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Parshat B'ha'alotcha
2001
Numbers, Chapter 11:4-12
4. And the mixed multitude that was among them had a strong craving; and the people of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us meat to eat?
5. We remember the fish, which we ate in Egypt for nothing; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic;
6. But now our soul is dried away; there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.
7. And the manna was as coriander seed, and its color as the color of bdellium.
8. And the people went about, and gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it; and the taste of it was like the taste of fresh oil.
9. And when the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell upon it.
10. Then Moses heard the people weep throughout their families, every man in the door of his tent; and the anger of the Lord was kindled greatly; and Moses also was displeased.
11. And Moses said to the Lord, Why have you afflicted your servant? and why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people upon me?
12. Have I conceived all this people? Have I fathered them, that you should say to me, carry them in your bosom, like a nursing father carries the sucking child, to the land which you swore to their fathers?
Moses' reaction is a harsh one, he is tired of the Jewish people's complaining and asks God to lift his burden. Compare this to the episode of the golden calf, after which, when God proposes destroying the Jewish people Moses replies, "Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold. Now, if you will forgive their sin, good; and if not, erase me from your book which you have written."
Radical; after the golden calf Moses is willing to lay down his own life to save his people, yet when they complain for lack of tasty food in the desert he is ready to give them up...Why?
A Word
Perhaps the difference lies in the underlying attitude of the people. The worship of the golden calf was an attempt on the part of the Jewish people to make for themselves a spiritual leader in Moses' absence. The complaining about the manna in our portion is about having exactly the right food that they want, when they want it. After making the golden calf the integrity of the people is still intact. They had a spiritual desire. It was channeled in the wrong direction, but still these people have potential. When they complain about the manna though, Moses asks himself, "Is this really the right attitude for God's chosen people? Have they lost that spiritual spark?"
Prepared by Rabbi Hyim Shafner, St. Louis Hillel at Washington University.
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