This week there are so many clues as to what causes us to fall. In Numbers 11 we read about how Israel complained over and over again. Their complaining is the catalyst that caused them to spend 40 years in the wilderness. Side note the original name of Numbers before the translators renamed it is Bamidbar, which means in the wilderness. Numbers takes place from year 2 in the wilderness to the end of year 39.
In Numbers 11 the people complain about the hardships and fire breaks out and some people die. Moses prays and the fire ends. The next verse the FOREIGN RABBLE begins to crave things from their past.
Numbers 11:5-6
““We remember the fish we used to eat for free in Egypt. And we had all the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic we wanted. But now our appetites are gone. All we ever see is this manna!””
The people have been eating the manna almost 1 year. They were not satisfied by it, so they would manipulate it and turn it into something else.
Numbers 11:8
“The people would go out and gather it from the ground. They made flour by grinding it with hand mills or pounding it in mortars. Then they boiled it in a pot and made it into flat cakes. These cakes tasted like pastries baked with olive oil.”
God gave them the food Angels ate. It was perfect and did not need to be. Modified, cooked or manipulated in any way. God gave them perfect food from above and they desires imperfect food from below. They desired control over their food source. They were showing contempt for not being in 100% control over they stomachs. This is the same sin that caused the fall of man in the garden.
Moses then complains himself to God about the people. God tells him to get 70 men that are considered leaders and they will help Moses carry the load of the people. God said He was going to take some of the Spirit rested on him and put it on the 70 leaders. They all prophesied afterwards but never did it again after that day. They never tapped into the Spirit God gave them. If they would have used this gift God gave them Israel may have made it to the Promised Land instead of spending 40 years in the desert.
God then tells Moses that the Israelites will have meat to eat for the next 30 days. They will have so much meat they will get sick of it. Moses doesn’t have faith for this miracle. He questions God saying if they slaughtered every animal they have it wouldn’t be enough. Even if God emptied all the fish in the sea would it be enough. Here is God’s response.
Numbers 11:23
“Then the Lord said to Moses, “Has my arm lost its power? Now you will see whether or not my word comes true!””
The next day a wind came and quail appeared. There was so much quail that they traveled 1 days journey in all directions. They collected the quail for 2 days. The person who collected the least collected 10 Homers. Now let’s do a little math. The only numbers we have to work with is 600,000 men of war and 10 Homers. A Homer weighs 475 pounds. That means that each person caught at least 1900 quails. If we just take the men of war and multiply 1900 quail we get a minimum of 1.14 Billion quail. We know that there were over 2 million people in the wilderness. So let’s say that the men of war equal 25% of the population. That means there are 2.4 million people in the wilderness. So if we divide 1.14 billion by 2.4 million. That means each person had a minimum of 475 birds to eat over 30 days. That means each person would have to eat 16 birds a day.
The Israelite let outsiders influence them to look back Egypt. They reminded them of the good times in Egypt. The FOREIGN RABBLE are today’s influencers. It is the news, media, social media, and so called friends. They remind us of Egypt. Egypt is the you world which has all the delicacies our flesh desires. We cannot allow anything to make us look backwards. They were looking back to Egypt for fish, cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic. Now let’s replace these with what the world says it has to offer. The world offers money, fame, power, influence, security, and purpose. Egypt gives temporary peace and happiness. It turns to pain. Don’t let anyone lead you back to the world. If you do you will end up in the wilderness longer than you should.
