Numbers 11:21Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Why did the Prophet hesitate when God assured him He would provide meat (Num. 11:21-22)? This was due to his nature as a human being as well as a prophet. However, the Lord instructed him to trust in His promises. For it was communicated to him, ‘If the hand of the Lord be not satisfied? And now thou shalt know whether My word shall befall thee, or neither’ (Num. 11:23). In His promise to provide, God also warned of consequences. After stating, ‘Until the month ye eat meat, till it come out of your nostrils...,’ He further declared, ‘And it shall be an abomination unto you’ (Num. 11:20), or as Simmachus interprets it, indigestion; for greediness can lead to affliction, and for many, it has resulted in death, a scourge delivered by God.