'People' in the Bible

“When he makes her drink the water, if she has defiled herself and been unfaithful to her husband, the water that brings a curse will enter her and cause bitter suffering; her belly will swell, and her thigh will shrivel. She will become a curse among her people.

Such people are to observe it in the second month, on the fourteenth day at twilight. They are to eat the animal with unleavened bread and bitter herbs;

“But the man who is ceremonially clean, is not on a journey, and yet fails to observe the Passover is to be cut off from his people, because he did not present the Lord’s offering at its appointed time. That man will bear the consequences of his sin.

Now the people began complaining openly before the Lord about hardship. When the Lord heard, His anger burned, and fire from the Lord blazed among them and consumed the outskirts of the camp.

Then the people cried out to Moses, and he prayed to the Lord, and the fire died down.

Contemptible people among them had a strong craving for other food. The Israelites cried again and said, “Who will feed us meat?

The people walked around and gathered it. They ground it on a pair of grinding stones or crushed it in a mortar, then boiled it in a cooking pot and shaped it into cakes. It tasted like a pastry cooked with the finest oil.

Moses heard the people, family after family, crying at the entrance of their tents. The Lord was very angry; Moses was also provoked.

So Moses asked the Lord, “Why have You brought such trouble on Your servant? Why are You angry with me, and why do You burden me with all these people?

Did I conceive all these people? Did I give them birth so You should tell me, ‘Carry them at your breast, as a nursing woman carries a baby,’ to the land that You swore to give their fathers?

Where can I get meat to give all these people? For they are crying to me: ‘Give us meat to eat!’

I can’t carry all these people by myself. They are too much for me.

The Lord answered Moses, “Bring Me 70 men from Israel known to you as elders and officers of the people. Take them to the tent of meeting and have them stand there with you.

Then I will come down and speak with you there. I will take some of the Spirit who is on you and put the Spirit on them. They will help you bear the burden of the people, so that you do not have to bear it by yourself.

“Tell the people: Purify yourselves in readiness for tomorrow, and you will eat meat because you cried before the Lord: ‘Who will feed us meat? We really had it good in Egypt.’ The Lord will give you meat and you will eat.

But Moses replied, “I’m in the middle of a people with 600,000 foot soldiers, yet You say, ‘I will give them meat, and they will eat for a month.’

Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord. He brought 70 men from the elders of the people and had them stand around the tent.

But Moses asked him, “Are you jealous on my account? If only all the Lord’s people were prophets and the Lord would place His Spirit on them!”

The people were up all that day and night and all the next day gathering the quail—the one who took the least gathered 50 bushels—and they spread them out all around the camp.

While the meat was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, the Lord’s anger burned against the people, and the Lord struck them with a very severe plague.

So they named that place Kibroth-hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had craved the meat.

From Kibroth-hattaavah the people moved on to Hazeroth and remained there.

So Miriam was confined outside the camp for seven days, and the people did not move on until Miriam was brought back in.

After that, the people set out from Hazeroth and camped in the Wilderness of Paran.

See what the land is like, and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many.

However, the people living in the land are strong, and the cities are large and fortified. We also saw the descendants of Anak there.

Then Caleb quieted the people in the presence of Moses and said, “We must go up and take possession of the land because we can certainly conquer it!”

But the men who had gone up with him responded, “We can’t go up against the people because they are stronger than we are!”

So they gave a negative report to the Israelites about the land they had scouted: “The land we passed through to explore is one that devours its inhabitants, and all the people we saw in it are men of great size.

Then the whole community broke into loud cries, and the people wept that night.

Only don’t rebel against the Lord, and don’t be afraid of the people of the land, for we will devour them. Their protection has been removed from them, and the Lord is with us. Don’t be afraid of them!”

The Lord said to Moses, “How long will these people despise Me? How long will they not trust in Me despite all the signs I have performed among them?

But Moses replied to the Lord, “The Egyptians will hear about it, for by Your strength You brought up this people from them.

They will tell it to the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that You, Lord, are among these people, how You, Lord, are seen face to face, how Your cloud stands over them, and how You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night.

If You kill this people with a single blow, the nations that have heard of Your fame will declare,

‘Since the Lord wasn’t able to bring this people into the land He swore to give them, He has slaughtered them in the wilderness.’

Please pardon the wrongdoing of this people, in keeping with the greatness of Your faithful love, just as You have forgiven them from Egypt until now.”

