Study Desk

Moses said to his brother-in-law Hobab son of Jethro the Midianite, "We are about to start out for the place which the Lord said he would give us. He has promised to make Israel prosperous, so come with us, and we will share our prosperity with you."

When the people left Sinai, the holy mountain, they traveled three days. The Lord 's Covenant Box always went ahead of them to find a place for them to camp.

The people cried out to Moses for help; he prayed to the Lord , and the fire died down.

There were foreigners traveling with the Israelites. They had a strong craving for meat, and even the Israelites themselves began to complain: "If only we could have some meat!

and he said to the Lord , "Why have you treated me so badly? Why are you displeased with me? Why have you given me the responsibility for all these people?

Where could I get enough meat for all these people? They keep whining and asking for meat.

I can't be responsible for all these people by myself; it's too much for me!

I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take some of the spirit I have given you and give it to them. Then they can help you bear the responsibility for these people, and you will not have to bear it alone.

Now tell the people, ‘Purify yourselves for tomorrow; you will have meat to eat. The Lord has heard you whining and saying that you wished you had some meat and that you were better off in Egypt. Now the Lord will give you meat, and you will have to eat it.

You will have to eat it not just for one or two days, or five, or ten, or even twenty days,

but for a whole month, until it comes out of your ears, until you are sick of it. This will happen because you have rejected the Lord who is here among you and have complained to him that you should never have left Egypt.'"

Moses said to the Lord , "Here I am leading 600,000 people, and you say that you will give them enough meat for a month?

Could enough cattle and sheep be killed to satisfy them? Are all the fish in the sea enough for them?"

Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him. He took some of the spirit he had given to Moses and gave it to the seventy leaders. When the spirit came on them, they began to shout like prophets, but not for long.

Suddenly the Lord sent a wind that brought quails from the sea, flying three feet above the ground. They settled on the camp and all around it for miles and miles in every direction.

While there was still plenty of meat for them to eat, the Lord became angry with the people and caused an epidemic to break out among them.

Moses had married a Cushite woman, and Miriam and Aaron criticized him for it.

he said to Moses, "Please, sir, do not make us suffer this punishment for our foolish sin.

The Lord answered, "If her father had spit in her face, she would have to bear her disgrace for seven days. So let her be shut out of the camp for a week, and after that she can be brought back in."

Miriam was shut out of the camp for seven days, and the people did not move on until she was brought back in.