Geuel, son of Machi, was the representative from the tribe of Gad among the twelve spies that Moses sent to explore the land of Canaan. He was one of the ten spies who returned with a negative report and advised against entering the Promised Land.
20Is the soil rich or poor? Are there trees on it or not? Be bold, and bring back some of the fruit of the land." It was the season of the first ripe grapes.
22They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, lived. (Hebron had been built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)
23When they reached the Valley of Eshcol, they cut off a branch bearing a single cluster of grapes, and two of them carried it on a pole between them, along with some pomegranates and figs.
After returning, Geuel and nine of the other spies reported that the land was inhabited by powerful people and large fortified cities, spreading fear among the Israelites.
29The Amalekites live in the land of the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live by the sea and along the Jordan."
32And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had scouted: "The land we traveled through to explore it devours those who live in it, and all the people we saw there are of enormous size.
33We even saw the Nephilim there—the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim. In our own eyes we seemed like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.
As a result of the negative report from Geuel and the other spies, the Israelites refused to enter the Promised Land. God judged that generation to wander in the wilderness for forty years.
2All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, "If only we had died in Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness!
3Why is the LORD bringing us to this land, only to fall by the sword? Our wives and children will become plunder. Wouldn't it be better for us to go back to Egypt?"
The ten spies who brought the negative report, including Geuel, died of a plague before the Lord as punishment for causing the people to grumble against God.