Numbers 13

Numbers 13:1

Origen of Alexandria: “And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: send men, and let them view the land of the Canaanites, which I give to the children of Israel for a possession,” and the rest, in which things are narrated about the explorers of the land, who, being sent, report that the land is indeed good and admirable, but that the sons of giants dwell in it, in whose sight the people of God seem as locusts. And several indeed despair of being able to be saved from the sons of giants; yet Joshua does not despair, but confirms the faith of the people together with Caleb, who is of the tribe of Judah, and they say: if God loves us, let him bring us into this land. What then is this land according to the spiritual understanding, which land is indeed holy and a good land, but is inhabited by the impious? Who then are these enemies who dwell in the land of the saints? And how are they to be cast out, so that, they being cast out, the saints may succeed into their place? Let us return to the Gospels, let us return to the Apostle. The Gospels promise the kingdoms of heaven to the saints. The Apostle says: “but our citizenship is in the heavens”; in the heavens, therefore, is the place of the inheritance which is promised to the saints. And do we think that in these places which are promised to you there is now no inhabitant whom you ought to drive out from there by fighting? And how then does the Lord say that “from the days of John the Baptist the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent seize it”? For unless there were those to whom violence should be done, unless there were those who ought to be driven out and thrust from there, it would never be said that the kingdom of heaven is to be seized by violence. And unless there were those with whom there was for us a contest and a battle, the Apostle would never say: “our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of this world of these darknesses, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Concerning whom that saying of God through the prophet also seems to be understood, where he says: “and my sword is made drunk in heaven.” It is necessary, therefore, that the spiritual forces of wickedness, which are said to be in the heavenly places, who are the true Canaanites, be conquered by you and expelled from the heavenly places, so that you may dwell there in their stead. Yet know that they are giants. Everyone who resists against God is called a giant. Whoever therefore opposes God and is contrary to the truth, which they principally do, is deservedly called a giant. To you therefore it is granted that you may cast out the giants and enter into their kingdom. Or is it not written concerning a certain one of them: “who shall take spoils from a giant?” Concerning whom the Lord also said in the Gospel: “no one can enter into the house of the strong man and plunder his vessels, unless he first bind the strong man.” Now therefore, as regards the comparison of human and demonic nature, we are locusts and they giants — and especially, if our faith be doubtful and if unbelief terrify us, they will truly be giants and we locusts. But if we follow Joshua and believe his words and are filled with his faith, they will be as nothing in our sight. For hear how he exhorts us and says: if God loves us, let him bring us into this land, since it is good and its fruit wonderful. Therefore the type and figure which went before in the fathers is fulfilled in us. They cast out the nations and obtained their inheritance; for they obtained all the land of Judaea and the city of Jerusalem and Mount Zion. These things were fulfilled in them, but to you what is said? “You have not,” he says, “come to the things which are visible, but to the invisible. For you have come,” he says, “to the mount of the living God and to the heavenly city Jerusalem and to the multitude of angels.” But elsewhere too the same Apostle says: “but the Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.” If anyone does not lend faith to the words of the Apostle saying that Jerusalem is heavenly, he can refuse these our words as well. But if faith is to be given to the words of Paul, as certainly it is to be given, we both believe that there is a heavenly Jerusalem as a type of this earthly one, and, the things which seem to be written concerning this earthly one, we shall more rightly by spiritual understanding transfer to that heavenly one. We have come therefore, as Paul says, to the heavenly Jerusalem, and without doubt also to the heavenly Judaea; and just as they, from the earthly Judaea, cast out the Canaanites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the remaining nations, so also we who have come to the mount of God and to the heavenly kingdoms, it is necessary that we expel from them the contrary powers and the spiritual forces of wickedness from the heavenly places; and just as they cast out the Jebusite from Jerusalem, and that which before had been called Jebus was afterward called Jerusalem, so we too must first expel the Jebusite from Jerusalem and thus obtain its inheritance. But they indeed did these things with visible arms, we however with invisible ones. They conquered by bodily battles, but we overcome by spiritual contest. — HOMILIES ON Numbers 7.5

Numbers 13:16

Eusebius of Caesarea: And the same [Moses] by divine inspiration foresaw the name Jesus very clearly and again also endowed this with special privilege. The name of Jesus, which had never been uttered among men before it was made known to Moses, Moses applied first to this one alone. He knew that Joshua, again as a type and a symbol, would receive the rule over all after Moses’ death. His successor, at any rate, had never before used the title Jesus. He had been called by another name, Auses, which his parents had bestowed upon him. Moses himself proclaims Jesus, as a privilege of honor far greater than a royal crown, giving him the name because Jesus, the son of Nave, himself bore a resemblance to our Savior, who alone, after Moses and the completion of the symbolic worship transmitted by him, received the rule of true and pure religion. — ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY 1.3

Numbers 13:24

Clement of Alexandria: Later on, a sacred vine put forth a cluster of grapes that was prophetic. To those who had been led by the Educator to a place of rest after their wanderings it was a sign, for the great cluster of grapes is the Word crushed on our account. The Word desired that the “blood of the grape” be mixed with water as a symbol that his own blood is an integral element in salvation. — The Instructor Book 2

Numbers 13:33

Origen of Alexandria: But if you wish to hear how Paul, who is not only the teacher of the Gentiles but also the master of this warfare, fought first, hear what he himself writes concerning himself, as we have also mentioned above. “Our wrestling,” he says, “is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of this world of darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” For this reason he also fits out with spiritual arms and invisible weapons those who are about to fight this spiritual and invisible battle, and says: “put on the breastplate of charity and the helmet of salvation, and take up the shield of faith, in which you may be able to extinguish all the fiery darts of the evil one.” “But take up also,” he says, “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” When therefore you have armed yourself with such weapons, following Joshua as your leader, do not fear those giants; for you will see how Joshua will subject them to you; and just as the fathers trod upon the necks of the nations, so you too will tread upon the necks of the demons. For he himself says to those who follow him faithfully: “behold, I have given you power to tread upon serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy.” For Jesus always wishes to do wonderful things, wishes to conquer giants by locusts, and from those things which are on the earth, to overcome the heavenly wickednesses. And perhaps this was what he said in the Gospels, that he who believes in him will not only do those things which he himself did, but “will do even greater things,” he says, “than these.” For truly it seems to me greater if a man, placed in the flesh, frail and perishable, armed only with the faith of Christ and his word, should overcome giants, the legions of demons. Although it is he himself who conquers in us, yet he says that it is more that he conquers through us than that he conquers through himself. Only let us be always armed with these weapons and let our citizenship be always in the heavens. Let every motion of ours, every act, every thought, every word be heavenly. For the more ardently we ascend thither, the more headlong they will descend from thence; and the more we are increased, the lower they will become. Our life, if it be holy, if it be according to God, will bring death to them; if it be sluggish and dissolute, it will make them powerful against us and giants. The more therefore we grow in virtues, the more inferior and frail they become, just as, on the contrary, if we are weakened and seek earthly things, they become stronger. And the more we are spread abroad on the earth, the more ample spaces we concede to them in the heavenly places. Wherefore let us rather do this, that as we increase they may be diminished, as we enter in they may be driven out, as we ascend they may fall; just as he fell of whom the Lord says in the Gospel: “behold, I saw Satan falling like lightning from heaven,” so that, they being cast out from thence, the Lord Jesus may bring us in thither and grant us to receive his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory unto the eternal ages of ages! Amen! — HOMILIES ON Numbers 7.6