Why did Israel complain during the quail episode?
The quail episode records Israel complaining because they did not have the flesh pots of Egypt. They longed for the meat and provisions of Egypt, and their murmuring reflected dissatisfaction with God's supply in the wilderness. This complaint centered on missing Egypt's food.
Les explains that during the quail episode, Israel complained because they no longer had the flesh pots of Egypt. He notes this murmuring was nothing new, as they had been complaining almost since the day they left Egypt. The quail incident is part of the background before Numbers 14, where the congregation wept and murmured against Moses and Aaron, even wishing they had died in Egypt or the wilderness. Les also mentions the earlier episode of Miriam's leprosy due to her complaints, which God dealt with but healed her. The setting matters: after the tabernacle was raised, the cloud led them to the border of the promised land, yet they still complained.