Brian Maloy

Context from Numbers 9 to 11

Last week we studied Chapter 9 of Numbers, and we wrestled with several ideas. We looked at the assurance of God’s presence (which the Hebrews had in physical cloud and fire form dwelling over their Tabernacle). We also delved into the idea of “unwanted waiting”, which no one particularly enjoys or looks forward to. And then we landed on the idea of obedience, and how vitally important it is to follow the lead of the Lord, regardless of circumstances. 

So between that moment last week, which was the 1st Month, of their 2nd Year out of Egypt, we finally have the people ready to leave. Silver Trumpets are formed, and purpose for communication is given, and in God’s People set out toward the Holy Land in the 2nd Month (Num. 10:11-13), for the first time. 

Chapter 10 ends with the Hebrews moving three days, they’ve carried the Ark of the Covenant in front of them, to symbolize God’s guidance and presence. Then literally, the first verse of Chapter 11… it falls apart. Read it…

Numbers 11:1 (CSB Strong’s)
“Now the people began complaining openly before the LORD about hardship. When the LORD heard, his anger burned, and fire from the LORD blazed among them and consumed the outskirts of the camp.”

How sad. They have been in the wilderness for a little over a year, they are experiencing freedom like never before, learning to walk in the rhythms of God, and being formed and fashioned as God’s Holy, set apart people — and already… they complain. Yikes.
That’s where our passage today finds us, right smack on Chapter 11 — and God’s Chosen People, the Hebrews — complain. 

Of course it’s easy to judge, how foolish. But… lest we forget, the story of the Hebrews, is also our own. 

Handling Frustrations

Since we are here in Chapter 11 now, let’s think — we may not exactly be in a desert, wandering, unsure of the future. BUT, we’ve all been there in one way or another. More so, we have all lived with uncertainty and frustration. 

SO — Can you think of when your frustration made it hard to see the good that was already present? What helped shift your perspective?

I know I can! I’ve had roommates over the years that were hard to live with, I’ve had hard jobs that I felt I wasn’t thriving, I’ve taken on responsibilities that were far beyond my abilities, I step into the gap at times, and unknowingly put myself in the line of fire. It happens. It happens to us all at some point (others more often perhaps)!

But all of those situations, God was working. In the waiting, in the longing, in the frustration, in the confusion — God WAS working. He was growing, stretching, and preparing me for what He had next. The Hebrews are no different — sadly, their reactions are not unlike our own at times.

Overlooked Blessings

Not only are our reactions to disappointments, frustrations, and misunderstanding at times very poor, but think about how often we take things for granted. Maybe we are blind to even what we take for granted. BUT, I know when I am stuck outside at a kiddo soccer game, I am enormously thankful for ice, for cold water, for A/C, for ceiling fans!

There is so much that is easy to take for granted in our amazing world. Sadly, that translates over to our spiritual life too. Consider what blessings from God we tend to overlook? 

I thought about this for a while, while the ordinary everyday blessings are the ones I fail to appreciate, there are some that come quickly to mind that I love to pause, reflect on, and smile — knowing the Lord is Good.

• A reliable car to crank up and go to work easily.
• Enough money to pay the bills, even when they are too much.
• The way the smoke rises on the water early in the mornings over the Meramec in Valley Park by the train bridge.
• Little kids who wear me out, but really love to be together & adventure.
• I used to LOVE walking down the hallway at the old house, it had creaky floors, and I loved how my chair and lamp, with my Pendleton laying over the top, and many of my favorite books in the glass shelf. It always made me smile and thankful for our home.
• How much wildlife lives around the Tower House, and the sunsets are AMAZING out here.
• That I have a school to teach at where I know I am called — and my work matters, regardless of how I feel each day.
• Having a desire for the things of God, is a blessing — one we can forget.
• Being tall even!

I could go on needlessly, but I remember asking God long ago to help me be grateful, and notice the small things — and looking back, I can see how He did that now. It’s a blessing. And here God was blessing his people in a big way, but in small provision each day.

Building Trust

Before we move on — think about the Manna — what does that provision from Yahweh reveal about His character?

