God had promised to be their God, to take them to Himself as a people, and to lead them to a large and good land; but they were ready to faint at every obstacle encountered in the way to that land. In a marvelous manner He had brought them out from their bondage in Egypt, that He might elevate and ennoble them and make them a praise in the earth. But it was necessary for them to encounter difficulties and to endure privations. God was bringing them from a state of degradation and fitting them to occupy an honorable place among the nations and to receive important and sacred trusts. Had they possessed faith in Him, in view of all that He had wrought for them, 293 they would cheerfully have borne inconvenience, privation, and even real suffering; but they were unwilling to trust the Lord any further than they could witness the continual evidences of His power. They forgot their bitter service in Egypt. They forgot the goodness and power of God displayed in their behalf in their deliverance from bondage. They forgot how their children had been spared when the destroying angel slew all the first-born of Egypt. They forgot the grand exhibition of divine power at the Red Sea. They forgot that while they had crossed safely in the path that had been opened for them, the armies of their enemies, attempting to follow them, had been overwhelmed by the waters of the sea. They saw and felt only their present inconveniences and trials; and instead of saying, "God has done great things for us; whereas we were slaves, He is making of us a great nation," they talked of the hardness of the way, and wondered when their weary pilgrimage would end.

Gud havde lovet at være deres Gud, at antage dem som sit folk og lede dem til et stort og godt land. Men de var ved at give op, hver eneste gang de mødte en hindring på vejen til dette land. Gud havde på en vidunderlig måde udfriet dem fra trældommen i Ægypten for at ophøje og forædle dem og gøre dem til en lovprisning på jorden. Men det var nødvendigt at udsætte dem for vanskeligheder og savn. Gud ville løfte dem op fra deres nedværdigende kår og gøre dem skikket til at udfylde en ærefuld plads mellem nationerne og modtage vigtige hellige hverv. Hvis de havde troet på ham på grund af alt det, han havde udrettet for dem, ville de frejdigt have tålt ubehageligheder, afsavn, ja endog virkelige lidelser; men de var kun villige til at stole på Herren, så længe de kunne se beviser på hans magt. De glemte deres bitre lod i Ægypten. De glemte den godhed og magt, som Gud åbenbarede for at udfri dem fra trældommen. De glemte, hvordan deres børn var blevet sparet, da dødens engel slog alle Ægyptens førstefødte ihjel. De glemte den vidunderlige åbenbarelse af Guds magt ved Det røde Hav. De glemte, at mens de selv var gået trygt på den vej, der var dannet til dem, var deres fjenders hær blevet opslugt af vandet, da de forsøgte at forfølge dem. De så og følte kun deres øjeblikkelige besværligheder og prøvelser, og i stedet for at sige: "Gud har gjort store ting for os; vi var slaver, men nu gør han os til et stort folk," talte de om vejens besværligheder og spekulerede på, hvordan deres trættende pilgrimsrejse ville ende.