In Numbers 14:20-25, the Father mentions ten times that Israel tested YHWH:
Then the Lord said, “I have pardoned, according to your word. But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord, none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers. And none of those who despised me shall see it.
Below is a list of ten incidents we are told about in the Bible for those who would like to dig deeper on this.
1. Exodus 14:10-12
When the people were at the Red Sea and they saw Pharaoh’s army, they were very afraid and in that fear they turned on Moses saying that he had brought them to the wilderness to die.
2. Exodus 15:22-24
In the Wilderness of Shur, they traveled for 3 days without finding water and then they came to Marah where they found bitter water that they couldn’t drink. In their thirst, they began to grumble about there being no water to drink.
3. Exodus 16:1-3
In the Desert of Sin, the people grumbled as they hungered for the meat pots and the bread they had in Egypt.
4. Exodus 16:19-20
In the Desert of Sin when they were given Manna, they paid no attention to Moses’ instructions about storing the Manna until the morning. All of the Manna they tried to keep rotted and stunk.
5. Exodus 16:27-30
In the Desert of Sin they again disregarded Moses concerning the gathering of the manna and they tried to gather it on the seventh day.
6. Exodus 17:1-4
At Rephidim, there was no water and so the people demanded that Moses give them water. Notice this is the 2nd time they are grumbling about water.
7. Exodus 32:1-35
At Mount Sinai the people had Aaron make them a golden calf that they worshipped and sacrificed to.
8. Numbers 11:1-3
At Taberah the people grumbled about all of their misfortunes and the Father burned in anger.
9. Numbers 11:4-34
At Kibroth Hattaavah, the people once again grumbled about not having meat.
10. Numbers 14:1-3
At Kadesh in the Desert of Paran, after the people receive the bad report from the spies they refuse to receive the good report of Joshua and Caleb but rather wished themselves dead.
These 10 incidents show how the Israelites struggled to have faith in the Father’s provision for them. Even though the Father delivered them from Egypt they struggled to believe that He would provide for them. Every time they longed for something they thought was better from Egypt, they grumbled about their circumstances. So finally in Numbers 14:11, the Lord cries out “How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them?”
This is a sobering thought for me, and leaves me to wonder how many times have I not had faith in the Father’s provision? How many times have I grumbled because I left something behind to follow the Father?
I bet my list is longer than 10.