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תָּר֣וּ אֹתָ֔הּ אֶל־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לֵאמֹ֑ר הָאָ֡רֶץ אֲשֶׁר֩ עָבַ֨רְנוּ בָ֜הּ לָת֣וּר אֹתָ֗הּ אֶ֣רֶץ אֹכֶ֤לֶת יוֹשְׁבֶ֙יהָ֙ הִ֔וא וְכָל־הָעָ֛ם אֲשֶׁר־רָאִ֥ינוּ בְתוֹכָ֖הּ אַנְשֵׁ֥י מִדּֽוֹת׃ (לג) וְשָׁ֣ם רָאִ֗ינוּ אֶת־הַנְּפִילִ֛ים בְּנֵ֥י עֲנָ֖ק מִן־הַנְּפִלִ֑ים וַנְּהִ֤י בְעֵינֵ֙ינוּ֙ כַּֽחֲגָבִ֔ים וְכֵ֥ן הָיִ֖ינוּ בְּעֵינֵיהֶֽם׃
(1) The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, (2) “Send men to scout the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelite people; send one man from each of their ancestral tribes, each one a chieftain among them.” (3) So Moses, by the LORD’s command, sent them out from the wilderness of Paran, all the men being leaders of the Israelites. (4) And these were their names.... (17) When Moses sent them to scout the land of Canaan, he said to them, “Go up there into the Negeb and on into the hill country, (18) and see what kind of country it is. Are the people who dwell in it strong or weak, few or many? ... (25) At the end of forty days they returned from scouting the land. (26) They went straight to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadesh in the wilderness of Paran, and they made their report to them and to the whole community, as they showed them the fruit of the land. (27) This is what they told him: “We came to the land you sent us to; it does indeed flow with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. (28) However, the people who inhabit the country are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large; moreover, we saw the Anakites there. (29) Amalekites dwell in the Negeb region; Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites inhabit the hill country; and Canaanites dwell by the Sea and along the Jordan.” (30) Caleb hushed the people before Moses and said, “Let us by all means go up, and we shall gain possession of it, for we shall surely overcome it.” (31) But the men who had gone up with him said, “We cannot attack that people, for it is stronger than we.” (32) Thus they spread calumnies among the Israelites about the land they had scouted, saying, “The country that we traversed and scouted is one that devours its settlers. All the people that we saw in it are men of great size; (33) we saw the Nephilim there—the Anakites are part of the Nephilim—and we were like grasshoppers to our eyes, and so we were to their eyes.”
Midrash Tanhuma
"we looked like grasshoppers to ourselves and so we must have looked to them." God rebukes the scouts: "You don't know what you have just let your mouths utter. I am ready to put up with your saying, 'we were in our own eyes as grasshoppers.' But I do take offense at your asserting, 'and so were we in their eyes.' Could you possibly know how I made you appear in their eyes? How do you know but that in their eyes you were like angels?"
Menahem Mendl Morgenstern of Kotzk says that it’s all right to say you feel like a grasshopper in your own eyes–that means you’re alert–but when you start guessing what you look like to someone else, you’ve given them permission to define you, so you’re still a child. For this reason, Caleb, who refuses to let anyone else define him, is a man and, along with Joshua, was one of only two men of the wilderness generation to live to enter the Promised Land.
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Former Chief Rabbi of the UK
Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck has written a fascinating book, Mindset, on why some people fulfil their potential, while others do not. Her interest, she says, was aroused when she observed the behaviour of 10-year-old children when given puzzles to solve. Some, when the puzzles became difficult, thrived. They relished the challenge, even when it proved too hard for them. Others became anxious. When the puzzles became hard, they were easily discouraged.
She wanted to understand why. What makes the difference between people who enjoy being tested and those who don’t? What makes some people grow through adversity while others become demoralized? Her research drove her to the conclusion that it is a matter of mindset. Some see their abilities as given and unalterable. We just are gifted or ordinary, and there is not much we can do about it. She calls this the “fixed” mindset.
Others believe that we grow through our efforts. When they fail they don’t define this as failure but as a learning experience. She calls this the “growth” mindset.
Those with a fixed mindset tend to avoid difficult challenges because they fear failure. They think it will expose them as inadequate. So they are reluctant to take risks. They play it safe.
People with the growth mindset react differently. “They don’t just seek challenge, they thrive on it. The bigger the challenge, the more they stretch.” When do people with the fixed mindset thrive? “When things are safely within their grasp. If things get too challenging . . . they lose interest.”
Parents can do great damage to their children, she says, when they tell them they are gifted, clever, talented. This encourages the child to believe that he or she has a fixed quantum of ability. This discourages them from risking failure. Such children say things like, “I often feel that my parents won’t value me if I’m not as successful as they would like.”
