How does the manna test Israel’s obedience, and why is the sixth day’s food kept overnight?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

The people must gather enough each day and leave none until morning. On the sixth day they gather twice as much and are told to keep the remainder for the Sabbath, when none will be found in the field.

Chapter breakdown

How does the manna test Israel’s obedience, and why is the sixth day’s food kept overnight? The people must gather enough each day and leave none until morning. On the sixth day they gather twice as much and are told to keep the remainder for the Sabbath, when none will be found in the field.

All Israel’s multitude leaves Elim and reaches the desert of Sin, between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after leaving Egypt. The whole congregation complains against Moses and Aaron. They say they wish they had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt, where they sat over fleshpots and ate bread to the full. They ask why Moses and Aaron brought them into the desert to destroy the whole multitude with famine.

The Lord tells Moses he will rain bread from heaven. The people are to go out and gather enough for every day, so he may test whether they will walk in his law. On the sixth day they must bring in double their usual daily amount.

Moses and Aaron tell Israel that in the evening they will know the Lord brought them out of Egypt, and in the morning they will see his glory. He has heard their complaining against him. Moses and Aaron ask what they are that the people complain against them. Moses says the Lord will give meat in the evening and bread to the full in the morning. Their complaint is against the Lord, rather than against Moses and Aaron.

Moses tells Aaron to call the whole congregation before the Lord because he has heard their complaint. As Aaron speaks to the assembly, they look toward the wilderness, and the Lord’s glory appears in a cloud. The Lord speaks to Moses: he has heard Israel’s complaint, and Moses is to tell them they will eat meat in the evening and have their fill of bread in the morning. They will know he is the Lord their God.

In the evening quails come up and cover the camp. In the morning dew lies around it. The account says that when it has covered the face of the earth, something small appears in the wilderness, as though beaten with a pestle, like hoar frost on the ground. Israel says to one another, Manhu, meaning “What is this?” because they do not know what it is. Moses tells them it is the bread the Lord has given them to eat.

The Lord’s command is for each to gather enough to eat: a gomor for every person, according to the number living in a tent. They do so, one gathering more and another less. When they measure with a gomor, the one who gathered more has no more, and the one who gathered less finds no less. Each has gathered according to what they can eat.

Moses tells them to leave none until morning. Some do not listen and leave it overnight; it fills with worms and rots, and Moses is angry with them. Each gathers enough to eat in the morning. After the sun grows hot, it melts.

On the sixth day they gather twice as much: two gomors for each person. All the rulers of the multitude report this to Moses. He says the next day is the Sabbath rest set apart for the Lord. They are to do whatever work must be done and prepare the food that needs preparing, then keep what remains until morning. They do as Moses commands. It does not rot, and no worm is found in it.

Moses tells them to eat it that day because it is the Lord’s Sabbath, and none will be found in the field. They are to gather it six days; on the seventh, the Sabbath, it will not be found. Some go out on the seventh day and find none. The Lord asks Moses how long they will refuse to keep his commandments and law. He has given them the Sabbath, and for that reason gives double provision on the sixth day. Each must stay at home and none go out of his place on the seventh. The people keep the Sabbath on that day.

The house of Israel calls it Manna. It is white, like coriander seed, and tastes like flour with honey. Moses gives the Lord’s command to keep a gomor for future generations so they may know the bread with which he fed them in the wilderness when they were brought out of Egypt. Moses tells Aaron to take a vessel, put in a gomor of manna and keep it before the Lord for their generations. As the Lord commanded Moses, Aaron puts it in the tabernacle to be kept.

Israel eats manna forty years, until coming to a habitable land. They are fed with it until reaching the borders of Chanaan. A gomor is the tenth part of an ephi.

The story inside

The test about walking in God’s law appears in the gathering instructions. Enough is to be gathered each day, and Moses says to leave none overnight. Some leave it, and it becomes worm-filled and rotten. The sixth day has a different instruction: double provision, preparation and keeping the remainder for the Sabbath. That remainder does not rot or contain worms. Some nevertheless seek food on the seventh day and find none. The Lord ties the sixth day’s double provision to the gift of the Sabbath and commands each to stay in his place. A gomor is also kept for future generations to know the bread that fed Israel after leaving Egypt. The chapter closes with forty years of eating manna and the gomor’s size. (Exodus 16:4–36.)

Lessons worth keeping

1
The daily command includes the amount and the tent’s people. A gomor per person is named, and after measuring, neither the one gathering more nor the one gathering less has a different amount from what is needed to eat. The chapter gives no motive for unequal gathering. (16:16–18.)
2
The overnight rule has a Sabbath exception. Food left against Moses’ daily instruction rots and fills with worms. The remainder kept as commanded on the sixth day does neither, and is eaten on the Sabbath when none is found in the field. (16:19–26.)
3
The saved portion has a purpose for later generations. A gomor is kept so they may know the bread with which Israel was fed in the wilderness after leaving Egypt. Aaron places it in the tabernacle to be kept. (16:32–34.)

