16 The Lord therefore said to Moses , "Gather for Me seventy men from the elders of Israel , whom you know to be the elders of the people and their officers and bring them to the tent of meeting , and let them take their stand there with you. 17 " Then I will come down and speak with you there , and I will take of the Spirit who is upon you, and will put Him upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you will not bear it all alone . 18 "Say to the people , ' Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow , and you shall eat meat ; for you have wept in the ears of the Lord , saying , "Oh that someone would give us meat to eat ! For we were well-off in Egypt ." Therefore the Lord will give you meat and you shall eat . 19 'You shall eat , not one day , nor two days , nor five days , nor ten days , nor twenty days , 20 but a whole month , until e it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you; because e you have rejected the Lord who is among you and have wept before Him, saying , "Why did we ever leave e Egypt ?""' 21 But Moses said , "The people , among whom I am, are 600,000 e e on foot ; yet You have said , 'I will give them meat , so that they may eat for a whole month .' 22 "Should flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to be sufficient for them? Or should all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to be sufficient for them?" 23 The Lord said to Moses , "Is the Lord'S power limited ? Now you shall see whether My word will come true for you or not."
24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord . Also, he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people , and stationed them around the tent . 25 Then the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to him; and He took of the Spirit who was upon him and placed Him upon the seventy elders . And when the Spirit rested upon them, they prophesied . But they did not do it again . 26 But two men had remained in the camp ; the name of one was Eldad and the name of the other Medad . And the Spirit rested upon them (now they were among those who had been registered , but had not gone out to the tent ), and they prophesied in the camp . 27 So a young man ran and told Moses and said , "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp ." 28 Then Joshua the son of Nun , the attendant of Moses from his youth , said , " Moses , my lord , restrain them." 29 But Moses said to him, "Are you jealous for my sake? Would e that all the Lord'S people were prophets , that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!"
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Numbers 11:16-29
Commentary on Numbers 11:16-23
(Read Numbers 11:16-23)
Moses is to choose such as he knew to be elders, that is, wise and experienced men. God promises to qualify them. If they were not found fit for the employ, they should be made fit. Even the discontented people shall be gratified too, that every mouth may be stopped. See here, I. The vanity of all the delights of sense; they will cloy, but they will not satisfy. Spiritual pleasures alone will satisfy and last. As the world passes away, so do the lusts of it. 2. What brutish sins gluttony and drunkenness are! they make that to hurt the body which should be its health. Moses objects. Even true and great believers sometimes find it hard to trust God under the discouragements of second causes, and against hope to believe in hope. God here brings Moses to this point, The Lord God is Almighty; and puts the proof upon the issue, Thou shalt see whether my word shall come to pass or not. If he speaks, it is done.
Commentary on Numbers 11:24-30
(Read Numbers 11:24-30)
We have here the fulfilment of God's word to Moses, that he should have help in the government of Israel. He gave of his Spirit to the seventy elders. They discoursed to the people of the things of God, so that all who heard them might say, that God was with them of a truth. Two of the elders, Eldad and Medad, went not out unto the tabernacle, as the rest, being sensible of their own weakness and unworthiness. But the Spirit of God found them in the camp, and there they exercised their gift of praying, preaching, and praising God; they spake as moved by the Holy Ghost. The Spirit of God is not confined to the tabernacle, but, like the wind, blows where He listeth. And they that humble themselves shall be exalted; and those who are most fit for government, are least ambitious of it. Joshua does not desire that they should be punished, but only restrained for the future. This motion he made out of zeal for what he thought to be the unity of the church. He would have them silenced, lest they should occasion a schism, or should rival Moses; but Moses was not afraid of any such effects from that Spirit which God had put upon them. Shall we reject those whom Christ has owned, or restrain any from doing good, because they are not in every thing of our mind? Moses wishes all the Lord's people were prophets, that he would put his Spirit upon all of them. Let the testimony of Moses be believed by those who desire to be in power; that government is a burden. It is a burden of care and trouble to those who make conscience of the duty of it; and to those who do not, it will prove a heavier burden in the day of account. Let the example of Moses be followed by those in power; let them not despise the advice and assistance of others, but desire it, and be thankful for it. If all the present number of the Lord's people were rendered prophets, or ministers, by the Spirit of Christ, though not all agreed in outward matters, there is work enough for all, in calling sinners to repentance, and faith in our Lord Jesus.