Parasha Shelach (Numbers 13 - 15) 6-11-17

http://lukeford.net/blog/?p=115002 Recorded June 11, 2017. This week’s Torah portion covers the 12 spies sent in to the land of Israel, ten of whom come back with negative reports.

* We don’t see the world as it is. We see the world as we are. Didn’t God and Moshe know who they were sending out to spy on the land? If they knew they were sending fearful people, they should expect a fearful report.

* Yes, I am sure Russia spies on America and tries to interfere in American affairs, just as America spies on other countries and interferes in their affairs. Spying on competitors is just how the world works. I’m not outraged when foreigners spy on America and try to hack into our databases. I know we do the same thing to them. Life is war. If you’ve got something good, other people will try to take it.

* If only there were some clues, some coded hints in appearance, that let you know who was different and therefore likely had different interests. Did these Hebrew spies have any morphological differences from the natives in the land and therefore did the natives know that it was ok to fear people who look different? Or were the Canaanites living under some terrifying form of political correctness that condemned noticing patterns?

* Nature has color-coded life for our advantage. A wise man notices patterns.