How could Israel have entered the promised land without working for it?
Israel could have entered the promised land without working because God had already prepared everything. The land of milk and honey was sitting before them, fully ready. Scripture calls it God's rest: they would not have had to labor or dig wells; they could have simply walked in and possessed it.
Les explains from Numbers 14 that the land of milk and honey was sitting right in front of Israel, everything ready. If the 12 spies had come back and said, 'We can take it,' the people would have said, 'Okay, we'll go.' They could have entered God's rest without one ounce of work. They would not have had to labor or dig wells; they could have just walked into a prepared place. Instead they cried and murmured, claiming the Lord brought them out to fall by the sword and for their wives and children to become prey. Les notes their real fear was the giants in the promised land, and God declared their carcasses would fall in the wilderness.
More Questions
Why could Israel have entered the promised land without any work or labor?
Israel could have entered the promised land—what the Bible calls God's rest—without doing any work at all, because everything was already prepared and they could simply walk in.