11. And Moses said to Yahweh, “Why have you brought trouble to your servant? Why have I not found favor in your eyes, that the burdens of all these people have been placed on me?
12. Did I conceive all these people? If I have fathered them, that you could say to me, ‘Carry them in your lap, just as a foster-father carries the suckling on the land that you swore an oath to their ancestors?’
13. From where do I have meat to give all these people? They weep before me, saying, ‘Give us meat and let us eat!’
14. I am not able to carry all these people along alone; they are too heavy for me.
15. If this is how you are going to treat me, please kill me immediately if I find favor in your eyes, and do not let me see my misery.”
16. And Yahweh said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy men from the elders of Israel whom you know are elders of the people and their officials; take them to the tent of assembly, and they will stand there with you.
17. I will come down and speak with you there; I will take away from the spirit that is on you, and I will place it on them; and they will bear the burdens of the people with you; you will not bear it alone.
18. And you will say to the people, ‘Sanctify yourselves tomorrow, for you will eat meat because you have wept in the ears of Yahweh, saying, “Who will feed us good meat? It was good for us in Egypt.” Yahweh will give to you meat, and you will eat.
19. You will eat, not one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days,
20. but for a whole month, until it comes out from your nose and becomes as nausea to you; because you have rejected Yahweh, who is in your midst, and you wept before his presence, saying, “Why did we ever leave Egypt?” ’ ”
21. But Moses said, “There are six hundred thousand on foot, among whom I am in the midst, and you yourself said, ‘I will give meat to them, and they will eat for a whole month.’
22. Should flocks and cattle be slaughtered for them? Should all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to be enough for them?”
23. And Yahweh said to Moses, “Is Yahweh’s power limited? Now you will see if my word will happen or not.”
24. So Moses went out, and he spoke the words of Yahweh to the people, and he gathered together seventy men from the elders of the people, and he made them stand all around the tent.