What kind of forgiveness?

“After YHWH accepts Moses’ plea by forgiving the people (v. 20), he then swears that the entire adult generation, except for Caleb and Joshua, will die in the wilderness without reaching the Promised Land. Moreover, he executes the 10 naysaying spies by means of a plague (vv. 21–38). What kind of forgiveness is this!? Although God overcomes the obstacle to maintaining his relationship with the Israelites, his forgiveness does not include forgetting the wrong-doing or removing all its consequences. He pardons the nation on the corporate level in terms of allowing its continued existence with his support but purges out those who obstinately refuse to trust in him (cf. v. 11). YHWH adamantly refuses to give the Promised Land to rebels.

“The common denominator between forgiveness of the Israelites as a group and punishment of rebels among them, reflecting divine concern for mercy and justice, is YHWH’s reputation. His international standing as a powerful and just deity would suffer a setback in one way if he failed to fulfill his promise, but his reputation would be conversely compromised if he did fulfill it for people who withheld allegiance to his sovereignty as owner of the Promised Land and failed to acknowledge accountability to his commands.”—Cult and Character, page 335

<idle musing>
Two things jumped out at me in this passage:
"What kind of forgiveness is this!?" and
"YHWH adamantly refuses to give the Promised Land to rebels."

Stuff to think about, isn't it?

That's the last quotation I will post from the book. I highly recommend it to you, but be warned that it is highly technical. A reading knowledge of Hebrew would benefit you greatly :)
</idle musing>