The punishment that Israel suffered for their rebellion and refusal to go up to the Promised Land was
their wandering in the desert for forty years. The generation that left Egypt did not enter the Land.
Ezekiel tells of another major consequence of Israel's sin: "I
(Yahveh) also raised up My Hand against them in the desert to scatter them among the nations." Ezekiel 20:23
Yahveh made an unusual oath: "But as I live, the Glory of Yahveh shall fill the
entire earth." The dispersal of Israel became necessary in order to sanctify Yahveh's Name, which had been defiled
through sin. Israel would have to be dispersed in order that His Glory would fill the world. How would that happen?
When Israel went into exile, the Divine Presence went with them. Thus, when Yahveh swore that His Glory
would fill the whole earth, He was in fact swearing that Israel will be spread throughout the earth, yet not destroyed, to prove
to all nations that He is with them, thus filling the earth with His Name.
