Numbers 11

¹Now the people were saying evil against the Lord; and the Lord, hearing it, was angry and sent fire on them, burning the outer parts of the tent-circle.

²And the people made an outcry to Moses, and Moses made prayer to the Lord, and the fire was stopped.

³So that place was named Taberah, because of the fire of the Lord which had been burning among them.

⁴And the mixed band of people who went with them were overcome by desire: and the children of Israel, weeping again, said, Who will give us flesh for our food?

⁵Sweet is the memory of the fish we had in Egypt for nothing, and the fruit and green plants of every sort, sharp and pleasing to the taste:

⁶But now our soul is wasted away; there is nothing at all: we have nothing but this manna before our eyes.

⁷Now the manna was like a seed of grain, like small clear drops.

⁸The people went about taking it up from the earth, crushing it between stones or hammering it to powder, and boiling it in pots, and they made cakes of it: its taste was like the taste of cakes cooked with oil.

⁹When the dew came down on the tents at night, the manna came down with it.

¹⁰And at the sound of the people weeping, every man at his tent-door, the wrath of the Lord was great, and Moses was very angry.

¹¹And Moses said to the Lord, Why have you done me this evil? and why have I not grace in your eyes, that you have put on me the care of all this people?

¹²Am I the father of all this people? have I given them birth, that you say to me, Take them in your arms, like a child at the breast, to the land which you gave by an oath to their fathers?

¹³Where am I to get flesh to give to all this people? For they are weeping to me and saying, Give us flesh for our food.

¹⁴I am not able by myself to take the weight of all this people, for it is more than my strength.

¹⁵If this is to be my fate, put me to death now in answer to my prayer, if I have grace in your eyes; and let me not see my shame.

¹⁶And the Lord said to Moses, Send for seventy of the responsible men of Israel, who are in your opinion men of weight and authority over the people; make them come to the Tent of meeting and be there with you.

¹⁷And I will come down and have talk with you there: and I will take some of the spirit which is on you and put it on them, and they will take part of the weight of the people off you, so that you do not have to take it by yourself.

¹⁸And say to the people, Make yourselves clean before tomorrow and you will have flesh for your food: for in the ears of the Lord you have been weeping and saying, Who will give us flesh for food? for we were well off in Egypt: and so the Lord will give you flesh, and it will be your food;

¹⁹Not for one day only, or even for five or ten or twenty days;

²⁰But every day for a month, till you are tired of it, turning from it in disgust: because you have gone against the Lord who is with you, and have been weeping before him saying, Why did we come out of Egypt?

²¹Then Moses said, The people, among whom I am, are six hundred thousand men on foot; and you have said, I will give them flesh to be their food for a month.

²²Are flocks and herds to be put to death for them? or are all the fish in the sea to be got together so that they may be full?

²³And the Lord said to Moses, Has the Lord's hand become short? Now you will see if my word comes true for you or not.

²⁴And Moses went out and gave the people the words of the Lord: and he took seventy of the responsible men of the people, placing them round the Tent.

²⁵Then the Lord came down in the cloud and had talk with him, and put on the seventy men some of the spirit which was on him: now when the spirit came to rest on them, they were like prophets, but only at that time.

²⁶But two men were still in the tent-circle one of them named Eldad and the other Medad: and the spirit came to rest on them; they were among those who had been sent for, but they had not gone out to the Tent: and the prophet's power came on them in the tent-circle.

²⁷And a young man went running to Moses and said, Eldad and Medad are acting as prophets in the tent-circle.

²⁸Then Joshua, the son of Nun, who had been Moses' servant from the time when he was a child, said, My lord Moses, let them be stopped.

²⁹And Moses said to him, Are you moved by envy on my account? If only all the Lord's people were prophets, and the Lord might put his spirit on them!

³⁰Then Moses, with the responsible men of Israel, went back to the tent-circle.

³¹Then the Lord sent a wind, driving little birds from the sea, so that they came down on the tents, and all round the tent-circle, about a day's journey on this side and on that, in masses about two cubits high over the face of the earth.

