Read Numbers 11 at Bible Gateway.
Today’s story builds like a quiet crescendo to its beating heart:
In that beating heart we hear Moses’ piercing question: ‘What will be sufficient for them? What will be enough for them?’ God had been faithfully sending them bread from heaven, yet the children of Israel were not satisfied, and cried for something more. And from that dissatisfaction, complaints poured forth like water from a broken cistern.
Why This Matters. ‘… Feeling or manifesting satisfaction with one’s possessions, status, or situation’ is the dictionary definition of contentment. But satisfaction is not about our circumstances at all; it’s solely a choice of mind and heart. Interestingly, ‘contentment’ and ‘contention’ share an ancient root, standing as spiritual opposites. Those who are content are satisfied with the content of their life, while those who are contentious are not, and always have complaints. When we realize God is good who gives good gifts, even in our own wilderness, then joy has room to grow!
Teaching Tools. Chiastic Structure; Learning from the Narrative
Numbers 11 Hebrew paragraphs.
11:1-15 {p} Complaint against YHVH: intense craving for meat
11:16-22 {p} YHVH will give them meat for 30 days until they are sick of it
11:23-35 {p} The 70 elders commissioned / quail / graves of craving
If there are questions, this is a good resource:
Keys to Contentment, part one, part two, part three, and part four – Christine Miller
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