Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from the sky for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. It shall come to pass on the sixth day, that they shall prepare that which they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.”
Moses and Aaron said to all the children of Israel, “At evening, you shall know that Yahweh has brought you out from the land of Egypt. In the morning, you shall see Yahweh’s glory; because he hears your murmurings against Yahweh. Who are we, that you murmur against us?” Moses said, “Now Yahweh will give you meat to eat in the evening, and in the morning bread to satisfy you, because Yahweh hears your murmurings which you murmur against him. And who are we? Your murmurings are not against us, but against Yahweh.” Moses said to Aaron, “Tell all the congregation of the children of Israel, ‘Come close to Yahweh, for he has heard your murmurings.’ ” As Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the children of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, Yahweh’s glory appeared in the cloud. Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel. Speak to them, saying, ‘At evening you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am Yahweh your God.’ ”
In the evening, quail came up and covered the camp; and in the morning the dew lay around the camp. When the dew that lay had gone, behold, on the surface of the wilderness was a small round thing, small as the frost on the ground. When the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they didn’t know what it was. Moses said to them, “It is the bread which Yahweh has given you to eat. “This is the thing which Yahweh has commanded: ‘Gather of it everyone according to his eating; an omer a head, according to the number of your persons, you shall take it, every man for those who are in his tent.’ ” The children of Israel did so, and some gathered more, some less. When they measured it with an omer, he who gathered much had nothing over, and he who gathered little had no lack. They each gathered according to his eating. Moses said to them, “Let no one leave of it until the morning.” Notwithstanding they didn’t listen to Moses, but some of them left of it until the morning, so it bred worms and became foul; and Moses was angry with them. They gathered it morning by morning, everyone according to his eating. When the sun grew hot, it melted. On the sixth day, they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one; and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. He said to them, “This is that which Yahweh has spoken, ‘Tomorrow is a solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to Yahweh. Bake that which you want to bake, and boil that which you want to boil; and all that remains over lay up for yourselves to be kept until the morning.’ ” They laid it up until the morning, as Moses ordered, and it didn’t become foul, and there were no worms in it. Moses said, “Eat that today, for today is a Sabbath to Yahweh. Today you shall not find it in the field. Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day is the Sabbath. In it there shall be none.” On the seventh day, some of the people went out to gather, and they found none. Yahweh said to Moses, “How long do you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws? Behold, because Yahweh has given you the Sabbath, therefore he gives you on the sixth day the bread of two days. Everyone stay in his place. Let no one go out of his place on the seventh day.” So the people rested on the seventh day.
The house of Israel called its name “Manna”, and it was like coriander seed, white; and its taste was like wafers with honey. Moses said, “This is the thing which Yahweh has commanded, ‘Let an omer-full of it be kept throughout your generations, that they may see the bread with which I fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.’ ” Moses said to Aaron, “Take a pot, and put an omer-full of manna in it, and lay it up before Yahweh, to be kept throughout your generations.” As Yahweh commanded Moses, so Aaron laid it up before the Testimony, to be kept. The children of Israel ate the manna forty years, until they came to an inhabited land. They ate the manna until they came to the borders of the land of Canaan.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv4, 7, 8, 12, 15, 16, 18, 20, 22, 25, 27, 31, 33, 34 To signify, that they should patiently depend upon God’s…
To signify, that they should patiently depend upon God’s providence from day to day.
Hebrew, the portion of a day in his day.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv4–35 Exo 16:4 Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold,…
Exo 16:4 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.
Ver. 4. I will rain bread from heaven.] Not hell from heaven, as once he did upon Sodom. "If thine enemy hunger, feed him," as God here doth.
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.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33, 34, 35 Bread, i.e. manna, which shall serve them instead of…
Bread, i.e. manna, which shall serve them instead of bread, Num 11:8, and was a more delicate and pleasant kind of bread, called therefore the bread of angels, Psa 78:24,25.
From heaven; the air, oft called heaven, in which manna is produced.
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Every day, Heb. the thing, i.e. the provision of a day in his day, i.e. every day, as much as was sufficient for a man’s sustenance that day. That I may prove them; either,
1. Whether by my giving them such miraculous and excellent provision they will be won to love and obey me. Or,
2. Whether by raining it down upon them for several days together they will learn to trust me for the following days, and therefore gather no more than that day required.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On vv13, 22, 32 Now they begin to be provided for by the…
Now they begin to be provided for by the immediate hand of God.
I. He makes them a feast, at night, of delicate fowl, feathered fowl (Psa 78:27), therefore not locusts, as some think; quails, or pheasants, or some wild fowl, came up, and covered the camp, so tame that they might take up as many of them as they pleased. Note, God gives us of the good things of this life, not only for necessity, but for delight, that we may not only serve him, but serve him cheerfully.
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II. Next morning he rained manna upon them, which was to be continued to them for their daily bread. 1. That which was provided for them was manna, which descended from the clouds, so that, in some sense, they might be said to live upon the air. It came down in dew that melted, and yet was itself of such a consistency as to serve for nourishing strengthening food, without any thing else. They called it manna, manhu, "What is this?" Either, "What a poor thing this is!" despising it: or, "What a strange thing this is!" admiring it: or, "It is a portion, no matter what it is; it is that which our God has allotted us, and we will take it and be thankful," Exo 16:14, Exo 16:15. It was pleasant food; the Jews say that it was palatable to all, however varied their tastes. It was wholesome food, light of digestion, and very necessary (Dr. Grew says) to cleanse them from disorders with which he thinks it probable that they were, in the time of their bondage, more or less infected, which disorders a luxurious diet would have made contagious. By this spare and plain diet we are all taught a lesson of temperance, and forbidden to desire dainties and varieties. 2. They were to gather it every morning (Exo 16:21), the portion of a day in his day, Exo 16:4. Thus they must live upon daily providence, as the fowls of the air, of which it is said, That which thou givest them they gather (Psa 104:28); not today for tomorrow: let the morrow take thought for the things of itself. To this daily raining and gathering of manna our Saviour seems to allude when he teaches us to pray, Give us this day our daily bread. We are hereby taught, (1.) Prudence and diligence in providing food convenient for ourselves and our household. What God graciously gives we must industriously gather; with quietness working, and eating our own bread, not the bread either of idleness or deceit. God's bounty leaves room for man's duty; it did so even when manna was rained: they must not eat till they have gathered. (2.) Contentment and satisfaction with a sufficiency. They must gather, every man according to his eating; enough is as good as a feast, and more than enough is as bad as a surfeit. Those that have most have, for themselves, but food, and raiment, and mirth; and those that have least generally have these: so that he who gathers much has nothing over, and he who gathers little has no lack. There is not so great a disproportion between one and another in the comforts and enjoyments of the things of this life as there is in the property and possession of the things themselves. (3.) Dependence upon Providence: Let no man leave till morning (Exo 16:19), but let them learn to go to bed and sleep quietly, though they have not a bit of bread in their tent, nor in all their camp, trusting that God, with the following day, will bring them their daily bread." It was surer and safer in God's store-house than in their own, and would thence come to them sweeter and fresher. Read with this, Mat 6:25, Take no thought for your life, etc. See here the folly of hoarding. The manna that was laid up by some (who thought themselves wiser and better managers than their neighbours, and who would provide in case it should fail next day), putrefied, and bred worms, and became good for nothing. Note, That proves to be most wasted which is covetously and distrustfully spared. Those riches are corrupted, Jam 5:2, Jam 5:3. Let us set ourselves to think, [1.] Of that great power of God which fed Israel in the wilderness, and made miracles their daily bread. What cannot this God do, who prepared a table in the wilderness, and furnished it richly even for those who questioned whether he could or no? Psa 78:19, Psa 78:20. Never was there such a market of provisions as this, where so many hundred thousand men were daily furnished, without money and without price. Never was there such an open house kept as God kept in the wilderness for forty years together, nor such free and plentiful entertainment given. The feast which Ahasuerus made, to show the riches of his kingdom, and the honour of his majesty, was nothing to this, Est 1:4. It is said (Exo 16:21), When the sun waxed hot, it melted; as if what was left were drawn up by the heat of the sun into the air to be the seed of the next day's harvest, and so from day to day. [2.] Of that constant providence of God which gives food to all flesh, for his mercy endures for ever, Psa 136:25. He is a great house-keeper that provides for all the creatures. The same wisdom, power, and goodness that now brought food daily out of the clouds, are employed in the constant course of nature, bringing food yearly out of the earth, and giving us all things richly to enjoy.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv4–33 Then said the Lord unto Moses,.... Who no doubt…
Then said the Lord unto Moses,.... Who no doubt had been praying to him, as was his usual manner, when the people were in distress and complained, and was heard and answered by him: behold:
I will rain bread from heaven for you; though they were a murmuring, rebellious, and ungrateful people, the Lord dealt kindly and bountifully with them; he did not rain fire and brimstone upon them, as on Sodom and Gomorrah, nor snares and an horrible tempest, as on the wicked; but what was desirable by them, and suitable to their present circumstances, even bread, which was what they wanted, and this ready prepared; for though they did dress it in different ways, yet it might be eaten without any preparation at all; and this it was promised should be rained down upon them, there should be great plenty of it; it should come as thick and as fast as a shower of rain, and lie around their camp ready at hand to take up; and this should not spring out of the earth as bread corn does, but come down from heaven; and being such a wonderful thing, a "behold" is prefixed unto it, denoting the marvellousness of it, as well as exciting attention to what was said: our Lord may seem to contradict this, when he says, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven, Joh 6:32, but the reconciliation is easy; for not to observe that it was God, and not Moses, that gave this bread, so though it came from the airy heavens, and along with the dew of it, where it was prepared perhaps by the ministry of angels, and therefore called the corn of heaven, and angels' bread, Psa 78:24, yet it came not from the heaven of heavens, the third heaven, from whence the true bread, the antitype of this, came, even our Lord Jesus Christ himself:
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and the people shall go out, and gather a certain rate of it every day; or "the thing of the day in its day" (i), the bread day by day; to which our Lord may be thought to allude, when he directs his disciples to pray, give us this day our daily bread; as this would be rained every morning, the people were to go out of the camp, and gather it up for their daily use, and which was to be done every day:
that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law or no; by this single instance of their obedience to his will in going out every morning to gather their bread, that should be rained for them, he proposed to try and prove their obedience to his law in all other respects; what regard would be had to it when it should be given, and what might be expected from them, and likewise whether they would depend upon his providence in this case also.
