Moses and the Promised Land

I was reading Moses prayer (Deut.3:24-28) to God that he be allowed to enter the Promised Land and this statement caught my eye…

"But the LORD was angry with me on your account, and would not listen to me."

Moses attributed God’s refusal to accept his request not to himself and his actions but to the Israelites and their actions.

Hmmm… pretty curious, after all it was Moses that struck the rock at Kadesh Barnea instead of speaking to it as God had instructed.

The answer lies in Deut. 1:34-37.
"Then the LORD heard the sound of your words, and He was angry and took an oath, saying, not one of these men, this evil generation, shall see the good land which I swore to give your fathers, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him and to his sons I will give the land on which he has set foot, because he has followed the LORD fully.'

The LORD was angry with me also on your account, saying, Not even you shall enter there".

Moses was not allowed to enter the Promised Land because of the bad report of the 12 spies and Israel’s acceptance of it. He was lumped together with them and would have to die in the wilderness with that “evil generation”.

So God’s anger that began with this incident continued 40 years later and still burned when Moses requested to be able to physically enter the Promised Land. Moses correctly attributes God’s anger to them… not him.

He was the last of that generation to die. When we last see him, just prior to his death, he is on mount Nebo viewing the Promised land.

When we next see him he is standing on another mountain in the Promised Land where Jesus was transfigured.

Moses received punishment on earth but his eternal destiny with God was secured. I’ve got a feeling that when his spirit left Mount Nebo and was received by God that he was not in the least bit disappointed at not having stepped foot on the Promised Land.