The journey through the desert reaches a historical and geographical turning point, closing a long era of wandering and marking the completion of a divine decree. The route from Kadesh Barnea in the southwest to the crossing of the Zered Brook in the northeast, which was the first river they crossed, summarizes the entire path of travel [העמק דבר, חזקוני]. This journey was not merely a physical march but included all the time spent both moving and camping in the wilderness [חזקוני]. The duration of this final phase lasted thirty-eight years. Although the punishment for the sin of the spies was forty years of wandering, the spies were sent out during the second year after the departure from Egypt. Therefore, only thirty-eight years remained from that specific event until the end of the journey [רשב״ם, רלב״ג, בכור שור, ביאור יש״ר].
Over these years, the generation condemned to die in the wilderness passed away [מלבי״ם], with the majority dying of natural causes [ביאור יש״ר]. However, this extended delay was not solely a punishment. It can also be understood as an act of divine grace. The long wait allowed the nation to achieve spiritual perfection by detaching from material pursuits. Sustained by manna, drinking from the well, and immersed in the secrets of the Torah, the people were given the opportunity to elevate themselves [שפתי כהן].
A central question arises regarding the identity of the soldiers who were destined to die during this time. The primary approach among commentators is that this refers to the men between the ages of twenty and sixty who were counted in the first census. These were the individuals fit to fight and conquer the land, yet they shrank back from the mission out of fear and a lack of faith [בכור שור, ביאור שטיינזלץ, רש״ר הירש]. Once this group passed away, any remaining elders or isolated survivors from that generation were no longer considered soldiers, and their status was effectively the same as those who had died [העמק דבר].
Other perspectives offer a different definition of these warriors. One view suggests they were not the general army, but specifically the rebellious group that armed themselves after the incident with the spies. These individuals attempted to fight their way up the mountain in direct defiance of God's command and Moses' warning [רשב״ם, ביאור יש״ר]. Another unique interpretation argues that the term refers to the mixed multitude, a group that constantly provoked and clashed with the Israelites. According to this idea, the divine oath barring entry into the land applied directly to them, as they were the ones who tested God ten times and ignored His voice, while the actual nation of Israel achieved spiritual repair and readiness [שפתי כהן].