Midrasch zu Bamidbar 11:4

(Devarim, Ibid.) "and an abundance of gold" (an allusion to the golden calf): He said to them: This thing outweighs all that you have done. The golden calf weighs upon Me more than all! Rebbi was wont to say: An analogy: One caused his neighbor many troubles. In the end, he added an additional trouble, and the other said: This outweighs everything you have done to me. This weighs upon me more than all! Thus did the Holy One Blessed be He say to Israel: This outweighs everything that you have done! Variantly: "and an abundance of gold": R. Shimon b. Yochai says: An analogy: One received sages and disciples, and all praised him. Then Canaanites came, and he received them! — at which they said: This is the man's nature — to receive all! Thus did Moses say to Israel: (You gave) "an abundance of gold" for the mishkan (the tabernacle) — (You gave) "an abundance of gold" for the golden calf! R. B'na'ah says: Israel served idolatry, for which they are liable to extinction — Let the gold of the mishkan atone for the gold of the calf! R. Yossi berebbi Chanina says: It is written "in the desert, in the plain": This alludes to the ten trials wherewith our fathers tried the Holy One Blessed be He in the desert: two at the (Red) sea, (in the descent [Shemoth 14:11] and in the ascent [Psalms 106:7]), two, with water, (at Marah [Shemoth 15:23] and at Refidim [Shemoth 17]), two with manna, ("Let no man go out of his place" [Shemoth 17:29] and "Let no man leave of it" [Shemoth 16:19]), two with the quail, (the first [16:3] and the second [Bamidbar 11:4]), one with the golden calf (Shemoth 32), and one with the spies (Bamidbar 13). R. Yossi b. Dormaskith said to him: Yehudah berebbi, why do you distort the verses for us (by assigning allegorical interpretations to what are really place names)? I testify by heaven and earth that we have reviewed all of the sources and (we have found that) they are all place names. It is just that they were thus named (as aforementioned) because of an event (that transpired there).

