Just moments before entering the Promised Land, the journey of the Israelites comes to a sudden halt due to a profound crisis of faith. Moses addresses the people, pointing out the deep tragedy of their behavior: even when surrounded by constant divine care and open miracles, they chose to doubt.
The primary approach among commentators is that this failure of faith centered on God's promise to bring the Israelites into the land and the command to take possession of it [רש״י, שד״ל, העמק דבר]. After everything they had survived in the desert, conquering the land should have been a relatively simple step [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. However, despite witnessing the great miracles God performed in Egypt and throughout their travels, the people refused to trust His ability to fight for them and bring them safely into a good land. Their long delay in the desert was the direct result of this specific lack of belief [ביאור יש״ר, בכור שור, אם למקרא]. Offering a different perspective, another viewpoint suggests that their doubt was not actually about entering the land. Instead, the people struggled to believe in the nature of the desert miracles themselves. They found it difficult to accept that God truly dwelled among them and carried them with the intimate love of a father carrying his son [אור החיים].
Commentators further explore the psychological roots of the people's disbelief. One explanation is that the Israelites completely misinterpreted God's guidance. They assumed God led them on a long, winding detour through the desert, rather than taking the shorter coastal route, out of hatred and a desire to hand them over to their enemies. Moses had to correct this painful misunderstanding. He explained that the extended path—accompanied by the protective clouds of glory and a miraculous well—was deliberately chosen to prevent them from fleeing back to Egypt the moment they faced hardship. Only upon understanding this truth did their faith return [חתם סופר]. In reality, their constant complaints revealed a deep blindness to God's ongoing love. The pillar of fire, the cloud of glory, and the Ark of the Covenant traveling ahead to find them a safe place to camp were undeniable proofs of His care, directly contradicting their fears of divine hatred [מלבי״ם].
A unique angle suggests that it was actually God's immense humility that triggered the people's doubt. During their time in the desert, God performed tasks for the Israelites that a servant typically does for a master, such as lighting the way in the dark and seeking out places to rest. Because of this wondrous reality, where the King of Kings seemingly acted as a servant to His people, the Israelites found it nearly impossible to believe that God Himself was the one behind all this goodness. The sheer humility of His actions made the truth feel too unbelievable for them to accept [אלשיך].