Who Is The Mixed Multitude Amoung You?

I’m reading Numbers and I read about a different group of people who is also traveling along with the children of Israel in the exodus journey. They are not called by a name or religion but strangely they are referred to as mixed multitudes...

A backdrop to this is in Numbers 11. Israel is on the move for the first time since leaving Sinai but among them walks a group…the mixed multitude—non-Israelites who came out of Egypt with them (Ex. 12:38). They shared the same journey, but not the same heart.

As the camp grows tired of the wilderness, the mixed multitude started to murmur, small conversations… quiet complaints… subtle dissatisfaction. The mixed multitude “yielded to intense craving.” Then Israel heard it…and they began to complain. What began outside the heart of God’s people soon infected the inside. The mixed multitude remembered Egypt’s five star buffet but forgot its chains. Their influence slowly shifted Israel’s focus—manna no longer looked like a miracle; it looked like monotony. Gratitude became grumbling. Desire replaced devotion.

Moses felt crushed by seeing and hearing the weeping of the people. God gave quail enough to drown their cravings but while they were still chewing, judgement fell on them because the issue was not hunger but influence.

Mixed multitudes are not always “bad people.” They’re voices that do not share your commitment to God. They can walk with you… but not agree with God’s ways.

As you reflect on this story, please recollect who are the mixed multitude in your life. The subtle voices, the familiar cravings, the companions without covenant, the memories calling you back to Egypt,

And most importantly—

Who will you allow to influence the direction of your heart? is it the voice of God or the voice of the mixed multitude.