(i) "rem diei in die suo", Pagninus, Montanus, Munster, Vatablus, Fagius, Drusius.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv4, 5, 6, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 19, 23, 34 Man being made out of the earth, his Maker…
Man being made out of the earth, his Maker has wisely ordered him food out of the earth, Psalm civ, 14. But the people of Israel typifying the church of the first-born that are written in heaven, receiving their charters, laws and commissions from heaven, from heaven also they received their food. See what God designed in making this provision for them, that I may prove them whether they will walk in my law or no - Whether they will trust me, and whether they would serve him, and be ever faithful to so good a master.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 29, 31, 32, 34, 35 Verse 4. I will rain bread] Therefore this substance…
Verse 4. I will rain bread] Therefore this substance was not a production of the desert: nor was the dew that was the instrument of producing it common there, else they must have had this bread for a month before.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv4, 5, 7, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 29, 31, 33, 35 Exo 16:4. Man being made out of the earth,…
Exo 16:4. Man being made out of the earth, his Maker has wisely ordered him food out of the earth, Psa 104:14. But the people of Israel typifying the church of the firstborn that are written in heaven, receiving their charters, laws, and commissions from heaven; from heaven also they received their food. See what God designed in making this provision for them; that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law or no — Whether they would trust and serve him, and be ever faithful to so good a master.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv4, 5, 7, 10, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 27, 28, 29, 31, 33, 34, 35 That I may prove them - The trial consisted…
That I may prove them - The trial consisted in the restriction to the supply of their daily wants.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 12, 13, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22, 27, 29, 31, 33, 35 Prove. Show by experience. Therefore he orders the Hebrews…
Prove. Show by experience. Therefore he orders the Hebrews to gather manna only for one day, except on Friday. Many suppose that this bread of angels began to fall on Sunday, (ver. 22; Origen, hom. 7.) or on Friday. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv4, 13, 32 Then said the Lord unto Moses--Though the outbreak was…
Then said the Lord unto Moses--Though the outbreak was immediately against the human leaders, it was indirectly against God: yet mark His patience, and how graciously He promised to redress the grievance.
I will rain bread from heaven--Israel, a type of the Church which is from above, and being under the conduct, government, and laws of heaven, received their food from heaven also (Psa 78:24).
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that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no--The grand object of their being led into the wilderness was that they might receive a religious training directly under the eye of God; and the first lesson taught them was a constant dependence on God for their daily nourishment.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv4, 6, 9, 13, 14, 15, 16, 22, 23, 25, 31, 32, 34, 35 THE PROMISE OF MANNA AND QUAILS, Exo_16:4-12.
THE PROMISE OF MANNA AND QUAILS, Exo_16:4-12.
4, 5. Bread from heaven — A miraculous provision. See Introduction, (2.) Without a miracle this great host of two millions could never have subsisted in the desert for forty years. Yet they were not entirely dependent upon the manna. They got milk from their flocks and herds, probably traded the products of their cattle with the desert tribes, and perhaps, in this forty years’ sojourn, some halted long enough in some of the fertile wadies to lay them under cultivation. They shifted their camping grounds with the seasons, as do the Bedouins to-day, in order to find the best pasturage for their cattle. Yet this manna supply was an important part of the national education of Israel for their great mission to mankind. The national history and poetry, as found in the Psalms and Prophets especially, show how deeply this event stamped itself upon the soul of Israel.
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That I may prove them — Israel was to learn that God gives daily bread, and the sixth day’s provision was especially to test their obedience.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22, 23, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 4. Then] The Heb. is simply, And (Jehovah said…
4. Then] The Heb. is simply, And (Jehovah said &c.).
rain, &c.] Cf. Psa_78:24 f. (‘rained,’ ‘corn of heaven,’ ‘bread of the mighty,’ i.e. angels), Psa_105:40 (‘bread of heaven‘), Neh_9:15, Wis_16:20 (ἀγγέλων τροφή, ‘angels’ food’), Joh_6:31.
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that I may prove them (Deu_8:2; Deu_13:3 : see on Exo_17:2), &c.] it will be a test of their obedience, if they are attentive to carry out the injunction which I lay upon them. Cf. Deu_8:16, and below, p. 156.
my law] properly, my direction; see p. 162.
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.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 25, 28, 29, 31, 32, 33, 35 (4) I will rain bread from heaven for you.—This…
(4) I will rain bread from heaven for you.—This first announcement at once suggests that the supply is to be supernatural. “Bread from heaven” was not simply “food out of the air” (Rosenmüller), but a celestial, that is, a Divine supply of their daily needs.
A certain rate every day.—Heb., a day’s meal each day—sufficient, that is, for the wants of himself and family for a day.
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That I may prove them.—Human life is a probation. God proves and tries those most whom He takes to Himself for His “peculiar people,” and the trial is often by means of positive precepts, which are especially
Calculated to test the presence or absence of a spirit of humble and unquestioning obedience. Our first parents were tested by a positive precept in Paradise; the family of Abraham were tested by a positive precept—circumcision on the eighth day; the Israelites were tested, both in the wilderness and afterwards throughout their career as a nation, by a number of positive precepts, whereof this concerning the manna was one. Christians are tested by positive precepts with respect to common worship, prayer, and sacraments—the object being in all cases to see whether men “will walk in God’s law or no.” Men are very apt to prefer their own inventions to the simple rule of following at once the letter and the spirit of God’s commandments.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 Vers. 4-8. THE PROMISE OF BREAD FROM HEAVEN. When…
Vers. 4-8. THE PROMISE OF BREAD FROM HEAVEN. When men who are in real distress make complaint, even though the tone of their complaint be not such as it ought to be, God in his mercy is wont to have compassion upon them, to "hear their mummurings," etc., and grant them some relief. But the relief is seldom of the kind which they expect, or pray for. The Israelites wished for actual bread, made of wheaten or barley flour. God gave them, not such bread, but a substitute for it. And first, before giving it, be promised that it should be given. Thus expectation was aroused; faith was exercised; the supernatural character of the relief was indicated; the power and the goodness of God, were, both of them, shown forth. And with the promise was given a law. They were on each occasion to gather no more than would suffice for the day. Thus they would continually "live by faith," taking no thought for the morrow, but trusting all to God.
Bread from heaven. Compare Psa_78:24; Joh_6:31-51. The expression is of course not to be trader-stood literally. The substance was not actual bread, neither was it locally transferred from the distant region called "heaven" to the soil of the Sinaitic peninsula. But it was called "bread," because it was intended to serve instead of bread, as the main support of life during the sojourn of Israel in the wilderness; and it was said to be "from heaven," first, as descending on "the ground out of the circumambient air; and secondly, as miraculously sent by him, whose seat is in heaven. The people shall gather a certain rate every day. Rather "a day"s supply every day," such a quantity as shall seem to each man reasonably sufficient for himself and his family. That I may prove them. As in Paradise God coupled with his free gift of "every tree of the garden" the positive precept, "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil thou shalt not eat, that he might prove our first parents, whether they would obey him or not so now he "proved" the obedience of the Israelites by a definite, positive command they were not to gather on ordinary days more than was sufficient for the day. All life is intended as a probation.
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HOMILETICS.
Vers. 4-8. The mercy of God in hearing and helping even an ungrateful and discontented people. God is very merciful to those who are in covenant with him, whom hehas chosen for his own, and made "the sheep of his pasture." Very often, and very far may they go astray, turn from the right way, rebel against him, refuse to hearken to his voice, murmur, misuse his ministers and slander them, yet not alienate him wholly. Indefectible grace must not indeed be claimed by any man as his own portion; for none can know that he possesses it; yet the way of God, on the whole, appears to be to reclaim his wandering sheep; recall them to a sense of what is their duty; and restore them to the fold whence they have strayed. All that can be done with this object he does for the Church now, as for the congregation of the children of Israel in the wilderness.
I HE PARDONS THEIR OFFENCES. Distrust, discontent, ingratitude, even when openly expressed in speech, he forgives in his mercy, not seven times only, but "seventy times seven." How many murmur at their lot; complain of their worldly condition, or their lack of spiritual gifts, or their unhappy position under ministers of whom they do not approve; or the coldness and unsympathetic temper of their friends, or the want of any due appreciation by others of their merits! It is, comparatively speaking, rarely that we meet with a contented person. Yet God is so merciful, that he bears with the murmurers yea, even "hears their murmurings," and devises means for their relief.
II HE GIVES THEM BREAD FROM HEAVEN. "Every good gift and every perfect gift" is from him, and "cometh down from the Father of Lights." The material sustenance of daily life is one form of "bread from heaven," wherewith he daily provides the millions who look to him. His holy word is another form, a heavenly gift, the sustenance of many souls. But, as he tells us, he himself is "the true bread from heaven". (Joh_6:32-51) In and through the Eucharist, he gives us himself to be our spiritual food and sustenance, the bread of life, the true manna, meat indeed. If we worthily receive the blessed sacrament of his body and blood, then we "spiritually eat the flesh of Christ and drink his blood; then we dwell in Christ, and Christ in us; we are one with Christ, and Christ with us sinful bodies are made clean by his body, and our souls washed through his most precious blood." Thus, he gives us, in the highest, most perfect, and most spiritual way, that which is the great need of our souls, "bread from heaven.
III HE GIVES THEM LAWS TO PROVE THEM. With blessing duty goes ever hand in hand. To every gift God attaches some law of direction for its use. The gift of the manna had its own laws its law of gathering, and its law of reserving or not reserving. The holy Eucharist has also its one great law a law fixing the mental attitude this in remembrance of me." To make it a mere supper, as the Corinthians did (1Co_11:20-34) albeit a love-feast, symbolical of Christian fellowship and unity, is to break this law. The Eucharist is "for the continual remembrance of the sacrifice of the death of Christ for the calling to mind his sufferings for our sins, his atonement fur our guilt, his deliverance of us from Satan, death, and hell, by his one oblation of himself once offered upon the Cross. it is by this remembrance that our penitence is made acute, our gratitude called forth, our hearts enabled to "lift themselves up," our spirits stirred to love, and joy, and thankfulness; and obedience to this law on our part is a necessary condition to our receiving the benefits of the Eucharist. Thus we too, when "bread from heaven" is rained upon us, have a law given to us to prove us, whether we will walk in God"s law or not.
HOMILIES BY J. ORR Vers. 4-16. The gift of Manna.
Quails also were given, on this occasion in mercy, and on a later occasion in wrath; (Num_11:31-34) but it was the manna which was the principal gift, both as providing Israel with a continuous supply of food, and as having a permanent significance in the history of God"s dealings with his Church (vers. 32-35).
I THE MANNA PROMISED (vers. 4-9).
1. God would rain bread from heaven for them (ver. 4). He would spread atable for them, even in the wilderness, a thing they had deemed impossible. (Psa_78:19) He would give them to eat of "the corn of heaven". (Psa_68:24) He would thus display himself as Jehovah, the God of exhaustless resources, able and willing to supply all their need. (cf. Php_4:19) He would remove from himself the reproach wherewith they had reproached him, that he had brought them into the wilderness, "to kill this whole assembly with hunger" (ver. 3). He would testify of his loving care for them. (cf. Deu_1:31)
2. The supply would be continuous day" (ver. 4). The regularityof the supply would be a daily proof of God"s faithfulness another of the Jehovah attributes. We have a similar proof of the Divine faithfulness in the constancy of the laws of nature on which our own supplies of food depend; in particular, in the regular succession of seed-time and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, which God has promised to maintain Gen_8:22; cf. (Psa_119:89-92)
3. The gift of quails and manna would be a manifestation of his glory asJehovah (vers. 6, 7; also ver. 12 ye shall know that I am Jehovah your God"). His Jehovah character would be revealed in it. Note, in addition to what is said above, the following illustrations of this.
