And it came to pass in the evening, that quails came up, and covered the camp; and in the morning the dew lay round the camp.
Israel had complained against God in the desert. His answer came as food, not punishment — and commentators read both the evening birds and the morning dew as pointing far beyond one meal.
God had every reason to rebuke them. Notice what He sent instead.
But grace, without judgment, answers their murmuring, and provides for their need. Jehovah heard them, but did not scold them. They cried for bread, and He rained it down from heaven. He gave them flesh every evening, and bread every morning.
Notice also how the bread reached them.
So divine grace ministers, and they are dependent entirely upon it. No human hands gave this bread. God Himself showers it around their tents in the night while they sleep.
The birds settled on the camp in the evening and met plain, physical hunger. One writer asks what that teaches.
Does it not tell us of the provision God makes for our bodily needs? After the work of the day the body needs refreshment... He who sent the quails is the same One who said, "Do not be anxious about tomorrow"... And just as the evening quails meet the body's needs, so the morning bread teaches us to begin each day with Him who alone sustains the soul... The quails are as much His gift as the bread; both are of His grace. The quails, since they only meet the body's needs, are not laid up before the Lord, but the manna, the bread from heaven, is.
The evening gift told Israel something about God. The morning gift showed them more.
We take our stand with the hungry people at the end of the anxious day. And look — "In the evening quail came up and covered the camp." Here was the flesh they wanted. Jehovah, their salvation, had not appointed Israel to perish! It was He who had brought them out from the land of Egypt, and this the quails showed to Israel. But there was more — in the morning they were to see the glory of Jehovah... It was God's glory in the wilderness — it was the gift of God.
The proportions of the text carry a message.
Only part of one verse deals with the miracle of the quails. All the rest of our chapter gives the details of the manna. That is because the manna is a picture fulfilled in Christ, the wilderness food of His saints. The Lord's own words in John 6 make this clear. The manna was the picture, but He is the "true bread from heaven."
The same writer looks at the flight itself, and at what happened when the miracle came again later, under the law:
The word of the Lord came true in an extraordinary flight of quails that evening. This bird migrates and is easy to catch, but the huge numbers settling on the camp made the event a miracle. Nothing more is said here about them. But when this miracle was repeated under the law, judgment followed, as we see in Numbers 11:31-34.
One writer sees the order as deliberate: flesh before bread, evening before morning.
A flight of quails comes before the manna, in the evening. It supplies the people with the flesh they had been promised. We know well what this death as the food of life means, so it raises no difficulty here. The Lord Himself, in His sermon on this text of manna (John 6), assures us that we must not only eat His flesh, but drink His blood, or we have no life in us. His person and His work are both necessary to us. And His sacrifice must come first. In the same way, Israel could eat the lamb only inside the house sprinkled with blood. So the quails come first, and in the evening.
Commentators differ on what the dew pictures. One connects it with the Holy Spirit:
But notice, it was in connection with the dew that the manna came. It is the Holy Spirit who makes Christ our food; and may there not be a fitness in the dew being withdrawn so that the manna may be seen? The Spirit always presents Christ and none but Him. But the same things that removed the dew also melted the manna. The sun of this world soon drives away, as far as our enjoyment goes, what should be our food.
Another reads the same dew as a picture of Scripture:
Water in Scripture is a figure of the word of God in its cleansing or purifying power. The Israelites got manna in connection with dew — we receive Christ through the word.
- Murmuring — Israel complained, and God did not punish them. Grace answered with supper and breakfast.
- Gift — No human hand brought it. God scattered it around their tents while they slept, so they lived on pure dependence.
- Evening — The quails proved that He who brought them out would feed them. God cares for plain bodily need.
- Morning — The evening gave proof. The morning gave glory: God's own gift in the wilderness.
- Christ — Half a verse for the quails, a chapter for the manna. Flesh first, then bread: His sacrifice, then His life as our daily food.
And when the dew that lay [round it] was gone up, behold, on the face of the wilderness there was [something] fine, granular, fine as hoar-frost, on the ground.
The people had grumbled for food, and God answered by covering the desert floor with something no one had ever seen before. This verse describes what Israel woke up to. Commentators read every detail — its smallness, its shape, its link with the dew — as a picture of Christ given for His people in the wilderness.
