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The story
of the people of Israel
during their journey from Egypt to the
promised land is studded with grumblings (or murmurings) against God and
against Moses and Aaron.
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At the
waters of Marah, since the waters were bitter, the Israelites “murmured
against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?” (Exodus 15:24).
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In the
wilderness of Sin “the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured
against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness: And the children of Israel said
unto them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of
Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full;
for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole
assembly with hunger” (Exodus 16:2-3).
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At
Rephidim the children of Israel murmured
against Moses, as it is written: “And all the congregation of the children of
Israel
journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys, according to the
commandment of the LORD, and pitched in Rephidim: and there was no water for
the people to drink. Wherefore the people did chide with Moses, and said,
Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said unto them, Why chide ye with
me? wherefore do ye tempt the LORD? And the people thirsted there for water;
and the people murmured against Moses, and said, Wherefore is this that thou
hast brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle
with thirst?” (Exodus 17:1-3).
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At Taberah
it came to pass that “when the people complained, it displeased the LORD: and
the LORD heard it; and his anger was kindled; and the fire of the LORD burnt
among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp” (Numbers
11:1).
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At Kibroth
Hattaavah “the children of Israel also wept
again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat? We remember the fish, which
we did eat in Egypt
freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the
garlick: But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this
manna, before our eyes” (Numbers 11:4-6).
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At Kadesh,
after ten of the twelve spies gave the children of Israel a bad
report of the land which they had spied out, “all the congregation lifted up
their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night. And all the children
of Israel
murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said
unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would
God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the LORD brought us
unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should
be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt? And they
said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt” (Numbers
14:1-4).
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On another
occasion the Israelites murmured because they did not have any food and water
and their soul loathed the bread God gave to them (called Manna) and for this
reason God sent fiery serpents among them, and they bit the people; and many
of the people of Israel died (Numbers 21:4-6).
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All these
things happened to them as examples, for Paul says: “Neither murmur ye, as
some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer” (1 Corinthians
10:10).
James confirms that we must not murmur, saying: “Do not grumble against one
another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at
the door!” (James 5:9 - NKJV). Therefore, we must not grumble against God nor
against our brothers, beloved, lest we be punished by God. On the contrary,
we must be patient in the midst of our sufferings (James 5:7), as James says,
and we must take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an
example of suffering and patience (James 5:10), as well as Job who was
patient in the midst of his trials (James 5:11).
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