1 The Israelites come to Sin, and murmur for want of bread
4 God promises them bread and flesh from heaven, and they are rebuked
13 Quails and manna are sent
16 The ordering of manna
25 It was not to be found on the sabbath
32 An omer of it is preserved

A.M. 2513, B.C. 1491. An. Ex. Is. 1. Ijar. Took Ex 15:27 Nu 33:10-12

Sin. This desert was traversed by Dr. Shaw in nine hours. He was all the day diverted by varieties of lizards and vipers, which abound there. Ex 17:1 Nu 33:12 Eze 30:15,16

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

Ex 15:24 Ge 19:4 Ps 106:7,13,25 1Co 10:10

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

would Nu 20:3-6 De 28:67 Jos 7:7 2Sa 18:33 La 4:9 Ac 26:29 1Co 4:8 2Co 11:1

we had Nu 11:15 14:2 Job 3:1,10,20 Jer 20:14-18 Jon 4:8,9

flesh Ex 2:23 Nu 11:4,5

to kill Ex 5:21 17:3 Nu 16:13,41

hunger De 8:3 Jer 2:6 La 4:9

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.

I will rain Ps 78:24,25 105:40 Joh 6:31,32 1Co 10:3

a certain rate every day. Heb. the portion of a day in his day Ne 11:23 Pr 30:8 Mt 6:11,32,33 Lu 11:3

prove them Ex 15:25 De 8:2,16 Jos 24:15

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

prepare Ex 16:23 35:2,3 Le 25:21,22

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

even Ex 16:8,12,13

the Lord Ex 16:3 6:7 12:51 32:1,7,11 Nu 16:28,30 Ps 77:20 Isa 63:11,12

7 And in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the LORD; for that he heareth your murmurings against the LORD: and what are we, that ye murmur against us?

the morning Ex 16:13

ye shall Ex 16:10 24:10,16 40:34 Le 9:6 Nu 14:10 16:42 Isa 35:2 40:5 Joh 11:4,40

what are we Ex 16:2,3,8 Nu 16:11

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

the Lord heareth Ex 16:9,12 Nu 14:27 Mt 9:4 Joh 6:41-43 1Co 10:10

but against Nu 21:7 1Sa 8:7 Isa 32:6 37:29 Mt 10:40 Lu 10:16 Joh 13:20 Ro 13:2 1Th 4:8

9 And Moses spake unto Aaron, Say unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, Come near before the LORD: for he hath heard your murmurings.

come near Nu 16:16

heard Ex 16:2,8

10 And it came to pass, as Aaron spake unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud.

that they Ex 16:7 Nu 14:10 16:19,42

appeared Ex 13:21,22 40:34-38 Le 9:6 Nu 16:42 1Ki 8:10,11 Mt 17:5

11 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

no reference

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

I have Ex 16:8

at even Ex 16:6

in the morning Ex 16:7

ye shall know Ex 4:5 6:7 7:17 Jer 31:24 Eze 34:30 39:22 Joe 3:17 Zec 13:9

13 And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host.

the quails. The Hebrew selav, is without doubt the quail; a large kind of quail. A bird of the gallinaceous kind, somewhat less than a pigeon, but larger than a sparrow. Hasselquist describes the quail of the larger kind as very much resembling the red partridge, but not larger than the turtle dove; found in Judea as well as in the deserts of Arabia Petraea and Egypt; and affording a most agreeable and delicate dish. Nu 11:31-33 Ps 78:27,28 105:40

the dew Nu 11:9

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

the dew Nu 11:7-9 De 8:3 Ne 9:15 Ps 78:24 105:40

the hoar frost Ps 147:16

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

it is manna or what is this? or it is a portion Ex 16:31,33 De 8:3,16 Jos 5:12 Ne 9:15,20 Joh 6:31,32,49,58 1Co 10:3 Heb 9:4 Re 2:17

this is Ex 16:4 Nu 21:5 Pr 9:5 Lu 12:30

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

omer Ex 16:18,33,36

for every man. Heb. by the poll or head persons. Heb souls

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

no reference

18 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.

