Israel had left Egypt on the fifteenth day of the first month. A month later they came to the wilderness of Sin, the uninhabited area around the western end of Mount Sinai, as described in Exodus 16:1. “And they took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt.”
By the time they arrived in the wilderness they were running
out of food and there was not enough growing to support the entire crowd. As Exodus 16:2-3 tells us, the people began
to complain. “And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against
Moses ans Aaron in the wilderness: And the children of Israel said unto them,
Would to God we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we
sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have
brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”
Just as they had done before crossing the Red Sea, the
people began to complain that they would have been better off staying in Egypt,
accusing Moses of bringing them out there to die of starvation. God promised to supply their daily food, in
Exodus 16:4-5. “Then said the LORD unto
Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go
out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they
will walk in my law, or no. And it shall
come to pass, that on the sixth day they shall prepare that which they bring
in; and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily. “
Part of the reason for God doing it a certain way was to see
whether they would follow his commands or not.
God would rain bread on them and they were to pick up just enough for
that day, except on the sixth day, when they were to pick up enough for two
days. Moses and Aaron then shared God’s
promise with the people, in Exodus 16:6-8.
“And Moses and Aaron said unto all
the children of Israel, At even, then ye shall know that the LORD hath brought
you out from the land of Egypt: And in the morning, then ye shall see the glory
of the LORD; for that he heareth your murmurings against the LORD: and what are
we, that ye murmur against us? And Moses
said, This shall be, when the LORD shall give you in the evening flesh to eat,
and in the morning bread to the full; for that the LORD heareth your murmurings
which ye murmur against him: and what are we? your murmurings are not against
us, but against the LORD.”
Just a month before, they had seen God’s power causing them
to be freed from slavery, and a week later, they had seen the Egyptian army
destroyed. Three days later, God had
enabled them to neutralize the minerals in the water at Marah, before spending
two weeks at Elim. During the entire
time they had seen the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire leading
them. Although they were complaining
about Moses and Aaron, their complaint was really about God and how he was leading
them.
Moses had the people assemble so that God could address them
in Exodus 16:9-12. “And Moses spake unto Aaron, Say unto all the congregation of the
children of Israel, Come near before the LORD: for he hath heard your
murmurings. And it came to pass, as
Aaron spake unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they
looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in
the cloud. And the LORD spake unto
Moses, saying, I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak
unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be
filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God.”
God was aware of their complaints, and was going to supply
their food so that they could be reminded every day that it was God who was
providing their food. Here we find one
of the apparent contradictions in the scriptures, since Numbers 11:4-34 tells
us that initially they only got the Manna and that the quail did not come until
a year later. This only emphasizes that
contrary to tradition, Moses was not the author of all of the first five books
of scripture, although he did write out the Law. Such minor discrepancies do not detract from
the basic story. Exodus 16:13 describes what
happened after Numbers 11. “And it came to pass, that at even the
quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round
about the host.”
The next morning there were small seed like things about the
size of early morning frost crystals all over the ground. When they saw it the people asked what it
was, calling it manna or “what is it?” Moses explained what it was and how they
were to gather it in Exodus 16:14-18. “And when the dew that lay was gone up,
behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small
as the hoar frost on the ground. And
when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for
they wist not what it was.
And Moses said unto
them, This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat. This is the thing which the LORD hath
commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every
man, according to the number of your persons; take ye every man for them which
are in his tents. And the children of
Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less. And when they did mete it with an omer, he
that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack;
they gathered every man according to his eating.”
Part of the reason for God giving it that particular way was
to teach the people to obey God exactly.
As Exodus 16:19-20 tells us, some of them thought it would be okay to do
things their own way. “And
Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning. Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses;
but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank:
and Moses was wroth with them.”
For the rest of the week they gathered just enough for that
day. Moses had commanded them to gather
twice as much on the sixth day, so they would have enough for the Sabbath. The leaders had not paid attention, and on
the sixth day they came complaing to Moses.
He explained again what God had commanded, in Exodus 16:21-23. “And
they gathered it every morning, every man according to his eating: and when the
sun waxed hot, it melted. And it came to
pass, that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for
one man: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. And he said unto them, This is that which the
LORD hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake
that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which
remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning.”
Just as God had said, the manna gathered on the sixth day
lasted through the Sabbath day according to Exodus 16:24-26. “And
they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither
was there any worm therein. And Moses
said, Eat that to day; for to day is a sabbath unto the LORD: to day ye shall
not find it in the field. Six days ye
shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there
shall be none.”
The leaders were not the only ones who didn’t listen,
however, as Exodus 16:27-30 describes. “And it came to pass, that there went out
some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none. And the LORD said unto Moses, How long refuse
ye to keep my commandments and my laws? See, for that the LORD hath given you the
sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide
ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. So the people rested on the seventh day.”
The manna tasted kind of like a cookie sweetened with honey. God directed them to put some in a pot in the
Ark of the Covenant for a reminder of how God had supplied in the future, according
to Exodus 16:31-34. “And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it was like
coriander seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. And Moses said, This is the thing which the
LORD commandeth, Fill an omer of it to be kept for your generations; that they
may see the bread wherewith I have fed you in the wilderness, when I brought
you forth from the land of Egypt. And
Moses said unto Aaron, Take a pot, and put an omer full of manna therein, and
lay it up before the LORD, to be kept for your generations. As the LORD commanded Moses, so Aaron laid it
up before the Testimony, to be kept.”
The manna must have been very nutritious. The Israelites ate it for the next forty
years, not stopping until they crossed the Jordan, in Joshua 5:12, according to
Exodus 16:35. “And the children of Israel did eat manna forty years, until they came
to a land inhabited; they did eat manna, until they came unto the borders of
the land of Canaan.” It is also clear that Moses did not write
Exodus, as he had died before they crossed the Jordan, according to Deuteronomy
34.
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