“Send out for yourself men who will scout the Land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel…” (Bamidbar 13:2)
In his commentary on the words, “Send for yourselves,” Rashi tells us that Hashem said, “I’m not commanding you to send spies. I already told you the land’s good. If you want to send spies, then send.”
If this was Hashem’s answer, then why did Moshe go ahead and send the spies? Furthermore, Moshe recounts the decision to send the spies in Devarim (1:23) saying, “It was good in my eyes.”
This question is further compounded by Rashi’s comment in the next pasuk that the spies sent were “anashim,” signifying they were tzaddikim. Yet the Gemara in Sotah (35a) says that just as they came back with bad advice, so they went on bad advice.
