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Chapter 11 records the first turmoil in the camp sense the "golden calf". For some time now the people had been reasonably behaved. The people were teachable, the heads of the tribes were fair in their dealings, devout and liberal in their offerings. In spite of God's judgment of 40 years of wondering in the wilderness for their lack of faith, there was hope that they would be in the Promised Land soon. But, as so often is the case, trouble was brewing in the camp. They were tired of manna. They would like some meat and perhaps some fish, cucumbers, melons and some onions and garlic would go good also. The Lord became angry at their complaining and sent fire upon them. It fell upon those who were on the outer edges of the assembly, those who had tagged along, particularly the Egyptians. They cried to Moses for help and Moses became very discouraged and took it out on the Lord. "Why have you given me these people to "baby-set", am I their father?" "Where am I supposed to get meat for all of these people?" "If this is the way things are going to be, just kill me right now."
Well the Lord calmed him down and told him to assemble 70 of the leaders of Israel and there at the Tabernacle he ordained them to share the burden of these people with Moses. Then he told Moses to have the people purify themselves and that on the next day He would have meat foe them, not for just one day, but for a whole month until they would get so tired of it that they would vomit it up.
The next day the Lord sent a S-E wind that brought "quail" in from the sea. (It is uncertain exactly what this was. The Psalmist calls them "feathered fowl" but some scholars believe that they were locusts because of the way that they were carried by the wind and laid up in mounds and dried in the sun. This was normally the way that locusts were prepared.) They were piled up on the ground, 3 feet deep, for as far as the eye could see. So the people ate and gorged themselves, without giving thanks and the Lord sent a plague upon them and many people died. The place was called "The Place of the Graves" because so many people were buried.
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