Timeless Torah

"A dismal failure: An unmitigated disaster: An unprecedented setback." So must have thought Moses upon hearing the sour grapes report of the spies. What the Almighty was contemplating however, is not left to the imagination. The Torah tells us clearly, pulling no punches in its harsh delivery. "I will kill them ... annihilate them."
According to the commentaries, the entire escapade of spies being sent out had not been sanctioned by Hashem. Indeed, it was only at Moses' insistence that G-d had grudgingly acceded, but even then with a caveat, that it was Moses' responsibility. Obviously, the Omniscient One correctly predicted the negative outcome.
This stands in stark contrast to the Haftorah reading which is historically set 39 years later. At that point, Moses has been replaced by Joshua and the Jews are on the banks of the Jordan River, ready to embark on the final leg of the Exodus odyssey. In a bewildering, turnabout move, G-d orders Joshua to send out two spies primarily to scout out the border city of Jericho.
The Rebbe raises the obvious contradiction between the two scenarios and offers the following explanation for the different Divine procedures.
Man is a composite of personality and expression. His personality is made up of various emotions, ambitions, attitudes, ideas, hopes, fears, etc. His expressions are the way he articulates those hidden feelings, understandings and desires to his conscious self or others. This is accomplished through the auxiliary powers of thought, speech and action.
In Chassidic theology, the entire land of Israel represents the complete human being down to his very core. The border city of Jericho, on the other hand, is symbolic of the external abilities of man to communicate.
In analyzing the Torah's directives, otherwise known as mitzvohs, it is clear that man is required to do good and to refrain from evil. It is action, words and even conscious thought that he is asked to control. He is however not asked to refine his inner drives and assume the exalted status of a saint, although it is understood that the actions of holiness will inevitably affect the inner person.
That is why the mission of Moses failed. Man cannot be asked to conquer the entire land, i.e., the entire person. Joshua's mission, however, only requested that Jericho, meaning the capabilities of thought, speech and action be brought under man's domain.
There is a very powerful lesson that can be gleaned from this analysis. We often do not accept any new commandments or undertake religious lifestyles, because we don't feel ready at that point in time. Later, we tell ourselves (and the Rabbi) when we are internally in tune, only then will we adopt the latest mitzvah. The Torah therefore points out, that waiting for us to conquer our inner desires, is not the correct strategy. Instead, we should focus our energies on accomplishing one Jericho, or action, at a time.