Chapter 21: Manna and Quail

Exodus 16:9-36

Q1 - Although God rested on the seventh day of creation, did those who worshipped Him observe a day of rest on the seventh day prior to His instructions given here in Exodus 16?

A1 - God made man on the sixth day of creation, and on the seventh day, He rested. Genesis 2:3 (NIV) states: “Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.” Other Bible versions say He sanctified it or hallowed it. Thus, from the beginning God set aside the seventh day as a special day.

Whether early mankind observed the Sabbath in any way is not recorded in scriptures. Here in this lesson, when Moses commanded the people to gather twice as much manna on the sixth day and none on the seventh, the community leaders all came and asked Moses for an explanation (Exodus 16:22). He then explained that the seventh day was to be a day of rest set aside for the Lord. So it would seem that the Israelites were unaccustomed to observing the Sabbath up until this point in time. Recall that the Ten Commandments which formally commanded the Sabbath had not yet been given, so the keeping of the Sabbath here predates the Law of Moses.

Q2 - What did Moses do with the manna so that future generations would remember God’s care for the Israelites during their journey to the Promised Land? Why was it important for him to do this?

A2 - Moses told Aaron to take a jar, put an omer of manna in it, and place it before the Lord to be kept for generations to come (Exodus 16:33). This jar or pot of manna would eventually end up being placed inside the Ark of the Covenant. Note that, as yet, the Ten Commandments (also referred to as theTestimony), had not been given (that would occur in Exodus 20), nor had the Ark of the Covenant been built (God gave the instructions for the Ark in Exodus 25:10–22). Whenever the Ark was finally built, it would house the Testimony or the tablets of stone on which were inscribed the Ten Commandments (Exodus 25:16). The Hebrew writer would later state in Hebrews 9:4 that the Ark of the Covenant contained three things: the tablets of stone, the jar of manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded.

The jar of manna would serve as evidence of God’s care for the Israelites during their forty-year journey. Future generations would have physical proof that the manna was real, even though God ceased sending it after the Israelites entered the Promised Land. The fact that the manna did not spoil while it was kept over the centuries provided further evidence of the divine hand of God.

Q3 - At this point, God has not yet given Moses the Law, which He will do later at Mt. Sinai. How has He been introducing the Israelites to various elements that will later be included in the Law?

A3 - God seemed to be transitioning the people by introducing various elements of worship that would later be part of the Law. While they were still in Egypt, He introduced the Passover and gave instructions as to how it was to be celebrated in the future. In this lesson, He instructed them to observe the Sabbath. Both the Passover and Sabbath were elements of worship that would later help characterize the Jewish people.