Older translations read "a small round thing, as small as the frost on the ground." Several writers below comment on that word "round."
The manna came after the people complained.
God stamped the character of grace on this gift of the manna, given to meet the people's need. Their grumbling should have brought down judgment. Instead, God met it by supplying this food.
What they saw had never been on earth before, and they had no name for it.
And when the dew lifted, a new thing appeared, one which had never been on earth before. "Manna?" — "What is this?" — the people exclaimed. It was God's glory in the wilderness — it was the gift of God.
Jesus took up the story of the manna and applied it to Himself.
This then is the meaning of the manna: the bread which God gave the Israelites to eat in the wilderness. It is therefore the proper wilderness food for the Lord's people. The Jews once said to our Lord, "Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" He replied: "Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." (John 6:32-33.) The manna, then, is clearly a type of Christ — a picture of Him as He was in this world. He came down from heaven, and He becomes the food of His people as they pass through the wilderness.
Two words describe how it looked: small, and round. Each says something about Jesus.
Second, it looked like "a small round thing," as small as the tiny specks of frost. The Son of God came down from heaven into manhood, so that He might give His flesh for the life of the world. In doing so He did indeed make Himself small and of no account in the eyes of men. It was also round, not angular and uneven. In the same way, in Christ once humbled here, there was an evenness that came from perfection in every detail.
Another writer reads the round shape differently: it shows how easy Christ was to reach.
The manna was round, picturing how accessible Christ is. A round thing is not like a square or an oval. Wherever you touch its edge, you are the same distance from its center. So the round shape shows how easy our Lord was to reach — young and old, rich and poor, religious and irreligious. Think of the woman who was a sinner, and Mary Magdalene, out of whom seven demons were cast. Think of the dying thief, and the children whom the disciples would have driven away. All alike could reach Him and be blessed.
It lay on the ground, and it looked like nothing special.
It is on the ground, so they must stoop to gather it. It lies on the face of the wilderness — something fine, as if pounded to pieces, fine as the frost on the ground. It does not look like much. It carries marks as if of rough handling. It reminds us of the prophet's words: "no beauty that we should desire Him." "What is it?" they say; for they did not know what it was. "The world knew Him not."
The manna lay where the dew had been.
The manna was found where the dew of heaven had fallen around the camp. The barren wilderness received the dew on its face. The moisture gathered unseen and fell from above. Where it settled on the ground, God spread the angels' food for man — "He gave them bread from heaven to eat." So we have both before us: the Spirit of God, who presents Christ to us, and Christ our food... We must gather our spiritual food diligently, day by day, early in the morning before the sun is up.
Older translations add the word "Behold" here. One writer turns it straight on the reader.
"Behold" — on the face of the wilderness at this very moment, despite all the bareness and roughness of your path. Behold, for you, God's own provision. Stoop, gather it up, and it will be sweet to your taste, and it will supply strength to you for all your desert way! Yes, weak as you are, surrounded by sorrow as you are, or, sadly, proud as you are, it is there waiting for you... not covered up, but out in the open... It is for every saint of God.
- Grace — Their grumbling should have brought judgment. God sent food instead, and stamped the gift with His own grace.
- Gift — What lay on the sand had never existed before. It was the gift of God, and it was God's glory in the wilderness.
- Small — Fine as frost, lying on the ground, with nothing about it to attract. Coming down into manhood, the Son of God made Himself of no account in men's eyes.
- Round — Even in every detail, and near at every point. The sinful woman, the dying thief and the children could all reach Him.
- Gather — It is not hidden but out in the open, waiting for every saint of God. Stoop early, take it daily, and it feeds the whole desert way.
And the children of Israel saw [it], and said one to another, What is it? for they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, This is the bread which Jehovah has given you to eat.
Israel had grumbled for food in the desert, and the next morning something they had never seen lay on the ground. Their name for it was a question, and Moses answered by naming the Giver.
Israel saw the small round thing on the ground and had no name for it. Their name became a question. Early English versions kept that sense, and one writer shows what is lost when translators leave the Hebrew word as it stands.
"It is manna" (Ex. 16:15) has no meaning to a reader who does not know Hebrew, but translated as the earliest versions had it — "What is this?" — the passage is simple enough.