(1) The gift of manna was an act of free origination. Compare with Christ"s multiplication of the loaves, brought in John 6. into close association with this miracle.
(2) So far as natural materials were utilised in the production of the manna (dew, etc.), it was shown how absolutely plastic nature was in the hands of its Creator.
(3) The gift of quails was a further testimony to God"s supreme rule in nature.
(4) It was a special feature in this transaction that God was seen in it acting solely from himself finding the law and reason of what he did in himself alone. He interposes with a simple "I will" (ver. 4). It was neither the people"s merits nor the people"s prayers, which moved him to give the manna. Merits they had none; prayers they did not offer. But God, who brought them out of Egypt, and had bound himself by covenant with their fathers, found a reason in himself for helping them, when he could find none in them. (cf. Deu_9:4, Deu_9:5) He showed them this kindness for his own name"s sake; (cf. Psa_106:8) because he was Jehovah, who changed not. (Mal_3:6)
4. The gift of manna would prove a trial of obedience (ver. 4). God boundhimself to send the manna day by day, and this would be a test of his faithfulness. But rules would be prescribed to the people for gathering the manna, and this would be a test of their obedience. God"s design in giving the manna was thus not merely to supply the people"s natural wants. He would also train them to dependence. He would test their characters. He would endeavour to form them to habits of obedience. A like educative and disciplinary purpose is to be recognised as bound up with all God"s leading of us. Gifts are at the same time trusts. They impose duties upon us, and lay us under responsibilities. There are rules to be observed in the use of them which test our inner dispositions. There is a law of temperance in the use of food. There is a law of modesty in dress. There are the laws relating to the acquisition and expenditure of money honesty in acquisition, economy in use, liberality in giving, (cf. Deu_15:7-12) devotion of the first fruits of income to God. There is the supreme law, which includes all others therefore, ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God". (1Co_10:31) There is no action, no occupation, however seemingly trivial, which has not important relations to the formation of character. "The daily round, the common task," etc.
II THE PREPARATORY THEOPHANY (vers. 9-13). Moses summoned the people to draw near before the Lord. Then, as they came together, and looked toward the wilderness, lo! "the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud." It is a suggestive circumstance that it is Aaron, who by command of Moses, collects the congregation (ver. 10). Moses, according to his wont, had probably withdrawn to pray. (cf. Exo_14:15) In this, as in other instances, Moses might be taken as an example of secrecy in prayer. His prayers are never paraded. They are even studiously kept in the background a proof surely of the Mosaic authorship of the book. When they come to light, it is often incidentally. (Exo_14:15) On one notable occasion an intercessory prayer of his was not made known till near the end of his life. (Deu_9:25) We know of his prayers mostly by their results. This appearance of the glory of God to Israel may be viewed:
1. As a rebuke of the people"s murmurings. Unlike the "look" from the pillar of fire with which the Lord discomfited the Egyptians, (Exo_14:24) it was a look with as much mercy as anger in it. Yet it conveyed reproof. It may be compared with the theophany which terminated the dispute between Job and his friends, and caused the patriarch to abhor himself, and to repent in dust and ashes; (Job_38:1 Job_42:6) or to the look of sorrow and reproof which the Lord cast on Peter, which caused him to go out, and weep bitterly. (Mat_26:75) How abashed, humbled, and full of fear, those murmurers would now be, as with mouths stopped, (Rom_3:19) they beheld that terrible glory forming itself in the cloud, and looking down full upon them!
1. As a fitting introduction to the miracle that was to follow. It gave impressiveness to the announcement showed indubitably the source of the miraculous supply roused the minds of the people to a high pitch of expectation prepared them for something grand and exceptional in the Divine procedure. It thus checked their murmurings, convinced them of their sin in distrusting God, warned them of the danger of further rebellion, and brought them back to their obedience. God"s words have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel at the same time reminded them that he was fully aware of all their "hard speeches" which they had spoken against him.
2. As an anticipation of the revelation of Sinai. These chapters are full of anticipations. in Exo_15:25, Exo_15:26, we have "statute and an ordinance," anticipatory of the later Sinaitic covenant; in this chapter, we have an anticipation of Sinai glory and also of the sabbath law (ver. 23); in Exo_18:16, we have an anticipation of the civil code of Sinai; for Moses makes the people "know the statutes of God, and his laws.
III THE MANNA GIVEN (vers. 13-16). Quails came in the evening, and next morning the manna fell with the dew. We observe concerning it
1. That it came in a not unfamiliar form. The "angel"s food", (Psa_78:25) wore the dress, and had the taste of the ordinary manna of the desert. We miss in the miracles of the Bible the grotesque and bizarre features which mark the supernatural stories of other books. They testify to the existence, as well as respect the laws, of an established natural order. The plagues of Egypt, e.g. , were thoroughly true to the natural phenomena of that country, and made the largest possible use of existing agencies. The crossing of the Red Sea was accomplished by the supernatural employment of natural conditions and agencies. There is in all these miracles the constant observance of the two laws:
(1) Of economy utilising the natural so far as it will go; and
(2) of congruity keeping as closely as possible to the type of the natural, even when originating supernatural phenomena.
1. That it was a direct production of the power of God. It was in the truest sense bread from heaven, and is thus a type of Christ, the Bread of Life (see below). Yet the power exerted in the creation of the manna and it is important to remember this is but the same power, only more visibly put forth, which operates still in nature, giving us our yearly supplies of the good things of the earth. The annual harvest is only not a miracle, because it comes regularly, season after season, and because numerous secondary agencies are employed in its production. You plough, that is, break up the ground to receive the seed; but whence came the seed? From last year"s gift. You sow it in the fields, cover it up again and leave it to whose care? To God"s. It is he who now takes the matter into his own hands, and in what remains you can but wait upon his will. It rests with him to send his rains or to withhold them; to order the sunshine and heat; to bless or blast your harvest. What man does is but to put matters in train for God"s working God himself does the rest; in the swelling and germination of the seed, in all the stages of its growth, in the formation of the blade, in the modelling of the ear, in the filling of it with the rich ripe grain, his power is absolutely, and all throughout, the only power at work. And how great the gift is when it comes! It is literally God opening his hand and putting into ours the food necessary for our sustenance. But for that gift, year by year renewed, man and beast would utterly perish. It is calculated that a year"s pro duce in Great Britain alone amounts in money value to over The corn crop alone was valued in 1880 at It is as if God had made a direct gift of that sum of money to our nation in the year named, only it was given in a better than money form in food. How little we think of it! Men are proud and self-sufficient, and speak sometimes as if they would almost disdain to accept or acknowledge a favour even from the Almighty. While yet, in truth, they are, like others, the veriest pensioners on his bounty, sustained by his power, seeing by his light, warmed by his sun, and fed year by year by the crumbs that fall from his table. Were God for a single year to break the staff of bread over the whole earth, where would either it or they be?
2. That it was given day by day, and with regularity. Thus the manna taught a daily lesson of dependence on God, and so played an important part in the spiritual education of Israel. Yet familiarity must have done much then, as it does still, to deaden the impression of God"s hand in the daily gift. Because the manna came to them, not by fits and starts, but regularly; because there was a "law" in its coming they would get to look on it as quite a common occurrence, no more to be wondered at than the rising and setting of the sun, or any other sequence in nature. "Laws of nature" tend, in precisely the same way, to blind us to the agency of God working behind and in them, as well as to hide from us his agency in the origination of the sequences that now flow so uniformly. We have spoken of God"s agency in the production of the harvest. But there is good ground for speaking of our cereal crops as in yet another sense from heaven." These cereal plants, it is affirmed, are never found in a wild state; cannot by any known process be developed from plants in a wild state; and if once allowed to degenerate, can never again be reclaimed for human food. Not inaptly, therefore, have they been represented as even now a kind of standing miracle a proof of direct creative interposition for the good of man. (See "The Cerealia: a Standing Miracle," by Professor Harvey, in "Good Words," vol. 2.) Yet how entirely is this retied from us by the fact that all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation". (2Pe_3:4)
3. That it was a food entirely suitable to the circumstances of the Israelites. It was light, nutritious, palatable; comprised variety by admitting of being prepared in different ways; (baked, seethed, ver. 23; cf. Num_11:8) was abundant in quantity, readily distinguishable by the eye, and being of a granulated nature, and strewn thickly throughout all the camp, could be collected with a very moderate expenditure of labour. It was thus, like so much in our own surroundings, and in the provision which God makes for our wants, a constant witness to the care, goodness, wisdom, and forethought of the great Giver. J.O.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv4, 13, 16, 23, 32 That I may prove them.
Exo_16:4
That I may prove them.
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Life a probation
There can be nothing more sobering than the truth that this life is a state of trial and preparation for another. There is at the same time something wonderfully satisfying in the idea. It puts life before us in a point of view which satisfactorily explains it.
I. This account of the end of life simplifies matters in our journey through life, The principle of trial as the end of life shoves aside a multiplicity of irrevelent ends to make way for the true one; it reduces the purpose of life to the greatest possible simplicity, reduces it, as we may say, to a unit--to the effect upon the individual himself, what he does and how he turns out under these circumstances. The idea of probation thus gives a singular unity to the whole design and plan of life. It throws the individual upon himself as the rational of the whole.
II. The principle of the end of life being probative applies mainly to all the ordinary external advantages of life and our pursuit of them; but it also affects another and less ordinary class of human objects--the objects connected with the good of others, those useful and benevolent works and those public and religious works which good men propose to themselves. There is one defect to which good men are liable: they become to much absorbed in the success of their own plans. The important truth for such men to realize is this very principle, viz., that of the end of life being trial. If they brought this truth home to themselves, they would see that the only important thing to them was, not that a useful undertaking should answer, but that they should have done faithfully their best for that purpose.
III. God makes use of us as His instruments, but the work that we do as instruments is a far inferior work to that which we do to fulfil our own personal trial. The general end of life, as trial, is superior to all special ends; it is the end which concerns the individual being, his spiritual condition, his ultimate prospects. (Prof. J. B. Mozley.)
The Divine bestowal of physical good
I. Physical blessings are given to supply our wants.
1. This provision was providential. Gods hand directs the movements of the tiniest creatures in the universe. He clothes the grass, and paints the flower.
2. This provision was abundant. There was enough for each man, woman, and child.
(1) The supply was varied--bread and meat.
(2) The supply was regular--morning and evening.
(3) The supply was constant They did eat manna for forty years. Gods least thought is more prolific than mans greatest abundance. Nature is the expression of Gods fulness.
