February 10

1 And when the people complained, it displeased the LORD; and the LORD heard it; and his anger was kindred; and the fire of the LORD burnt among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp.

2 And the people cried unto Moses; and when Moses prayed unto the LORD, the fire was quenched.

3 And he called the name of the place Taberalis: because the fire of the LORD burnt among them.

4 And the mixed multitude that sent among them fell a lixing, and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat?

5 We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; 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, besides this manna, before our eyes.

7 And the manna roars as a wlander seed, and the colour thereof as the colour of bibilium.

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 as the taste of fresh oil.

9 And when the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell upon it.

Almost as soon as their journey began the evil heart of unbelief showed itself, and the people "complained;" and, seduced by the mixed multitude who accompanied them, they began to look back longingly to Egypt. The soul that begins by complaining, soon ends by something worse. It loses its relish for heavenly food, and looks back with longing to that which the world gives. And the end is sadly typified in the closing verses of this chapter (vers. 33, 34). "He gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul"—Psalm evi. 15.

"The devil has many ways into the soul. The recollection of evil may prompt a desire for its repetition. . . . We live a very delicate life. We are not far from the enemy at any one point in our history. The sight of a face may awaken within us influences which we had supposed to be dead; the resonance of an old song may bring back the memory of black nights consecrated to the service of the devil with a will. We must not be harsh upon those who remember the pleasant side of Egyptian life. We may now think of the old days with some pleasure:—how free the riotous dance was; how eager our appetite at the feast; how we relished the ardent poison; how we enjoyed the exchange of passionate looks and words! And if a longing sometimes steals in upon the heart, putting back its prayer and threatening its overthrow, . . . it is a temptation of the evil one, and is only to be put down by nobler prayer, by a sharper, keener cry for omnipotent defence."—Joseph Parker, D. D.

Closet Promise.—Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thy heart—Psalm xxvii. 14.

We may have hours of unrest, hours of dull spiritual apprehension. The danger is that these hours may lengthen into weeks or months of spiritual apathy, and end at last in a condition of total darkness. In such hours, O my soul! wait thou! Weary hours or days of sickness may have been our portion. Now, when stillness reigns all about; when the prospect of speedy recovery to health may seem discouraging; when through the weariness of the flesh prayer can be only an unuttered desire or feeble sigh, my soul, wait thou! It is good thus to wait upon God and trustingly wait for Him. He cannot disappoint us in such a time. Let the soul, therefore, in the night watches cease not to enjoin upon itself—waiting.

But there are heart-sicknesses known to earth more real and distressing than any physical malady. Times there are in each human life when the sharp sword pierces to the very centre of the soul. Speaking after the manner of this world, the agony seems greater than can be borne. What then? Shall we then sink down into despair, or shall we take refuge then in a self-constructed stoicism? No. There is a better way. Summon thy soul, brother man, to new courage. Say to thy soul within the thick shadows, even where no light enters, "My soul, wait thou only upon God."—Selected.