1. He is faithful in the wilderness. I mean, He is not calling His people into this, without providing and remaining with them. Even when we are emotionally reactive and immature, He is faithful.
2. He provides DAILY. This should bring up scripture to mind, for me — the Lord’s Prayer (give us our daily bread), and when Jesus talked about the Father’s care and grace to provide for his creation (Mt. 6:26, 6:33). Goodness, even His mercies are new every morning (Lam. 3:22-23)!
3. He invites trust — He deeply desires His people to trust, not hoard. He wants to provide daily for them, just enough, so that they learn to trust and obey. It’s training them in dependence. 
4. Foreshadowing Jesus in a simple (but vitally necessary) provision for His people. Jesus was the true bread from heaven. “Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. I am the living bread that came down from heaven…” (John 6:49–51)

Displeasure of God

Look close here in Verse 10, God is frustrated, angry we read (both in Numbers 11:1 & 10). That’s odd, right? Well maybe not. 

I pondered this for a bit, there is surely more depth — BUT, look back at where this began. It was with outsiders, folks who had come along with the Hebrews when they left Egypt likely. So their complaints started this spiral here, and God’s people chose to be influenced negatively by the culture they allowed — and it turned into a major problem. By Num. 11:10, the Hebrews also are ALL weeping in their misery. Wow. 

So here are some issues I see:

• Numbers 11:4 introduces the “mixed multitude” (Hebrew: ha’asafsuf): non-Israelites who joined the Exodus, likely moved by the signs and wonders in Egypt.
• Their cravings weren’t just for meat, they represented a nostalgia for Egypt, a longing for the comforts of bondage over the discipline of freedom.
• The Israelites didn’t just hear their complaints, they absorbed their desires, and that cultural contagion spread like wildfire.
• This moment reveals how spiritual identity can be diluted when God’s people allow external voices to shape internal values.
• The Israelites had manna — daily, miraculous provision — but they began to see it as insufficient because someone else said so.
• It’s a cautionary tale: who we allow to shape our appetites will eventually shape our worship.

But wait… there is more… 

• By Numbers 11:10, the entire camp is weeping — not just the rabble, but every family at the entrance of their tent.
• Moses is overwhelmed, and God’s anger is “exceedingly kindled.” The community has lost its spiritual center.

So what do we do with this?

We need to honestly take a look in the mirror — and ask the Spirit to help us. 

• What voices are shaping our desires?
• Are we cultivating gratitude or feeding discontent?
• Do we recognize when our spiritual hunger is being hijacked by cultural cravings?

In the end, this is NOT about blaming outsiders (reminder back to Adam blaming God for giving him Eve, Gen. 3:12), this isn’t just about being tempted (Jesus too was tempted in the wilderness, Mt. 4:1-11) — it’s about how much God hates our sin. Are we willing to run from that sin, and run to the Father? Are we willing to cast off the temptations of this world to obey and pursue holiness with the help of He who made us?

What To Do With Defeat

Fast forward to Num. 11:15 — Moses is truly experiencing defeat. 
“If you are going to treat me like this, please kill me right now if I have found favor with you, and don’t let me see my misery anymore.”

We can see, and hopefully empathize with Moses’ self-pity. But… we have to see ourselves there too. We also have moments of defeat, self-pity, or sarcastic frustration. So we must wrestle with this very revealing question — vulnerably:

How do we handle frustration, along with the feeling of defeat?

I hate to say, the way you answer that — and only you and the Holy Spirit truly know your heart — but the way you truly respond in these moments serves as a mirror, or a spiritual barometer of the places in our life in need of refining. Unfortunately, I don’t think most of us slow down to consider it — we look for ways to justify, defend ourselves, or worse –> place blame on others for not “understanding us”. Woof, it takes many forms, but we must learn to listen to our lives (Buechner book reference), and we must ask the Holy Spirit to help us see. And honestly deal with the ugly we find. 

Wrap Up

In the end of this passage — I think we have to ask:

Where do you see yourself in this story: grumbling, overwhelmed, or trusting? What might God be inviting you to shift? Where are the places you’re most prone to struggle?

How can we help each other stay grateful and grounded when the world around us is restless and dissatisfied? What does that even look like in Kingdom Community? Are we comfortable with what that would take?

My prayer is we courageously ask those questions, and don’t fear the answers — but see the need to humble our hearts, pursue contentment, and learn to daily trust the Lord more quickly and completely.