Complaint Heard

Complaint Heard

Exodus 16: ⁶ Then Moses and Aaron said to all the children of Israel, “At evening you shall know that the Lord has brought you out of the land of Egypt. ⁷ And in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord; for He hears your complaints against the Lord. But what are we, that you complain against us?” ⁸ Also Moses said, “This shall be seen when the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening, and in the morning bread to the full; for the Lord hears your complaints which you make against Him. And what are we? Your complaints are not against us but against the Lord.”

 

⁹ Then Moses spoke to Aaron, “Say to all the congregation of the children of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for He has heard your complaints.’ ” ¹⁰ Now it came to pass, as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud.

 

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Weeks into the journey to the promised land, the children of Israel began to complain about Moses and Aaron. Moses replied to them by sending Aaron to be the spokesperson. The message was, “Come near before the LORD, for HE has heard your complaints.”

 

My Observations:

• GOD’s hearing of the complaints was not a good thing.
• Moses was given authority by GOD to send Aaron out to speak on his behalf.
• Moses clarified that any complaint against him and Aaron was a complaint against GOD.

 

A complaint is different than a request. It signifies disappointment or a breach of a promise. The children of Israel complained about how they thought things should be going. We do the same with GOD when we complain about HIS timing, or amounts or HIS plan.

 

Every complaint against Moses and Aaron was heard by GOD. And, in usual fashion, HE gracefully allowed the complaints. The children of Israel may have thought they were getting their way when they heard they would get bread and meat. Unfortunately, they were not aligning to GOD’s heart. GOD seems to despise complaints against HIS servants and against HIM.

 

Challenge

• Why does GOD remind Moses about the complaints from the children of Israel?
• Have you ever thought that GOD is not doing things the way it “should” be done?
• What complaint have you said to GOD that needs HIS forgiveness?