How G-d tested The Israelites?

Exodus 16 for me is the first chapter after the exile from Egypt in which we can understand the importance of Shabbat to G-d. The chapter starts with the complaints of the Israelites as we can read in Exodus 16:1-3-

” וַיִּסְעוּ, מֵאֵילִם, וַיָּבֹאוּ כָּל-עֲדַת בְּנֵי-יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶל-מִדְבַּר-סִין, אֲשֶׁר בֵּין-אֵילִם וּבֵין סִינָי–בַּחֲמִשָּׁה עָשָׂר יוֹם לַחֹדֶשׁ הַשֵּׁנִי, לְצֵאתָם מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם. וילינו (וַיִּלּוֹנוּ) כָּל-עֲדַת בְּנֵי-יִשְׂרָאֵל, עַל-מֹשֶׁה וְעַל-אַהֲרֹן–בַּמִּדְבָּר. וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֲלֵהֶם בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, מִי-יִתֵּן מוּתֵנוּ בְיַד-יְהוָה בְּאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם, בְּשִׁבְתֵּנוּ עַל-סִיר הַבָּשָׂר, בְּאָכְלֵנוּ לֶחֶם לָשֹׂבַע: כִּי-הוֹצֵאתֶם אֹתָנוּ אֶל-הַמִּדְבָּר הַזֶּה, לְהָמִית אֶת-כָּל-הַקָּהָל הַזֶּה בָּרָעָב”

“And they took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt. And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness: And the children of Israel said unto them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

The hunger is the most favorite complaint of the people. Rashi mentioned that the complaint here was when they still had the bread to eat. Their wish is to die in words not as an idea that will be fulfilled. Eben Ezrah said that here the complaint was from all the people and not as in the previous chapter, when just a few of them said: we don’t have water here!

The complaint needed an answer and next time we will see how G-d answered them with a heavenly food for the hunger.

Don’t forget to share your thoughts with us or on our facebook fan pages, I am waiting for your words, Eli

Main phrases of the post + transcription + translation

Hebrew	Transcription	Translation
סִינָי	sînāy	Sinai
רָעָב	Rā’āb	Hunger
אֶל	‘el	To
לֶחֶם	Lechem	Bread
חֲמִשָּׁה עָשָׂר	Chămišša ‘āśār	Fiftheen

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2 Responses to How G-d tested The Israelites?

Judith Burns says:

August 29, 2011 at 4:06 am

I’m curious. The word for Hunger, is it related at all to the name of Rahab the prostitute who helped the 3 spies from Israel?
Eli Dahan says:

September 1, 2011 at 10:48 pm

hey dear friend. there is no connection between them. the word hunger is with the letters resh-ayin-vet.
the name Rahab is with resh -chet- vet. Thanks for the comment, Eli