II. Physical blessings are given to develop our energies.
1. The blessings of lifo must be secured by diligent application. Go out and gather. No prize is beyond the reach of the earnest worker.
2. The blessings of life must be sought in a patient spirit. A certain portion every day. We want to accumulate the treasures of life quickly, to provide in youth for age, and retire upon our gains. God does not forbid prudence, foresight; but He sometimes overturns our plans, and sends day by day our daily bread. To the anxious, fearful soul, He says, Gather, Trust.
III. Physical blessings are given to test our obedience. That I may prove them, whether they will walk in My law, or no. God has many ways of testing the sincerity of His people. He proves them by poverty, affliction, persecution, and prosperity. He spreads our tables with dainties, and says, I will test their love, and liberality, and devotion.
1. The recipients of material possessions often hoard their wealth. Hoarded wealth never satisfies the possessor. It begets selfishness, fear, unrest, and disappointment.
2. The recipients of material possessions often squander their wealth. (J. T. Woodhouse.)
The manna a test of faith
That I may prove them, whether they will walk in My law, or no. How did the manna become a test of this? By means of the law prescribed for gathering it. There was to be a given quantity daily, and twice as much on the sixth day. If a man trusted God for to-morrow, he would be content to stop collecting when he had filled his Greet, tempting as the easily gathered abundance would be. Greed and unbelief would masquerade then, as now, under the guise of prudent foresight. The old Egyptian parallels to make hay while the sun shines, and such like wise sayings of the philosophy of distrust, would be solemnly spoken, and listened to as pearls of wisdom. When experience had taught that, however much a man gathered, he had no more than his omer full, after all--and is not that true yet?--then the next temptation would be to practise economy, and have something over for tomorrow. Only he who absolutely trusted God to provide for him, world eat up his portion, and lie down at night with a quiet heart, knowing that He who had fed him would feed. When experience taught that what was saved rotted, then laziness would come in, and say, What is the use of gathering twice as much on the sixth day? Dont we know that it will not keep? So the whole of the gift was a continual training, and therefore a continual test, for faith. God willed to let His gifts come in this hand-to-mouth fashion, though He could have provided at once what would have obviously lasted them all their wilderness life, in order that they might be habituated to cling to Him, and that their daily bread might be doubly for their nourishment, feeding their bodies, and strengthening that faith which, to them as to us, is the condition of all blessedness. God lets our blessings, too, trickle to us drop by drop, instead of pouring them in a flood all at once upon us, for the same reason. He does so, not because of any good to Him, from our faith, except that the Infinite love loves infinitely to be loved. Bat for our sakes, that we may taste the peace and strength of continual dependence, and the joy of continual receiving. He could give us the principal down; but He prefers to pay us the interest as we need it. Christianity does not absolutely forbid laying up money or other resources for future wants. But the love of accumulating, which is so strong in many professing Christians, and the habit of amassing beyond all reasonable future wants, is surely scarcely permitted to those who profess to believe that incarnate wisdom forbade taking anxious care for the morrow, and sent its disciples to lilies and birds to learn the happy immunities of faith. We, too, get our daily mercies to prove us. The letter of the law for the manna is not applicable to us who gain our bread by Gods blessing on our labour. But the spirit is, and the members of great commercial nations have surely little need to be reminded that still the portion put away is apt to breed worms. How often it vanishes I Or, if it lasts, tortures its owner, who has more trouble keeping it than he had in getting it; or fatally corrupts his own character, or ruins his children. All Gods gifts are tests, which--thanks be to Him--is the same as to say that they are means of increasing faith, and so adding joy. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On vv4, 22, 32 Exo_16:13. Quails.] Heb. שלו. “so called from its fatness”…
CRITICAL NOTES.—
Exo_16:13. Quails.] Heb. שלו. “so called from its fatness” (Gesenius). According to all accounts, the “quail” abounds in those regions.
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Exo_16:15. Manna.] It is evidently premature to take the Heb. מן as a proper name in this place, although afterwards it became that. Our choice lies probably between the two renderings given in the margin of the authorised version. “What is this?” or, “This is a portion.” Kalisch and Young decide for the former; Davies adopts the latter. Kalisch enlarges considerably on various natural productions analogous to the substance on which the Israelites were sustained, and which he distinguishes as “air-manna” and “tree-manna;” but, after all, he has to admit that a miracle is here recorded. Dr. Tregelles (in Ges. Heb. Lex. on the word) says: “No one who simply credits the inspired history of the giving of the manna can doubt that it was something miraculously given to the Israelites, and that it differed in its nature from anything now known.” The following are all the occurrences of the word “manna” in the Old and New Testaments: Exo_16:15; Exo_16:31; Exo_16:33; Exo_16:35; Num_11:6-7; Num_11:9; Deu_8:3; Deu_8:16; Jos_5:12; Neh_9:20; Psa_78:24; Joh_6:31; Joh_6:49; Joh_6:58; Heb_9:4; Rev_2:17. The type was “hidden” in “the golden pot” inside the ark; was carried into Canaan, and preserved there as a memorial of the heavenly food so long supplied in the desert; for which, however, there was no further need, and therefore it was no longer given, and what was preserved was not “eaten.” The antitype—Christ, the true heavenly bread—is eaten both in the desert (John 6) and in Paradise (Revelation 2). Christ as the bread of life can never be superseded.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Exo_16:4-21
THE FALLING OF THE MANNA
It is indeed an oft-repeated saying that life is a pilgrimage, but how seldom do we thoroughly realise the entire meaning of these words. We seldom realise the fact that physically we are passing from one stage to another, from infancy to childhood, from childhood to manhood, and from manhood to old age. The bright dreams of childhood are for ever gone. The privileges and difficulties of school life are now but a recollection. The business activities of life have broken upon us in all their stern reality. And it may be that the dim vision and sombre shades of old age are upon us. Thus life no sooner opens its petals to the sun than it passes into the grave from whence it sprang. We have physically no continuing city here. Intellectually, life is a pilgrimage. In our mental life we are constantly passing from one stage to another, from ignorance to dawning knowledge, from dawning knowledge to a perception of the infinity before us, and so on until the part knowledge of earth shall break into the unveiled splendour of truth in heaven. And morally, life is a pilgrimage. Our souls are ever travelling from one experience to another; it may be from one bondage to another, or from a wretched past to a pure and sublime future. All pure souls are migratory. They rest not long in one condition. They prefer entering upon the mysteries and visions of the future to lingering on the things and scenes around them; they are inspired by a holy desire after progress. They press forward to the Canaan of being, to the land flowing with milk and honey. And thus the life of man in every department is one great pilgrimage, often tiring and trying, but never far from the presence and leadings of the great God, otherwise the pain and mystery of the pilgrimage would be more than we could endure. God is before the life of each one of us, whether we recognise Him or not. That in the pilgrimage of life there is a wondrous interchange of glad and sad experiences, all consistent with true progress. The Israelites had only a little while ago stood in terror on the banks of the Red Sea; they had murmured in disappointment at the bitter waters of Marah; they had rested in joy at the wells and under the welcome shade of Elim; and now they hunger in the wilderness of Sin. Thus we see through what a diversity of experience they were brought, both hopeful and sad, in the line of their progress. And progress is always thus characterised. There is no progress without pain; the progress of the body into the full vigour of life, the advancement of the mind into the heritage of knowledge, and the effort of the soul to attain its high destiny, is inseparable from anguish. In the pathway of each advancing spirit there will be many bitter waters, there will come a time when it will hunger in the wilderness of Sin. But if progress is a pain it is also a joy, it leads past Elim as well as through the wilderness of Sin, and though the transition from one to the other may be unwelcome, it is permitted in the mercy of God, it is a healthful discipline, and it will render the soul all the richer in sublime experience of Divine help. And thus joy and sorrow alternate in a progressive life. Monotony of feeling is misery to a great soul. Some men always feel alike. They have no great tide within which breaks into billows on the shore of their souls. Their life is stagnant. Sorrow lends to joy its richest meaning, gives to it its rainbow hue, and places in its hand the instrument from whence comes its sweetest music. It is part of the complement of the inner life, and without it a great joy would be impossible. Both joy and sorrow exercise an improving ministry toward human life, the former as the day, in which the ordinary work of duty is accomplished, and the latter as the night, in which the stars of promise burn brilliantly, and the gentle dews descend upon the soul. Sorrow often reveals men to themselves, and gives them in their murmuring mood a hint of the corruption yet remaining within their soul. We observe—
I. That the temporal supplies of life are the gift of God. “Behold I will rain bread from heaven for you.”
1. This supply of bread was miraculous. Some would have us believe that the supply of manna in the wilderness was a natural phenomenon; they tell us of the manna of Arabia which was sold in apothecaries’ shops. They say that out of the earth there issued a certain sweet vapour, which, being drawn up by the heat of the sun, was purged from its earthliness, and made pure, then with the cold of the night it was hardened, and before morning fell upon the earth like dew, and so was kept for man. They say it was small, white, sweet, and that it fell with the dew. But whether this wondrous kind of food or medicine was known at the time of the falling of the manna we are not careful to inquire; we are certain it could not have been the bread which is here said to have come from heaven. The manna on which Israel fed was previously announced by God to Moses, was independent of all the conditions of climate or weather, continued in great abundance for forty years, fell not on the Sabbath, and ceased when it was no longer needed. Surely here, if anywhere, we must recognise the miraculous hand of God. In all this we have a type of things spiritual. Christ is the true manna of the soul, and is not He a miraculous gift? He came down from heaven. He came into the world after a miraculous fashion, and was in Himself the highest embodiment of miracle. Have not men endeavoured to explain His Person, His work, and His life on natural hypothesis? Have they not said that He was the product of the age in which He lived, and that all the apparent grandeur of His life was attributable more to the superstitions of the folk then living than to the inherent Divinity of His own soul? But as the manna was not the outcome of the earth on which it was found, as it was not the outcome of the physical laws of the universe, neither was Christ the product of the earth on which He trod, or the imagined hero of a deluded people. Fancied manna cannot feed men, and the natural manna of the world cannot nourish the immortal soul; hence if Christ had not been what He professed to be, the Divine Saviour of men, He could not have satisfied their moral nature, He could not have won their confidence; their soul-hunger would have proved Him false. Does Christ satisfy your soul in all the extent of its need? if so, this is a proof to you far stronger than any logical argument could be, that He is what He professes to be, and that He is, in a unique and unfailing sense, from heaven. Was the manna white, and was not Christ innocent? Was the manna small, and was not Christ small amongst men? He was not found amongst the Herods and the Caesars, but amongst the humble and the poor. He was despised and rejected of men. Was the manna sweet, and is not Christ sweeter than honey and the honeycomb? Was the manna round, and is not Christ without termination in His life and resources?
