Observation: Israel is about to go spy on the promised land to determine both its value and its fortification. When the spies return, they will agree it is a great land, but 10 of the 12 will say the people are too strong to be attacked. Only two - Caleb and Hoshea (Joshua) - will declare that, with the Lord on their side, they can easily take the land. This proves to be a turning point in God's relationship with Israel, as this final straw in their lack of faith will be punished with 40 years of wandering, and the death of the entire exodus generation.
Caleb and Joshua, however, are rewarded. They are both allowed future entry to the land. Joshua will lead Israel, and Caleb will be afforded a special land allotment. As decades and centuries pass, and Israel itself grows then divides and collapses due to its waning faith, it will ultimately be the tribes of Caleb and Joshua that endure. When the kingdom divides after King Solomon's death, the southern kingdom becomes entirely known as Judah. Meanwhile, the northern kingdom of Israel eventually shrinks under foreign pressure until several prophets, just before its final collapse, simply call it Ephraim because that is the only territory left.
Application: Based on this insight, I ask myself a question: Did the Lord sustain Judah and Ephraim as part of a continuing reward to Joshua and Caleb for their faith ... or did the Lord sustain Judah and Ephraim because they were the two tribes that best maintained their faith of time, due to the example of their exodus-generation leaders?
I suspect the latter. While the Lord does speak for punishment and reward to future generations, he also clearly interacts with people based on their own faith and resulting behavior. He is as patient as possible with all Israel, but as he punishes them it is logical that the central tribes would survive longer based on simple logistics. However, it is also true that these two tribes had a tremendous example of faith they could discuss as families and clans ... Joshua and Caleb were strong in faith and rewarded with honor and blessing. They publicly declared generational faith for their families. It would make sense that the descendants of these two tribes had a stronger anchor to their faith than the other tribes.
They all stumbled eventually, the north first, so the later generations still lost their way and were held accountable. However, Caleb and Joshua boldly declared a strong faith, and that created the future 'center' of the nation of priests, and even today represents most of the 'west bank' hot spot of modern-day Israel.
Prayer: Lord, I live in a time and place where declaring faith in the you puts me in a distinct minority. May I remain as strong as Joshua and Caleb in my public statements, for I believe not only in your existence, but also in your authority and power. Amen.
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