My family used to camp a lot when I was growing up. We loved being outdoors and sleeping in a tent. What we didn’t like so much was setting up camp and taking it down.

Dad liked to head for the mountains after work on Friday so we could wake up at our campsite the next morning. This meant the family was very tired and cranky as we put up the tent and puffed air into our air mattresses. It was hard not to argue and get on each other’s nerves.

When everything was set up, we slid into our sleeping bags and quickly dropped off to sleep.

Every day was an adventure after that – until we had to take our camp apart, pack up and go home. Then there was more arguing and complaining. Mom and Dad were very patient to take us camping so many times.

Trouble with the Rabble

Israel complained about camping, too, and God dealt with it by sending fire to burn along the outskirts of the camp. Stragglers hurried back into line and the crowd huddled together, but when the frightened people cried out, Moses prayed to the Lord and the fire died down. God had disciplined the complainers.

Numbers 11:4 refers to “the rabble” who complained about the food God provided. In other versions of the Bible they are called “foreign rabble” or a “mixed crowd,” probably foreign people who left Egypt with Israel. These trouble makers reminded their neighbors about the kinds of food they grew in their gardens back in Egypt, and the fish they used to eat, foods that were hard to find in the desert.

The good food they actually had everyday was manna. It had complete nutrition, was versatile, and arrived fresh every morning. J. Vernon McGee says that Mrs. Moses probably could have written a cookbook titled, “100 Delicious Ways to Prepare Manna.” But the people weren’t grateful for it.

The Lord became exceedingly angry with his complaining people and when Moses realized he was caught in the middle, he complained, too. Why did God put these difficult people in his care? How was he supposed to feed them?

“I cannot carry all these people by myself; the burden is too heavy for me. If this is how you are going to treat me, please go ahead and kill me – if I have found favor in your eyes – and do not let me face my own ruin.” Numbers 11:14-15

Seventy Leaders

God told Moses to inform the people that there would be meat the next day, so much meat it would last a month. Moses looked around and disagreed with God. He actually became a bit impertinent.

“Here I am among six hundred thousand men on foot, and you say, ‘I will give them meat to eat for a whole month!’ Would they have enough if flocks and herds were slaughtered for them? Would they have enough if all the fish in the sea were caught for them?” Numbers 11:21-22

God told Moses to pay attention and see what God could do. The next day Moses gathered seventy elders from among the tribes and had them stand around the tent of meeting. God came down in a cloud and spoke with Moses. Then he took some of the Spirit that was on Moses and shared it with the elders and they began to prophesy.

Two of the elders who didn’t come to the tent of meeting were found prophesying in the camp. Moses’s right hand man Joshua was alarmed and wanted to stop them, but Moses didn’t mind. He would have been happy if even more people in Israel experienced the power of the Holy Spirit.

So Much Quail

Just as he said, God sent a big wind that drove quail into the desert from the Mediterranean Sea. Quail still migrate in big numbers across northern Africa today, but they stay close to the sea. It was an act of God that carried them so far across the desert that the Israelites could catch and eat them.

But the rabble-rousers weren’t grateful to God for his provision. They greedily scooped up the quail and prepared the meat without giving thanks. God’s anger burned against them and he struck them with a severe plague. They buried the trouble makers in that place and named it Kibroth Hattaavah, the “graves of craving.”

Family Crisis

First Moses was caught between God and his unfaithful people, then his two closest allies, his brother and sister, turned against him.

Moses took a new Cushite wife; perhaps his first wife Zipporah had gone back home to her father. The new wife was east African and Aaron and Miriam didn’t like her so they discussed the situation with each other until they began to question why Moses was so important.

Moses was a remarkable man, so powerful in leading the nation, yet so humble he was unwilling to defend himself to his siblings. His humility was not weakness; it was strength under control. Moses left the defense of his reputation up to God.

And God listened. He called Aaron and Miriam to meet him at the entrance to the tabernacle.

“He said, “Listen to my words: ‘When there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord reveal myself to them in visions, I speak to them in dreams. But this is not true of my servant Moses; he is faithful in all my house. With him I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?’ The anger of the Lord burned against them, and he left them.” Numbers 12:6-9

When the cloud of the Lord’s presence lifted from the tabernacle Aaron noticed that his sister was covered with a defiling skin disease. He cried to Moses to forgive them for their foolishness and Moses called out to God, “Please, God heal her!” Numbers 12:13

God agreed to heal Miriam, but he gave her seven days outside the camp with other unclean people. All of Israel knew she was under God’s discipline because no one could travel until she was restored.

Why didn’t God strike Aaron? Aaron was the high priest and Israel needed him to remain in service at the tabernacle. Also, Aaron had quickly repented of his sin when he saw God’s discipline of Miriam.

Scouting Canaan

The Desert of Paran where Israel camped next put them very close to Canaan. In Deuteronomy 1:20-22 Moses recounted what happened next.

“Then I said to you, ‘You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the Lord our God is giving us. See, the Lord your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, told you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.’ Then all of you came to me and said, “Let us send men ahead to spy out the land for us and bring back a report about the route we are to take and the towns we will come to.”

God was ready to take Israel into the Promised Land, but they were afraid to go. They wanted to know what lay ahead for them, so God agreed to let a spy from each of the twelve tribes go into the land and report what they saw. They spent forty days exploring Canaan from one end to the other and came back with a glowing report about the goodness of the land.

They also reported that there were giants in the land, powerful people with large, fortified cities. Two of the spies, Joshua and Caleb, were confident that Israel could take possession of Canaan, but ten of the spies only talked about the giants. They felt like grasshoppers next to them.

Losing Sight of God

God’s people had every incentive to follow and obey him. They had the Law of Moses – and Moses himself – to remind them everyday how to behave. The tabernacle was the center of daily life, with the smoke from sacrifices rising from the altar morning and evening. They observed every Sabbath and every festival together as a nation.

God’s presence was visible at the tabernacle as a cloud each day and a pillar of fire each night. The tribes were camped near the tents of ordained priests who carried out their religious duties in front of them everyday.

Moses and Aaron regularly called the people together to hear what the Lord had to say to them. When Israel messed up, they heard from God right away and could learn from their mistakes.

Yet when it was time to go with God into the Promised Land, they hesitated and dragged their feet.

What is God asking you to do today? Do you need to start, stop, or change something in your life? Don’t miss your opportunity from God. Go where he leads you and do what he tells you to do because your Promised Land is waiting for you!