The name stuck because the puzzle never cleared up.
The people say to one another Man-hu? "What is it?" And the question remained as its name, for no one ever really found out what it was — nor ever will. But something we know: it is the sustenance and strength of the redeemed soul.
The bread arrived after the people had grumbled about food.
The mark of grace is on this gift of the manna, given to meet the people's need. Their murmurings did not bring down judgment. Instead, God met them with this food.
The people asked what it was; Moses told them who gave it. Commentators read that answer through Jesus' own use of the story in John's Gospel.
This, then, is the meaning of the manna: the bread which God gave the Israelites to eat in the wilderness. It is therefore the proper wilderness food for the Lord's people. The Jews said to our Lord, "Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" He replied, "Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven." So the manna is plainly a type of Christ — Christ as He was in this world. He came down from heaven, and in that character He becomes the food of His people as they pass through the wilderness.
Nobody could tell what it was by looking at it. One writer hears an echo of how the world treated Christ Himself.
It lies upon the ground, so they must stoop to gather it — on the face of the wilderness — something fine, as if pounded to pieces, fine as the frost on the ground. This is how the people see it, who have not yet tasted it, and do not know what it is. It clearly does not look like much; it carries marks as if of rough handling. It reminds us of the prophet's words, "no beauty that we should desire him." "What is it?" they say; for they did not know what it was. "The world did not know Him."
Where the manna lay mattered: it rested on ground the dew had covered.
The barren wilderness received the dew on its face. The moisture gathered unseen and fell from above, and where it settled on the ground, God spread the angels' food for man — "He gave them bread from heaven to eat." So we have both before us: the Spirit of God, who presents Christ to us, and Christ our food. "The bread of God is he who comes down from heaven" (John 6:33), and we find Him, we may say, where the Holy Spirit presents Him to us.
What God gave could not be stockpiled.
The heavenly manna must be gathered fresh every morning. Yesterday's manna will not do for today, nor today's for tomorrow. We must feed on Christ every day, with fresh energy of the Spirit, or else we shall stop growing. What is more, we must make Christ our first object. We must seek Him "early," before "other things" have had time to take hold of our poor, easily-swayed hearts.
One writer sets the manna beside a second food, and says we need both.
You and I cannot feed on that manna unless we come to it through death. Manna, then, is Christ humbled, as He was in this scene. "The old grain of the land" is Christ glorified. You and I have to eat both, because we are in the wilderness and yet going to heaven. We are on our road home to God, and the Spirit of God carries our souls into heavenly places now. You must eat both.
- The question. "What is it?" was Israel's reaction, and it became the food's name. No one ever solved the mystery, yet this food is the strength of the redeemed soul.
- The giver. Moses did not define the substance; he named the Source. The answer to "what is it?" is "bread the Lord has given you."
- The Person. Jesus took up this story and pointed past Moses to His Father. The Father gives the true bread from heaven, so the manna pictures Christ come down and humbled.
- The daily habit. The manna could not be stored. Feed on Christ fresh each morning, before other things crowd in.
- The full table. Manna is Christ humbled for the desert; the grain of Canaan is Christ glorified. The traveller eats both.
This is the thing which Jehovah has commanded Gather of it every man according to what he can eat, an omer a poll, [according to] the number of your persons ye shall take every man for those that are in his tent.
The bread lies on the ground, and God attaches a rule to it: one set measure each, and every man gathers for his whole tent. Commentators read that rule as a picture of how a believer feeds on Christ, and of who else depends on it.
The manna is more than desert food. Commentators identify it with Christ Himself, in His lowly life on earth.
What, then, is the Manna for the believer? It is Christ come in human flesh — a humbled Christ… So Christ is the Manna in all that He was in the flesh. He is the Manna in the expression of what He was, both as the revealer of the Father and as the perfect man. His grace, compassion, sympathy, tenderness, and love; His meekness and lowliness of heart; His patience, forbearance, and long-suffering; His example — all these are found in the Manna. God has given us that Manna as our food for the journey through the wilderness.
The measure is fixed. Older translations read "an omer for every man," and one writer shows what that says about God's thought for each person.
In the giving of the manna, you remember, God said, "an omer for every man." Whether one gathered much or little, it was all measured. Each one had his full quota — "an omer for every man." A full Christ for every man was the thought of God… So the omer was the measure of Christ coming into this world. He came to meet the need of man, and in doing so to show the grace and glory of God.