When Moses reported these words to all the Israelites, the people were overcome with grief.

The entire Israelite community and the foreigner who resides among them will be forgiven, since it happened to all the people unintentionally.

“But the person who acts defiantly, whether native or foreign resident, blasphemes the Lord. That person is to be cut off from his people.

If these men die naturally as all people would, and suffer the fate of all, then the Lord has not sent me.

The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households, all Korah’s people, and all their possessions.

At their cries, all the people of Israel who were around them fled because they thought, “The earth may swallow us too!”

The next day the entire Israelite community complained about Moses and Aaron, saying, “You have killed the Lord’s people!”

So Aaron took his firepan as Moses had ordered, ran into the middle of the assembly, and saw that the plague had begun among the people. After he added incense, he made atonement for the people.

A person who is clean is to take hyssop, dip it in the water, and sprinkle the tent, all the furnishings, and the people who were there. He is also to sprinkle the one who touched a bone, a grave, a corpse, or a person who had been killed.

The people quarreled with Moses and said, “If only we had perished when our brothers perished before the Lord.

Yet Edom insisted, “You must not travel through.” And they came out to confront them with a large force of heavily-armed people.

“Aaron will be gathered to his people; he will not enter the land I have given the Israelites, because you both rebelled against My command at the waters of Meribah.

Remove Aaron’s garments and put them on his son Eleazar. Aaron will be gathered to his people and die there.”

Then Israel made a vow to the Lord, “If You will deliver this people into our hands, we will completely destroy their cities.”

Then they set out from Mount Hor by way of the Red Sea to bypass the land of Edom, but the people became impatient because of the journey.

The people spoke against God and Moses: “Why have you led us up from Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread or water, and we detest this wretched food!”

Then the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people, and they bit them so that many Israelites died.

The people then came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Intercede with the Lord so that He will take the snakes away from us.” And Moses interceded for the people.

From there they went to Beer, the well the Lord told Moses about, “Gather the people so I may give them water.”

The princes dug the well;the nobles of the people hollowed it outwith a scepter and with their staffs.They went from the wilderness to Mattanah,

Woe to you, Moab!You have been destroyed, people of Chemosh!He gave up his sons as refugees,and his daughters into captivityto Sihon the Amorite king.

Moab was terrified of the people because they were numerous, and Moab dreaded the Israelites.

he sent messengers to Balaam son of Beor at Pethor, which is by the Euphrates in the land of his people. Balak said to him: “Look, a people has come out of Egypt; they cover the surface of the land and are living right across from me.

Please come and put a curse on these people for me because they are more powerful than I am. I may be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land, for I know that those you bless are blessed and those you curse are cursed.”

‘Look, a people has come out of Egypt, and they cover the surface of the land. Now come and put a curse on them for me. I may be able to fight against them and drive them away.’”

Then God said to Balaam, “You are not to go with them. You are not to curse this people, for they are blessed.”

for I will greatly honor you and do whatever you ask me. So please come and put a curse on these people for me!’”

I see them from the top of rocky cliffs,and I watch them from the hills.There is a people living alone;it does not consider itself among the nations.

A people rise up like a lioness;They rouse themselves like a lion.They will not lie down until they devour the preyand drink the blood of the slain.

Now I am going back to my people, but first, let me warn you what these people will do to your people in the future.”

While Israel was staying in the Acacia Grove, the people began to have sexual relations with the women of Moab.

The women invited them to the sacrifices for their gods, and the people ate and bowed in worship to their gods.

The Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the Lord so that His burning anger may turn away from Israel.”

After you have seen it, you will also be gathered to your people, as Aaron your brother was.

“Execute vengeance for the Israelites against the Midianites. After that, you will be gathered to your people.”

So Moses spoke to the people, “Equip some of your men for war. They will go against Midian to inflict the Lord’s vengeance on them.

From the Israelites’ half, take one out of every 50 from the people, cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats, all the livestock, and give them to the Levites who perform the duties of the Lord’s tabernacle.”

and 32,000 people, all the females who had not had sexual relations with a man.

and from the 16,000 people,the tribute to the Lord was 32 people.

and 16,000 people.

Moses took one out of every 50, selected from the people and the livestock of the Israelites’ half. He gave them to the Levites who perform the duties of the Lord’s tabernacle, as the Lord had commanded him.

If you turn back from following Him, He will once again leave this people in the wilderness, and you will destroy all of them.”

They departed from Alush and camped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink.