Numbers 11:1

This, and the next three chapters, deal with some of the numerous disaffections, rebellions, and murmurings of the children of Israel, not with any view of recording all that they did, but with the purpose of setting forth for the benefit of all people afterward several of their deeds as "examples" and for "the admonition" of those upon whom the ends of the ages have come (1 Corinthians 10:11). The account here gives the incident at Taberah (Numbers 11:1-3), the lusting for flesh (Numbers 11:4-9), Moses' appeal to God in desperation (Numbers 11:10-15), the appointment of seventy to aid Moses (Numbers 11:16-23), the endowment of the seventy (Numbers 11:24,25), the case of Eldad and Medad (Numbers 11:16-29), and the sending of the quails, ending in the plague upon Israel at Kibroth-hattaavah, where many of them were buried (Numbers 11:30-35).

"And the people were as murmurers, speaking evil in the ears of Jehovah: and when Jehovah heard it, his anger was kindled; and the fire of Jehovah burned among them, and devoured in the uttermost part of the camp. And the people cried unto Moses; and Moses prayed unto Jehovah, and the fire abated. And the name of the place was called Taberah, because the fire of Jehovah burnt among them."

"The people were as murmurers ..." (Numbers 11:1). There is hardly any other word that more effectively describes Israel during their wilderness sojourn than this one. The people appeared to be totally unwilling to accept any kind of inconvenience or hardship in order to achieve their liberty and independence, overlooking completely the fundamental truth that freedom, prosperity, and power simply cannot appear automatically as a bestowed privilege, but must be won by suffering, diligent work and faithfulness. The spirit that came out in this chapter finally resulted in God's rejection of that whole generation and His condemnation of them to death in the wilderness.

"And the fire of Jehovah burned among them ..." (Numbers 11:2). Speculations as to the possibility that this fire was the result of lightning or some other natural cause are futile. The event was of sufficient dimensions to warrant the naming of the place as Taberah in commemoration of it, and, without any doubt, it was a visitation of God upon rebellious men, however produced. This place was on the outskirts of the immense camp of Israel and pertains only to the place of the burning. This is not the name of one of the forty-two stations of Israel in the wilderness (Numbers 33).

Keil discerned the reason for this burning thus: "By thus demonstrating his power that was more than sufficient to destroy the murmurers, He sought to infuse into the whole nation a wholesome dread of His holy majesty."[1] Since this burning was an extremely local incident, "It must not be regarded as a different station from Kibroth-hattaavah."[2] Some, of course, have concocted all kinds of theories about "different sources," various "traditions," and "conflicting accounts" being "woven together" here; but again, as Keil said, "All such efforts are founded upon misinterpretations and arbitrary assumptions."[3] We might also add that such destructive allegations are grounded in a prior bias against the Bible. That Taberah was not a separate encampment is proved by its omission in Numbers 33, and by the fact there is no mention of leaving Taberah, an event covered in the statement that they left Kibroth-hattaavah, the true name of the whole area, of which Taberah was a very minor outpost. This encampment was the scene of two judgments against Israel, the minor one at Taberah, and the greater one in the matter of the quails; and the station deserved to be named from the greater event. As for where, exactly, this was, "The site is unknown."[4] "The name Taberah is from the Hebrew word, meaning to burn."[5]