The omer was an everyday household measure. So the gift came sized to the person, not to the crowd.
An omer was the measure people used in the tents of Israel for ordinary purposes. It held the usual portion of a man's daily food. So it made the gift of the manna personal to the need of every single person in the camp.
The verse ties each man's portion to what he can eat. One writer turns that into a test of the believer's desire.
First, they were to gather it every man according to his eating (vv. 16-18). As a result, he who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack. The appetite governed the amount collected. How strikingly true this is of the believer! We all have as much of Christ as we desire — no more, and no less. If our desires are large, if we open our mouth wide, He will fill it. We cannot desire too much, nor be disappointed when we desire. On the other hand, if we barely feel our need, we shall have only a little of Christ.
How does one fixed measure fit appetites that differ? Commentators give two explanations.
Some explain that although several in a family went out to gather the manna, when it was brought home and measured it came to just an omer for each of them. The more likely explanation is that an omer was the average portion for each. Some needed more and others less, so every one gathered "according to his eating," according to what he knew he would need. That way every one had enough, and nothing was wasted.
The bread lay free on the ground, yet nobody was fed without going out for it. One writer notes the effort and the posture it took.
Human responsibility went together with divine goodness. The heaven-sent provision lay around Israel's camp, yet each Israelite still had to be diligent to make that provision his own portion… To gather the manna, a man had to stoop, for it fell on the ground. Without question, the lowliest find for themselves the most of Christ.
The verse does not stop with the individual. It reaches the whole household.
But they must gather the manna "according to each one's need" (v. 16). This would take time, and would also mean bending down. First it says "an omer for each person." God would provide for each one individually. But it is also specifically said that each man should gather for all who were in his tent. The head of the household is responsible to share with his whole house the preciousness of the Lord Jesus.
The New Testament takes this scene out of the desert and applies it to money given for believers in need.
The earlier part of the passage comes up again in 2 Corinthians 8:15. It shows that when believers make a collection for poor fellow believers, this divine principle of "equality" should be worked out: what some have in abundance supplies the need of others.
- Given — the manna is Christ in His lowly life on earth, God's own provision for the journey.
- Measured — the omer is one fixed portion for each person: a full Christ for every man was God's thought.
- Gathered — the supply is equal, but the intake follows appetite; we have as much of Christ as we desire, no more and no less.
- Stooped for — the bread lay on the ground, so a man had to bend; the lowliest find the most of Christ.
- Shared — each man gathered for his whole tent; the same principle of equality later shapes giving among believers.
And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some much, some little.
The manna has just fallen for the first time, and the whole camp goes out to gather it. The amounts differ from person to person — a detail commentators read as a picture of how believers feed on Christ, and as the seed of a rule Paul later applies to money.
The chapter opens with complaint, not faith. Heaven answers with bread:
Exodus 16 shows us Israel murmuring again, but the Lord answers with nothing but grace... Their absolute need was now plain. In the wilderness, who but God could supply bread for such a multitude? But He did supply it generously, and at their doors. "Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat." ... It is Christ, the true manna from heaven, who gives eternal life and brings us into rest.
The bread lay all around the camp, but nobody ate it without going out for it. One writer puts God's giving and man's effort side by side:
But the manna had to be gathered. Human responsibility went together with God's goodness. The heaven-sent provision lay all around Israel's camp. Even so, each Israelite had to work at gathering it before it became his own portion... To gather the manna, a man had to stoop, because it fell on the ground. Beyond all argument, the lowliest find for themselves the most of Christ.
Why did some gather more and some less? The supply was not the limit — appetite was:
First, each man was to gather as much as he could eat (vv. 16-18)... The appetite governed the amount collected. How strikingly true this is of the believer! We all have as much of Christ as we desire — no more, and no less. If our desires are large, if we open our mouth wide, He will fill it. We cannot desire too much, nor be disappointed when we desire. On the other hand, if we are only feebly conscious of our need, only a little of Christ will be supplied.
Hours spent are not the same thing as hunger, and another writer keeps the two apart:
You cannot have too much of Christ... On the other hand, the amount we have does not depend on the time or effort we spend gathering. Not the amount of time, but the amount of heart, counts with God, and that is where the fruit is.