Parents who want to help their children should, she says, praise them not for their ability but for their effort, their willingness to try hard even if they fail. A great basketball coach used to say to his players, “You may be outscored, but you will never lose.” If they gave of their best, they might lose the game but they would gain and grow. They would be winners in the long run.
The fixed mindset lives with the constant fear of failure. The growth mindset doesn’t think in terms of failing at all.
(לג) וכן היינו בעיניהם. שָׁמַעְנוּ אוֹמְרִים זֶה לָזֶה, נְמָלִים יֵשׁ בַּכְּרָמִים כַּאֲנָשִׁים (סוטה ל"ה):
SO WE WERE IN THEIR EYES—We heard them say one to another; “There are ants in the vineyards that look like human beings" (Sota 35a).
(לג) כחגבים - הנמוך נראה לגבוה ממנו הרבה כחגבים, שהם נמוכים מאד. וזה מוכיח: היושב על חוג הארץ ויושביה כחגבים.
כחגבים, anything low considers itself as like a grasshopper when compared to something much taller. We find proof of this in Is. 40:22, “compared to the One Who is enthroned above the vault of the earth views its inhabitants as if they were grasshoppers.”
(לג) הנפילים. שכל הרואה אותם מתפלא עליהם. ד"א שכל הרואה אותם מתיירא שלא יפלו עליו:
The Nephilim - anyone who took a look at these people would feel wonder. Another interpretation: whoever saw them would feel scared that they would attack him.
(לט) וְהָיָ֣ה לָכֶם֮ לְצִיצִת֒ וּרְאִיתֶ֣ם אֹת֗וֹ וּזְכַרְתֶּם֙ אֶת־כָּל־מִצְוֺ֣ת ה' וַעֲשִׂיתֶ֖ם אֹתָ֑ם וְלֹֽא־תָתֻ֜רוּ אַחֲרֵ֤י לְבַבְכֶם֙ וְאַחֲרֵ֣י עֵֽינֵיכֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁר־אַתֶּ֥ם זֹנִ֖ים אַחֲרֵיהֶֽם׃
That shall be your tzitzit; and you will see it and remember all the mitzvot of the LORD and observe them, so that you do not scout after your heart and eyes since you lust after them.
(לט) ולא תתורו אחרי לבבכם. כְּמוֹ "מִתּוּר הָאָרֶץ" (במדבר י"ג); הַלֵּב וְהָעֵינַיִם הֵם מְרַגְּלִים לַגּוּף, מְסַרְסְרִים לוֹ אֶת הָעֲבֵרוֹת, הָעַיִן רוֹאָה וְהַלֵּב חוֹמֵד וְהַגּוּף עוֹשֶׂה אֶת הָעֲבֵרָה (תנחומא):
The verb תתרו has the same meaning as in (Num. 13:25), “and they returned from searching (מתור) the land”. (The translation therefore is: AND YOU SHALL NOT SEARCH AFTER YOUR OWN HEART). The heart and the eyes are the “spies” of the body — they act as its agents for sinning: the eye sees, the heart covets and the body commits the sin (cf. Berakhot 1:8; Tanchuma).
It seems that this sidrah is all about seeing--what we choose to see, and what we ignore.
Caleb and Joshua saw the beauty of the land. The remaining spies could see only obstacles that stood in the way of the Israelites taking possession of the land. And the Israelites themselves, who heard the spies' reports, were blinded by their fear of the unknown, rather than being open to the opportunities that would be afforded to them as they enjoyed freedom in the land that had been promised to their ancestors.
By contrast, the tzitzit require us to have our eyes open to appreciate them, and in so doing we are reminded of God's mitzvot and of the kindness that God showed to us in redeeming us from Egypt.
We can go through our lives with blinders before our eyes, refusing to bear witness to God's graciousness toward us. Or, we can open eyes that have previously been blind and proclaim, Ashreinu, "How greatly have we been blessed!"
(by Alan Cook, 2006, in Voices of Torah page 402-403)
Chofetz Chaim, Rabbi Yisrael Meir HaKohen Kagan zt”l of Radin, asks a straightforward question. He says: this verse is truly amazing. The person who brought the Jewish people out of Egypt, who split the sea for them, and received the Torah from Heaven — how could he possibly consider himself smaller than everyone else?
The answer is: true greatness is measured not in the eyes of other people, but in the eyes of G-d. We cannot judge people by absolute standards of measure. A person’s obligation, in the Service of G-d, is based upon how well he or she understands our obligation. Precisely because Moshe had ascended to Heaven, he believed that he had not fulfilled his obligations. He could not judge himself against the people “on the face of the earth,” for he alone had ascended to Heaven with the angels, and was required to be that much more like an angel than an ordinary man. We are not judged based upon where we are, but upon what we have accomplished with the “tools” we are given.