2. This supply of bread was adapted to the need of Israel. The Israelites are in need of something to sustain their lives, and, unless it is speedily sent, they will perish in the wilderness. What course did the Divine Being pursue? Did He cause beautiful flowers to spring up around the starving people? Did He rain pearls from the skies? Did He light up the landscape with unusual glow, to charm the sufferers out of the thought of their peril? No. He sent them bread, which was suited to the oldest as well as to the youngest, and in sufficient quantity to supply the want of all. And this is the way in which the Divine Being responds to the need of man. He does not mock it. He does not disappoint it. He meets it in the best and wisest manner. God supplies the temporal need of the universe. The eyes of all living wait upon Thee, and Thou givest them their meat in due season, &c. God gives the world its bread. You would not think so, though, to look out upon the conduct of men. Some men deny His existence. Some profane His name. The great multitude reject His rule; and thousands downright abuse the gifts of His hand. When the Great of the earth spread a banquet, they are approached with respect, they are courted by favour, and all sit together in happiness and joy; not one discordant voice is heard. But, alas! the munificence of Heaven is met in a very different spirit. I say to every rebel soul, You are fed by God; and I ask, if you do not owe Him something of gratitude? Is it wise to reject Him who could in a moment hurry your life into the grave? Men look to the fields and say, “Thou hast given me corn;” they look to the hills and say, “Thou hast given me water;” they look to the seas and say, “Thou hast brought me merchandise;” and they look to their own industry and say, “Thou art my stay.” But who clothed the smiling fields with corn? who caused the silvery rill to flow? who meted out the great waters? and who gave thee thy brain and thine hand? You say, “I sowed the seed.” Yes; but who made it grow? You say, “The sun.” But who kindled the fires of that central orb? We need to be more spiritually-minded in the reception of the ordinary gifts of life, to look through secondary causes to the great First Cause of all our temporal good. And does not the Divine Being equally meet our moral need? As the Israelites were in need of bread to preserve them from starvation, so was not mankind morally in great need of Christ? The soul was, indeed, perishing of hunger, and then it was that Christ was given to appease it. The need was great, man could not satisfy the cravings of his moral nature,—the philosophy and the conventional doctrine of the old teachers were exhausted and vain; and in this moment of the world’s unspoken anguish, the Bread of Life was given. “When we were without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. Christ is suited to all; has enough for all.
3. This supply of bread was undeserved by Israel. When the Israelites began to feel their need of food they commenced to murmur. They were murmuring against Moses, and in reality against the God he represented. Thus we see how the temporal perplexities of life test men, and often reveal the hidden corruption of the heart. Many who would sing loudly and joyously the hymn at the banks of the Red Sea, and who might imagine that they would no longer sin against God, and that all evil was removed from their hearts, would find that there was unsuspected evil within them. Trial often makes terrible revelations to men of their inward heart; it is often as the surprise in nature, which suddenly opens up to the vision a lonely and rugged path which before had been unobserved. These people were murmuring; would it not have been better if they had been praying? The former could not avail them much, the latter would. Many men in trouble murmur when they ought to pray. And yet, strange to say, these murmurings were answered, and apparently discontent had the same effect as devotion. But it was only in outward appearance that the effect was the same; inwardly and really it was very different. The manna came the same, but the inward feeling of Israel was not what prayer would have made it. If they had substituted prayer for murmuring, their hearts would have been penitent instead of hard,—thankful instead of dubious. We should always regard not merely the outward answer to prayer, but also the inward feeling which is awakened by it, else we may imagine that it is as wise to murmur as to pray. A murmuring soul may get bread; a praying soul will get bread and grace too. This shows that all our mercies are not of merit, but of the Divine compassion,—we do not get them because we deserve, but because without them we should die. We should not have been surprised if an angel near had withdrawn his gleaming weapon and smote the rebels dead; or if the earth had opened to swallow them up. But God’s ways are not as our ways, nor are His thoughts as our thoughts. God crowns the thankless with His mercy; of this we have abundant evidence every day. There is great encouragement here for the penitent; for if God responded to the cry of discontent, will He not much more to the cry of penitence? And was not Christ an undeserved gift? When He came to Bethlehem, did the world deserve Him? The world did not ask for Him. It was murmuring in its sin, and knew not where to look for relief. And when He came He was rejected and despised of men. And do we deserve Him? We have neglected Him; and even if we have yielded to Him it is after long entreaty, and in but a partial degree. We none of us deserved to be saved from sin and hell, and our salvation is of the infinite mercy of God.
II. That the temporal supplies of life necessitate the timely labour of man. Thus we see that God rained manna from the heavens, but the Israelites had to gather it, or they would perish. It is not the way of God to feed men independent of their own industry. God does His part in giving man what he could not otherwise obtain, and then he must collect and use the gifts thus bestowed. We see this in everyday life. God makes the great mountains, and man digs into them to obtain their treasures; God metes out the ocean, and man builds ships by which to navigate it; God gives intellect and sympathy, and men must solve the problem and compassionate woe. And thus in the conduct of the universe man is a co-worker with God. It is in this co-operation that he develops his best genius, and that he realises true dignity. If it had been the way of Heaven to give the world the manna, without any toil on its part, the world would have been lacking in its greatest men, in its richest biographies, and in all those qualities which ennoble wherever they are seen. We should not have had Stephenson. We should not have had Newton. We should not have had Howard; or perhaps we might have had them, but their names would have been without meaning, and their lives without greatness. There would have been no manna on the fields of civilisation, philanthropy, and science for them to have gathered. It is well that the world has to gather its own manna, for in gathering manna it not only gathers food, but appetite to enjoy it, conscience to approve it, and industry to consecrate it. A man who gathers his own manna likewise gathers innumerable blessings with it. This is true physically, mentally, and spiritually. It would be the ruin of the universe if its manna were gathered for it. Industry would lack inspiration. Life would lack motive. And so it is morally. We must gather the spiritual manna. As we have the iron in the mountain, the pearls in the ocean, the gold in the mine, and the corn in the fields, so we have Christ in the ordinances, Christ in the promises, Christ in the Bible, Christ in the pulpit, and Christ in the biographies of the good; but Christ in the Bible is of more use to you than gold in the mine. He must be gathered by all the best energies of the soul. Then only will He become the nourishment of our moral nature. Ah, yes! This spiritual manna is all around us, but few gather it. The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few. Have you gathered any manna to-day?
1. Men must gather diligently. We can imagine how diligently the Israelites would watch for the first opportunity, and how eagerly would they embrace it, to collect their needed supplies. Some would be up and out with the first touch of morning light, and others would be seen leaving their tents just as the hot rays of the sun were melting the manna. In every community there are diligent and idle men. God hates idleness. In the world to-day we find men diligently gathering the manna of secular life. They are up at it long before the burning sun removes their opportunity. Would that they were as diligent in gathering the manna of the soul. We even find that the men who work hardest to feed the body, sometimes manifest the greatest indolence in reference to the cravings of the soul. They would not let a day pass without secular toil, but they let years pass without moral activity. Be diligent in seeking Christ and in reading the Scriptures.
2. Men must gather early. The Israelites were to go out early in the morning and gather the manna, before the sun came and melted it. They were to take time while time served. The early morning is the best time for gathering the manna of the body and also the manna of the soul. Would not the Israelites find the air more balmy, the scene more calming, and nature more sportive in the early morn? Men who work in the morning get nature’s richest benediction. And no morning should pass away without gathering the spiritual manna. When the busy world is quiet, and when only a stray Israelite is seen, then is the time to commune with God, and to prepare the soul for the moral wear and tear of the day. And we would say to the young, Commence early to gather manna; if you work hard in early manhood, you will not want in old age. But, above all, gather Christ in the early morning of life, when the soul is fresh and fragrant with early dew and flower. The mercy of God falls early near the soul, it is there long before we go to seek it.
3. Men must gather constantly. The Israelites did not gather manna one day and then neglect it a day or two. They gathered every morning, else they would have experienced want, and finally, they would have perished. And if men wish to obtain temporal prosperity, it will not do to neglect business a day or two in the week. My brother, must not the spiritual manna be constantly gathered? Will it feed your soul to-day to know that you received Christ a week ago? Some people are very fitful in their moral gathering,—one day they are out early seeking manna, and then they neglect it for a week. Is it to be wondered that they have a weak spiritual life. The supply is constant. The manna lasted all through the wilderness journey. The Divine compassion fails not. His mercy is everlasting. Christ is an eternal Saviour, and the soul of man needs Him every hour. Is it not foolish and unwise to deprive our souls of the bread of heaven when it falls at our tent regularly every morning?
4. Men must gather trustfully. When the Israelites gathered the manna, they had no misgiving as to its continuance day by day. When they closed the tent at night they had not a doubt but that it would be ready for them in the morning. They doubted not the providence of God. They were not anxious in reference to it. The manna came down from the heavens without the intervention of natural agencies, even at night, when Israel was asleep, and was found with the dew in the morning. How could they doubt such a Providence as this? We should be trustful of God in reference to our temporal resources. His providence is ever active for our good, even at night when all is dark and silent. The grass grows at night. The fruits grow at night. Night does not interrupt the munificent operations of God. If He then causes all things thus to minister, independent of our activity, to our support, we ought to be trustful of Him. We should remember that if all the natural sources of prosperity fail, He can rain bread from the skies, or send the raven with it. It is the design of Providence that men should trust it day by day. The faithfulness of God is great. The clothes of Israel did not wax old, their shoes did not wear out, the water of the rock followed them, and the manna failed them not. The same providence is over us now, and therefore we need not fear. And we must be trustful from day to day in reference to the supplies of the soul. If God gives daily bread to thy body, do you think He will fail thy soul? No. He will every morning keep thee well supplied with grace, thy robe of righteousness shall not wax old, thy shoes of service shall never wear out, and the influence of the Divine Spirit shall be your daily portion. Then trust in God. The manna ceased when they got to Canaan. The manna of the soul shall be sweeter and richer to our taste in heaven. Then the gathering will be no effort. The soul will know no fear about the morrow.
III. That the temporal supplies of life should be acquired in proportion to human need. “Gather of it, every man according to his eating; an omer for every man.” Appetite is the law of universal gathering. This is true in the commercial realm of life; the gaining of wealth depends much upon the desire with which it is pursued. This is true mentally; a man will never gain more knowledge than he has an appetite for. And this is true spiritually; a man will never get more good out of the Bible and out of the ministry of the Word than he has appetite for. Men say “That sermon did not feed me; that service was barren to my soul,” and they blame the preacher; it would often be far more to the point if they blamed their own lack of appetite. They will always take away from the sanctuary in proportion to the hunger they bring. “Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.” The design of this injunction was to prevent greed and to awaken a sense of dependence on God. The manna was not to be hoarded. Wealth is ruinous when it makes a man imagine that he is independent of God, and that he has got such an abundance of supplies that he can feed himself. Men cannot be independent in this world. It is not proper that they should. The wealthiest are as dependent upon God as are the humblest. Hoarded wealth is useless. Wealth is only truly useful as it supplies need, and as it leads to benevolence. Truly a man is worth what he uses and what he gives. What he hoards he wastes. Hoarded wealth is apt to breed moral reptiles, covetousness, ambition, pride, loss of moral sensibility, and loss of self-respect. If riches increase set not your heart upon them. Aim to be rich toward God. You cannot hoard grace. You must go out and gather it every day. Hoarded grace soon evaporates (Exo_16:17-18). “Some gathered more and some less,” &c. The richest man only gets his living, and does not the poor do the same? Daniel looks as well and happy upon the pulse and water as those who feed upon the King’s allowance. God will make the little of a believing soul stretch to an omer. There was exact sufficiency for all. And so there is in Christ. The vilest have enough. The best have none to spare.