The verse notes the difference between the big gatherer and the small one, and blames neither. One writer keeps it that way:
When the children of Israel gathered the manna, some gathered more than others (v. 17). But there was no difficulty. The larger amount was not too much, and the smaller was not too little. Each had gathered just what he could eat. One may have a larger capacity to enjoy Christ, another a smaller capacity. Neither one carries any stigma.
Nobody ended up with too much, and nobody with too little. One writer credits that to God, not to the gatherers' skill:
God adjusted the supply to the demand with a wisdom and power that ruled out surplus just as much as shortage. He who gave the manna from heaven measured it exactly, whatever the differing measures in man's hands. And we have to do with the same God, and He surely regulates everything in the church with no less care and love.
Paul quotes this incident in his appeal for a collection, which pushes the meaning past the personal lesson about appetite:
Verse 15 quotes Exodus 16:18 in support of this. Reading Exodus, one might suppose the verse simply meant that each gatherer of the manna was able to judge his appetite rightly and gather accordingly. The way the verse is quoted here shows, however, that there is more in it than that, since it is cited in support of the principle of sharing with others what God may have entrusted to us.
Commentators differ on how the "no surplus, no lack" result came about — some report an older explanation that the measured amount turned out to be an omer each by miracle, while others hold that each person simply gathered what he knew he needed. Either way, the outcome is what Paul presses into service:
Some explained that when several from one family gathered and brought the manna home to measure, it came to just an omer each. The more likely explanation is that an omer was the average portion for each person, but some needed more and others less. So everyone gathered as much as he could eat — what he knew he would need. That way everyone had enough and nothing was wasted. The earlier part of this passage is quoted in 2 Corinthians 8:15. It shows that a collection for poor believers should carry out this divine principle of "equality" — the abundance of some meeting the need of others.
- Grace gives. The bread falls on a murmuring camp; the supply answers need, not merit.
- Grace is gathered. What God gives still has to be picked up, and it is the lowly who gather most.
- Grace fits appetite. The amount taken in follows desire and heart, not clock-time — and you cannot desire too much.
- Grace shames no one. Capacities differ; the large gatherer and the small one are both left without blame.
- Grace overflows outward. God measured so that none had too much and none too little. That becomes Paul's rule for sharing money with poorer believers.
And they measured with the omer then he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little wanted nothing they had gathered every man according to the measure of his eating.
Israel is in the desert, fed each morning by bread that appears on the ground, and each family gathers it with a measuring pot called an omer. When they measure what they gathered, the differences between them disappear — and centuries later the New Testament reaches back to this line to settle a question about money among Christians.
The verse turns on the omer, the measure used to check each portion. Commentators differ on how it worked out.
The Rabbis explain it this way. Several in a family went out to gather the manna. When they brought it home and measured it, it came to just an omer for each of them. A more likely explanation is this. An omer was the average portion for each person, but some needed more and others less. So each one gathered "as much as he could eat," what he knew he would need. Everyone had enough, and nothing went to waste. 2 Corinthians 8:15 quotes the first part of this passage. It shows that a collection for poor believers should carry out this divine principle of "equality," where the abundance of some supplies the need of others.
Either way, the outcome is God's arithmetic, not man's.
The One who gave the manna from heaven measured it exactly, whatever the differing measures in man's hands.
Three truths sit inside this one sentence: God's side, man's side, and the result.
These words hold three things. First, on God's part, He makes equal provision for each — an omer for every person. Second, on man's part, "each of them gathered as much as he could eat." The appetite governed the amount collected. Third, whatever the amount gathered, "whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack." Both the large desire and the small one were satisfied by the amount each one obtained.
As a picture of the believer's food, the verse puts the limit in our desire, not in the supply.
We all have as much of Christ as we desire — no more, and no less. If our desires are large, if we open our mouth wide, He will fill it. We cannot desire too much, and we will never be disappointed when we desire. On the other hand, if we barely feel our need, we will receive only a little of Christ.
Hours spent do not set that appetite.
You cannot have too much of Christ… On the other hand, the amount we will have does not depend on the time or effort we spend gathering. Not the amount of time, but the amount of heart counts with God, and that is where fruit is found.
