Then Moses heard the people weeping throughout their tribes, everyone at his door; and the anger of the Lord was greatly aroused; Moses also was displeased. So Moses said to the Lord, “Why have You maltreated Your servant? Why have I not found grace in Your sight, that You lay the wrath of this people on me? Did I conceive all these people? Did I beget them, that You should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a guardian carries a nursing child,’ to the land You swore to their fathers? Where am I to get meat to give to all these people? For they weep all over me, saying, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat.’ I am not able to bear this people alone, because the burden is too heavy for me. If You treat me like this, kill me here and now—if I find mercy in Your sight—and do not let me see my maltreatment.” So the Lord said to Moses, “Gather to Me seventy men from the elders of Israel, whom you yourself know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tabernacle of testimony, so they may stand there with you.”
So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord, and he gathered the seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tabernacle. Then the Lord came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the seventy elders, and it happened, when the Spirit rested upon them, that they prophesied, although they never did so again. But two men had remained in the camp: the name of one was Eldad and the name of the other Medad. And the Spirit rested upon them. Now they were among those listed, but who had not gone out to the tabernacle, yet they prophesied in the camp. And a young man ran and told Moses, and said, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” So Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, one of his choice men, answered and said, “Moses my lord, forbid them!” Then Moses said to him, “Are you zealous for my sake? Oh, that all the Lord’s people were prophets and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!” (Num 11:10–16, 24–29)
God is said to take some of the Spirit that was upon Moses and to put it within those men who were selected, and this was for no other reason than that we should believe that by the one Holy Spirit, God sanctifies both the saints who came before us and us ourselves. For as the Father is one, so likewise the Son is one, and so too the Holy Spirit is one, who was in the prophets and is in us also. So since the Spirit is one, it is not proper to understand him as being divided among many, but he is indivisible, and yet is in many distributed gifts, having perfection in them all.
One should note that the God of all commanded the seventy chosen men to gather together. But the full number did not assemble, for two of them were missing, Medad and Eldad. Though these were delayed, God still filled them with the Spirit, for they prophesied within the camp. Now some were zealous for Moses over these two, saying moreover that they ought to be restrained. But Moses, who prefigured the mystery of Christ, said, “Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets when the Lord shall put his Spirit upon them.”
From these matters, we understand that the law caught many as in a net, and brought them to God so as to instruct them in the mystery of Christ. Not all, however, were brought like this, but it is also the case that Christ sanctified those who came later. For those from the Gentiles were called to a knowledge of the truth, not through Moses or the law, but rather by the power of God the Father, when he revealed his own image, namely his Son, to those who did not know him. These he appointed to be called and holy, anointing them with his Spirit. And they became zealous, both those under the law who were in Christ and those justified by faith and sanctified by the Spirit. Moses was nevertheless glad at what happened, as he came to learn of the mystery in advance. Surely then, the people of the Jews who are extraordinarily jealous of the saints in Christ are not mindful of these matters that concerned Moses.
So then, harking back to the beginning of the discussion, we said in the first section that the people of the Jews are still carnal. But the others, those who are a people in Christ through faith, are holy and truly greater, for the physical manna served as a shadow and figure of the gifts given through Christ. Besides this, we were taught that if we keep the shadows of the law after the time arranged for them, we shall give offense to God, and we will also be a cause of vexation to the saints themselves. For Moses was angry with those who kept the manna.
In the second section, it was seen that the Jews dishonored the spiritual manna. They despised the heavenly things that were given through Christ, but were inclined towards more earthly things, and being very much disposed towards foul pleasures, they perished in a remarkable manner. For it was altogether necessary to regard the things of God as superior, and that through faith, honor should be given to the Savior and Redeemer of us all, namely Christ, through whom and with whom be glory to God the Father, together with the Holy Spirit, forever. Amen.
Cyril of Alexandria, Glaphyra on the Pentateuch 9.5.
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