2Co 8:14,15

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

Ex 12:10 23:18 Mt 6:34

20 Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth with them.

bred worms Mt 6:19 Lu 12:15,33 Heb 13:5 Jas 5:2,3

and Moses Nu 12:3 16:15 Mr 3:5 10:14 Eph 4:26

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

Pr 6:6-11 Ec 9:10 12:1 Mt 6:33 Joh 12:35 2Co 6:2

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

What the substance called manna was, is utterly unknown, but from the circumstances in the text, it is evident that it was not a natural production, but was miraculously sent by Jehovah. These the learned Abarbinel, a most judicious Jewish interpreter, has thus enumerated; The natural manna was never found in the desert where this fell;--where the common manna does fall, it is only in the spring time, in March and April, whereas this fell throughout all the months in the year; the ordinary manna does not melt in the sun, as this did;--it does not stink and breed worms, as this did, when kept till the morning;--it cannot be ground or beaten in a mortar, so as to make cakes, as this was;--the common manna is medicinal and purgative, and cannot be used for food and nutriment, as this was;--this fell in a double proportion on the sixth day, and not on the sabbath, as it certainly would have done had it fallen naturally;--it followed them in all their journeys, where ever they pitched their tents;--and it ceased at the very time of the year when the other falls, namely, in March, when the Israelites were come to Gilgal. Whatever this substance was, it does not appear to have been common to the wilderness. From De 8:3,16, it is evident that the Israelites never saw it before; and from a pot of it being preserved, it is certain that nothing of the kind ever appeared again. Ex 16:5,16 Le 25:12,22

23 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.

rest Ex 20:8-11 31:15 35:3 Ge 2:2,3 Le 23:3 Mr 2:27,28 Lu 23:56 Re 1:10

bake Nu 11:8

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

Ex 16:20,33

25 And Moses said, Eat that to day; for to day is a sabbath unto the LORD: to day ye shall not find it in the field.

Ex 16:23,29 Ne 9:14

26 Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none.

Ex 20:9-11 De 5:13 Eze 46:1 Lu 13:14

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

and they found none Pr 20:4

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

Ex 10:3 Nu 14:11 20:12 2Ki 17:14 Ps 78:10,22 81:13,14 106:13 Isa 7:9,13 Jer 4:14 9:6 Eze 5:6 20:13,16 Mr 9:19

29 See, for that the LORD hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.

hath given Ex 31:13 Ne 9:14 Isa 58:13,14 Eze 20:12

abide ye Lu 23:56

30 So the people rested on the seventh day.

Le 23:3 De 5:12-14 Heb 4:9

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

called the name. Ex 16:15

In consequence of the term manna having been given to a drug which is now much used in England, many persons have ignorantly supposed it to be the same sort of thing as that miraculously sent for the sustenance of the children of Israel in the wilderness. The manna of commerce comes from Calabria and Sicily, where it oozes out of a kind of ash tree, from the end of June to the end of July, and is a thick, clammy, sweet juice, partly drawn from the tree by the rays of the sun, partly by the puncture of insects, and partly by artificial means. The European manna is not so good as the Oriental, which is gathered in Syria, Arabia, and Persia, from the Oriental oak, and from a shrub which is called in Persia teranjabin. and it was Nu 11:6,7 So 2:3

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

Ps 103:1,2 105:5 111:4,5 Lu 22:19 Heb 2:1

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

Heb 9:4

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

Ex 25:16,21 27:21 30:6,36 31:18 38:21 40:20 Nu 1:50,53 17:10 De 10:5 1Ki 8:9

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

forty years Nu 33:38 De 8:2,3 Ne 9:15,20,21 Ps 78:24,25 Joh 6:30-58

until they come to Jos 5:12

the borders Nu 33:48-50 De 1:8 34:1-4

36 Now an omer is the tenth part of an ephah.

Ex 16:16,32,33