But what about the believer who takes in less than someone else?
One may have a larger capacity to enjoy Christ, another a smaller capacity, but no stigma is attached to either.
The difference between believers can look wide in daily life.
This principle holds true of soul-hunger. God's people have such different appetites for heavenly things! Some find half an hour over the Bible a long time; others meditate in it day and night. Yet though this is true of us, all the gathered manna measured out at an omer for every man. Every man had enough. Every man's need was fully met, for the measure was the satisfaction of every man.
The New Testament quotes this verse in an appeal for poor believers.
Reading Exodus, you might think the verse simply meant that each gatherer of the manna could judge his appetite and gather to match it. But the way the verse is quoted here shows there is more in it than that. It supports the principle of sharing with others what God may have entrusted to us.
The "equality" aimed at is not sameness of income.
This is not necessarily an equality in wealth or social position. It means that each one is equally delivered from need… The amount of manna gathered could differ a great deal from person to person. Some gathered much and some little. But all were alike in this: every need was met.
And God reaches that result through people, with a further purpose in it.
That was God's thought and desire for them all. But He does it through human hands, binding the hearts of His people to each other and drawing out their love. The gift, if it amounted to anything, was only the expression of that love.
- Measure — God set the omer, and He measured exactly what fell, however much ended up in each person's hands.
- Appetite — Hunger decided what each one took home. We have as much of Christ as we desire, and heart counts more than hours.
- Enough — Nobody had too much or too little. The large appetite and the small one were both satisfied, so a smaller capacity carries no shame.
- Sharing — The New Testament lifts this line into Christian giving: what God entrusts to one is meant to flow to another.
- Equality — The goal is not equal wealth. It is that every need is met — and God does it through His people's hands, binding their hearts together.
And Moses said to them, Let no man leave [any] of it until the morning.
God fed Israel in the desert with manna, the heavenly bread they gathered fresh each morning. Moses adds one rule to the gift: keep none of it overnight — a day's food for a day, and no store for tomorrow.
The rule set how often Israel had to come back to God. It sets the same rhythm for anyone feeding on Christ.
The manna could not be stored for future use. No one was to leave any of it until the morning; but some disobeyed this command, only to find that what they had left had become corrupt. No — the food collected today cannot sustain us tomorrow. We can feed on Christ only by a present exercise of soul. Much damage has come to souls from forgetting this principle. They have had a rich meal of manna, and they have tried to feed on it for days; but it has always ended in disappointment and loss instead of blessing. God only gives the portion of a day in its day, and no more.
The daily supply left no cupboard to fall back on. That was the point.
It was bread that showed them, morning by morning, that they had to depend on Him. Had He withheld the manna one day, they would have had nothing to eat; for they could not keep it till the next day — "it bred worms and stank." The Lord will not allow us to lay up anything in store — no, not even grace — that would tend to lead us into independence of Himself; it will turn to evil if we do. He showed His people constant grace in the way He dealt with them. But He never took them out of the condition of dependence on Himself, and He never will take us out of it.
There is another side to it. Daily bread meant daily proof of love.
It is impossible in grace to make provision for tomorrow, or to rest on the grace of yesterday. There is no resting place but God: absolute dependence on Himself is what God desires. God remembers Israel every morning for forty years (the sabbath was no real exception). The unbeliever may like to receive God's gifts; the believer loves the One who gives them. If God had only given the manna once a month, He would have shown His love only once, and not every day. God shows every moment how He loves us. If our eyes are not content with seeing the manna every morning, we despise the love of God. Are we happy to be completely dependent on God?
Nothing carried over to the next day. So the gathering had to come first, before anything else took the heart.
The heavenly manna must be gathered fresh every morning. Yesterday's manna will not do for today, nor today's for tomorrow. We must feed upon Christ every day, with fresh energy of the Spirit, or we shall stop growing. What is more, we must make Christ our primary object. We must seek Him "early," before "other things" have had time to take hold of our poor, easily captured hearts. Many of us, sadly, fail here. We give Christ a secondary place, and the result is that we are left weak and barren.
One writer applies the kept manna to Job. Job was taken up with what grace had produced in him.
