Igal, son of Joseph, was one of the twelve spies that Moses sent into the land of Canaan to explore it. He represented the tribe of Issachar. Igal was among the ten spies who returned with a negative report and discouraged the Israelites from entering the land.
Moses sent the twelve scouts, including Jigal, from the wilderness of Paran to explore the land of Canaan and bring back information about its people and terrain.
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.
Jigal was among the ten scouts who gave a negative report about the land. They claimed that the people of Canaan were too strong and that the Israelites could not take possession of it.
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.
The negative report from Jigal and the other scouts caused the entire congregation of Israel to weep and complain against Moses and Aaron, wishing to return to Egypt.
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?"
As punishment for their false and discouraging report, Jigal and the other nine unfaithful scouts were struck down by a plague and died in the presence of the Lord. Only Joshua and Caleb survived.