IV. That in gathering the temporal supplies of life men must have respect to the commandments and sacred institutions of God. “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 (Exo_16:23). Thus we see that God has great regard for His Sabbath, the day hallowed by Himself at the end of the week of creation. Man must not pursue his secular engagements on this day of rest. He has six days for himself, and God claims the seventh. The Israelites lost nothing by their Sabbath rest, the manna came in double quantity the day before. Men lose nothing by keeping the Sabbath. Its rest is sweet and invigorating. Its contemplation is helpful to the life of the soul. This dispensation is more spiritual than the Jewish, and therefore the day should be regarded with greater reverence of spirit. There is here a contrast between the manna of Israel and the manna of the soul; the former could not be gathered on the Sabbath, the latter may be collected in largest quantities on that day. The pure soul can get a rich feast of Christ on the Sabbath, and anticipates the richer feast in heaven.
1. Have you gathered and eaten this manna? Manna on the ground is no use to you. Manna in the tent is profitless. Manna in the soul alone will save you. Have you eaten? If not, what neglect! No excuse can be given. Do you turn away from this spiritual manna? There must be some disease. Send for the Great Physician.
2. What return are you making to God for the gift of this manna? Are you giving to Him a due proportion of your substance? Does His food make you strong for service? You have had the manna for many years; you must make the best return you can, else your confusion at the last will be terrible.
THE MANNA AS TYPICAL OF CHRIST
We have every right to regard the manna which fell around the tents of Israel as typical of our Lord Jesus Christ. Such is the inspired testimony of the apostle (1Co_10:3). Our Lord has expressly and minutely applied the nourishment afforded by the manna to the virtue of His atoning sacrifice (Joh_6:32-51). We observe—
I. That as the manna met a great need in the case of Israel, so Christ met a great need in the experiences of the human soul. The Israelites had exhausted all the food which they had brought with them out of Egypt, and were in the wilderness without any means of sustenance. They had no bread, and knew not how to obtain any. They were helpless. They were murmuring. They might soon perish. Thus they were in great need of the manna. And did not Christ meet an equally strong need of the human soul? The world had exhausted all its means of moral sustenance. It had nothing to appease its moral hunger. It was perishing for lack of spiritual knowledge. Then Christ came and fed it with the bread of life. The soul cannot do without Christ in the wilderness of life; without Him it must perish. He is adapted to our moral need, and can alone give permanent satisfaction to the better desires of man. Christ is the only food of the soul. Creeds cannot nourish it. Sin cannot feed it.
II. That as the manna was not understood by Israel, so Christ was not understood by those to whom He came. The name of manna was not given by God Himself, but by the children of Israel. “And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was.” It is most probable that the word signifies “portion” or gift, because it was evidently the gift of God; and as they did not know its nature, they could not chose any better term whereby to describe it. And was not Christ a great mystery to the men of His day? They did not understand His person. They could not interpret His miracles. They were amazed at His claim and at His language. There was a great diversity of opinion regarding Him. Some admitted His Divinity. Some said He had a devil. Some said He was mad. His disciples asked, “What manner of man is this?” (Mat_8:27). Christ asked, “Whom say the people that I am? and they said John the Baptist, but some say Elias, and others that one of the old prophets is risen again.” The world by wisdom knew not God. If the world had known Christ, it would not have rejected and crucified Him. It has hardly yet obtained a complete knowledge of Him.
III. That as the manna made provision for all Israel, so Christ is provided as a Saviour for the entire world. The manna fell around all the tents of Israel in sufficient quantity to supply the need of every man, woman, and child. If any lacked food it was because they would not gather it. And so the benefits of Christ’s death are available to all,—are within easy reach of all; and if any perish from soul-hunger, it will be through their own wilful and woeful neglect. Christ is not merely provided as a feast for the rich; the poor are welcome to His banquet, without money and without price. He is free to all seeking souls, but He must be appropriated in time, while the opportunity is given. All can receive Him by faith.
IV. That as the manna descended in the night, and was accompanied by the dew, so Christ comes to the soul in quietude, and is accompanied by the influences of the Holy Spirit. The manna descended during the night, and was ready for the use of Israel in the early morning. Did not Christ descend unseen and unknown during the dark night of the Old Testament dispensation, and was He not found by men who waited for the bright morning? Simeon was one of the early watchers and gatherers of this welcome food. Christ comes into the soul when it is free from worldly excitement,—when it is quiet. The manna and the dew were found together. And do we not know that the gentle dew of the Holy Spirit accompanies the gift of Christ to the soul—there never can be the latter without the former.
V. That as the manna had to be gathered early every day, so Christ must early be sought by the penitent soul. The Israelites were up early seeking the manna. They had not to be self-indulgent. They had not to be slothful. And so there must be no self-indulgence in the life of the good. The food of the soul should be sought early every day.
VI. That as the manna was white and sweet, so Christ is pure in Himself, and welcome to the taste. The whiteness of the manna signifies the innocence of Christ; and the sweetness of the manna signifies how welcome He is to the taste of a refined soul. Christ is sweet in His life, in the promises, and in His word. He is sweeter than honey and the honeycomb. We cannot have too much of Him.
VII. That as the manna was a test to Israel, so Christ is a test of universal character. The Israelites were tested by the gift of the manna as to whether they would obey God in His commandments and institutions. And so Christ is set for the rise and fall of many, and the way in which men receive or reject His will concerning them, will their present character and eternal destiny be determined. Christ is the great test of men. LESSONS:—
1. That every man has the opportunity of seeking Christ.
2. That Christ alone can nourish and sustain the human soul.
3. That Christ is sweet to the taste of penitent souls.
4. That we should seek to induce perishing mortals to gather this manna.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES
Exo_16:4-5. Jehovah turns His consolations unto the trials of His dearest servants.
God will not leave His ministers comfortless when striving with a rebellious people.
Jehovah calls His abused ministers to look from men to Himself.
God can make heaven give bread when earth denies it.
It is easy with God to make bread plenty in greatest scarcity.
Daily bread is a sweet portion which God allows unto His people.
God’s mercies are His trials of men to see whether they will obey Him.
Exo_16:6-8. God’s ministers instructed and comforted by Him, are engaged to instruct and comfort His people.
God’s evening and morning providences may convince men that He is their Redeemer.
The glory of grace God sometimes shows to murmurers.
A murmuring against ministers is taken by God to be against Himself.
Humble souls are content to be nothing in redemption, that God may be all.
Exo_16:9-10. God’s ministers oppressed with murmurings cannot do better than call all the people to God.
God hears the murmurings of sinners against His ministers, and calls them to account.
God’s ministers must summon souls to God, and the faithful do it at His command.
Souls shall be brought to see God’s appearing in a sad way, who rise up against Him.
Exo_16:11-12. God Himself owns what His servants have spoken for Him in His name.
It is no strange thing for God to speak twice to His oppressed servants to support them.
In greatest straits God can make evening and morning to bring seasonable supplies to His people.
Jehovah will make His people know Him, and that He keeps the covenant, though they break it.
Exo_16:13-15. God of His grace can give the sweetest nourishment to unworthy sinners at His pleasure.
God keeps His time in performing His promise to His people.
God’s performance of promise is full and large unto His Israel
Mercies promised are ordered to come seasonably, evening and morning.
God can make His dew bring and hide bread for His people.
Natural coverings removed, God can discover His hidden mercies unto the good.
The best of bread from God may seem a small and dispicable thing to man.
God’s own Israel, in taking cognizance of His greatest mercies, may be at a loss what to think about them.
It is a blessing to have a choice interpreter of God’s mercies to His Church.
Common bread has a spiritual use and meaning.
Exo_16:16-18. As God promised bread, so He commands labour to gather it.
Sufficiency God allows, and for that men must take pains.
God’s omer or measure is enough for the portion of every soul.
All souls in families God will have cared for, even such as cannot labour for themselves.
Obedience must be given to God’s command of labour.
All are not labouring alike for daily food, some more, some less.
Food convenient for every man’s eating is a good portion from God.
Exo_16:19-20. Hoarded wealth.
I. That we find many men in this life who are endeavouring to hoard their gains. We find that several of these Israelites, notwithstanding the clear command of Moses, endeavoured to keep the manna until the morning. The Word of God tells men that they are not to attempt an undue hoarding of wealth, it tells them not to be worldly-minded, and not to be covetous. But, notwithstanding these distinct requirements, there are multitudes who go counter to them, and who keep the produce of their industry until it becomes loathsome. Men have many excuses for hoarding: they plead a provident example, a needy future, a large family, and thus they palliate miserliness. Gathering should be limited to human requirement.
II. That an endeavour to hoard wealth manifests a sad distrust of the Providence of God. Why did these disobedient Israelites endeavour to keep the manna until the morrow? Were they animated by mere curiosity to see the result? Were they greedy, and anxious to be better off than their comrades? Were they over-anxious and fearful lest the manna should not fall on the morrow? Why do men hoard wealth in these days? Is it not often to increase their luxury, to strengthen their social position, and to feed their ambition? Miserliness abuses the good gifts of God. It is a sad distrust of Divine Providence. God will feed all who are willing to sit at His banquet, and to the end of their days. Hoarded wealth gives no enjoyment It introduces bitter elements into life. It renders men no richer. It only becomes so much lumber to them. What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul?
III. That hoarded wealth is very liable to become morally degenerate and corrupt. The manna that these Israelites left until the morning became corrupt, and bred worms. And so hoarded wealth will always degenerate in value, in useableness, and in power to give enjoyment. In the view of all right-minded souls it will be corrupt. It breeds all that is degrading to an immortal soul, capable of the riches of a pure moral character. Lay not up for yourselves treasure on earth, &c.
God’s law orders His allowance how to be used by His people, and not to be abused.
Foolish men refuse to hear and obey the just laws given to them.
Mercies abused by sinners are accursed by God, and aggravate their sin.
