Neville Goddard on Numbers 11:4-20 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read Numbers 11 in context

Scripture Focus

4And the mixt multitude that was among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat?

5We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick:

6But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.

7And the manna was as coriander seed, and the colour thereof as the colour of bdellium.

8And 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.

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

10Then Moses heard the people weep throughout their families, every man in the door of his tent: and the anger of the LORD was kindled greatly; Moses also was displeased.

11And Moses said unto the LORD, Wherefore hast thou afflicted thy servant? and wherefore have I not found favour in thy sight, that thou layest the burden of all this people upon me?

12Have I conceived all this people? have I begotten them, that thou shouldest say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father beareth the sucking child, unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers?

13Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people? for they weep unto me, saying, Give us flesh, that we may eat.

14I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me.

15And if thou deal thus with me, kill me, I pray thee, out of hand, if I have found favour in thy sight; and let me not see my wretchedness.

16And the LORD said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them unto the tabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there with thee.

17And I will come down and talk with thee there: and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone.

18And say thou unto the people, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow, and ye shall eat flesh: for ye have wept in the ears of the LORD, saying, Who shall give us flesh to eat? for it was well with us in Egypt: therefore the LORD will give you flesh, and ye shall eat.

19Ye shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days, nor twenty days;

20But even a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils, and it be loathsome unto you: because that ye have despised the LORD which is among you, and have wept before him, saying, Why came we forth out of Egypt?

Numbers 11:4-20

Biblical Context

Plain summary: The Israelites complain they lack flesh and long for meals from Egypt, even as manna sustains them. Moses pleads, and God assigns seventy elders to share the burden, signaling that true provision comes by shifting inner powers rather than clinging to outward craving.

Neville's Inner Vision

Your numbers tell a picture of consciousness. The mixt multitude are restless thoughts that mingle with your own, craving sensory flesh as a sign of lack. The manna is the daily bread of awareness, the steady supply you ignore when you pine for more. The longing for flesh is the ego’s habit of seeking gratification; when you identify with lack, you deny the abundance already present as the I AM within. Moses represents your discursive will, which complains when burdened; God answers by releasing the Spirit onto seventy elders, symbolizing the awakening of inner faculties that share the load. Sanctify yourselves means cleanse your mind of doubt so fullness can appear as a habit, not a miracle. The decree to eat flesh for a month is a warning about chasing sensation to the point of disgust, yet the deeper truth remains: supply comes from within, not from Egypt. When you assume the feeling of the wish fulfilled and align with the I AM, you will experience nourishment as a present reality.

Practice This Now

Close your eyes and see the seventy inner faculties gathered around your tent. Invite the Spirit to rest on them and feel your burden lift as you revise your sense of lack.