Numbers 11
English Standard Version
The People Complain
11 And (A)the people complained in the hearing of the Lord about their misfortunes, and when the Lord heard it, (B)his anger was kindled, and (C)the fire of the Lord burned among them and consumed some outlying parts of the camp. 2 Then (D)the people cried out to Moses, (E)and Moses prayed to the Lord, and the fire died down. 3 So the name of that place was called (F)Taberah,[a] because the fire of the Lord burned among them.
4 Now the (G)rabble that was among them had a strong craving. And the people of Israel also (H)wept again and said, (I)“Oh that we had meat to eat! 5 (J)We remember the fish we ate in Egypt that cost nothing, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. 6 But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at.”
7 Now (K)the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium. 8 (L)The people went about and gathered it and ground it in handmills or beat it in mortars and boiled it in pots and made cakes of it. (M)And the taste of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil. 9 (N)When the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell with it.
10 Moses heard the people (O)weeping throughout their clans, everyone at the door of his tent. And the anger of the Lord blazed hotly, and Moses was displeased. 11 (P)Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you dealt ill with your servant? And why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me? 12 Did I conceive all this people? Did I give them birth, that you should say to me, (Q)‘Carry them in your bosom, as a (R)nurse carries a nursing child,’ to the land (S)that you swore to give their fathers? 13 (T)Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they weep before me and say, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ 14 (U)I am not able to carry all this people alone; the burden is too heavy for me. 15 If you will treat me like this, kill me at once, if I find favor in your sight, that I may not see my wretchedness.”
Elders Appointed to Aid Moses
16 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me (V)seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and (W)officers over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you. 17 (X)And I will come down and talk with you there. And (Y)I will take some of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them, and (Z)they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you may not bear it yourself alone. 18 And say to the people, (AA)‘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? (AB)For it was better for us in Egypt.” Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. 19 You shall not eat just one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days, 20 but a whole month, (AC)until it comes out at your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you, because you have rejected the Lord who is among you and have wept before him, saying, (AD)“Why did we come out of Egypt?”’” 21 But Moses said, (AE)“The people among whom I am number six hundred thousand on foot, and you have said, ‘I will give them meat, that they may eat a whole month!’ 22 (AF)Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, and be enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, and be enough for them?” 23 And the Lord said to Moses, (AG)“Is the Lord's hand shortened? Now you shall see whether (AH)my word will come true for you or not.”
24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord. (AI)And he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tent. 25 Then (AJ)the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the Spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders. And as soon as the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied. But they did not continue doing it.
26 Now two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the Spirit rested on them. They were among those registered, but they (AK)had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp. 27 And a young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” 28 And (AL)Joshua the son of Nun, the assistant of Moses from his youth, said, “My lord Moses, (AM)stop them.” 29 But Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? (AN)Would that all the Lord's people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!” 30 And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp.
Quail and a Plague
31 Then a (AO)wind from the Lord sprang up, and it brought quail from the sea and let them fall beside the camp, about a day's journey on this side and a day's journey on the other side, around the camp, and about two cubits[b] above the ground. 32 And the people rose all that day and all night and all the next day, and gathered the quail. Those who gathered least gathered ten (AP)homers.[c] And they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. 33 (AQ)While the meat was yet between their teeth, before it was consumed, the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people, and (AR)the Lord struck down the people with a very great plague. 34 Therefore the name of that place was called (AS)Kibroth-hattaavah,[d] because there they buried the people who had the craving. 35 (AT)From Kibroth-hattaavah the people journeyed to (AU)Hazeroth, and they remained at (AV)Hazeroth.
Footnotes
- Numbers 11:3 Taberah means burning
- Numbers 11:31 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
- Numbers 11:32 A homer was about 6 bushels or 220 liters
- Numbers 11:34 Kibroth-hattaavah means graves of craving
Numbers 11
Common English Bible
Complaint at Taberah
11 When the people complained intensely in the Lord’s hearing, the Lord heard and became angry. Then the Lord’s fire burned them and consumed the edges of the camp. 2 When the people cried out to Moses, Moses prayed to the Lord, and the fire subsided. 3 The name of that place was called Taberah,[a] because the Lord’s fire burned against them.
