Old Testament Commentary - Numbers 11

by Don R. Hender

Scriptural Text [& Editorial]	Commentary & Explanation	Footnotes ~ References ~ JST
CHAPTER 11 Fire from the Lord consumes rebels in Israel—Israel murmurs and lusts for flesh instead of manna—Moses complains that he cannot bear the burden alone—He is commanded to choose seventy elders to assist him—The Lord promises flesh until Israel is surfeited therewith—The seventy elders chosen; they prophesy; the Lord comes down; Eldad and Medad prophesy in the camp—Israel surfeited with quail—They lust, a great plague follows, and many die.		*'Would God that all the LORD's people were pophets, and that the LORD would put his spirit upon them!'*
1 AND when the people ^acomplained, it displeased the LORD: and the LORD heard it; and his anger was kindled; and the ^bfire of the LORD burnt among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp. 2 And the people cried unto Moses; and when Moses prayed unto the LORD, the fire was quenched. 3 And he called the name of the place Taberah: because the fire of the LORD burnt among them.		1^a Deut. 9:22; 1 Ne. 16:22; 1 Ne. 17:2; D&C 75:7 (7-8); ^b Deut. 32:22; Ps. 78:21; 1 Ne. 15:30; 2 Ne. 26:6; D&C 35:14; D&C 128:24; D&C 7:34
4 ¶ And the mixt multitude that was among them fell a ^alusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat? 5 We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick: 6 But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.		4^a TG Lust
7 And the ^amanna was as ^bcoriander seed, and the colour thereof as the colour of bdellium. 8 And the people went about, and gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it: and the taste of it was as the taste of fresh oil. 9 And when the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell ^aupon it.		7^a Ex. 16:35; 1 Ne. 17:28 (15-43); Mosiah 7:19 ^b Ex. 16:31 9^a OR with it
10 ¶ Then Moses heard the people weep throughout their families, every man in the door of his tent: and the anger of the LORD was kindled greatly; Moses also was displeased. 11 And Moses said unto the LORD, Wherefore hast thou afflicted thy servant? and wherefore have I not found favour in thy sight, that thou layest the burden of all this people upon me? 12 Have I conceived all this people? have I begotten them, that thou shouldest say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father beareth the sucking child, unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers?
13 Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people? for they weep unto me, saying, Give us flesh, that we may eat. 14 I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too ^aheavy for me. 15 And if thou deal thus with me, kill me, I pray thee, ^aout of hand, if I have found favour in thy sight; and let me not see my wretchedness.
16 ¶ And the LORD said unto Moses, Gather unto me ^aseventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and ^bofficers over them; and bring them unto the ^ctabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there with thee. 17 And I will come down and talk with thee there: and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them; and they shall ^abear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone.
18 And say thou unto the people, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow, and ye shall eat flesh: for ye have wept in the ears of the LORD, saying, Who shall give us flesh to eat? for it was well with us in Egypt: therefore the LORD will give you flesh, and ye shall eat. 19 Ye shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days, nor twenty days; 20 But even a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils, and it be loathsome unto you: because that ye have despised the LORD which is among you, and have wept before him, saying, Why came we forth out of Egypt?
21 And Moses said, The people, among whom I am, are six hundred thousand footmen; and thou hast said, I will give them flesh, that they may eat a whole month. 22 Shall the flocks and the herds be slain for them, to suffice them? or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to suffice them? 23 And the LORD said unto Moses, Is the LORD's hand waxed short? thou shalt see now whether my word shall come to pass unto thee or not.
24 ¶ And Moses went out, and told the people the words of the LORD, and gathered the ^aseventy men of the elders of the people, and set them round about the tabernacle. 25 And the LORD came down in a ^acloud, and spake unto him, and took of the spirit that was upon him, and gave it unto the seventy ^belders: and it came to pass, that, when the spirit rested upon them, they ^cprophesied, and did not cease.
26 But there remained two of the men in the camp, the name of the one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad: and the spirit rested upon them; and they were of them that were written, but went not out unto the tabernacle: and they prophesied in the camp. 27 And there ran a young man, and told Moses, and said, Eldad and Medad do prophesy in the camp. 28 And ^aJoshua the son of ^bNun, the servant of Moses, one of his young men, answered and said, My lord Moses, forbid them. 29 And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake?^a would God that all the LORD's people were ^bprophets^b, and that the LORD would put his spirit upon them! 30 And Moses gat him into the camp, he and the elders of Israel.	29^a Enviest thou for my sake? Unlike the selfish envy of Mariam and Aaron, that they would take from Moses a part of the 'glory' of being the Lord's Prophet, Joshua's concern was not to himself but he was concerned in Moses' behalf that the authortiy of the prophet was to be maintained by Moses. But the postion of priesthood authority never is one of 'glory' and 'dominion' but one of serve and in the spirit of God, which spirit God would and does place upon all who are worthy properly appointed unto God. 29^b would God that all the LORD's people were prophets Moses, nor does any true prophet of God, seek for the glory of being God's prophet. Their desire is unto the righteousness of the people and the purposes and glory of God which is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. To this end all must be raised to the level of being so endowed with the Spirit that they are in effect 'prophets' of God. The people of King Benjamin state it this way, "And we, ourselves, also, through the infinite goodness of God, and the manifestations of his Spirit, have great views of that which is to come; and were it expedient, we could prophesy of all things." (Mosiah 5:3). And thus is the spirit of revelation, that it is available to all who are worthy before the Lord to receive it. And it is this Spirit, the Holy Ghost, which is to the constant companion of all who are Christs and all such are to live by the spirit and in effect be their own guiding 'prophet' unto life eternal.	14^a Zechariah 10:7 (6-12); D&C 109:60-61; D&C 133:34; TG Israel, Joseph, People of ^b Septuagint; crosing his hands
31 ¶ And there went forth a wind from the LORD, and brought ^aquails from the sea, and let them fall by the camp, as it were a day's journey on this side, and as it were a day's journey on the other side, round about the camp, and as it were two cubits high upon the face of the earth. 32 And the people stood up all that day, and all that night, and all the next day, and they gathered the quails: he that gathered least gathered ten homers: and they spread them all abroad for themselves round about the camp. 33 And while the flesh was yet between their teeth, ere it was chewed, the wrath of the LORD was kindled against the people, and the LORD smote the people with a very great ^aplague.
34 And he called the name of that place ^aKibroth-hattaavah: because there they buried the people that ^blusted. 35 And the people journeyed from Kibroth-hattaavah unto Hazeroth; and abode at Hazeroth.