Midrash for Numbers 13:22

6) R Yossi Haglili says: After Scripture equates the deed of the land of Egypt with that of the land of Canaan, and that of the land of Canaan with that of the land of Egypt, why did the Canaanites merit remaining in their land for forty-seven years, as it is written (Bamidbar 13:22) "And Chevron (in Canaan) was built seven years before Tzoan (in) Egypt" (and add forty years for their sojourn in the desert)? It was because they honored our father Abraham, saying (Bereshith 23:5) "Hear us, my lord, a prince of G d are you in our midst" — wherefore they merited remaining on their land forty-seven years.

(Ib., ib. 22) And they ascended on the south side and he came unto Hebron. It should have been they came. Said Raba: "From this it may be inferred that Caleb separated himself from the plot of the spies and went, prostrated himself upon the graves of the Patriarchs, saying to them: 'Patriarchs of the world, pray mercy for my sake so that I should be saved from falling in with the plot of the spies.' As to Joshua, Moses had already offered a prayer, as it IS said (Ib., ib. 16) And Moses called Hoshea, the son of Nun, Joshua [Yehoshua] which means the Lord should help you from [falling in with] the plot of the spies, and this is meant by the passage (Ib. 14, 24) But my servant Caleb as a reward that he had another spirit with him, etc." (Ib. 13, 22) And there were Achiman, Sheshai and Talmai, the children of Annak; i.e., Achiman was the strongest of his brothers; Sheshai, who would make the earth full of holes by his walking, Thalmai, who made the earth like furrows. In another way this may be explained; Achiman, who built the town Annath; Sheshai, who built the town of Alush; Thalmai, who built the town of Tilbosh; the children of Annak, who would becloud the sun through their height.

(Ib., ib., ib.) Now Hebron had been built seven years before Zo'am in Egypt. What does was built mean? Can it be taken literally? How is it possible that a man should build a house for his minor son, before he builds one for his grown-up son? For it is written (Gen. 10, 6) And the sons of Ham: Cush, Mizrayim, and Put, and Canaan. [Hence we see that Canaan was younger than Ham]. We must therefore say that she was fruitful, seven fold, over the city of Zo'an, and although there is no more stony place in the entire land of Israel than Hebron, this is the reason why it was devoted a cementery, and again there is no better land in the entire Asiatic region than that of Egypt, as it is said (Ib. 13, 10) Like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt; and there is no better ground in the entire land of Egypt than that of Zo'an, as it is written (Is. 30, 4) For his princes were at Zo'an. Nevertheless Hebron was seven times as rich in fruit production as Zo'an. Is this a fact that Hebron contains stony ground? Behold it is written (II Sam. 15, 7) And it came to pass at the end of forty years, that Abshalom said unto the king, 'Let me go, I pray thee, and fulfill my vow, which I have vowed unto the Lord at Hebron; 'which was explained by R. Ivia, and according to others by Rabba b. b. Chana that this means: "He desired to go to Hebron to bring sheep for an offering." And we are also taught in a Baraitha that rams came from Moab and sheep from Hebron [hence we see that it contained pasture plains]? From the very place we can infer that it was a stony ground, and just because it was stony, therefore it was devoted to pasture ground, which fattens sheep.