Test your recall

Why does God give daily gathering instructions? To test whether the people walk in his law. Why is double gathered on the sixth day? The Lord has given the Sabbath; none is found on the seventh. What difference is recorded between wrongly saved daily food and the commanded Sabbath remainder? The first rots and contains worms; the second does neither. Why keep a gomor for later generations?

Show answer

So they may know the bread that fed Israel in the wilderness. (16:4, 19–29, 32.)

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 7661–7664
Exodus Chapter 16 The people murmur for want of meat: God giveth them quails and manna.
Lines 7665–7677
16:1. And they set forward from Elim, and all the multitude of the children of Israel came into the desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai: the fifteenth day of the second month, after they came out of the land of Egypt. 16:2. And all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. 16:3. 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 over the fleshpots, and ate bread to the full: Why have you brought us into this desert, that you might destroy all the multitude with famine?
Lines 7678–7685
16:4. And the Lord said to Moses: Behold I will rain bread from heaven for you; let the people go forth, and gather what is sufficient for every day: that I may prove them whether they will walk in my law, or not. 16:5. But the sixth day let them provide for to bring in: and let it be double to that they were wont to gather every day.
Lines 7686–7698
16:6. And Moses and Aaron said to the children of Israel In the evening you shall know that the Lord hath brought you forth out of the land of Egypt: 16:7. And in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord: for he hath heard your murmuring against the Lord: but as for us, what are we, that you mutter against us? 16:8. And Moses said: In the evening the Lord will give you flesh to eat, and in the morning bread to the full: for he hath heard your murmurings, with which you have murmured against him, for what are we? your murmuring is not against us, but against the Lord.
Lines 7699–7713
16:9. Moses also said to Aaron: Say to the whole congregation of the children of Israel: Come before the Lord; for he hath heard your murmuring. 16:10. And when Aaron spoke to all the assembly of the children of Israel, they looked towards the wilderness; and behold the glory of the Lord appeared in a cloud. 16:11. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 16:12. I have heard the murmuring of the children of Israel, say to them: In the evening you shall eat flesh, and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread; and you shall know that I am the Lord your God.
Lines 7714–7725
16:13. So it came to pass in the evening, that quails coming up, covered the camp: and in the morning a dew lay round about the camp. 16:14. And when it had covered the face of the earth, it appeared in the wilderness small, and as it were beaten with a pestle, like unto the hoar frost on the ground. 16:15. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another: Manhu! which signifieth: What is this! for they knew not what it was. And Moses said to them: This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat.
Lines 7726–7737
16:16. This is the word that the Lord hath commanded: Let every one gather of it as much as is enough to eat; a gomor for every man, according to the number of your souls that dwell in a tent, so shall you take of it. 16:17. And the children of Israel did so: and they gathered, one more, another less. 16:18. And they measured by the measure of a gomor: neither had he more that had gathered more; nor did he find less that had provided less: but every one had gathered, according to what they were able to eat.
Lines 7738–7747
16:19. And Moses said to them: Let no man leave thereof till the morning. 16:20. And they hearkened not to him, but some of them left until the morning, and it began to be full of worms, and it putrified, and Moses was angry with them. 16:21. Now every one of them gathered in the morning, as much as might suffice to eat: and after the sun grew hot, it melted.
Lines 7748–7759
16:22. But on the sixth day they gathered twice as much, that is, two gomors every man: and all the rulers of the multitude came, and told Moses. 16:23. And he said to them: This is what the Lord hath spoken: To morrow is the rest of the sabbath sanctified to the Lord. Whatsoever work is to be done, do it; and the meats that are to be dressed, dress them; and whatsoever shall remain, lay it up until the morning. 16:24. And they did so as Moses had commanded, and it did not putrify, neither was there worm found in it.
Lines 7760–7777
16:25. And Moses said: Eat it to day, because it is the sabbath of the Lord: to day it shall not be found in the field. 16:26. Gather it six days; but on the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord, therefore it shall not be found. 16:27. And the seventh day came; and some of the people going forth to gather, found none. 16:28. And the Lord said to Moses: How long will you refuse to keep my commandments, and my law? 16:29. See that the Lord hath given you the sabbath, and for this reason on the sixth day he giveth you a double provision: let each man stay at home, and let none go forth out of his place the seventh day. 16:30. And the people kept the sabbath on the seventh day.
Lines 7778–7793
16:31. And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it was like coriander seed, white, and the taste thereof like to flour with honey. 16:32. And Moses said: This is the word which the Lord hath commanded: Fill a gomor of it, and let it be kept unto generations to come hereafter; that they may know the bread, wherewith I fed you in the wilderness when you were brought forth out of the land of Egypt. 16:33. And Moses said to Aaron: Take a vessel, and put manna into it, as much as a gomor can hold; and lay it up before the Lord, to keep unto your generations, 16:34. As the Lord commanded Moses. And Aaron put it in the tabernacle to be kept.
Lines 7794–7800
16:35. And the children of Israel ate manna forty years, till they came to a habitable land: with this meat were they fed, until they reached the borders of the land of Chanaan. 16:36. Now a gomor is the tenth part of an ephi.