Chapter 13;v.20

וּמָה הָאָרֶץ הַשְּׁמֵנָה הִוא אִם־רָזָה הֲיֶֽשׁ־בָּהּ עֵץ אִם־אַיִן וְהִתְחַזַּקְתֶּם וּלְקַחְתֶּם מִפְּרִי הָאָרֶץ וְהַיָּמִים יְמֵי בִּכּוּרֵי עֲנָבִֽים

And what the land is, whether it is fat or lean, whether there is wood in it, or not. And be you of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the first ripe grapes.

Rashi quotes the Gemara and interprets this allegorically, with the “tree” symbolizing a worthy person. Moses’ instructions, therefore, were for the spies to see if there were any worthy people in the Land of Canaan, in whose merit the inhabitants might be saved.

Since their mission was to see if such outstanding people were present in the Land of Canaan, why did Moses instruct them to travel through the major highways and orchards? It would be more logical for them to search in houses of study and worship, where such people are usually found.

We can derive from this that if a person is truly of significant stature, his influence must extend further than the walls of his immediate surroundings. It must be felt even at a distance. His impact should be noticeable on the streets, in the marketplace, and even in the fields. Moses sent the spies to these places to see if such an imprint was present.(Rabbi S. Mordokovitz)