The Torah · Old Testament
Exodus 16
Manna teaches daily provision and Sabbath rest
General context
Israel reaches the wilderness of Sin on the fifteenth day of the second month after leaving Egypt. The people complain to Moses and Aaron, recalling food in Egypt and accusing them of bringing the assembly out to die of hunger. The Lord promises bread from heaven and instructions that will test whether the people follow his law. Moses and Aaron announce evening meat and morning bread, and the Lord's glory appears in the cloud. Quails cover the camp that evening. In the morning, a small substance appears after the dew lifts; Moses identifies it as the Lord's bread. The gathering is measured at an omer per person, with people gathering for those in their tents. Some keep it overnight against the instruction, and it breeds worms and stinks. On the sixth day they gather twice as much, and Moses tells them to prepare for the Sabbath. This permitted overnight supply does not spoil. Some look for food on the seventh day and find none; the Lord rebukes disobedience, and the people rest. The chapter describes manna's appearance and taste, instructs that an omer be preserved for later generations and closes with a summary of forty years of provision.
Cited passages: Exodus 16:1, Exodus 16:2, Exodus 16:3, Exodus 16:4, Exodus 16:5, Exodus 16:6, Exodus 16:7, Exodus 16:8, Exodus 16:9, Exodus 16:10, Exodus 16:11, Exodus 16:12, Exodus 16:13, Exodus 16:14, Exodus 16:15, Exodus 16:16, Exodus 16:17, Exodus 16:18, Exodus 16:19, Exodus 16:20, Exodus 16:21, Exodus 16:22, Exodus 16:23, Exodus 16:24, Exodus 16:25, Exodus 16:26, Exodus 16:27, Exodus 16:28, Exodus 16:29, Exodus 16:30, Exodus 16:31, Exodus 16:32, Exodus 16:33, Exodus 16:34, Exodus 16:35, Exodus 16:36
Exodus 16 (KJV)
1And they took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt.
2And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness:
3And the children of Israel said unto them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.
4Then 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.
5And it shall come to pass, that on the sixth day they shall prepare that which they bring in; and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.
6And Moses and Aaron said unto all the children of Israel, At even, then ye shall know that the Lord hath brought you out from the land of Egypt:
7And in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the Lord; for that he heareth your murmurings against the Lord: and what are we, that ye murmur against us?
8And Moses said, This shall be, when the Lord shall give you in the evening flesh to eat, and in the morning bread to the full; for that the Lord heareth your murmurings which ye murmur against him: and what are we? your murmurings are not against us, but against the Lord.
9And Moses spake unto Aaron, Say unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, Come near before the Lord: for he hath heard your murmurings.
10And it came to pass, as Aaron spake unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud.
11And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
12I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the Lord your God.
13And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host.
14And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground.
15And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat.
16This is the thing which the Lord hath commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every man, according to the number of your persons; take ye every man for them which are in his tents.
17And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less.
18And 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.
19And Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning.
20Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth with them.
21And they gathered it every morning, every man according to his eating: and when the sun waxed hot, it melted.
22And it came to pass, that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses.
23And 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.
24And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein.
25And Moses said, Eat that to day; for to day is a sabbath unto the Lord: to day ye shall not find it in the field.
26Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none.
27And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.
28And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws?
29See, for that the Lord hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.
30So the people rested on the seventh day.
31And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it was like coriander seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.
32And Moses said, This is the thing which the Lord commandeth, Fill an omer of it to be kept for your generations; that they may see the bread wherewith I have fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you forth from the land of Egypt.
33And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a pot, and put an omer full of manna therein, and lay it up before the Lord, to be kept for your generations.
34As the Lord commanded Moses, so Aaron laid it up before the Testimony, to be kept.
35And the children of Israel did eat manna forty years, until they came to a land inhabited; they did eat manna, until they came unto the borders of the land of Canaan.
36Now an omer is the tenth part of an ephah.
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Historical context
The wilderness of Sin is located between Elim and Sinai in the account. The people's recollection of plentiful food in Egypt is their complaint, not a full description of life under bondage. The unfamiliar food is called manna; American Standard and Bible in Basic English render the people's initial words as 'What is it?' The text describes it as white, like coriander seed, and tasting like wafers made with honey, without identifying a modern natural substance. An omer is defined as a tenth of an ephah. The closing note about forty years extends beyond the first arrival described at the beginning. The instruction to preserve manna before the Testimony is reported without supplying an unmentioned construction date or the material of the pot.
Cited passages: Exodus 16:1, Exodus 16:3, Exodus 16:14, Exodus 16:15, Exodus 16:16, Exodus 16:18, Exodus 16:31, Exodus 16:32, Exodus 16:33, Exodus 16:34, Exodus 16:35, Exodus 16:36
Literary context
Provision and instruction arrive together: the promised bread is explicitly connected with testing whether the people will follow the Lord's law. Two failures make the distinction concrete. Food retained against the daily instruction spoils, while the portion kept as directed for the Sabbath remains good; attempts to gather on the rest day find nothing. The account reports enough for each person when the gathered food is measured. Its closing preservation instruction turns the daily food into evidence that later generations are to see, and the forty-year summary places this first episode within a longer period of provision.
Cited passages: Exodus 16:4, Exodus 16:5, Exodus 16:16, Exodus 16:17, Exodus 16:18, Exodus 16:19, Exodus 16:20, Exodus 16:21, Exodus 16:22, Exodus 16:23, Exodus 16:24, Exodus 16:25, Exodus 16:26, Exodus 16:27, Exodus 16:28, Exodus 16:29, Exodus 16:30, Exodus 16:32, Exodus 16:33, Exodus 16:34, Exodus 16:35
Key moments
- Bread is promised with a test (Exodus 16:4). The Lord promises daily bread and connects gathering it with testing whether the people follow his law.
- The measured gathering meets each person’s need (Exodus 16:18). Those who gathered much have nothing over and those who gathered little have no lack.
- The Sabbath portion does not spoil (Exodus 16:24). The food kept overnight as Moses instructed has neither stench nor worms.
- Manna is to be kept for later generations (Exodus 16:32). Moses instructs that an omer be preserved so descendants can see the bread provided in the wilderness.
For reflection
How do the different instructions for ordinary days and the Sabbath shape the chapter's account of trust and obedience?