Exodus 16:20

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

Exodus 16:20 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 16:20

Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses
That is, not all of them, some of them did, and perhaps the far greater part of them:

but some of them left it until the morning;
out of distrust, for fear they should have none the next day; being men of little faith, that could not trust God for a supply for the morrow; the Targum of Jonathan says, these were Dathan and Abiram; and so Jarchi:

and it bred worms, and stank;
or by an "hysteron proteron", and transposition of the words, the sense may be, that it stank, corrupted, and putrefied, and so produced worms, in which order the words lie, ( Exodus 16:24 ) , and this was not from the nature of the manna to breed worms so soon, but God so ordering and disposing it, that it should do so; for otherwise it would keep to another day, as what was gathered on the sixth day kept to the seventh, and there was a part of it kept for many ages, see ( Exodus 16:24-33 ) , and since the manna was of the meal kind, perhaps those worms it bred might be of the weevil sort, as Scheuchzer conjectures ^F19:

and Moses was wroth with them;
for breaking the commandment of God.

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FOOTNOTES:

F19 Physica Sacra, vol. 2. p. 179.

Exodus 16:20 In-Context

18 And when they measured [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.

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

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

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

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.