2 "Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I give to the people of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers shall you send a man, every one a leader among them."
3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran, according to the command of YHVH, all of them men who were heads of the people of Israel.
The names of these leaders are the consciousness levels to which the people (or a person) had attained. When we understand them, we will begin to understand the meaning of this story. As was indicated earlier in the Bible, geographic references symbolize states of consciousness. The Promised Land is a symbol for Enlightenment.
But let us first tell the story.
4 And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua, the son of Zaccur;
Shammua means rumor in Hebrew. His father's name, Zaccur, means penetrating and mindful. So this level of knowledge is based on hearsay and common knowledge. It produces thoughtfulness and consideration but, based on rumor, lacks the power of truth.
5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat, the son of Hori;
Shaphat means judgment or discernment. His father's name, Hori, means cave dweller and black. Though he has attained a level of judgement it is still underdeveloped and has not yet reached the Light.
6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb, the son of Jephunneh;
Caleb means bold and fearless. His father's name, Jephummeh, means before his face and which holds attention. This consciousness is steadfast, loyal and uncompromising. He was not discouraged by the Caananites in the land.
7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal, the son of Joseph;
Igal means God will redeem or avenge. His father's name, Joseph, means YHVH shall increase. Although this level of consciousness acknowledges God as the redeemer, it also believes in the wrath and vengeance of God. This belief gives power to Fear. This level of consciousness does not believe that one can master the physical instincts and desires (Canaanites).
8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea, the son of Nun;
Hoshea means He Saves or Salvation. His father's name, Nun, means becoming extended and prolific. This is the consciousness that spreads the word of salvation. He also brought positive reports from the spy mission, and was rewarded by YHVH.
9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti, the son of Raphu;
Palti means YHVH delivers. His father's name, Raphy, means repaired or made whole. This level of consciousness believes in deliverance through faith. But it must not be strong enough yet, or it would not have recoiled from the battle to take Canaan.
10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel, the son of Sodi;
Gaddiel means God is my fortune or organized of God. This is an understanding that all supply, good and order come from God. But, it is not yet spiritually elevated enough to reach fearlessly for the Promised Land.
11 from the tribe of Joseph (that is from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi, the son of Susi;
Gaddi means fortunate or belonging to fortune. His father's name, Susi, means leaping or bounding. It is the consciousness that enables one to understand the benefits of the Promised Land but not sufficiently spiritual enough to understand the errors to be overcome in order to cross over to it.
12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel, the son of Gemalli;
Ammiel means people of God. His father's name, Gemalli, means camel owner or camel rider. This is the level of consciousness which, though in control of the physical passions, represented by the camel, and being of the people of God, but it is not yet developed enough to risk the crossing of the Abyss.
13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael;
Sethur means hidden or veiled. His father's name, Michael, means who is like unto God. This is the consciousness which, though it contains a degree of Truth, still remains hidden or veiled and cannot be acted upon to achieve the final goal.
14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi, the son of Vophsi;
Nahbi means covered, hidden or concealed. His father's name, Vophsi, means my increase or added unto me. Again, this consciousness understands where its benefits come from, but not clearly, the real Truth remains hidden.
15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel, the son of Machi.
Geurl means glory of God. Machi, his father, means afflicting or decreasing. Though this consciousness is awakening to a perception of the power of God, it is not yet to the stage where it is unafraid when confronted with "enemies".
16 These were the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Yoshea, the son of Nun, Yoshea.
Yoshea (also written is Yeshua or Joshua) means YHVH is savior. It is actually the Hebrew name for Jesus, which is its Greek form. It is derived from the word YHVH, meaning "He That Is". His father's name, Nun, means becoming extended and prolific. This is the consciousness that spreads the word of salvation. He also brought positive reports from the spy mission, and was rewarded by YHVH. As has been the case in the past, where names have been changed in this manner, the change from Yoshea (He Saves) to Joshua (YHVH Saves) denotes the purification or spiritualization of this type of consciousness. It signifies the individual developing a greater amount of Faith in the power of God that exists within.
17 Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, "Go up into the Negeb yonder, and go up into the hill country,
18 and see what the land is, and whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, whether they are few or many,
19 and whether the land that they dwell in is good or bad, and whether the cities that they dwell in are camps or strongholds,
20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether there is wood in it or not. Be of good courage, and bring some of the fruit of the land." Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.
All of these thoughts and levels of consciousness must be experienced and overcome if we are to enter into the Promised Land. But, as yet, none of them had been elevated to the point where they could accomplish this except Caleb and Yoshea. They were willing and ready to face what ever trials were presented, knowing that with the help of God, and persistence they could not fail.
21 So they went up and spied out the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, near the entrance of Hamath.
Zin means thorn, lowland and covering. It indicates a consciousness which is as yet at too low a level to achieve the ultimate spiritual goal of the Promised Land. Rehob means spacious, or great understanding. It is the level of consciousness which is open and receptive. But this openness may lead to controversial ideas and not to spiritual Truth. The Brook of Eshcol which means a cluster or bunch of grapes represents the life forces and is an indication of fruitfulness in consciousness.
22 They went up into the Negeb, and came to Hebron; and Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, were there. (Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)
Anak means giant. It represents the idea that the material intellect is the seat of power.
23 And they came to the Valley of Eshcol, and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they brought also some pomegranates and figs.
24 That place was called the Valley of Eshcol, because of the cluster which the men of Israel cut down from there.
25 At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land.
26 And they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Israel in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land.
27 And they told him, "We came to the land to which you sent us; it flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit.
28 Yet the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large; and besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there.
Anak means giant. It represents the idea that the material intellect is the seat of power.
29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the Negeb; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the hill country; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and along the Jordan."
The word for Amalekites, the descendants of Amalek, translates as warlike and valley dweller. It indicates a low level of consciousness, containing lust and base desires. These animal passions are warlike and destructive.
The word Hittites means terror and sundered. They represent opposition and resistance.
Jebusites translates as contemptuous and subjected. Jebus was the original name of Jerusalem. It is the inner consciousness when it is still ruled by the carnal passions. These must be thrown out in order to build the Temple of Jerusalem, or the Temple of the Soul and thus change the name of the "city" to Jerusalem.
Amorites translates as dwellers of the summits or highlanders. Descended from Noah, this level of consciousness is operated by the generative function instead of the spiritual. It must be overcome by purification of the body, mind and soul.
30 But Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, "Let us go up at once, and occupy it; for we are well able to overcome it."
31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, "We are not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we."
32 So they brought to the people of Israel an evil report of the land which they had spied out, saying, "The land, through which we have gone, to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants; and all the people that we saw in it are men of great stature.
33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim); and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them."
The Nephilim represent a state of consciousness that perceives spiritual power, but believes that the source of power is the ego and material circumstances. People in this state of consciousness become exceedingly selfish, and this selfishness is a characteristic of their current state of consciousness.