1 Corinthians 10:10

(10) Neither murmur ye.—The reference here is to Numbers 16:41-47, and the historical event alluded to—viz., the murmuring of the Israelites against their God-given leaders, Moses and Aaron—is analogous to the murmuring of the Corinthians against their Apostle, St. Paul. It is noticeable that St. Paul attributes the death of the people to the Destroyer—i.e., God’s messenger sent to destroy—while in Numbers they are said to have perished by the “plague.” Every pestilence that swept over nations to purify them was a messenger from God. Thus in Psalms 78:50 God is said to give “their life over to the pestilence,” which in Exodus 12:23 is spoken of as “the destroyer.”