Who remembers the 90s classic movie Home Alone? Macaulay Culkin was tired of his family and wished he could have some space. The next morning as everyone rushed out of the house, they forgot him… home alone. It had some perks, but ultimately he was really feelin’ that phrase, “Be careful what you wish for.”
And what about the 1987 comedy Planes, Trains, and Automobiles? Remember that one? Steve Martin and John Candy were trying to get from New York to Chicago when their plane was rerouted to Witchita. After a train ride to a field in Missouri, a bus ride to St. Louis, various incidents with cars, and eventually a ride in a refrigerator truck, they made it to Chicago two days late – having argued all the way.
Put Home Alone and Planes, Trains, and Automobiles together, rewind a few thousand years, set it in the desert, and you’ve got this week’s Torah portion: Shalach.
We all know the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. The Sinai Peninsula is about 150 miles wide. So, to walk across it with a million people would take…. well, a long time. To walk anywhere with a million people would take a long time.
But… not that long. I mean, 150 miles… If you don’t spend a lot of time in the Middle East, let me give you a different reference point. That’s about the distance from Houston to Austin. It’s not a Sunday stroll in the park, but neither is it the Appalachian Trail.
We have stories of people going back and forth all the time. Abraham and Sarah went from Israel (Cana’an) to Egypt and back again. Joseph was sold into slavery in Israel and then lived in Egypt. His brothers went down to Egypt and back again for food – twice – and then moved there with all their families.
It’s really not that far.
So a couple months out of slavery and into the wilderness, The Children of Israel were getting ready to enter The Land of Israel. Moses sent 12 men – one from each tribe – to scope out the place. After all, there were people living there already. They were preparing for war. You know, all that census taking of men who could fight… The good news for them was, winning was a sure thing. They had God on their side.
Still, wise to check it out, right? They were sent to find out about the land.
- Are the people there strong or weak?
- Few or many?
- Is the land they dwell on good or bad?
- Are their towns open or fortified?
- Is the soil rich or poor?
- Wooded or not?
So those 12, they’re called the twelve spies, went up to scout it out and answer the questions. No biggie. They could go there, do what they gotta do, and come back. Like I said, it’s not that far. The Torah tells they were gone for a total of 40 days (whatever that may mean).
Now here’s what happened. When those spies came back from seeing The Land and its inhabitants, ten of them filled the congregation with fear. Yes, they admitted, the land is flowing with milk and honey and fruit, just as promised. But they also spoke of giants that lived there. They said going there was undeniable doom. They had been brought out of Egypt just to die in battle. Better that they would die in the wilderness, they complained.
And their “wish” was granted.
Even though Caleb and Joshua were two spies who spoke out against the other ten, they couldn’t rally the Children of Israel away from their fear. Even though Caleb and Joshua told of the beauty and bounty of the land, they couldn’t convince the masses. Even though Caleb and Joshua reminded everyone that God (aka the one who had just performed all those miracles) said it was going to be okay, it was still a no go.
Caleb and Joshua were fed up. And they weren’t the only ones. God was fit to be tied. God complained to Moses about all the complaining. God decided to destroy the Children of Israel and make an even greater nation out of Moses. Well, that didn’t happen. Do you know why?
Moses talked God back to God’s senses. Moses reminded God that there was a reputation to uphold. After all, God had brought them out of Egypt to show power. What would everyone think if they all just died in the desert? They’d think God wasn’t strong enough to bring them into Israel, that’s what they’d think.
Before I get to the end of this story, I want to ask you two questions:
What do you think about God wanting to call it quits?
What do you think about the way Moses spoke to God?
To me this is a bit reminiscent of that time long ago that Abraham negotiated with God to save the city of Sodom if there were ten good people living there. But this negotiation has a different feel to me. To me it seems like this was Moses reminding God of the big picture, reminding God not to react, but to stay on task.
God didn’t smite them all, but did decide that those who didn’t have the faith to enter The Land at The Time would get their wish to die in the desert. The next forty years – one year for each day of the spies’ journey – were spent growing a new generation and waiting for that one to die off in the wilderness – as they’d wished. Except, of course, for Caleb and Joshua who (spoiler alert) were still alive and got to enter The Land.
It didn’t need to be like that, did it? Why couldn’t The Children of Israel just not be dissuaded? All the miracles they’d experienced! All the times God had helped them! All the times they’d already “messed up” and been punished and seen the light! Why didn’t they just trust that it would work out?
Well, why don’t you?