Exodus 16:2

2 The whole Israelite community complained against Moses and Aaron in the desert.

Exodus 16:2 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 16:2

And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured,
&c.] For want of bread; for the Targum of Jonathan says, that day the dough ceased they brought of Egypt, on which, and the unleavened cakes they had lived thirty days; and for a longer space of time it was not sufficient, as Josephus F7 and other Jewish writers F8 observe; and now it was all spent, and they were in the utmost distress for bread, and fall a murmuring as they were used to do, when in any distress, even the whole congregation of them, at least the far greater part; some few might be excepted, as Caleb and Joshua, and some others: and they

murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness;
in the wilderness of Sin, where they were, and where no corn was to be had to make bread of; and their murmuring was not only against Moses, as before when they wanted water, but against Aaron also, who were jointly concerned in bringing them out of Egypt. It is a common case, when things do not go so well as to be wished for in church or state, for people to murmur against their governors, ecclesiastic or civil, and lay all the blame to them.


FOOTNOTES:

F7 Antiqu. l. 2. c. 15. sect. 1.
F8 Seder Olam Rabba, c. 5. p. 17.

Exodus 16:2 In-Context

1 The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Sin desert, which is located between Elim and Sinai. They set out on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had left the land of Egypt.
2 The whole Israelite community complained against Moses and Aaron in the desert.
3 The Israelites said to them, "Oh, how we wish that the LORD had just put us to death while we were still in the land of Egypt. There we could sit by the pots cooking meat and eat our fill of bread. Instead, you've brought us out into this desert to starve this whole assembly to death."
4 Then the LORD said to Moses, "I'm going to make bread rain down from the sky for you. The people will go out each day and gather just enough for that day. In this way, I'll test them to see whether or not they follow my Instruction.
5 On the sixth day, when they measure out what they have collected, it will be twice as much as they collected on other days."
Copyright © 2011 Common English Bible