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238
The Beginning of the End
well as the great; you shall not be afraid in any man’s presence, for
the judgment is God’s” (
Deuteronomy 1:16, 17
).
“Then the Lord came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and
took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the
seventy elders: and ... they prophesied, although they never did so
again.” Like the disciples on the Day of Pentecost, they were filled
with “power from on high.” The Lord wished to honor them in the
presence of the congregation, to establish confidence in them.
A strong wind blowing from the sea now brought flocks of quails,
“about a day’s journey on this side and about a day’s journey on
the other side, all around the camp, and about two cubits above the
surface of the ground.”
All that day and night and the following day, the people worked
to gather the food miraculously provided. Immense quantities were
secured. All that they did not need for present use they preserved by
drying, so that the supply, as promised, was sufficient for a whole
month.
God gave the people what was not for their best good because
they persisted in wanting it, but they were left to suffer the result.
They feasted without restraint, and their gluttony was quickly pun-
ished. “The Lord struck the people with a very great plague.” The
most guilty among them were stricken as soon as they tasted the
food for which they had lusted.
At Hazeroth, the next place they camped after leaving Taberah,
a still more bitter trial happened to Moses. Aaron and Miriam had
held a position of high honor and leadership in Israel. Both had been
connected with Moses in the deliverance of the Hebrews. Miriam,
who was richly endowed with gifts of poetry and music, had led the
women of Israel in song and dance on the shore of the Red Sea. In
the hearts of the people and the honor of Heaven she stood second
only to Moses and Aaron.
But in the appointment of the seventy elders, Moses had not
consulted Miriam and Aaron, and they became jealous. They felt
that their position and authority had been ignored. They thought of
themselves as sharing the burden of leadership equally with Moses,
and they did not see any need to appoint more assistants.
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