The people of Israel had been living under a 40 year curse. They had rejected God’s plan and lost God’s promise. Every person over 40 years of age died while wandering aimlessly in the wilderness, a whole generation was gone!
When they approached the edge of the Jordan River no one under 40 had experienced the power of the Red Sea, the pain of slavery, or the miracle of the Passover. All they knew was the wilderness, the curse, and constant moving from place to place. They were nomads with no purpose!
But, God was about to change all of that, he was going to show them how to break through!