³ And the children of Israel said to them, ^(A)“Oh, that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, ^(B)when we sat by the pots of meat and when we ate bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

⁴ Now the ^(A)mixed multitude who were among them ^[a]yielded to ^(B)intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: ^(C)“Who will give us meat to eat? ^5 (D)We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic;

³ And the people thirsted there for water, and the people ^(A)complained against Moses, and said, “Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our ^(B)livestock with thirst?”

^67 (A)In the morning you shall say, ‘Oh, that it were evening!’ And at evening you shall say, ‘Oh, that it were morning!’ because of the fear which terrifies your heart, and ^(B)because of the sight which your eyes see.

³ And the people ^(A)contended with Moses and spoke, saying: “If only we had died ^(B)when our brethren died before the Lord! ^4 (C)Why have you brought up the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we and our animals should die here? ⁵ And why have you made us come up out of Egypt, to bring us to this evil place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates; nor is there any water to drink.”

^2 (A)And all the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness!

Concern for Their Faithfulness

11 Oh, that you would bear with me in a little ^(A)folly—and indeed you do bear with me.

⁸ You are already full! ^(A)You are already rich! You have reigned as kings without us—and indeed I could wish you did reign, that we also might reign with you!

²⁹ And Paul said, ^(A)“I would to God that not only you, but also all who hear me today, might become both almost and altogether such as I am, except for these chains.”