Flesh Foods
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God had provided for them. Their depraved appetites craved a greater
variety, especially flesh-meats.
This murmuring soon infected nearly the whole body of the people.
At first, God did not gratify their lustful appetites, but caused His
judgments to come upon them, and consumed the most guilty by
lightning from Heaven. Yet this, instead of humbling, only seemed to
increase their murmurings. When Moses heard the people weeping in
the doors of their tents, and complaining throughout their families, he
was displeased. He presented before the Lord the difficulties of his
situation, and the unsubmissive spirit of the Israelites, and the position
in which God had placed him to the people, that of a nursing father,
who should make the sufferings of the people his own. He inquired of
the Lord how he could bear this great burden of continually witnessing
the disobedience of Israel, and hearing their murmurings against his
commands, and against God Himself. He declared before the Lord
that he had rather die than see Israel, by their perverseness, drawing
down judgments upon themselves, while the enemies of God were
rejoicing in their destruction. In his distress he said, “I am not able to
bear all this responsibility alone, because it is too heavy for me.”
The Lord directed Moses to gather before him seventy of the elders,
whom he knew to be the elders of the people. They were not to be
those only in advanced years, but men of dignity, sound judgment, and
experience, who were qualified to be judges, or officers. “And bring
them unto the tabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there
with thee. And I will come down and talk with thee there; and I will
take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them, and
they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it
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not thyself alone. And say thou unto the people, ‘Sanctify yourselves
against tomorrow, and ye shall eat flesh’; for ye have wept in the ears
of the Lord, saying, ‘Who shall give us flesh to eat? for it was well with
us in Egypt’; therefore, the Lord will give you flesh, and ye shall eat.
Ye shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days,
nor twenty days; but even a whole month, until it come out at your
nostrils, and it be loathsome unto you; because that ye have despised
the Lord which is among you, and have wept before Him, saying ‘Why
came we forth out of Egypt’? And Moses said, ‘The people among
whom I am, are six hundred thousand footmen; and thou hast said,
“I will give them flesh, that they may eat a whole month.” Shall the