Exodus 16:9-19

9 And Moses spoke to Aaron, Say to all the assembly of the children of Israel, Come near into the presence of Jehovah; for he has heard your murmurings.

10 And it came to pass, when Aaron spoke to the whole assembly of the children of Israel, that they turned toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of Jehovah appeared in the cloud.

11 And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,

12 I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak to them, saying, Between the two evenings ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am Jehovah your God.

13 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.

14 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.

15 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.

16 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.

17 And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some much, some little.

18 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.

19 And Moses said to them, Let no man leave [any] of it until the morning.

Exodus 16:9-19 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 16

This chapter begins with an account of the journeying of the children of Israel from Elim to the wilderness of Sin, where they murmured for want of bread, Ex 16:1-3, when the Lord told Moses that he would rain bread from heaven for them, which Moses informed them of; and withal, that the Lord took notice of their murmurings, Ex 16:4-12 which promise the Lord fulfilled; and a description of the bread, and the name of it, are given, Ex 16:13-15, and some instructions are delivered out concerning the quantity of it to be gathered, Ex 16:16-18, the time of gathering and keeping it, Ex 16:19-21, the gathering a double quantity on the sixth day for that and the seventh day, with the reason of it, Ex 16:22-30 and a further description of it, Ex 16:31, and an order to preserve an omer of it in a pot, to be kept for generations to come, that it might be seen by them, Ex 16:32-34, and the chapter is concluded with observing, that this bread was ate by the Israelites forty years, even till they came to the borders of the land of Canaan, and the quantity they ate every day is observed what it was, Ex 16:35,36.

Footnotes

• [a]. Or 'round.' Some translate 'scaly.'
• [b]. 'What is it?' or 'gift' -- the meaning of Manna, ver. 31. Heb. man.