The Complaints of the People

1And the people complained of adversity, and it displeased YHWH. For YHWH heard it, and His anger was kindled. And the fire of YHWH burned among them and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp. 2And the people cried out to Moses, and Moses prayed to YHWH, and the fire was quenched. 3And he called the name of that place Taberah,† because the fire of YHWH had burned among them.

4And the rabble who were among them had yielded to craving, and the sons of Israel also again wept and said, “Who will let us eat flesh? 5We remember the fish that we ate in Egypt freely, the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic. 6And our soul is dried up. There is nothing at all, except this manna unto our eyes.”

7And the manna was like coriander seed, and its eye was like the eye of of bdellium. 8The people went about and gathered it, and ground it on millstones, or beat it in the mortar, and cooked it in the pan, and made cakes of it. And its taste was like the taste of the pastry of oil. 9And in the descending of the dew on the camp by night, the manna fell on it.

The Complaint of Moses

10And Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, everyone at the door of his tent, and the anger of YHWH was kindled greatly; and in the eyes of Moses it was evil.

11And Moses said to YHWH, “Why have You afflicted Your servant? And why have I not found favor in Your eyes, that You have laid the burden of all this people on me? 12Did I conceive all this people? Or did I beget them, that You should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a guardian carries a nursing child,’ to the land that You swore to their fathers?

13From where to me is flesh to give to all this people? For they weep over me, saying, ‘Give us flesh, that we may eat.’

14I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me. 15And if You treat me like this, kill me, please, right now—if I have found favor in Your eyes—and do not let me see my wretchedness.”

Seventy Elders Anointed

16And YHWH said to Moses, “Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know that they are elders of the people and officers over them, and bring them to the Tent of Meeting, that they may stand there with you.

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

18And to the people you shall say, Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you⁺ shall eat flesh, for you⁺ have wept in the ears of YHWH, saying, ‘Who will let us eat flesh, for it was well with us in Egypt.’ And YHWH will give to you⁺ flesh, and you⁺ shall eat. 19You⁺ shall not eat one day, and not two days, and not five days, and not ten days, and not twenty days, 20but for a month of days, until that it comes out of your⁺ nostrils and becomes loathsome to you⁺, because that you⁺ have despised YHWH who is among you⁺ and have wept before His face, saying, ‘Why is this that we have come out of Egypt?’”

21And Moses said, “Are six hundred thousand men on foot, the people among whom I am, and You have said, ‘Flesh I will give them, that they may eat for a month of days.’ 22Shall flock and herd be slaughtered for them to provide enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them to provide enough for them?”

23And YHWH said to Moses, “Is the arm of YHWH too short? Now you shall see if My word will come to pass, or not.”

24And Moses went out and spoke to the people the words of YHWH, and he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tabernacle. 25And YHWH came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed it upon the seventy elders. And it came to pass, when the Spirit rested upon them, that they prophesied—and they never did again.

26And two men had remained in the camp—the name of one was Eldad and the name of the second Medad. And the Spirit rested upon them, and they were among those listed who had not gone out to the tabernacle, and they prophesied in the camp. 27And the young man ran and told Moses and said, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”

28And Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant from his youth, answered and said, “My lord Moses, restrain them.”

29And Moses said to him, “Are you zealous for my sake? If only he would make all people of YHWH prophets, and that YHWH would put His Spirit upon them.”

30And Moses returned to the camp, he and the elders of Israel.

The Quail and the Plague

31And a wind went out from YHWH, and it brought quail from the sea and left them near the camp, about a journey of a day on this side, and about a journey of a day on this side, all around the camp, and about two cubits above the surface of the ground.† 32And the people stayed up all that day, and all the night, and all the next day, and they gathered the quail. He who had least gathered ten homers.† And they spread them out for themselves all around the camp.

33The flesh was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, and the anger of YHWH was kindled against the people, and YHWH struck the people with a very great plague. 34And he called the name of that place Kibroth-hattaavah,† because there they buried the people who had craved.

35From Kibroth-hattaavah the people moved to Hazeroth, and camped at Hazeroth.