Heavenly Sustenance (Exodus 16: 1-36 - 4156)

Today I want to talk about heavenly food. And by that, I mean food that literally falls out of the sky. No, I’m not talking science fiction, it really happened. It really, factually, historically happened that food fell out of the sky. And I the story because this sort of thing doesn't happen today. So, will you turn with me to Exodus chapter 16, where we are told about heavenly food? We're going to begin with verse 1. 

1 And they journeyed 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 they departed from the land of Egypt. 2 Then the whole congregation of the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. 3 And the children of Israel said to them, “Oh, that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat and when we ate bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

(Exodus 16: 1-3)

Here, there's more to the story, which we're going to get to piece by piece. But this is sort of the introduction, and this first segment of the story is telling us simply about a complaint. 

As you know, in the book of Exodus, they were once slaves in Egypt, and God delivered them. And in the process, worked ten miracles called plagues. And on top of that, after the ten supernatural events, He led them out of Egypt by taking them through the Red Sea—another miracle. I have suggested that it is one of the greatest, most amazing miracles in all of the Bible, certainly the Old Testament, with the possible exception of the resurrection of Christ. The people in this passage saw God work in the most dramatic, supernatural way. They saw the parting of the Red Sea. Three days later, they get to Elim, and they begin to complain. They complained that they didn't have water. And then when they found water, it was bitter. So, they grumbled and complained again. The God provided sweet clean water. This passage tells us that they have now left Elim and continued their journey in the Sinai Peninsula. They came to what is called the wilderness of Sin. There's no significance over the fact that it's called "Sin." "Sin" just happened to be the name.

The text tells us that this was the second month and the fifteenth day after they had left Egypt. So, we're now two and a half months out of Egypt, and they come to this new place called the wilderness of Sin. 

And all of a sudden, they have water, but they don't have food. So, here's what they do. They have just seen God supernaturally work eleven miracles. So, do you think it should have occurred to them that maybe if they prayed, God could work another miracle and they could get food? Is that stretching it too far? But instead of saying, "Let's get together and pray to the  Lord and see another miracle," instead of doing that, they complain against Moses and Aaron, as if it was their fault. This is the third time they have complained. The first time was when they were getting out of Egypt and Pharaoh's army pursued them. They looked back and saw the army and the Red Sea. They complained that Moses had led them into a trap. The second time they complained was when they got to Elim and didn't have water. Now they're in the wilderness of Sin, and they're complaining a third time, saying, "We don't have food. We might as well have stayed in Egypt where we had plenty to eat." They don't mention the fact that they were slaves at that point. Rather than coming out here and dying of starvation, they blame Moses and Aaron. 

Let me just pause long enough here to suggest that this is so characteristic of this day and age. When something doesn't quite go our way when we think it should, we complain. We are a generation of complainers. And the more technology we get, the more we expect, and the more we complain. 

There's another dimension to this. They not only complain, they blame someone else for their situation. They blame Moses and Aaron. I suggest, we're all guilty of that sometimes. When something doesn't go our way, what we do is complain and find somebody to blame. That's what people do. They constantly complain and they constantly find somebody to blame. So, that's what happened. So, how do you handle the complaint? What should you do instead of complaining? Well, let's pick up the story at verse 4.

4 "Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not. 5 And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.”

6 Then Moses and Aaron said to all the children of Israel, “At evening you shall know that the Lord has brought you out of the land of Egypt. 7 And in the morning, you shall see the glory of the Lord; for He hears your complaints against the Lord. But what are we, that you complain against us?” 8 Also Moses said, “This shall be seen when the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening, and in the morning bread to the full; for the Lord hears your complaints which you make against Him. And what are we? Your complaints are not against us but against the Lord.”

9 Then Moses spoke to Aaron, “Say to all the congregation of the children of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for He has heard your complaints.’ ” 10 Now it came to pass, as Aaron spoke to 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.

(Exodus 16: 4-10)

This is the second phase of the story. And in this phase, the Lord simply takes their problem about which they are complaining, and He comes up with a plan. And this plan is simply this: He says, "Look, tell you what I'm going to do. I'm just going to let it rain food. By the way, this is a test. Did you pick that up? Food coming down from heaven is going to be a test to see whether or not you will obey me. More about the test in a minute. Just note in passing that it's a test." The second thing you should notice in this section of the scripture is that Moses said several times, "It's not against me and Aaron. It's against the Lord. You are complaining against the Lord."  Is it possible that when we complain and blame, that we're really complaining against the Lord? At the base of most complaints is really  a grumble against the Lord. 

For example, the original blame-shifting story, Adam and Eve. God comes to Adam and says, "What in the garden are you doing?" And Adam says, "It's not my fault. It's that woman. And then he goes to the next level and says, "It's that woman You gave me. If You hadn't given me a woman, I wouldn't be in this mess. If You hadn't given me this Eve woman, I wouldn't be in this mess. It’s all the woman's fault." "What's he doing? He's blaming God, and that's exactly what Moses was saying to the children of Israel. You complain against me and Aaron, but you're really complaining against the Lord. Now the Lord has a plan, and what he's going to do is rain food right out of heaven. There's more to the plan, and we'll get to that in a minute. But the other thing I want you to notice is that you're going to see the glory of the Lord. 