He looks at the manna placed in his hand; he keeps some of it until the morning, and it breeds worms and stinks. (Ex. 16:19-20.) The flesh lays claim to the effects of grace, and Job's conscience and heart become less impressed with the abounding goodness and perfect holiness of God. Taken up with his own goodness, he loses sight of God's goodness in the same measure.
The ban belonged to the wilderness road. One writer points out where the same manna could be kept.
Although manna could not be kept even for one day's need in the wilderness, it could be kept for the land of Canaan. And so we shall find that while we cannot feed on yesterday's experience and make it satisfy today's need, it will be for rich blessing when reviewed with our blessed Lord above.
- Today. God gives a day's portion for that day, and no more. Yesterday's meal cannot carry you through today.
- Dependence. God lets us store nothing — not even grace — that would make us independent of Him.
- Love. Daily bread is daily proof of love. Manna once a month would have shown that love once a month.
- Freshness. Seek Christ early, before other things take the heart. Give Him second place and the soul goes weak and barren.
- Glory. Yesterday's manna spoils in the desert. Yet that same experience, reviewed with the Lord above, will be rich blessing.
But they did not hearken to Moses; and some men left of it until the morning; then worms bred in it and it stank. And Moses was wroth with them.
God had begun sending bread from heaven, with one rule attached: gather it fresh each morning and leave nothing over. Some kept a portion back, and by morning it was crawling with worms.
The manna was not a random desert food. Commentators read it as a picture of Christ, and they take that reading from the Lord Himself.
This then is the meaning of the manna: the bread which God gave the Israelites to eat in the wilderness. It is therefore the proper wilderness food for the Lord's people. The Jews said to our Lord, "Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" He replied, "Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." (John 6:32-33.) The manna, it is clear, is a picture of Christ — of Christ as He was in this world. He is the One who came down from heaven, and as such He becomes the food of His people while they pass through the wilderness.
The ban on storing it was deliberate. Those who kept a private reserve had misread the food in their hands.
In the way of appropriating this heaven-sent food, God set up a test. Each day the people were to learn afresh their dependence on God, who gives us our bread day by day. They were not to store up for tomorrow, as if a heavenly supply, like an earthly one, might run out. Those who hoarded it found only worms and a foul smell for their disobedience. In the hoarding there was not only a misuse of the food, there was also a misunderstanding of its character.
The failure was not laziness in gathering. It was the attempt to store up what God sends fresh, and writers apply that to believers who live on past experience.
If spiritual sloth fails to gather the manna, spiritual stinginess cannot keep it. There is no such thing as a hoard of spirituality. Daily we must feed on Christ. Yesterday's grace will not do for today. How this strikes at the root of "attainments in holiness." We practically have only as much of Christ as we enjoy at this present moment. We are never to look back on our past experiences with self-satisfaction: if we do, the corruption of spiritual pride soon shows itself.
Verse 20 is about manna the people had already gathered. Gathering it was not enough.
There were some who did not take the trouble to eat all they had gathered, and leaving it until the next day, it bred worms and stank. So it became worse than useless… We may apply this. What we gather of Christ from the Scriptures is for our food and enjoyment now. It is not something to store away and display to others. If we treat it that way it will only stink when we display it.
Rotting manna announces itself. Writers apply this to a life that carries Christ's name without feeding on Him.
The manna had to be eaten on the same day it was gathered, except on the sixth day, because of the seventh day of rest. Think of the unconverted person who claims to follow Christ. He speaks the words Christ spoke when He was here in lowliness and humility, but he does not take Christ into his being and life. He has no real hunger for the heavenly bread. He has never felt his need of the Saviour as a lost sinner. He answers to the manna kept overnight.
after_note: DELETE-none He is a Christian by profession. But he does not take hold of Christ as his life, so Christ in His grace and lowliness does not mark his own life. And so, as it was with Israel long ago, the name of the Lord that he professes becomes offensive to others.
There is one exception, and it keeps this from ending in loss.
In the wilderness, manna could not be kept even for one day's need. Yet it could be kept for the land of Canaan. So we cannot feed on yesterday's experience and make it satisfy today's need. But that experience will be rich blessing when we review it with our blessed Lord above.
- Gift. The manna pictures Christ come down from heaven — food God gives for the journey, not something the people produced.