³²And all that day and all night and the day after, the people were taking up the birds; the smallest amount which anyone got was ten homers: and they put them out all round the tents.

³³But while the meat was still between their teeth, before it was tasted, the wrath of the Lord was moved against the people and he sent a great outburst of disease on them.

³⁴So that place was named Kibroth-hattaavah; because there they put in the earth the bodies of the people who had given way to their desires.

³⁵From Kibroth-hattaavah the people went on to Hazeroth; and there they put up their tents.

Numbers 11

¹The people were complaining in the ears of the Lord. When the Lord heard it, his anger was kindled; and the Lord's fire burnt among them, and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp.

²The people cried to Moses; and Moses prayed to the Lord, and the fire abated.

³The name of that place was called Taberah, because the Lord's fire burnt among them.

⁴The mixed multitude that was among them lusted exceedingly: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, "Who will give us flesh to eat?

⁵We remember the fish, which we ate in Egypt for nothing; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic;

⁶but now we have lost our appetite. There is nothing at all except this manna to look at."

⁷The manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like the appearance of bdellium.

⁸The people went around, gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in mortars, and boiled it in pots, and made cakes of it. Its taste was like the taste of fresh oil.

⁹When the dew fell on the camp in the night, the manna fell on it.

¹⁰Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, every man at the door of his tent; and the anger of the Lord was kindled greatly; and Moses was displeased.

¹¹Moses said to the Lord, "Why have you treated with your servant so badly? Why haven't I found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people on me?

¹²Have I conceived all this people? Have I brought them forth, that you should tell me, 'Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse carries a nursing infant, to the land which you swore to their fathers?'

¹³Where could I get meat to give to all this people? For they weep to me, saying, 'Give us meat, that we may eat.'

¹⁴I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me.

¹⁵If you treat me this way, please kill me right now, if I have found favor in your sight; and do not let me see my wretchedness."

¹⁶The 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; and bring them to the Tent of Meeting, that they may stand there with you.

¹⁷I will come down and talk with you there. I will take of the Spirit which is on you, and will put it on them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you not bear it yourself alone.

¹⁸"Say to the people, 'Sanctify yourselves against tomorrow, and you will eat flesh; for you have wept in the ears of the Lord, saying, "Who will give us flesh to eat? For it was well with us in Egypt." Therefore the Lord will give you flesh, and you will eat.

¹⁹You will not eat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days, nor twenty days,

²⁰but a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils, and it is loathsome to you; because that you have rejected the Lord who is among you, and have wept before him, saying, "Why did we come out of Egypt?"'"

²¹Moses said, "The people, among whom I am, are six hundred thousand men on foot; and you have said, 'I will give them flesh, that they may eat a whole month.'

²²Shall flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to be sufficient for them? Shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to be sufficient for them?"

²³The Lord said to Moses, "Has the Lord's hand grown short? Now you will see whether my word will happen to you or not."

²⁴Moses went out, and told the people the words of the Lord; and he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people, and set them around the Tent.

²⁵The Lord came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was on him, and put it on the seventy elders: and it happened that when the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied, but they did so no more.

²⁶But two men remained in the camp. The name of one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad: and the Spirit rested on them; and they were of those who were written, but had not gone out to the Tent; and they prophesied in the camp.

²⁷A young man ran, and told Moses, and said, "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp!"

²⁸Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of Moses, one of his chosen men, answered, "My lord Moses, forbid them!"

²⁹Moses said to him, "Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the Lord's people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!"

³⁰Moses went into the camp, he and the elders of Israel.

³¹A wind from the Lord went out and brought quails from the sea, and let them fall by 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 above the surface of the earth.

³²The people rose up all that day, and all the night, and all the next day, and gathered the quails. He who gathered least gathered ten homers; and they spread them all abroad for themselves around the camp.

³³While the flesh was yet between their teeth, before it was chewed, the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people, and the Lord struck the people with a very great plague.

³⁴The name of that place was called Kibroth Hattaavah, because there they buried the people who lusted.

³⁵From Kibroth Hattaavah the people traveled to Hazeroth; and they stayed at Hazeroth.