The second section of the passage ends with the fact that they saw the glory of the Lord. What does that mean? I'm not sure and I don't know that anybody is certain. However, it clearly says in verse 10 that what they saw was the glory of the Lord. 

The next thing that happens is the plan is not only given to, but the details of the plan are given to us. Let's pick up the story at verse 11.

11 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “I have heard the complaints of the children of Israel. Speak to them, saying, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning, you shall be filled with bread. And you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’ ” 13 So it was that quail came up at evening and covered the camp, and in the morning the dew lay all around the camp.

(Exodus 16: 11-13)

interestingly this is a phenomenon that occurred in ancient Palestine and still occurs occasionally. So much so that there is archaeological evidence that they had little hand nets that they used to catch larger birds with, perhaps like these quails with. Quail which is like a smaller version of our modern day pheasant migrated every year and in one part of the year, they travel from the middle east to Africa, and then they came back, sometimes after the return trip there is a period when they are so physically exhausted that boys could catch them with their hands.  This is a case of God working supernaturally and providentially at one and the same time, and this is the way God is going to supply the sustenance that they need. 

14 And when the layer of dew lifted, there, on the surface of the wilderness, was a small round substance, as fine as frost on the ground. 15 So when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “This is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat. 16 This is the thing which the Lord has commanded: ‘Let every man gather it according to each one’s need, one omer for each person, according to the number of persons; let every man take for those who are in his tent.’

(Exodus 16: 14-16)

Alright, they get up in the morning and there's this stuff on the ground. As the sun comes out, that dew burns off, and what's left is this stuff. They don't know what it is. They've never seen it before. So, they said, "What is it?" And it was Moses who said to them, "This is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat. Every man gather it according to each one's need, one omer for each person and take it back to your tents. That way they are gathering  just enough to eat for that day. Very important. 

17 Then the children of Israel did so and gathered, some more, some less. 18 So when they measured it by omers, he who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack. Every man had gathered according to each  one’s need.

(Exodus 16: 17-18)

Fascinating. This is clearly miraculous. The appearance of this stuff didn't grow, it appeared every morning. And furthermore, they have just enough. So no matter what they gathered, they got home and it was just enough to eat. No leftovers. It tasted good, it was nourishing, and they had just enough to be full. And the Lord supernaturally supplied this stuff every morning.  They had this great stuff for breakfast. In the evening, they had quail in the evening, perfect. 

19 And Moses said, “Let no one leave any of it till morning.” 20 Notwithstanding they did not heed Moses. But some of them left part of it until morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them.

(Exodus 16: 19-20)

What was the plan? You were to pick up how much? Just what you needed. No more, no less. Remember, they picked up what they needed, and it ended up like that, right? And then there's some gluttons, some greedy people who don’t do what  Moses clearly said about not having any leftovers and it spoils. Even in this little test, they failed.' What was the test? Real simple. Pick up enough to eat in the morning, quail to eat at night and some of these fellas, he picked up too much. Why is that a test? The answer is, the Lord said, 'I'm going to do this every morning, so I don't want you to store it. I want you to trust me that I'm going to provide every day. And if you don't trust that that is what’s going to happen then what are you going to do? You're going to hoard this stuff. The Lord is trying to teach them a lesson. And the lesson is that you obey me and trust me.

There are consequences. There are consequences to disobedience, correct? What's the consequence in this? Whatever they hoarded, it stunk. You plan goes to stink. If you think you've got a plan better than His, and you will stink up the place with the odour of disobedience. Now, there's more. Let's pick up the story at verse 21."

21 So they gathered it every morning, every man according to his need. And when the sun became hot, it melted. 22 And so it was, on the sixth day, that they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one. And all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. 23 Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Tomorrow is a Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord. Bake what you will bake today, and boil what you will boil; and lay up for yourselves all that remains, to be kept until morning.’

(Exodus 16: 21-23)

Now, what's going on? Now the Lord adds a new little nuance to this plan. I want it again. Gather just enough to eat every day from Sunday to Thursday. But on Friday, I want you to gather enough for two days. And I want you to cook so that on the seventh day, which is Saturday, then you will not cook.  You're not going to cook on Saturday. I want you to rest. And I'm going to call that the seventh. This is the first occurrence of Sabbath or observance in the Bible. The Hebrew Sabbath simply means cessation, rest. I don't want you to work on the seventh day, not even cook.  This is the first mention of the people observing a Sabbath. That's never mentioned in the book of Genesis or in Exodus up until now. But it's not part of the law because the law has not yet been given. The law will be given in chapter 20, and at that point, the Lord will establish it as part of the Ten Commandments. "Keep the Sabbath day holy" is the fourth of the Ten.

“So they laid it up till morning, as Moses commanded; and it did not stink, nor were there any worms in it.”

