seeing is believing

In response to the cheit ha'meraglim Hashem tells Moshe that (וְכׇל־מְנַאֲצַ֖י לֹ֥א יִרְאֽוּהָ (14:23 all those who rebelled will not get to see the land, with the one exception of Kaleiv,  וְעַבְדִּ֣י כָלֵ֗ב עֵ֣קֶב הָֽיְתָ֞ה ר֤וּחַ אַחֶ֙רֶת֙ עִמּ֔וֹ וַיְמַלֵּ֖א אַחֲרָ֑י וַהֲבִֽיאֹתִ֗יו אֶל־הָאָ֙רֶץ֙ אֲשֶׁר־בָּ֣א שָׁ֔מָּה וְזַרְע֖וֹ יוֹרִשֶֽׁנָּה.  

Sefas Emes asks (5645): What do you mean, "Not see the land?"  The 10 bad spies already saw the land -- they spent 40 days there touring in order to report back to Moshe!

There are people who come to Eretz Yisrael on vacation and they spend their time in its wonderful restaurants, seeing the "historic" sights, etc.  Hard to believe, but even your Yankel or your Rivkah for whom you are spending 20k+ for them to go to yeshiva or seminary and grow in avodas Hashem might be found late on a Thurs night in some bar in Yerushalayim or some other hangout.  Or maybe they are taking the opportunity to try something they would never get to do at home, like scuba diving or parasailing, or who knows what.  They are seeing the land, they are enjoying the experience!  

Says the Sefas Emes, if that was what you came to Eretz Yisrael to see and do, then you haven't really seen Eretz Yisrael.

Sure, the meraglim saw the land in the same way that we see mountains, valleys, trees, people.  But that's not what Eretz Yisrael is all about.  To see Eretz Yisrael means to see the pnimiyus of the land, to see a place that is governed by direct hashgacha, to see a place that has einei Hashem focussed on it 24x7.  If you want restaurants, museums & bars, historic sites, you can go to Paris, go to England, go elsewhere.  Eretz Yirael has all those things too, but those are just icing on the cake so you wont be deprived.  The ikar, however, is to see and experience ruchniyus.  Kaleiv went to Chevron -- a cemetery! -- and still came back giving a glowing report because he was not seeing graves in his travels, he was seeing kedusha.  The other meraglim saw and brought back the most beautiful fruits, but they saw nothing in it because if you are blind to the kedushas ha'aretz, then in truth, there is nothing to see.

Baruch Hashem I think for the most part, kids who spend a year in Eretz Yisrael do sense that there is something special about it beyond the not so wonderful things they can do and see while out from under their parent's eyes.  V'techezena eineinu b'shuvcha l'Tzion.  We have to learn how to look at things correctly.

2) וִיהוֹשֻׁ֣עַ בִּן־נ֔וּן וְכָלֵ֖ב בֶּן־יְפֻנֶּ֑ה חָיוּ֙ מִן־הָאֲנָשִׁ֣ים הָהֵ֔ם הַֽהֹלְכִ֖ים לָת֥וּר אֶת־הָאָֽרֶץ

This entire pasuk (14:35) seems unnecessary, as the previous pasuk told us וַיָּמֻ֙תוּ֙ הָֽאֲנָשִׁ֔ים מוֹצִאֵ֥י דִבַּת־הָאָ֖רֶץ רָעָ֑ה בַּמַּגֵּפָ֖ה, that those who spoke bad about Eretz Yisrael died.  It should be obvious that Yehoshua and Kaleiv who were not guilty of speaking against the land were not punished.  

Chazal explain that the "chayu" here means that the Yehoshua and Kaleiv got the portion of land in Eretz Yisrael that the meraglim would have been entitled to.  Various other meforshim (e.g. Netziv, Kli Yakar) offer different answers as well.  I want to highlight the Ohr haChaim's approach:

ויתבאר על פי מה שאמרו במס׳ בבא בתרא (קכא:) תניא יאיר בן מנשה נולד בימי יעקב, והקשו ממה שמצינו שנכנם לארץ דכתיב ויכו מהם אנשי העי כשלשים וששה איש וגו׳ זה יאיר בן מנשה ששקול כרובה של סנהדרין, ותירץ רב אחא שלא נגזרה גזירה לא על פחות מכ׳ ולא על יותר מס׳ עד כאן. והנה ממה שלא תירץ הגמרא שיאיר היה צדיק גמור הראת לדעת כי צדקת הצדיק לא הצילתו מהגזרה ההיא, והוא מאמר הכתוב ויהושע וגו׳ חיו וגו׳ פירוש טעם שחיו הוא להיותם מן האנשים ההולכים לתור היא שעמדה להם, אבל אם לא היו מהתרים והיו נשארים בכלל ישראל היתה באה הגזירה גם עליהם הגם שהם צדיקים גמורים לצד שהיו למעלה מעשרים כשיצאו ממצרים ולמטה מס׳.

He writes that it is only because Yehoshua and Kaleiv had the extra zechus of being among the spies and not being influenced by them that they escaped punishment.  However, had they not been among the spies, then despite their tzidkus, they would have still been subject to the gezeirah of death in the midbar.  When the klal is punished, then personal tzidkus is not enough.