ILLUSTRATIONS
BY
REV. WM. ADAMSON
Murmur-Mischiefs! Exo_16:4-16. Murmuring is a mercy-embittering sin—a misery-sowing sin. As the sweetest things put into a sour vessel become sour, or put into a bitter vessel bitter; so murmuring puts gall and wormwood into every cup of mercy. Here was Israel in mercy out of Egypt—beyond the barrier to Egypt’s hate; and yet in this mercy they saw only misery. Herodotus tells us of a people in Africa, who lived in the neighbourhood of Mount Atlas, that their daily custom was to curse the sun, because his excessive heat scorched them. Did the Atauratians forget that to the sun which they cursed, they were indebted for light—for food—for the fertility of their country—for countless mercies without which their continued existence had been impossible. Ah! we make our mercies our miseries. They wished for gloom as Israel wished for Egypt. But they forgot the brick-kilns, when they remembered the flesh-pots; and they overlooked the taskmaster’s rods, when they recalled the onions and garlic. The little flower wished to be planted higher, and the cold wind blew and nipped it. Then it wished to be planted in the sun, and the sun burnt it. What murmur-mischiefs it experienced. No, no! we are best just as God places us.
“Whate’er my God ordains is right,
Here will I take my stand,
Though sorrow, need, or death make earth
For me a desert land.”
—Winkworth.
Supplies! Exo_16:4. An opulent person makes the tour of Europe, during which time his funds run short. But he comforts himself with reflecting that he has a sufficient stock in the bank, which he can draw out at any time by writing to his cashiers. The Israelites were in a foreign land, far from home, without supplies; whereupon they drew upon God by prayer, and faith, and humble waiting. God honoured their bill at sight, and issued to them from time to time such remittances as were sufficient to carry them in safety to the end of their journey. And so He does with the Christian passover-pilgrim. To him the promises are all yea and amen. No good thing is withheld from the patient, persevering believer. He accepts God’s promises—draws upon them—and never finds them dishonoured at the Throne of Grace.
“I look to Thee in every need, and never look in vain;
I feel Thy strong and tender love, and all is well again.”
Trust! Exo_16:9-10. “When my heart is overwhelmed within me, I will look to the Rock that is higher than I” (Psa_61:2). When I have slipped upon the ice-slopes of personal experience, and fallen into the crevasse of despondency, I will cast myself upon the waters of the river of Providence. Wandering one day over the Alps, a chamois-hunter made a mis-step, and fell more than a hundred feet to the very bottom of one of those horrid crevices in the ice. It was impossible for him to get up; the sides were too slippery, and there were no means of climbing. He cried out ever so loud, but no human ear could hear. There was nothing but death before him—cold, cruel, relentless death. What could he do? The water came pouring down in a flood, and this stream he followed until he entered a great cavern, high-arched, ice-ribbed. There the water gurgled, and boiled, and disappeared. He could see no exit; but there must be one somewhere, for that living stream found its way out. One thing remained for him. He looked up at the blue sky—commended himself to God’s protection—and then, with a strong effort, threw himself bodily into that gush of water. A moment after he found himself thrown on the green grass of the valley of Chamouni, with the noonday sun shining above his head, and the blooming flowers of the mountain about him. What a type of Christian experience! When walking over the ice fields of our own experience, we make a mis-step which precipitates us into the deep chasm of doubt, despondency, or despair. There is no possible means of escape but one, and that is, to throw ourselves into the moving, foaming waters of the stream of Providence. Trust God. Thy will be done. Yet let it be—not with presumption, but with prayer. Commit thy way unto the Lord; and you will find that though the flood has nearly stifled you, it has at the same moment been bearing you on—underground it may be, through darkness and uproar it may be—safe into the green pastures of His truth and by the still waters of His faithfulness, surrounded by the flowers of grace, with the canopy of Divine protection over your heads. “For Thou hast delivered my soul from death, and my feet from falling, that I may walk before Thee in the land of the living” (Psa_56:13). Thus did Moses call on the people to trust God—to cast themselves by prayer and supplication into the deep waters of Divine faithfulness, in the full persuasion that He would supply all their need.
“In spite of many broken dreams,
This have I truly learned to say—
Prayers which I thought unanswered once
Are answered in God’s own best way.”
—Carey.
Divine Promises! Exo_16:11-12. The ropes which are used in lifting the heavy masses of iron ore out of the mine to the earth’s surface, are all tested before being employed in this service. Each strand is tried separately by having a strain put upon it equal to that which the whole of them will have to sustain when combined. God’s promises may be compared to a great cable—each strand has been tested—they cannot be broken! Moses laid hold of this rope, and God drew him and Israel out of the pit of Egypt, that in the furnaces of Arabia, He might mould and weld them into vessels of honour. Many a time Israel broke their covenant engagements, but God never. His promises were true, as the host found again and again during their wilderness-wanderings from Him.
“So in darkest dispensations,
Doth my faithful Lord appear,
With His richest consolations,
To re-animate and cheer.”
—Pearce.
Manna-Nature! Exo_16:15. Efforts have been made to do away with the supernatural aspect of this incident, by suggesting that this was nothing else than the exudation from the Tamarisk, to which the name “manna” has been given. No doubt the name was given to this gum, which exudes from the large eastern tamarisk-tree, in the belief that such was Israel’s source of supply. But this was a supposition based on ignorance, and utterly without warrant from the narrative itself. It is true that the tamarisk-shrub thrives in arid sandy situations, and that it is even now abundant in the Sinaitic peninsula; but how could a host of such tamarisks daily supply such a vast assemblage with exudations sufficient? Then again, it has yet to be proved that this gum would be at all salutary or nutritive as an article of constant and substantial good; whereas Israel subsisted for forty years on manna. The monks of St. Catherine on Sinai may gather the Tamarisk gum, and sell it at a high price to Europeans as Israel’s veritable sustenance; but they never can justify their assertion to sensible minds. The same holds good of the German idea of the honey-dew exudings from the camel’s thorn, or Indian manna. By denial on the part of Rationalists of any supernatural manna, they only increase the difficulties, and render more numerous, if not greater, miracles necessary. It is far more credible that the supply was miraculous; and that Israel was so perplexed by this new atom-like thing, that, familiar as they were with the gums and honey-dews of the East, they exclaimed—“What is it?”
“A while ago we hungered, but Thy great love has given
A food so sweet and strange that it seems like bread from heaven.
Quail and Manna Lessons! Exo_16:13-15. Clearly we are taught:
1. Apprehension of our dependence on God.
2. Appreciation of the goodness of God.
3. Approbation of the Sabbatic rest in God. It is remarkable in the manna that, while what was left on the ground melted before the orient beams, and what was left in the house bred worms and stank, no such results are produced on the Tamarisk manna or Judean honey-dew. There is no such tendency to decomposition in them. What does this teach, if not the entire dependence of God’s Church and people upon daily supplies of grace in Christ? It hath pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell. How expressive, then, the petition in the Lord’s Prayer: “Give us this day our sufficient Bread.” Jesus is that sufficing Bread—sufficing in Himself—sufficing to us.
“Shall I then ever weary of this rich store of Thine,
And wish, with thankless murmurs, that other gifts were mine?”
Manna-Symbolism! Exo_16:15. Law remarks that this miracle is a wreath of combined wonders. By it, Jehovah designed to teach mysterious truths—momentous lessons—as to soul-food. Goodness in bestowing food is taper-grace beside the shinings of redemption’s gift.
1. Jesus is that Bread from heaven, which descended during this dark world’s night upon the sands of time.
2. The dew was a fit mantle for this heaven-sent food; and so the means of grace are lovely caskets of the heavenly treasure.
3. But, even as the dews had neither taste nor vital juice, so the means of grace are nothing without Christ.
4. At early dawn must Israel seek; and it is they who seek Jesus early who find Him.
5. Sweet was their daily portion—nourishing and bringing pleasure to their lips; and His fruit is sweet unto the taste. He is all sweetness to the feasting soul; so that finding Him, we find an ever-satisfying portion, and possess an unfading paradise of joy in Him all our pilgrim way to the cold Jordanic wave.
6. Every one of the mighty host had enough and no more; and even so, the countless myriads of Messiah’s followers, ransomed from sin-bondage, have sufficiency in Christ. They have enough, but none to spare, as the wise virgins informed their foolish companions.
7. The manna was free to all, and needed not the wealth of Crœsus to procure; so Jesus, the Living Bread, is the gift of God. God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son!
“Oh, Thou, whose loving-kindness this manna Feast hath spread,
Give me a higher relish for Him, the pilgrim’s Bread.”
Quail-Emblems! Exo_16:13. This was the Hebrew slav, or common quail, so called from the sound it makes. It resembles a partridge, only smaller in size. It is migratory—crossing the Mediterranean in the autumn in immense flocks, and returning in spring. In crossing this sea, they alight on some of the islands, which on that account were called Ortigia. We are told that nothing is easier than to catch these birds when they have recently arrived, exhausted by their aerial pilgrimage. Dr. Bonar says that when he and his companions were traversing the desert of Sinai, they were sometimes attracted by flocks of pigeon-looking birds, which their Bedawin guides called quails. Dr. Donne quaintly remarks that particular mercies are the feathers of God’s wings. They are that cloud of quails, which hovered over the host of Israel at eventide. And thus—
“Each mercy sent when sorrows lower,
Each blessing of the winged hour,
All we enjoy and all we love,
Bring with them lessons from above.”
—Bryant.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
Alexander MacLaren 1905 · Public Domain On v4 Exo 16:4 - - Exo 16:12.
Exodus
THE BREAD OF GOD
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Exo 16:4 - - Exo 16:12.
Unbelief has a short memory. The Red Sea is forgotten in a month. The Israelites could strike their timbrels and sing their lyric of praise, but they could not believe that to-day’s hunger could be satisfied. Discontent has a slippery memory. They wish to get back to the flesh-pots, of which the savour is in their nostrils, and they have forgotten the bitter sauce of affliction. When they were in Egypt, they shrieked about their oppression, and were ready to give up anything for liberty; when they have got it, they are ready to put their necks in the yoke again, if only they can have their stomachs filled. Men do not know how happy they are till they cease to be so. Our present miseries and our past blessings are the themes on which unbelief harps. Let him that is without similar sin cast the first stone at these grumbling Israelites. Without following closely the text of the narrative, we may throw together the lessons of the manna.
I. Observe God’s purpose in the gift, as distinctly expressed in the promise of it.
‘That I may prove them, whether they will walk in My law or no.’ How did the manna become a test of this? By means of the law prescribed for gathering it. There was to be a given quantity daily, and twice as much on the sixth day. If a man trusted God for to-morrow, he would be content to stop collecting when he had filled his omer, tempting as the easily gathered abundance would be. Greed and unbelief would masquerade then as now, under the guise of prudent foresight. The old Egyptian parallels to ‘make hay while the sun shines,’ and suchlike wise sayings of the philosophy of distrust, would be solemnly spoken, and listened to as pearls of wisdom. When experience had taught that, however much a man gathered, he had no more than his omer full, after all,-and is not that true yet?-then the next temptation would be to practise economy, and have something over for to-morrow. Only he who absolutely trusted God to provide for him would eat up his portion, and lie down at night with a quiet heart, knowing that He who had fed him would feed. When experience had taught that what was saved rotted, then laziness would come in and say, ‘What is the use of gathering twice as much on the sixth day? Don’t we know that it will not keep?’ So the whole of the gift was a continual training of, and therefore a continual test for, faith. God willed to let His gifts come in this hand-to-mouth fashion, though He could have provided at once what would have obviously lasted them all their wilderness life, in order that they might be habituated to cling to Him, and that their daily bread might be doubly for their nourishment, feeding their bodies and strengthening that faith which, to them as to us, is the condition of all blessedness. God lets our blessings, too, trickle to us drop by drop, instead of pouring them in a flood all at once upon us, for the same reason. He does so, not because of any good to Him from our faith, except that the Infinite love loves infinitely to be loved; but for our sakes, that we may taste the peace and strength of continual dependence, and the joy of continual receiving. He could give us the principal down; but He prefers to pay us the interest, as we need it.
