Biblical Profile: Caleb

Caleb

Caleb stands as an inspiring example of faith in God. He was the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite (Josh 14:6; Num 32:12). The Kenizzites lived in the Negev, the southern desert region of Canaan (see Gen 15:18-21). Jephunneh apparently married into the tribe of Judah a generation before Israel left Egypt.

Caleb first appears as one of twelve spies Moses sent to scout out the land of Canaan. Upon returning, all twelve confirmed the land’s magnificence, but ten of the scouts focused on the land’s fearsome inhabitants (Num 13:31-33). Only Joshua and Caleb believed that God would enable Israel to conquer the Canaanites (Num 14:6-9), advising that the Israelites immediately take the land (Num 13:30). Although the people wanted to stone both Caleb and Joshua (Num 14:10), God protected them and punished the people (Num 14:11-38). God ultimately rewarded Caleb and Joshua for their faithfulness: Among all the adults who left Egypt, they were the only ones to enter the Promised Land.

After many years in the wilderness, and after fighting many battles, Caleb received his personal inheritance in the land (Josh 14:6-15). Caleb’s faith did not diminish in the intervening forty-five years; his testimony reveals his character and rock-solid faith in God. Although Caleb was eighty-five years old, he was still strong and able to fight. Caleb acquired Hebron, which would become his land, by driving out the giant Anakites who had terrified the earlier scouts (Josh 15:13-14; see Num 13:28, 33). Caleb’s city of Hebron, about twenty miles south of Jerusalem (not far from Kenizzite territory), later became a Levitical city of refuge (Josh 21:13; 1 Chr 6:54-57).

Caleb looked beyond serious obstacles to God’s unbreakable promise that Israel would occupy Canaan. With unabated vigor, he stood ready to conquer the territory Joshua assigned him. Caleb’s staunch confidence in the reliability of God’s promises earned him an honored place among the faithful. Even when outnumbered by enemies, Caleb trusted God, and God richly rewarded him.

Passages for Further Study

Num 13:1–14:38; 26:65; 32:12; 34:19; Deut 1:36; Josh 14:6-15; 15:13-19; Judg 1:11-15, 20; 1 Chr 4:15