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¹ AND when the people complained, it displeased the LORD; and the LORD heard it, and his anger was kindled; and the fire of the LORD burned among them and consumed in the uttermost parts of the camp.² And the people cried to Moses; and Moses prayed to the LORD, and the fire was quenched.³ And he called the name of that place Yakdana (a burning), because the fire of the LORD burned among them.

⁴ And the mixed multitude that was among them had a strong craving; and they went about and caused the children of Israel to weep, saying, Who shall give us meat to eat?⁵ We remember the fish that we used to eat in Egypt freely, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic;⁶ But now our soul is dried up; there is nothing at all, besides this manna, before our eyes.⁷ And the manna was like coriander seed, and its color as the color of beryllium.⁸ And the people went about and gathered it and ground it in a mill or beat it in a mortar and baked it in pans and made cakes of it; and the taste of it was as the taste of bread kneaded with oil.⁹ And when the dew came down upon the camp in the night, the manna fell upon it.¹⁰ Then Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, every man in the door of his tent; and the anger of the LORD was kindled greatly; Moses also was displeased.¹¹ And Moses said to the LORD, My LORD, why hast thou caused displeasure to thy servant? And why have I not found favor in thy sight, that thou layest the burden of all this people upon me?¹² Have I conceived all this people? Or have I begotten them, that thou shouldest say to me, Carry them in your bosom, as a nursing father carries the suckling child, to the land which thou swearest to their fathers?¹³ Where can I find meat to give to all this people? For they weep protesting to me, saying, Give us meat, that we may eat.¹⁴ I am not able to bear all this people alone, because the burden is too heavy for me.¹⁵ And if thou deal thus with me, kill me right away, if I have found favor in thy sight; and let me not see my wretchedness.

¹⁶ And the LORD said to Moses, Gather to me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be chiefs of the people and its scribes; and bring them to the tabernacle of the congregation, that they may be ready there with you.¹⁷ And I will come down and talk with you there; and I will take some of the spirit which is upon you, and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone.¹⁸ And Moses said to the people, Sanctify yourselves for tomorrow and you shall eat meat: for you have wept before the LORD, saying, Who shall give us meat to eat? For it was well with us in Egypt; therefore the LORD will give you meat, and you shall eat.¹⁹ You shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days, nor twenty days;²⁰ But you shall eat it for a whole month, till it comes out of your nostrils and it become loathsome to you, because you have despised the LORD who is among you and have wept before him, saying, Why did we come forth out of Egypt?²¹ Then Moses said before the LORD, The people, among whom I am, are six hundred thousand footmen, and thou hast said, I will give them meat, that they may eat a whole month.²² Shall the flocks and the herds be slaughtered for them, to suffice them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be caught for them, to suffice them?²³ And the LORD said to Moses, The LORDS hand is full; now you shall see whether my word shall come true to you or not.

²⁴ And Moses went out and told the people the words of the LORD, and gathered the seventy men of the elders of the people, and made them stand round about the tabernacle.²⁵ And the LORD came down in a cloud and spoke to him, and took of the spirit that was upon him and gave it to the seventy elders; and it came to pass that, when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied, and then they ceased to complain.²⁶ But there remained two men in the camp, the name of the one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad; and the spirit rested upon them; and they were among those who were registered, but they went not out to the tabernacle; and they prophesied in the camp.²⁷ And there ran a young man, and told Moses, and said, Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.²⁸ And Joshua the son of Nun, who had ministered to Moses from his youth, answered and said, My lord Moses, forbid them.²⁹ But Moses said to him, Are you jealous for my sake? Would God that all the LORDS people were prophets, and that the LORD would put his spirit upon them!³⁰ Then Moses came into the camp, he and the elders of Israel.

³¹ And there went forth a wind from before the LORD, and brought quails from the sea, and let them fall by the camp, about a days journey on this side and about a days journey on the other side, round about the camp, and about two cubits high upon the face of the earth.³² And the people rose all that day and all that night and all the next day, and they gathered the quails; he that gathered least gathered ten homers; and they spread them out in the sun for themselves round about the camp.³³ And while the meat was yet between their teeth, before it was chewed, the wrath of the LORD was kindled against the people, and the LORD smote the people with a very great plague.³⁴ And he called the name of that place Kabrey di Rigta (the graves of craving); because it was there that they buried the people who craved meat.³⁵ And the people journeyed from Kabrey di Rigta to Hazeroth, and abode at Hazeroth.