Then they despised the pleasant land,
having no faith in his promise.
²⁵ They murmured in their tents,
and did not obey the voice of the Lord.
²⁶ Therefore he raised his hand and swore to them
that he would make them fall in the wilderness,

1) Who is being discussed in this Psalm?
The people noted as “they” are the Israelites who had been freed from Egypt by God using Moses as their leader. This psalm was a song used to remind the people of their history, where they had come from, how they had been freed, and how they still chose sin and selfishness over following Yahweh God. Like most other “history lesson” psalms, it ends with reminders of God’s faithfulness and His promise to save, to love, and to hold true to His covenant.

2) Why did they “despise the pleasant land”?
Because all the Israelites could see was their own ability, they knew they fell far too short to conquer the good land the Lord was giving to them. They saw impossibility instead of promise. They flat out turned away from the good that God wanted to bless them with because of their arrogance and refusal to trust Him.

3) Why did the Lord swear to make them fall in the wilderness?
There are 4 reasons why the Lord was moved to give His people the consequence of dying in the wilderness instead of entering the Promised Land: called “bad” what God called “good”, refused to trust God’s character, they grumbled (which shows a heart of un-gratefulness), and ultimately chose to flat-out disobey Him.

1) Who is being discussed in this Psalm?
The Israelites were a nomadic people group for several years, and their actions displayed stubbornness, hard-heartedness, and an insistence on following their own way instead of the Lord’s despite His many provisions and His merciful grace. It’s easy to judge them as we turn the pages of their story, but if we are brave enough to hold a mirror to our own hearts while we read, we will find ourselves echoed in their ancient description. Today, as you interact with people, ask the Spirit to open your eyes to your own heart and bring conviction of those tough places where you cling to your way instead of His!

2) Why did they “despise the pleasant land”?
Centuries later after they eventually did make it into the Promised Land, they were evicted from it; again because of their selfishness and refusal to honor God as God and follow His path for loving others (see Zechariah 7:8-14). Choosing to steadfastly honor God’s way instead of ours in our small, seemingly insignificant everyday moments is a challenge, but it’s neither impossible or up to us to do it alone. The Holy Spirit is the one training our hearts to listen to His voice. Are you listening today?!

3) Why did the Lord swear to make them fall in the wilderness?
The progression of their hearts is a big deal here. The people went from doubting God, to trusting themselves, to being generally ungrateful and self-focused, to direct disobedience. A lifestyle of disobedience that results in the consequence of lifelessness doesn’t happen overnight, but with small steps away from the loving discipline and training of the Father who shapes us to be more like Him. Consider the heart actions that show up in your speech, your attitudes, and body language today and ask the Holy Spirit to convict you and train you in righteousness!

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We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources.  Just type in the verse you’re looking at and Boom! It’s right in front of you in English and Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament), which are the original languages the Bible was written in.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Find super awesome stuff like “origin”, “definition”, and even all the different ways that single word has been translated into English! If you want to be geeky, you can even click the word and hear its original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want to get more background on a word or phrasing or passage? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus.
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