(Exodus 16: 24) 

I mean, when they gathered for more than one day, it stank, when they gather for two days, and it doesn't stink. Why not?  This is the difference between obeying and disobeying the Lord. When they disobeyed the Lord, it stank. Now that they were obeying the Lord, it does not stink. 

“Then Moses said, 'Eat that today, for today is a Sabbath to the Lord. Today you will not find it in the field. Six days you shall gather, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will be none.”

(Exodus 16: 25-26)

So, this simply confirms the plan is to gather and to eat every day, and on Friday, we're going to gather enough to eat for two days. 

27 Now it happened that some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather, but they found none. 28 And the Lord said to Moses, “How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My laws? 29 See! For the Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore, He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.” 30 So the people rested on the seventh day.

(Exodus 16: 27-30)

Would you look at that? They finally got it. But the question is one of the saddest questions that we've encountered so far in this book. "How many times do I have to tell you? How long is it going to take?"  I have studied the Bible for many years now I have more and more realized, especially in the Old Testament, how much repetition there is. The same sort of thing happens and over and over.. I made a covenant with you. I did it out of grace. And if you obey My covenant, I will bless you. And if you disobey My covenant, you make a rotton mess of things. So just to trust Me to do it. Just trust Me, and I'll bless you. It's over and over and over. The Lord tells us once, and He reminds us over and over and over again. Well, they finally got the message. There's one more thing He provides. Not only food, not only rest, He provides a memorial. Pick the story up at verse 31.

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

(Exodus 16: 31)

Please note the Manna just rained right out of heaven. It was supernaturally given by God in this case. There's no natural explanation for it. By the way, there is a natural explanation for the quail. We do know that they migrate back and forth, and it was easy to catch them. But there is no natural explanation for the manna, in my opinion. That was supernatural. Just please note, God works both ways.

32 Then Moses said, “This is the thing which the Lord has commanded: ‘Fill an omer with it, to be kept for 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.’ ” 33 And Moses said to Aaron, “Take a pot and put an omer of manna in it, and lay it up before the Lord, to be kept for your generations.” 34 As the Lord commanded Moses, so Aaron laid it up before the Testimony, to be kept. 35 And the children of Israel ate manna forty years, until they came to an inhabited land; they ate manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan. 36 Now an omer is one-tenth of an ephah.

(Exodus 16: 32-36)

What is happening here is God is simply saying, "I want to make a memorial. For them to remember that when the children of Israel complained about the lack of food, He provided rest on the 7th day, a memorial for them to remember what the Lord had done for them.  So, think about this. Instead of complaining, what should we do? Stop grumbling just go the Lord and pray and remember what he has done for you in the past. Let me conclude by making a couple of very simple observations. 

One of the things this passage is teaching us is that the Lord provides for our physical needs. If you don't get anything else out of this story, the Lord provides for us. Sometimes He does that supernaturally, and sometimes He does that through working.  God through these events wishes to impress upon His ability and willingness to provide us with our daily needs.

Food water and rest. His desire that they would experience rest. He gave them Sabbath rest to refresh and strengthen their spirits as well as ample food for their bodies, manna in the morning and quail in the evening. God is infinitely creative in His giving." So the Lord supplies our needs and we should acknowledge that it is the Lord who supplies our needs.

The second lesson I'd like to draw out of this is the Lord provides for our spiritual well-being as well. Jesus, referring is referring to this when he calls Himself the true bread from heaven. He's saying, just like that bread came down out of heaven, I came from heaven. Just like that bread sustains you physically, I have come from heaven to sustain you spiritually.  In John chapter 6, He talks about the bread of God from heaven and that he himself is the bread of life (v35), and the living bread (v51).

So, what must we do to meet that spiritual need? One thing we must believe in Him. He said that if we did, we would have eternal life. He says that in John 3:16, but He also says that in John chapter 6, verse 33, verse 51, and verse 58. 

One author said, "Our Lord is the ultimate and living bread from heaven. It is a type, a divinely intended illustration of Christ. Our Lord gave Himself unreservedly, but each Christian has no more of Him experientially than he appropriates by faith.  So first of all, we believe, and what happens when you believe? You get eternal life. 

The next step is to allow him to sustain you. In John chapter 6. It tells us that Jesus is the bread of life, and we believe in Him to get eternal life, and we constantly feed on Him, so to speak, to maintain our spiritual life. 

Second Corinthians 3:18 says that as we behold the Lord, the Holy Spirit transforms us from glory to glory. It says, "We contemplate the Lord and desire to be like Him, conformed to Him." And in that way, He meets our spiritual daily needs. 

That’s why we need to meditate in the word and on the Lord, daily, so we are sustained.You can meet a huge meal at Christmas and then say, that me satisfied to next Christmas wehave to be sustained, day by day.

I think this passage is telling us that the Lord supplies food, rest, and a memorial. So after He meets our physical needs, and He meets our spiritual needs, what are we to do? We should remember what he has for you. It is the job of Christians to remind ourselves and other of what the Lord has done for us and how he continues to sustain us.  Just go tell somebody. And that's what this passage is telling us.