Complaint over the lack of meat
4 The riffraff among them had a strong craving. Even the Israelites cried again and said, “Who will give us meat to eat? 5 We remember the fish we ate in Egypt for free, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. 6 Now our lives are wasting away. There is nothing but manna in front of us.”
7 The manna was like coriander seed and its color was like resin. 8 The people would roam around and collect it and grind it with millstones or pound it in a mortar. Then they would boil it in pots and make it into cakes. It tasted like cakes baked in olive oil. 9 When the dew fell on the camp during the night, the manna would fall with it.
Moses’ complaint about leadership
10 Moses heard the people crying throughout their clans, each at his tent’s entrance. The Lord was outraged, and Moses was upset. 11 Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you treated your servant so badly? And why haven’t I found favor in your eyes, for you have placed the burden of all these people on me? 12 Did I conceive all these people? Did I give birth to them, that you would say to me, ‘Carry them at the breast, as a nurse carries an unweaned child,’ to the fertile land that you promised their ancestors? 13 Where am I to get meat for all these people? They are crying before me and saying, ‘Give us meat, so we can eat.’ 14 I can’t bear this people on my own. They’re too heavy for me. 15 If you’re going to treat me like this, please kill me. If I’ve found favor in your eyes, then don’t let me endure this wretched situation.”
16 The Lord said to Moses, “Gather before me seventy men from Israel’s elders, whom you know as elders and officers of the people. Take them to the meeting tent, and let them stand there with you. 17 Then I’ll descend and speak with you there. I’ll take some of the spirit that is on you and place it on them. Then they will carry the burden of the people with you so that you won’t bear it alone. 18 To the people you will say, ‘Make yourselves holy for tomorrow; then you will eat meat, for you’ve cried in the Lord’s hearing, “Who will give us meat to eat? It was better for us in Egypt.” The Lord will give you meat, and you will eat. 19 You won’t eat for just one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days, 20 but for a whole month until it comes out of your nostrils and nauseates you. You’ve rejected the Lord who’s been with you and you have cried before him, saying, “Why did we leave Egypt?” ’”
21 Moses said, “The people I’m with are six hundred thousand on foot and you’re saying, ‘I will give them meat, and they will eat for a month.’ 22 Can flocks and herds be found and slaughtered for them? Or can all the fish in the sea be found and caught for them?”
23 The Lord said to Moses, “Is the Lord’s power too weak? Now you will see whether my word will come true for you or not.”
24 So Moses went out and told the people the Lord’s words. He assembled seventy men from the people’s elders and placed them around the tent. 25 The Lord descended in a cloud, spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was on him and placed it on the seventy elders. When the spirit rested on them, they prophesied, but only this once. 26 Two men had remained in the camp, one named Eldad and the second named Medad, and the spirit rested on them. They were among those registered, but they hadn’t gone out to the tent, so they prophesied in the camp. 27 A young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”
28 Joshua, Nun’s son and Moses’ assistant since his youth, responded, “My master Moses, stop them!”
29 Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? If only all the Lord’s people were prophets with the Lord placing his spirit on them!”
Quail from the sea
30 Moses and Israel’s elders were assembled in the camp. 31 A wind from the Lord blew up and brought quails from the sea. It let them fall by the camp, about a day’s journey all around the camp and about three feet deep on the ground. 32 Then the people arose and gathered the quail all that day, all night, and all the next day. The least collected was ten homers,[b] and they laid them out around the camp. 33 While the meat was still between their teeth and not yet consumed, the Lord’s anger blazed against the people. The Lord struck the people with a very great punishment. 34 The name of that place was called Kibroth-hattaavah,[c] because there they buried the people who had the craving.
Miriam and Aaron challenge Moses
35 From Kibroth-hattaavah the people marched to Hazeroth.
Footnotes
- Numbers 11:3 Or the place of burning
- Numbers 11:32 Five hundred gallons; one homer is two hundred quarts.
- Numbers 11:34 Or graves of craving
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible