Psalm 78:18
New International Version
They willfully put God to the test by demanding the food they craved.

New Living Translation
They stubbornly tested God in their hearts, demanding the foods they craved.

English Standard Version
They tested God in their heart by demanding the food they craved.

Berean Standard Bible
They willfully tested God by demanding the food they craved.

King James Bible
And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust.

New King James Version
And they tested God in their heart By asking for the food of their fancy.

New American Standard Bible
And in their heart they put God to the test By asking for food that suited their taste.

NASB 1995
And in their heart they put God to the test By asking food according to their desire.

NASB 1977
And in their heart they put God to the test By asking food according to their desire.

Legacy Standard Bible
And in their heart they put God to the test By asking for food according to their desire.

Amplified Bible
And in their hearts they put God to the test By asking for food according to their [selfish] appetite.

Christian Standard Bible
They deliberately tested God, demanding the food they craved.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
They deliberately tested God, demanding the food they craved.

American Standard Version
And they tempted God in their heart By asking food according to their desire.

Contemporary English Version
They stubbornly tested God and demanded from him what they wanted to eat.

English Revised Version
And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
They deliberately tested God by demanding the food they craved.

Good News Translation
They deliberately put God to the test by demanding the food they wanted.

International Standard Version
To test God was in their minds, when they demanded food to satisfy their cravings.

Majority Standard Bible
They willfully tested God by demanding the food they craved.

NET Bible
They willfully challenged God by asking for food to satisfy their appetite.

New Heart English Bible
They tempted God in their heart by asking food according to their desire.

Webster's Bible Translation
And they tempted God in their heart by asking food for their desire.

World English Bible
They tempted God in their heart by asking food according to their desire.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And they try God in their heart, "" To ask food for their lust.

Young's Literal Translation
And they try God in their heart, To ask food for their lust.

Smith's Literal Translation
And they will tempt God in their heart to ask food for their soul.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And they tempted God in their hearts, by asking meat for their desires.

Catholic Public Domain Version
And they tempted God in their hearts, by asking for food according to their desires.

New American Bible
They tested God in their hearts, demanding the food they craved.

New Revised Standard Version
They tested God in their heart by demanding the food they craved.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
And they tempted God in their hearts by asking food to satisfy their desires.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And they tempted God in their heart, asking for food for themselves.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
And they tried God in their heart By asking food for their craving.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And they tempted God in their hearts, in asking meat for the desire of their souls.
Audio Bible



Context
I Will Open My Mouth in Parables
17But they continued to sin against Him, rebelling in the desert against the Most High. 18They willfully tested God by demanding the food they craved. 19They spoke against God, saying, “Can God really prepare a table in the wilderness?…

Cross References
Numbers 11:4-6
Meanwhile, the rabble among them had a strong craving for other food, and again the Israelites wept and said, “Who will feed us meat? / We remember the fish we ate freely in Egypt, along with the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic. / But now our appetite is gone; there is nothing to see but this manna!”

Numbers 11:18-20
And say to the people: Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you will eat meat, because you have cried out in the hearing of the LORD, saying: ‘Who will feed us meat? For we were better off in Egypt!’ Therefore the LORD will give you meat, and you will eat. / You will eat it not for one or two days, nor for five or ten or twenty days, / but for a whole month—until it comes out of your nostrils and makes you nauseous—because you have rejected the LORD, who is among you, and have cried out before Him, saying, ‘Why did we ever leave Egypt?’”

Numbers 11:31-34
Now a wind sent by the LORD came up, drove in quail from the sea, and brought them near the camp, about two cubits above the surface of the ground, for a day’s journey in every direction around the camp. / All that day and night, and all the next day, the people stayed up gathering the quail. No one gathered less than ten homers, and they spread them out all around the camp. / But while the meat was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, the anger of the LORD burned against the people, and the LORD struck them with a severe plague. ...

Exodus 16:2-3
And there in the desert the whole congregation of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. / “If only we had died by the LORD’s hand in the land of Egypt!” they said. “There we sat by pots of meat and ate our fill of bread, but you have brought us into this desert to starve this whole assembly to death!”

Exodus 16:7-8
and in the morning you will see the LORD’s glory, because He has heard your grumbling against Him. For who are we, that you should grumble against us?” / And Moses added, “The LORD will give you meat to eat this evening and bread to fill you in the morning, for He has heard your grumbling against Him. Who are we? Your grumblings are not against us but against the LORD.”

Exodus 17:2-3
So the people contended with Moses, “Give us water to drink.” “Why do you contend with me?” Moses replied. “Why do you test the LORD?” / But the people thirsted for water there, and they grumbled against Moses: “Why have you brought us out of Egypt—to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?”

Deuteronomy 9:22
You continued to provoke the LORD at Taberah, at Massah, and at Kibroth-hattaavah.

Deuteronomy 6:16
Do not test the LORD your God as you tested Him at Massah.

1 Corinthians 10:9-10
We should not test Christ, as some of them did, and were killed by snakes. / And do not complain, as some of them did, and were killed by the destroying angel.

1 Corinthians 10:6
These things took place as examples to keep us from craving evil things as they did.

John 6:26-27
Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, it is not because you saw these signs that you are looking for Me, but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. / Do not work for food that perishes, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on Him God the Father has placed His seal of approval.”

John 6:30-31
So they asked Him, “What sign then will You perform, so that we may see it and believe You? What will You do? / Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”

Matthew 4:7
Jesus replied, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Hebrews 3:8-9
do not harden your hearts, as you did in the rebellion, in the day of testing in the wilderness, / where your fathers tested and tried Me, and for forty years saw My works.

Hebrews 3:16-18
For who were the ones who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? / And with whom was God angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? / And to whom did He swear that they would never enter His rest? Was it not to those who disobeyed?


Treasury of Scripture

And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust.

by asking meat

Psalm 106:14,15
But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tempted God in the desert…

Exodus 16:2,3
And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness: …

Numbers 11:4
And the mixt multitude that was among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat?

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Craved Craving Demanding Desire Food Heart Hearts Lust Meat Requesting Tempted Test Tested Testing Tried Try Willfully
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Craved Craving Demanding Desire Food Heart Hearts Lust Meat Requesting Tempted Test Tested Testing Tried Try Willfully
Psalm 78
1. An exhortation both to learn and to preach, the law of God
9. The story of God's wrath against the incredulous and disobedient
67. The Israelites being rejected, God chose Judah, Zion, and David.














They willfully tested God
The phrase "they willfully tested God" highlights a deliberate and conscious act of rebellion against the divine. The Hebrew root for "tested" is "נָסָה" (nasah), which implies putting someone to the test to see if they will prove themselves. In the historical context of Israel's journey through the wilderness, this testing was not a mere questioning of God's ability but a challenge to His authority and provision. The Israelites' actions were not born out of ignorance but a willful defiance, reflecting a heart hardened against trust in God's promises. This serves as a cautionary tale for believers today, reminding us of the importance of faith and trust in God's provision, even when circumstances seem dire.

by demanding
The word "demanding" suggests an assertive and insistent request, lacking humility or gratitude. The Hebrew word "שָׁאַל" (sha'al) can mean to ask or inquire, but in this context, it carries a connotation of entitlement. The Israelites' demands were not simple requests but were rooted in dissatisfaction and a lack of faith. This reflects a deeper spiritual issue where the people placed their desires above God's will, a temptation that believers must guard against by cultivating a spirit of contentment and trust in God's timing and provision.

the food they craved
The phrase "the food they craved" refers to the manna and quail that God provided for the Israelites in the wilderness. The Hebrew word for "craved" is "תַּאֲוָה" (ta'avah), which denotes a strong desire or lust. This craving was not for sustenance but for indulgence, reflecting a deeper spiritual hunger that physical food could not satisfy. Historically, this craving led to grumbling and discontent among the Israelites, despite God's miraculous provision. For contemporary believers, this serves as a reminder to seek spiritual nourishment and to find satisfaction in God's Word and presence, rather than in the fleeting pleasures of the world.

Verse 18. - And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust; rather, by asking food (Kay, Cheyne, Alexander). The term used (אכל) is wide enough to include both bread (לחם) and flesh (שׁאר). "For their lust" (literally, "for their soul") means for the gratification of their carnal appetites (comp. Exodus 16:3; Numbers 11:5).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
They willfully
בִּלְבָבָ֑ם (bil·ḇā·ḇām)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 3824: Inner man, mind, will, heart

tested
וַיְנַסּוּ־ (way·nas·sū-)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 5254: To test, to attempt

God
אֵ֥ל (’êl)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 410: Strength -- as adjective, mighty, the Almighty

by demanding
לִֽשְׁאָל־ (liš·’āl-)
Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 7592: To inquire, to request, to demand

the food
אֹ֥כֶל (’ō·ḵel)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 400: Food

they craved.
לְנַפְשָֽׁם׃ (lə·nap̄·šām)
Preposition-l | Noun - feminine singular construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 5315: A soul, living being, life, self, person, desire, passion, appetite, emotion


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OT Poetry: Psalm 78:18 They tempted God in their heart (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 78:17
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