Exodus 16 · The Lantern

Manna and Quail from Heaven

And they took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt.

And the whole congregation of the children of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness:

And the children of Israel said to them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of food, and when we did eat bread to the full; for you have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.

Since they dared to prefer the bitterest of Egyptian foods to the heavenly food of manna and preferred the succulent meats of their hostile masters to their own freedom, did they deserve anything else than to have their joy in foods curtailed? They truly deserved to bear the brand of the slavery they had longed for, since a better food—the food of the free—displeased them so.

Although this manner of speaking first referred to that people, nonetheless we see it now daily fulfilled in our life and profession.

The Jews ate flesh in the wilderness, and it is written concerning them that, "While the flesh was yet between their teeth the anger of God had dominion over them," not because they had eaten flesh, but because with lust they had asked to eat it.

Then said the LORD to Moses, Look, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, so that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.

But what was recited after these things? "The Lord said", it says, "to Moses: behold, I will rain for you bread from heaven, and the people shall go out and gather of one day in a day, that I may test them, whether they walk in my law or not.

The rain of manna fed the Jewish people for forty years in the desert. It did not by its customary service cause an increase of sprouts from the earth but streamed on the earth like harvested grains. It took away all the toil of human labor and by its pleasant dew offered and spread out heavenly produce for the hungry.

These incidents are quite well known from our reading of Exodus, for quails rained down like the heaviest shower, and the Jews received manna to get their fill.

And it shall happen, that on the sixth day they shall prepare that which they bring in; and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.

And Moses and Aaron said to all the children of Israel, At even, then you shall know that the LORD has brought you out from the land of Egypt:

And in the morning, then you shall see the glory of the LORD; for that he hears your grumblings against the LORD: and what are we, that you grumble against us?

And Moses said, This shall be, when the LORD shall give you in the evening flesh to eat, and in the morning bread to the full; for that the LORD hears your grumblings which you grumble against him: and what are we? your grumblings are not against us, but against the LORD.

And Moses spoke to Aaron, Say to all the congregation of the children of Israel, Come near before the LORD: for he has heard your grumblings.

And it happened, as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud.

And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

I have heard the grumblings of the children of Israel: speak to them, saying, At even you shall eat flesh, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread; and you shall know that I am the LORD your God.

And it happened, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay around the host.

And when the dew that lay had gone up, look, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground.

And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they knew not what it was. And Moses said to them, This is the bread which the LORD has given you to eat.

This is the thing which the LORD has commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every man, according to the number of your persons; take every man for them which are in his tents.

And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less.

And when they did mete it with an omer, he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack; they gathered every man according to his eating.

And Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning.

However they listened not to Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was angry with them.

Finally it is thus also written that those who were unfaithful, "kept", it says, "of the manna, and worms bubbled up out of it, and it rotted". But that which was laid up for the sabbath day was not corrupted, nor "did worms bubble up in it", but it remained whole.

But if any endure not what I have said, but still cleave to the poverty of worldly things, snatching at the things which endure diminution: even in respect of those again, let him call to mind the food of manna and tremble at the example of that punishment. For what happened in that instance, this same result may one now also see in the case of covetous men.

And thou must in another way understand that it is lust which is reprehensible, for every day, morning after morning, the people gathered the manna which came down, and so long as they gathered it according to the command they were not reprehended or condemned; but when they lusted to gather it in too great a quantity, it swarmed with worms and stank, to the shame of the lust w…

And they gathered it every morning, every man according to his eating: and when the sun grew hot, it melted.

The Sabbath Observed

And it happened, that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses.

And he said to them, This is that which the LORD has said, Tomorrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath to the LORD: bake that which you will bake today, and boil that you will boil; and that which remains over lay up for you to be kept until the morning.

And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither was there any worm in it.

And Moses said, Eat that today; for today is a Sabbath to the LORD: today you shall not find it in the field.

Six days you shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, in it there shall be none.

And it happened, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day to gather, and they found none.

And the LORD said to Moses, How long refuse you to keep my commandments and my laws?

See, for that the LORD has given you the Sabbath, therefore he gives you on the sixth day the bread of two days; remain you every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.

So the people rested on the seventh day.

The Jar of Manna

And the house of Israel called its name Manna: and it was like coriander seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.

And Moses said, This is the thing which the LORD commands, Fill an omer of it to be kept for your generations; that they may see the bread with which I have fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you forth from the land of Egypt.

And Moses said to Aaron, Take a pot, and put an omer full of manna in it, and lay it up before the LORD, to be kept for your generations.

As the LORD commanded Moses, so Aaron laid it up before the Testimony, to be kept.

And the children of Israel did eat manna forty years, until they came to a land inhabited; they did eat manna, until they came to the borders of the land of Canaan.

Now an omer is the tenth part of an ephah.

Exodus16

Manna and Quail from Heaven

The Sabbath Observed

The Jar of Manna