Numbers 11:13
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.’
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Moses's plea isn't just about logistics; it reveals his despair at feeling overwhelmed, almost as if the people's hunger for meat is a burden he has to solve, rather than an opportunity for God's provision. This highlights how easily we can focus on our own inability to meet a need, forgetting that the need itself can be a pathway for God's power to be displayed.
The Israelites, having recently been delivered from Egypt, are grumbling against God and Moses, dissatisfied with the manna provided and longing for the familiar foods of Egypt. This complaint escalates, leading to God’s anger and a fire that begins to consume the people. Moses, overwhelmed by the burden of leading such a discontented multitude and seeing the people's intense desire for meat, cries out to God in despair about his inability to provide for them.
It’s one thing to wish for something, but another to demand it, especially when you’re already blessed. Moses faces a crowd whose longing for meat turns into a cry against God. This isn't just about food; it's about the heart's posture.
From Want to War
The Israelites weren't just hungry; they were ungrateful. They remembered the
Manna was God’s daily provision, a miracle sustaining an entire nation in the desert. Yet, the people rejected it, crying out for what they remembered from Egypt. What does this tell us about how we view God’s gifts?
The Bitter Taste of Ungratefulness
God provided manna, a miraculous and sufficient food for the wilderness journey. The Israelites, however, fixated on the flavors of Egypt—fish, cucumbers, onions—and despised the divine sustenance.
This wasn't a neutral preference. Their craving was a rejection of God’s provision and a nostalgic longing for the very bondage they had escaped. It highlighted a deep spiritual dissatisfaction: they were looking back, not forward to the promised land, and their hearts weren't content with God's faithfulness.
Moses, in his despair, echoes their complaints by questioning the logistics of their demand. But the core issue wasn't a lack of meat; it was a lack of trust and thankfulness for the abundant provision they already had.
This event highlights the Israelites' deep dissatisfaction despite God's provision of manna. Their longing for meat, a symbol of their comfort in Egypt, reveals a spiritual immaturity and a failure to trust in God's ongoing care, leading to severe judgment.
c. 1446 BC
Israelites Depart Egypt
After 400 years of slavery, the Israelites, numbering over 600,000 men plus women and children, left Egypt under Moses' leadership, embarking on their journey to the Promised Land.
c. 1446 BC
Giving of Manna
In the wilderness of Sin, God began miraculously providing manna as daily food for the Israelites, a sustenance that would last for 40 years.
c. 1446 BC
Rebellion at Taberah
Some Israelites complained and rebelled against God, leading to divine judgment where fire consumed parts of the camp. Moses interceded, and the fire was quenched.
c. 1446 BC— this verse
The Mixed Multitude Lusts for Meat
A "mixed multitude" among the Israelites, and then the Israelites themselves, began to crave meat, remembering the food they had in Egypt and expressing discontent with the manna.
This Psalm recounts the Israelites' testing of God in the wilderness, specifically mentioning their lusting for meat and questioning God's ability to provide, mirroring the sentiment in Numbers 11:13.
1 Corinthians 10:6Paul warns the New Testament church against the same kind of discontent and lusting that led the Israelites astray in the wilderness, directly referencing the events described in Numbers 11.
Exodus 16:3Before the incident with the meat, the Israelites complained about a lack of food, expressing a desire to return to Egypt and its 'flesh-pots.' This shows a pattern of discontent with God's provision that predates Numbers 11.
Nehemiah 9:17This prayer of confession recalls God's provision of manna and His patience with the Israelites, implicitly contrasting it with their grumbling and rebellion, including their desire for meat.
ellicottNumbers 11:13: "Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people? for they weep unto me, saying, Give us flesh, that we may eat."
(13) Whence should I have flesh . . .?— Moses does not justify the murmuring of the people, and was doubtless conscious of their sinfulness. At the same time, he displays a spirit of discontent, and almost of despair, at God’s dealings with himself; and he appears to treat the demand of the Israelites. for flesh as one which was not altogether unreasonable.
gillNumbers 11:13: "Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people? for they weep unto me, saying, Give us flesh, that we may eat."
Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people?.... This seems to countenance the Israelites in their lusting after flesh, as if it was no evil in them, and as if it was but right they should have what they desired, though it was out of his power to give it them: for they weep unto me, saying, give us flesh, that we may eat; he seems to pity them, whe…
Moses's plea isn't just about logistics; it reveals his despair at feeling overwhelmed, almost as if the people's hunger for meat is a burden he has to solve, rather than an opportunity for God's provision. This highlights how easily we can focus on our own inability to meet a need, forgetting that the need itself can be a pathway for God's power to be displayed.
The Israelites, having recently been delivered from Egypt, are grumbling against God and Moses, dissatisfied with the manna provided and longing for the familiar foods of Egypt. This complaint escalates, leading to God’s anger and a fire that begins to consume the people. Moses, overwhelmed by the burden of leading such a discontented multitude and seeing the people's intense desire for meat, cries out to God in despair about his inability to provide for them.
The Israelites, having recently been delivered from Egypt, are grumbling against God and Moses, dissatisfied with the manna provided and longing for the familiar foods of Egypt. This complaint escalates, leading to God’s anger and a fire that begins to consume the people. Moses, overwhelmed by the burden of leading such a discontented multitude and seeing the people's intense desire for meat, cries out to God in despair about his inability to provide for them.
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c. 1446 BC
God Promises Quail
In response to the people's persistent cravings and Moses' despair, God promised to provide quail for them to eat for a month, but also warned of severe judgment.
c. 1446 BC
Quail Arrive and Judgment Falls
A strong wind brought vast numbers of quail, which the people gathered. However, as they began to eat, God's wrath was kindled, and a plague struck down many who had lustfully craved the meat.
c. 1446 BC
Kibroth-hattaavah Named
The place where the people buried those who had craved meat was named Kibroth-hattaavah, meaning 'graves of craving,' serving as a memorial to their sin and its consequence.
"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.’" — Moses's plea isn't just about logistics; it reveals his despair at feeling overwhelmed, almost as if the people's hunger for meat is a burden he has to solve, rather than an opportunity for God's pro…
