And how is the land - is it fertile or is it lean? Are there trees in it or not? You shall strengthen yourselves and take from the fruit of the land. (13:20) Rashi says Are there trees See if there is among them a decent man who can protect them through his merit. If the first part of the Pasuk - trees - means are there righteous people then what is the connection to the second part of the Pasuk- take from the fruit of the land? The Mishna in Pirkai Avos asks: What is the difference between the disciples of Avraham and the disciples of Bilam? Why doesn't the Mishna ask - what is the difference between Avraham and Bilam? Looking at Bilam, there may not of been a noticeable difference between him and Avraham. Bilam paraded as a Tzadik. He looked like a Tzadik - he acted like a Tzadik and pretended to be a Tzadik. The way to determine what Bilam really was was to look at his children and disciples. By looking at them, one could determine what Bilam was. So the Mishna says What is the difference between the disciples? Here too the Pasuk says Are there trees See if there is among them a decent man and the Pasuk continues take from the fruit of the land check out the children - the disciples - to determine if there are any righteous people among them. (Divrei Yoel)