Christianity does not absolutely forbid laying up money or other resources for future wants. But the love of accumulating, which is so strong in many professing Christians, and the habit of amassing beyond all reasonable future wants, is surely scarcely permitted to those who profess to believe that incarnate wisdom forbade taking anxious care for the morrow, and sent its disciples to lilies and birds to learn the happy immunities of faith. We too get our daily mercies to prove us. The letter of the law for the manna is not applicable to us who gain our bread by God’s blessing on our labour. But the spirit is, and the members of great commercial nations have surely little need to be reminded that still the portion put away is apt to breed worms. How often it vanishes, or, if it lasts, tortures its owner, who has more trouble keeping it than he had in getting it; or fatally corrupts his own character, or ruins his children! All God’s gifts are tests, which-thanks be to Him-is the same as to say that they are means of increasing faith, and so adding to joy.
II. The manna was further a disclosure of the depth of patient long-suffering in God.
Very strikingly the ‘murmurings’ of the children of Israel are four times referred to in this context, and on each occasion are stated as the reason for the gift of the manna. It was God’s answer to the peevish complaints of greedy appetites. When they were summoned to come near to the Lord, with the ominous warning that ‘He hath heard your murmurings,’ no doubt many a heart began to quake; and when the Glory flashed from the Shechinah cloud, it would burn lurid to their trembling consciences. But the message which comes from it is sweet in its gentleness, as it promises the manna because they have murmured, and in order that they may know the Lord. A mother soothes her crying infant by feeding it from her own bosom. God does not take the rod to His whimpering children, but rather tries to win them by patience, and to shame their unbelief by His swift and over-abundant answers to their complaints. When He must, He punishes; but when He can, He complies. Faith is the condition of our receiving His highest gifts; but even unbelief touches His heart with pity, and what He can give to it, He does, if it may be melted into trust. The farther men stray from Him, the more tender and penetrating His recalling voice. We multiply transgressions, He multiplies mercies.
III. The manna was a revelation in miraculous and transient form of an eternal truth.
The God who sent it sends daily bread. The words which Christ quoted in His wilderness hunger are the explanation of its meaning as a witness to this truth: ‘Man doth not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.’ To a Christian, the divine power is present and operative in all natural processes as really as in those which we call miraculous. God is separable from the universe, but the universe is not separable from God. If it were separated, it would cease. So far as the reality of the divine operation is concerned, it matters not whether He works in the established fashion, through material things, or whether His will acts directly. The chain which binds a phenomenon to the divine will may be long or short; the intervening links may be many, or they may be abolished, and the divine cause and the visible effect may touch without anything between. But in either case the power is of God. Bread made out of flour grown on the other side of the world, and fashioned by the baker, and bought by the fruits of my industry, is as truly the gift of God as was the manna. For once, He showed these men His hand at work, that we all might know that it was at work, when hidden. The lesson of the ‘angel’s food’ eaten in the wilderness is that men are fed by the power of God’s expressed and active will,-for that is the meaning of ‘the word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God,’-in whatever fashion they get their food. The gift of it is from Him; its power to nourish is from Him. It is as true to-day as ever it was: ‘Thou openest Thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.’ The manna ceased when the people came near cornfields and settled homes. Miracles end when means are possible. But the God of the miracle is the God of the means.
Commentators make much of what is supposed to be a natural substratum for the manna, in a certain vegetable product, found in small quantities in parts of the Arabian peninsula. No doubt, we are to recognise in the plagues of Egypt, and in the dividing of the Red Sea, the extraordinary action of ordinary causes; and there is no objection in principle to doing so here. But that an exudation from the bark of a shrub, which has no nutritive properties at all, is found only in one or two places in Arabia, and that only at certain seasons and in infinitesimal quantity, seems a singularly thin ‘substratum’ on which to build up the feeding of two millions of people, more or less exclusively and continuously for forty years, by means of a substance which has nothing to do with tamarisk-trees, and is like the natural product in nothing but sweetness and name. Whether we admit connection between the two, or not, the miraculous character of the manna of the Israelites is unaffected. It was miraculous in its origin-’rained from heaven,’ in its quantity, in its observance of times and seasons, in its putrefaction and preservation,-as rotting when kept for greed, and remaining sweet when preserved for the Sabbath. It came straight from the creative will of God, and whether its name means ‘What is it?’ or ‘It is a gift,’ the designation is equally true and appropriate, pointing, in the one case, to the mystery of its nature; in the other, to the love of the Giver, and in both referring it directly to the hand of God.
IV. The manna was typical of Christ.
Our Lord Himself has laid His hand upon it, and claimed it as a faint foreshadowing of what He is. The Jews, not satisfied with the miracle of the loaves, demand from Him a greater sign, as the condition of what they are pleased to call ‘belief’-which is nothing but accepting the testimony of sense. They quote Moses as giving the manna, and imply that Messiah is expected to repeat the miracle. Christ accepts the challenge, and goes on to claim that He not only gives, but Himself is, for all men’s souls, all and more than all which the manna had been to the bodies of that dead generation. Like it, He came-but in how much more profound a sense!-from heaven. Like it, He was food. But unlike it, He could still for ever the craving of the else famishing soul; unlike it, He not only nourished a bodily life already possessed, but communicated a spiritual life which never dies; and, unlike it, He was meant to be the food of the whole world. His teaching passed beyond the symbolism of the manna, when He not only declared Himself to be the ‘true bread from heaven which gives life to the world,’ but opened a glimpse into the solemn mystery of His atoning death by the startling and apparently repulsive paradox that ‘His flesh was food indeed and His blood drink indeed.’ The manna does not typically teach Christ’s atonement, but it does set Him forth as the true sustenance and life-giver, sweet as honey to the soul, sent from heaven for us each, but needing to be made ours by the act of our faith. An Israelite would have starved, though the manna lay all round the camp, if he did not go forth and secure his portion; and he might no less have starved, if he did not eat what Heaven had sent. ‘Crede et manducasti,’ ‘Believe, and thou hast eaten,’-as St. Augustine says. The personal appropriating act of faith is essential to our having Christ for the food of our souls. The bread that nourishes our bodies is assimilated to their substance, and so becomes sustenance. This bread of God, entering into our souls by faith, transforms them into its substance, and so gives and feeds an immortal life. The manna was for a generation; this bread is ‘the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever.’ That was for a handful of men; this is for the world. Nor is the prophetic value of the manna exhausted when we recognise its witness to Christ. The food of the wilderness is the food of the city. The bread that is laid on the table, ‘spread in the presence of the enemy,’ is the bread that makes the feast in the king’s palace. The Christ who feeds the pilgrim soldiers is the Christ on whom the conquerors banquet. ‘To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna.’
Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On vv15, 16, 20, 35 (See Scofield "Exo 16:35").
manna
(See Scofield "Exo 16:35").
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On vv22, 32 The Sabbath Rest
The Sabbath Rest
v. 22. And it came to pass that on the sixth day of the week they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man, about five quarts per person; and all the rulers of the congregation, the princes, or leaders, of the various tribes, came. and told Moses. The strangeness of the happening caused them to wonder.
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v. 23. And he said unto them, This is that which the Lord hath said (v. 5. ), Tomorrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto the Lord, which up to that time had evidently not been observed. Bake that which ye will bake today, and seethe that ye will seethe; they were to prepare and eat their meals as usual; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning, for use on the Sabbath-day.
v. 24. And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade; and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein, which showed that the entire matter was in the hands of God’s providence.
v. 25. And Moses said, Eat that today; for today is a Sabbath unto the Lord; today ye shall not find it in the field, another proof that it was not the natural manna (which in warm weather oozes out of the branches of the tarfa-tree) with which the children of Israel were dealing, but a gift from heaven, sent at the direction of God.
v. 26. Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, in it there shall be none.
v. 27. And it came to pass that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, in the same obstinate willfulness which characterized the people throughout, and they found none.
v. 28. And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep My commandments and My laws? The people were giving a poor account of their faith in this trial of their obedience and heaping one sin upon the other.
v. 29. See, for that the Lord hath given you the Sabbath, therefore He giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days. That was the explanation repeated, which included the reproof. Abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. That was the plain command, which permitted no evasion.
v. 30. So the people rested on the seventh day; from this time the observance of the seventh day as the Sabbath dates.
v. 31. And the house of Israel called the name thereof, of the miraculous bread, manna; and it was like coriander seed, white, small, round kernels of dull white or yellowish green color; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. Cf Num 11:7-8. It could be ground in a hand-mill, crushed in a mortar, cooked by baking or boiling, made into cakes or bread, and tasted like baked food. It is referred to Psa 78:24; Psa 105:40; Joh 6:31-41.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv4, 6, 9, 13, 16, 19, 22, 24, 26, 28, 31, 33 I will rain down bread from heaven for you
I will rain down bread from heaven for you
God speaks of food coming down from heaven as if it were rain. AT: "I will make bread come down from heaven like rain" or "I will make bread fall to you from the sky" (See: Metaphor)
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bread
God speaks of the food that he will send as if it were bread. The Israelites would eat this food every day, just as they had eaten bread every day before this. AT: "food" or "food like bread" (See: Metaphor)
walk in my law
God speaks of obeying his law as walking in it. AT: "obey my law" or "live according to my law" (See: Metaphor)
my law
"my command"
It will come about on the sixth day, that they
"It will happen on the sixth day that they" or "On the sixth day they"
on the sixth day
"on day 6" (See: Numbers)
twice
two times
translationWords
bread
heaven
people group
test
walk
law, laws
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv4, 7, 15, 19, 21, 32, 35 16:4-5 These are the Lord’s instructions for gathering the…
16:4-5 These are the Lord’s instructions for gathering the food that he would provide in the wilderness. Enough was provided for each day, with a double amount provided on the sixth day so that the people would not have to gather any on the Sabbath (see 16:21-30). The Israelites thus observed the Sabbath even before it was codified in the Decalogue. We instinctively resist a style of life in which it is necessary to depend on God each day to supply our needs. We wish to have supplies in advance so that we can feel independent. God was training the people for a life of faith (cp. Matt 6:11).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.