Numbers 16:13

Num 16:13 [Is it] a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land that floweth with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, except thou make thyself altogether a prince over us?

Ver. 13. That floweth with milk and honey.] So they falsely and maliciously speak of the land of Egypt, in derision of the land of Canaan, whereunto that praise properly belonged. Those that were born in hell know no other heaven.

Altogether a prince over us.] So their quarrel was against Moses’ principality, though they pretended the priesthood only at first. If the ministry once be taken away, let the magistrate see to himself; he is next.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

16:13 land flowing with milk and honey: This sarcastic allusion to the spies’ earlier description of Canaan (13:27) is a deliberate distortion of life in Egypt (see study note on 11:4-15).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Thus they spake contemptuously, preferring Egypt to Canaan.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(13) A land that floweth with milk and honey.—The description of the land of promise is here applied perversely and ironically to the land of Egypt.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

13. out of a land flowing with milk and honey] The expression which Moses had applied to Canaan in persuading the people to escape from slavery (Exo_3:17) is applied by the rebels ironically to Egypt.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land that floweth with milk and honey?.... Meaning Egypt, as the Targum of Jonathan expresses it; which, though a plentiful country, never had, nor deserved to have this epithet given it, which is peculiar to the land of Canaan, and is here given, in opposition to the description of that land, which the Lord himself had so described; and argues great impudence and want of reverence of the divine Being, as well as great ingratitude to Moses, the instrument of their being brought out of Egypt, where they laboured under bondage and servitude intolerable; and yet here represent it as an injury done to them, and as if the intent and design of it was purely to destroy them: for they add:

to kill us in the wilderness; with want of food, of which they had plenty in Egypt, they suggest; referring, it may be, to what the Lord by Moses had said to them, that their carcasses should fall in the wilderness; but that would not be for want of provisions, but because of their sins. It was bad enough, they intimate, to be brought out of such a plentiful country, into a barren wilderness; but what was still worse, the despotic and tyrannical government of Moses, as they represent it, they were brought under:

except thou make thyself altogether a prince over us? ruling in an arbitrary way, making laws, and setting up offices and officers at pleasure, so that it is more eligible to be in bondage in Egypt than under thy government. Aben Ezra takes their meaning to be, as if the end of bringing them out of Egypt was to assume and exercise such rule and authority over them. His words are,"hast thou brought us up out of Egypt, that thou mayest exercise dominion over us as a prince, yea, many dominions, thou and thy brother?''and who also observes, that Egypt lay to the south of the land of Israel, so that one that came from Egypt to the land of Canaan may be truly said to come up, that part of Canaan lying higher than Egypt.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

With perverse contempt for the promises, Dathan and Abiram designate Egypt by the terms appropriated elsewhere to the land of Canaan.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

i.e. Out of Egypt, a place indeed of great plenty, but to them a place of torment and intolerable slavery. They invidiously and scoffmgly use the same words wherewith God by Moses commended the land of Canaan.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Is it a small thing. Rather, "is it too little," as in verse 9. A land that floweth with milk and honey. A description applying by right to the land of promise, (Exo_3:8 Num_13:27) which they in their studied insolence applied to Egypt. Except thou make thyself altogether a prince over us. Literally, "that (yKi) thou altogether lord it over us." The expression is strengthened in the original by the reduplication of the verb in the inf. abs., rrTchiA

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

THAT THOU [Moses] WOULDST MAKE THYSELF A PRINCE OVER US ‘GAM HISTAREIR’ — [the repetition of this phrase — literally ‘also to rule’ means]: ‘also many forms of lordship.’ Or [it may refer to lordship by] ‘thou and thy brother Aaron.’” This is the language of Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra. In my opinion the word gam (also) here means “even.” Similarly: There is none that doeth good, not ‘gam’ (even) one; The poor is hated ‘gam’ (even) of his own neighbor, and similar cases. Thus Dathan and Abiram said to Moses: “Is it a small thing on your part that you have done us such a great evil to kill us in the wilderness, for which we should have stoned you, that you would rule over us even in a small measure of lordship, by sending us [a summons] to appear before you, let alone that you should play the king and be elevated over us!”

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.