- Test. Gathering fresh each day taught dependence; hoarding treated a heavenly supply as if it might run out.
- Decay. Kept overnight, the manna bred worms. Writers apply that to living on yesterday's enjoyment, which breeds spiritual pride.
- Display. What we gather of Christ is for eating now, not for storing up to show others; used that way it only turns foul.
- Keepsake. What could not be kept in the wilderness could be kept for Canaan — yesterday's experience is not lost, but reviewed one day with the Lord above.
And they gathered it every morning, every man as much as he could eat; and when the sun became hot, it melted.
In the wilderness, Israel ate a food that came fresh each morning and vanished by mid-morning. Commentators read this rhythm as a picture of how a believer feeds on Christ, and the timing, the measure and the melting each carry weight.
The bread lying on the ground pictures Christ — and one particular side of Him.
The manna, I need not say, is Christ, the bread of God from heaven, to be our food. It is Christ come down, Christ in all the circumstances of an earthly life, to sustain the life of His people... Here then we have, not a Christ in glory, but a Christ humbled — all that is in His blessed person to support and nourish us during our wilderness journey.
God sent the food, but no one ate without going out for it. Even the body's posture carried a lesson.
But the manna had to be gathered. God's goodness came with human responsibility. The heaven-sent food lay all around Israel's camp, but each Israelite still had to work hard to make it his own portion... In gathering the manna, man had to stoop, for it fell upon the ground; and, without contradiction, the lowliest find for themselves the most of Christ.
The gathering has a time and a place.
I must gather the manna, gather Christ, early in the day, to be properly fed for the day. I can only gather Christ out of Scripture, so that is what makes the reading of the Scripture, and the study of the Scripture, so important.
Appetite set each man's share. The same measure works on the soul.
The appetite governed the amount collected. How strikingly true this is of the believer! We all have as much of Christ as we desire — no more, and no less. If our desires are large, if we open our mouth wide, He will fill it. We cannot desire too much, and we will never be disappointed when we desire. On the other hand, if we are only faintly aware of our need, we will receive only a little of Christ.
The repeated "morning by morning" rules out a stockpile. Each day starts with an empty basket.
The manna was so pure and delicate that it could not bear contact with earth... So it is with the people of God now. The heavenly manna must be gathered fresh every morning. Yesterday's manna will not do for today, nor today's for tomorrow. We must feed upon Christ every day, with fresh energy of the Spirit, or else we shall cease to grow... Only Christ can nourish and sustain the new life in the believer: "As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me." (John 6:57)
The melting sets a deadline. Writers read the heat as the day's own pressures.
But this heavenly food is most sensitive; it does not tarry after the sun has risen, when this world's attractions or cares absorb the mind. If Christ is to be the food of our souls, we need the "early rising" that Scripture speaks of again and again — the purpose of heart that overcomes our natural laziness... Where Christ's things are given the first place, there will always be food and sustenance for the soul. But when "the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches" come in, the heavenly manna melts away.
Turned into practice, this makes the first hour of a day a fair test of the whole.
It is a good thing to see the face of the Lord Jesus by faith before we see any other face. Time spent with Him gives us power before we start the day's duties... The way the first part of the morning engages us often tells the real state of our souls.
One writer sees the melting as a picture of something still ahead.
The manna disappeared when the sun grew hot: it melted. In the sanctuary and in the home they still stored it up. But no one saw it out in the open once the sun shone in full splendour over the earth... when our blessed Lord shines out as the Sun of righteousness and reigns in supreme splendour over the earth... there will no more be seen on the face of the wilderness the heavenly man in lowliness... Not that there is any change in our Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The surroundings and circumstances change, but not Jesus. They also stored the manna inside, out of public sight; and in that coming day of glory and rest, those who are within will have the high honour of sharing the "hidden manna" (Rev. 2:17).
- Given — the manna is Christ come down in lowliness, God's own provision lying ready on the wilderness floor.
- Gathered — heaven's gift still asks for your diligence; you find this food by stooping, and in Scripture.
- Measured — appetite set the amount then, and it sets your portion now: as much of Christ as you desire, no more and no less.
- Fresh — "morning by morning" forbids a stockpile; yesterday's supply will not carry today.
- Timed — the day's heat melts whatever you leave, so what takes first place in the morning shapes the rest.