Last time we talked about how the Israelites were so excited to eat meat that God gave the spirit of Moses to the 70 elders. Everything is ready, all we need is the east wind.
Sure enough, the east wind came.
There are many, many, many quails blowing from the Red Sea, located east of the Sinai Peninsula.
How many? The quails surrounded the camp on all sides, and they were so dark that they hovered 1 meter above the ground. How large is the area? A day's journey outside the camp in all directions is covered with quail. In the wilderness, even a person can walk about 20 kilometers a day. Let’s ignore how big the camp for 2 million people is. If we just count a dot with a radius of 20 kilometers, that’s more than 1,200 square kilometers!
The person said that quail is not a hummingbird or a drone. Can that thing hover?
Indeed, the biblical description is of quail scattered in the camp... about a meter above the ground. I guess that means those that landed on the ground, those that fluttered and those that flew around, the black mass accumulated to a height of 1 meter.
When the Israelites saw this, their eyes became red, and Harazi also came down, and they rushed to catch him. Isn't that easy to catch? Just catch a handful with your eyes closed. They just arrested and arrested her. In that scene, what does it mean for a Chinese aunt on a cruise ship to grab the buffet? These people stayed there for two days and one night without any rest. The least amount caught was 2,000 liters.
How much is this?
1 liter = 1 kilogram of water, 2000 liters is 2 tons of water. Let’s just say that quails are not that solid. If two large boxes of 1 cubic meter are filled with them, how much do you think they weigh? This is still the least number of arrests.
Israeli folk music was in full bloom. I had not slept for 40 hours and was not sleepy. I quickly picked up all the quails and piled them neatly around the camp. I can’t sleep yet, I have to eat! This thing is no longer new as soon as it is released. Besides, aren't they all having birds in their mouths? In the past two days, I was afraid that I would catch less than others, so I was reluctant to stop and eat.
The Israelites began to feast, but as soon as the meat reached their mouths, something happened before they could even chew it.
The anger of God was kindled against the people of Israel, and he struck them with severe calamities.
What kind of disaster? We don't know, but the result is obvious. Many people died and were buried here. For this reason, this place also got a special name, Kiboro. Hatawah means the grave of the greedy.
Someone asked, since God allowed the Israelites to eat meat, why didn’t he let them eat well? Why do you want to kill them in this way? Isn't it too cruel and excessive? Why not just stop letting them eat it?
Looking back at the entire incident, we know that this is not a simple issue of eating meat.
God rescued the Israelites from Egypt, but the Israelites complained that the manna God gave them was too tasteless and thought about the Egyptian meat. They complained against God and questioned His goodness. What if God insisted on not giving them meat? They will continue to complain and get worse.
What if God doesn’t give them meat to eat and directly kills those greedy people?
People will say that it is unfair for them to be killed by God just for complaining. They would also say that God killed them because He was unable to provide them with meat.
On the surface it’s about foodies asking for meat, but in essence it’s a matter of these people choosing life or death.
Let’s look at God’s approach again: I rescued you from Egypt and asked you to follow me, and I gave you the food you needed. You don't want it, you want the flesh of Egypt. There are two things in Egypt, desire and destruction. Either give them up together, avoid destruction, and cut off desire; or get them together and perish in desire.
The two are inseparable.
I know many people want to split, or want to have both. I have to eat meat, and I have to avoid death.
Don’t get me wrong. I am not saying that God-fearing people cannot eat meat, nor am I saying that God-fearing people cannot enjoy life. Because “Don’t get it wrong.
Every good gift and every perfect reward is from above, coming down from the Father of lights” (James 1:16-17)
I It means to obey God and enjoy what He has given us, rather than anything we want that provokes God’s wrath, such as lingering on the flesh of Egypt while leaving Egypt.
A few of you please. Note, this is not ordinary meat, it is Egyptian meat. What? Is Egyptian meat special? No, I mean, it is actually a metaphor, which corresponds to the kingdom of heaven vs. the world today. , live in his own way, or follow the world's values?
Everyone has to make his own choice.
In the end, those who really don't want to perish will give up the desire of Egypt. Following God on the road out of Egypt, the journey was very hard, but I was extremely happy because I was saved. The joy in my heart had long outweighed the physical pain; and those who wanted to satisfy their desires were like these quails who died. Like greedy people, their choices tell us that whether they perish is not the most important thing to them, but whether they can satisfy their desires is.
If God does not give people free will, people will not be worthy.
God gave people free will, and people are responsible for their own choices.
Let people die. Think of the famous saying in the Book of Romans: God allowed them to indulge in shameful lusts... and they received the retribution they deserved for their deeds.
Which one do you value more?
Let’s chat next time