Albert Barnes Commentary Exodus 14:12

"Is not this the word that we spake unto thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it were better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness." — Exodus 14:12 (ASV)

Let us alone - This is a gross exaggeration, yet not without a semblance of truth: for although the Israelites welcomed the message of Moses at first, they gave way completely at the first serious trial. The whole passage foreshadows the conduct of the people in the wilderness.