Numbers 11

The People Complain

1 Now when the people complained, it displeased the Lord; for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused. So the fire of the Lord burned among them, and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp.2 Then the people cried out to Moses, and when Moses prayed to the Lord, the fire was quenched.3 So he called the name of the place Taberah, because the fire of the Lord had burned among them.4 Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: Who will give us meat to eat?5 We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic;6 but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!7 Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its color like the color of bdellium.8 The people went about and gathered it, ground it on millstones or beat it in the mortar, cooked it in pans, and made cakes of it; and its taste was like the taste of pastry prepared with oil.9 And when the dew fell on the camp in the night, the manna fell on it.10 Then Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, everyone at the door of his tent; and the anger of the Lord was greatly aroused; Moses also was displeased.11 So Moses said to the Lord, Why have You afflicted Your servant? And why have I not found favor in Your sight, that You have laid the burden of all these people on me?12 Did I conceive all these people? Did I beget them, that You should say to me, Carry them in your bosom, as a guardian carries a nursing child, to the land which You swore to their fathers?13 Where am I to get meat to give to all these people? For they weep all over me, saying, Give us meat, that we may eat.14 I am not able to bear all these people alone, because the burden is too heavy for me.15 If You treat me like this, please kill me here and nowif I have found favor in Your sightand do not let me see my wretchedness!

The Seventy Elders

16 So the Lord said to Moses: Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tabernacle of meeting, that they may stand there with you.17 Then I will come down and talk with you there. I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone.18 Then you shall say to the people, Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat; for you have wept in the hearing of the Lord, saying, Who will give us meat to eat? For it was well with us in Egypt. Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat.19 You shall eat, not one day, nor two days, nor five days, nor ten days, nor twenty days,20 but for a whole month, until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have despised the Lord who is among you, and have wept before Him, saying, Why did we ever come up out of Egypt?21 And Moses said, The people whom I am among are six hundred thousand men on foot; yet You have said, I will give them meat, that they may eat for a whole month.22 Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to provide enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to provide enough for them?23 And the Lord said to Moses, Has the Lords arm been shortened? Now you shall see whether what I say will happen to you or not.24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord, and he gathered the seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tabernacle.25 Then the Lord came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the seventy elders; and it happened, when the Spirit rested upon them, that they prophesied, although they never did so again.26 But two men had remained in the camp: the name of one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad. And the Spirit rested upon them. Now they were among those listed, but who had not gone out to the tabernacle; yet they prophesied in the camp.27 And a young man ran and told Moses, and said, Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.28 So Joshua the son of Nun, Moses assistant, one of his choice men, answered and said, Moses my lord, forbid them!29 Then Moses said to him, Are you zealous for my sake? Oh, that all the Lords people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!30 And Moses returned to the camp, he and the elders of Israel.

The Lord Sends Quail

31 Now a wind went out from the Lord, and it brought quail from the sea and left them fluttering near the camp, about a days journey on this side and about a days journey on the other side, all around the camp, and about two cubits above the surface of the ground.32 And the people stayed up all that day, all night, and all the next day, and gathered the quail (he who gathered least gathered ten homers); and they spread them out for themselves all around the camp.33 But while the meat was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, the wrath of the Lord was aroused against the people, and the Lord struck the people with a very great plague.34 So he called the name of that place Kibroth Hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had yielded to craving.35 From Kibroth Hattaavah the people moved to Hazeroth, and camped at Hazeroth.

NUMBERS 11

The Israelites Complain

1 One day the Israelites started complaining about their troubles. The [Lord] heard them and became so angry that he destroyed the outer edges of their camp with fire.
2 When the people begged Moses to help, he prayed, and the fire went out.

3 They named the place “Burning,”t because in his anger the [Lord] had set their camp on fire.

The People Grumble //about Being Hungry

6 But we're starving out here, and the only food we have is this manna.”
7  t The manna was like small whitish seeds

8-9 t and tasted like something baked with sweet olive oil. It appeared at night with the dew. In the morning the people would collect the manna, grind or crush it into flour, then boil it and make it into thin wafers.
10 The Israelites stood around their tents complaining. Moses heard them and was upset that they had made the [Lord] angry.

11 He prayed:
I am your servant, [Lord], so why are you doing this to me? What have I done to deserve this? You've made me responsible for all these people, 12 but they're not my children. You told me to nurse them along and to carry them to the land you promised their ancestors. 13 They keep whining for meat, but where can I get meat for them? 14 This job is too much for me. How can I take care of all these people by myself?

15 If this is the way you're going to treat me, just kill me now and end my miserable life!

Seventy Leaders Are Chosen //To Help Moses

16 The [Lord] said to Moses:
Choose 70 of Israel's respected leaders and go with them to the sacred tent.

17 While I am talking with you there, I will give them some of your authority, so they can share responsibility for my people. You will no longer have to care for them by yourself.
18 As for the Israelites, I have heard them complaining about not having meat and about being better off in Egypt. So tell them to make themselves acceptable to me, because tomorrow they will have meat.

19-20 In fact, they will have meat day after day for a whole month—not just a few days, or even 10 or 20. They turned against me and wanted to go back to Egypt. Now they will eat meat until they get sick of it.
21 Moses replied, “At least 600,000 grown men are here with me. How can you say there will be enough meat to feed them and their families for a whole month?

22 Even if we butchered all our sheep and cattle, or caught every fish in the sea, we wouldn't have enough to feed them.”

23 The [Lord] answered, “I can do anything! Watch and you'll see my words come true.”
24 Moses told the people what the [Lord] had said. Then he chose 70 respected leaders and went with them to the sacred tent. While the leaders stood in a circle around the tent, Moses went inside,

25 and the [Lord] spoke with him. Then the [Lord] took some authorityt from Moses and gave it to the 70 leaders. And when the [Lord]'s Spirit took control of them, they started shouting like prophets. But they did it only this one time.
26 Eldad and Medad were two leaders who had not gone to the tent. But when the Spirit took control of them, they began shouting like prophets right there in camp.

27 A boy ran to Moses and told him about Eldad and Medad.

28 Joshuat was there helping Moses, as he had done since he was young. And he said to Moses, “Sir, you must stop them!”
29 But Moses replied, “Are you concerned what this might do to me? I wish the [Lord] would give his Spirit to all his people so everyone could be a prophet.”

30 Then Moses and the 70 leaders went back to camp.

The [Lord] Sends Quails

33 But before the meat could be eaten, the [Lord] became angry and sent a deadly disease through the camp.

34 After they had buried the people who had been so greedy for meat, they called the place “Graves for the Greedy.”t
35 Israel then broke camp and traveled to Hazeroth.