(Lev. 16:1:) “Now the Lord spoke unto Moses after the death [of Aaron's two sons].” This is what Elihu said (to Job 37:1), “At this also my heart trembles and leaps.” Elihu was observing how the sons of Aaron went in to sacrifice and came out destroyed by fire.⁵⁵Cf. PRK 26(27):5; Lev. R. 20:5. He was amazed and said (ibid.), “At this also my heart trembles and leaps.” What did he see for him to say this? He said, “At a time when the priesthood had become weak in the hand of Aaron, what is written there (in Numb. 17:21)? ‘Then Moses spoke unto the Children of Israel; and their princes gave him a staff, a staff for each prince.’ So he wrote the name of each and every tribe on its staff. He also wrote the name of Aaron on the staff of Levi and put it in the middle, lest the Children of Israel say, ‘It smelled the Divine Presence and bore fruit.’ Moses said, ‘See, I am putting it in the middle so as not to give a pretext,’ as stated (in Numb. 17:21, cont.), ‘and the staff of Aaron was in the midst of their staffs.’ What is written there (in vs. 22-23)? ‘Then Moses placed the staffs before the Lord in the tent of the testimony. And it was on the morrow that Moshe came to the tent of testimony, and the staff of Aaron had sprouted […] and had borne almonds.’ The scriptural text lacked nothing. Why then, ‘and had born (rt.: gml) almonds (rt.: shqd)?’⁵⁶Numb. R. 18:23. It repaid (rt.: gml) anyone who was bent on (rt.: shqd) evil against the tribe of Levi. So while (in Numb. 17:16-24) even dry pieces of wood emitted an aroma among those who live in the world, sprouted blossoms, came out alive, and produced fruits; [yet] the sons of Aaron, who entered there alive, came out destroyed by fire.” So when Elihu beheld the one and the other, he said (in Job 37:1), “At this also my heart trembles.” When? (Lev. 16:1:) “Now the Lord spoke unto Moses after the death of Aaron's two sons.” As [all] four of [Aaron's sons] deserved to die; but Moses prayed for them, and his prayer produced half [a response]. When? When Israel made the calf, what is written there (in Deut. 9:20)? “And the Lord was very angry with Aaron to destroy (rt.: shmd) him.” Destruction (rt.: shmd) can only be annihilation of children. Thus it is stated (in Amos 2:9), “I destroyed (rt.: shmd) their (the Amorites') fruit above […].” When Moses prayed, his prayer produced half [a response]. (Lev. 16:1:) “After the death of Aaron's two sons.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “Aaron, did I not write this in My Torah (in Exod. 22:8), ‘In every case of misappropriation, whether for a bull, for an ass or for a sheep….’ Do you not remember what you did with the bull, as stated (in Ps. 106:20), ‘Thus they exchanged their glory for the image of a bull?’”⁵⁷See Numb. R. 9:47. For alternate interpretations of Exod. 22:8 that use the same form, see BQ 54b. (Exod. 22:8, cont.:) “For an ass.” This refers to the Egyptians, about whom it is written (in Ezek. 23:20), “whose flesh is like the flesh of asses.” They (the Egyptians among them) made for them a calf, whom Israel worshiped, as stated (in Numb. 11:4), “Then the rabble⁵⁸I.e., the Egyptians who joined Israel in the Exodus. which was in their midst.” (Exod. 22:8, cont.:) “For a sheep (seh).” This refers to Israel, as stated (in Jer. 50:17), “Israel is a scattered flock (seh).” (Exod. 22:8, cont.:) “For a garment,” [i.e.] that one about which it is written (in Is. 3:6), “you have a garment; you shall be our leader.”⁵⁹According to Numb. R. 9:47, the allusion is to Israel having made the golden calf their king. (Exod. 22:8, cont.:) “Or any loss,” since it is written of them (i.e., of Israel in Jer. 50:6), “My people were lost sheep.” (Exod. 22:8, cont.:) “Of which one says, ‘This is it.” [This refers to] them when they said (in Exod. 32:8), “These are your gods, O Israel.” (Exod. 22:8, cont.:) “The case of both parties shall come before God (the powers).” This refers to Moses of whom it is written (in Exod. 7:1), “See, I have set you as a power to Pharaoh,” [in that] Moses sat in judgment over them. (Exod. 22:8, cont.:) “The one whom God (the powers) condemns.” This refers to the judges.⁶⁰See above, Exod. 2:1, and the note there. (Exod. 22:8, cont.:) “Shall pay his neighbor double.” This refers to the two sons of Aaron. Ergo (in Lev. 16:1), “after the death of Aaron's two sons.”

We are taught in a Baraitha: R. Jose says: "Just as the prophet disclosed to Israel all that occurred in the very nooks and fissures of their dwellings, so also did the manna disclose all the secrets that were hidden in the very nooks and fissures." In what manner? For instance, when two [litigants] came to Moses, and the plaintiff said: "He has stolen my slave," while the defendant said: "You sold him to me," Moses would say: "In the morning we shall decide it." On the morrow, if the measure of manna for the slave was found in the house of his first master, it became known that the slave had been stolen; but if the measure of manna was found in the house of the other, it was evident that he had bought him. And so also if one came and impeached his wife for adultery, and she counter-charged him with that crime; then Moses again said: "In the morning we shall decide it." If her measure of manna was found in the house of her husband, it was evident that he had sinned; if the measure of manna was found in the house of her father, it was plain that she had sinned." It is written (Num. 15, 9) When the dew fell upon the camp in the night the manna fell upon it; and it is written (Ex. 16, 4) The people shall go out, and gather; and again it is written (Num. 11, 8) The people went about, and gathered it. How are the three verses to be reconciled? As for the righteous, the manna came down at the door of their tents; the average man had to go out and find it; the wicked had to swarm around and gather it." It is written (Ex. 16, 8) bread from heaven; and (Num. 11, 4) … made cakes of it; and (ib.) ground it. How shall these passages be reconciled to each other? For the righteous, it was ready bread; for the average man, it was cakes (unbaked); and the wicked had to grind it in a mill. (Num. 11, 8) Its taste was as of cakes mixed with oil. R. Abahu said: "Just as the breast, in which the suckling, every time he touches it, finds a different flavor [according to what his mother had eaten], so also did the manna, as often as the Israelites ate it, contain all flavors."