Complaints and Fire

1 But the people were stirring up evil before the Lord; and it was heard before the Lord, and His anger burned, and a fire was kindled against them from before the Lord, and it consumed the outskirts of the camp. 2 And the people cried to Moses, and Moses prayed before the Lord, and the fire was extinguished. 3 And Moses called the name of that place Taberah; because the fire had been kindled against them from before the Lord.

The People Demand Meat

4 And the mixed multitude who were among them made urgent demands; and the children of Israel also turned, and wept, and said: Who will feed us with meat? 5 We remember the fish which we ate in Egypt for free, the cucumbers and melons, the leeks and onions and garlic. 6 But now we long for food, yet there is nothing before our eyes but manna. 7 Now the manna was like the seed of coriander, and its appearance was like bdellium. 8 And the people went about and gathered; and some ground it in mills and others beat it in mortars, and they cooked it in a pot, and made cakes of it, and its taste was like the taste of a cake made with oil. 9 And when the dew came down upon the camp at night, the manna descended upon it. 10 And Moses heard the people weeping with their families, each man at the door of his tent. And the displeasure of the Lord grew very strong, and Moses was troubled by it. 11 And Moses said before the Lord, Why have You treated Your servant so badly, and why have I not found mercy before You, that You have put the burden of all this people upon me? 12 Am I father to all this people, or are they my children, that You have said to me, Carry them in your arms, as a nurse carries a nursing child, to the land which You have promised to their fathers? 13 Where can I get meat to give to all this people? for they weep to me, saying: Give us meat to eat. 14 I am not able to carry all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me. 15 And if You treat me this way, kill me, please, if I have found mercy before You, so that I may not see my misery.⁠a

The Seventy Elders

16 And the Lord said to Moses, Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be elders of the people, and their officers, and bring them to the Tent of Meeting, and let them stand there with you; 17 and I will reveal Myself, and will speak with you there; and I will extend the Spirit that is on you to them, so that they may share with you the burden of the people, and you will not have to carry it alone. 18 And say to the people, Prepare yourselves for the next day, and you shall eat meat; because you have lamented before the Lord, saying: Who will give us meat, to eat? for we were better off in Egypt; and I will give you meat, and you shall eat. 19 You shall not eat it for one day, nor two days, nor five days, nor ten days, nor twenty days; 20 but for a whole month, until you loathe it, and it becomes repulsive to you; because you have rejected the Memra of the Lord, whose Shekinah dwells among you; and before whom you have wept, saying: Why did we come out of Egypt? 21 But Moses said, The people among whom I am are 600,000 men on foot; and You have said, I will give them meat to eat for a whole month. 22 Shall the oxen and sheep be slaughtered for them, to satisfy them, or all the fish of the sea be gathered so that they may be satisfied? 23 And the Lord said to Moses: Is the Memra of the Lord limited? Now you shall see whether My word comes true for you or not. 24 And Moses went out, and told the people the words of the Lord, and gathered together seventy men of the elders of the people, and set them around the tabernacle. 25 And the Lord was revealed in the Cloud, and spoke with him, and He extended the Spirit that was on him to the seventy elders; and when the Spirit of prophecy rested upon them they prophesied,⁠b and did not stop. 26 But two men remained in the camp, the name of the one Eldad, and the name of the second Medad; and the Spirit of prophecy rested upon them; and, though they were listed among the elders, they had not come out of the camp; but they prophesied in the camp. 27 And a young man ran, and reported to Moses, and said: Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp. 28 And Joshua son of Nun, the assistant of Moses from his youth, answered and said, Ribboni Moses, restrain them. 29 But Moses said, Are you jealous for my sake? I wish all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would place the Spirit of prophecy on them. 30 And Moses returned to the camp, he and the elders of Israel.

The Quail and the Plague

31 And the wind came from before the Lord, and the quails flew in from the sea, and it brought them over the camp for a day's journey here, and a day's journey there, around the camp, and at a height of two cubits above the ground. 32 And the people were up all that day, and all the night, and all the day after it, and collected the quails; he who collected least gathered ten heaps; and they spread them out around the camp. 33 While the meat was still was between their teeth, and they had not yet finished, the Lord's anger burned against the people, and the Lord inflicted death among the people with a severe plague. 34 And he called the name of that place, Kibroth-hattaavah; because there they buried the people who demanded. 35 From Kibroth-hattaavah the people journeyed to Hazeroth, and they were in Hazeroth.