ExodusChapter 16

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The whole community of Israel set out from Elim and came to the wilderness of Sin, which lies between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they left Egypt.

In the wilderness the whole community of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron.

The Israelites said to them, "If only we had died by the LORD's hand in Egypt, where we sat beside pots of meat and ate all the bread we wanted! But you brought us out into this wilderness to starve this whole assembly to death."

Then the LORD said to Moses, "I am going to rain down bread from heaven for you. Each day the people are to go out and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them, to see whether they will follow my instruction or not.

On the sixth day they are to gather twice as much as on the other days, and prepare it."

So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, "This evening you will know that it was the LORD who brought you out of Egypt,

and in the morning you will see the glory of the LORD, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we, that you should grumble against us?"

Moses also said, "The LORD will give you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the morning, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we? Your grumbling is not against us but against the LORD."

Then Moses said to Aaron, "Say to the whole community of Israel: 'Come before the LORD, for he has heard your grumbling.'"

While Aaron was speaking to the whole community of Israel, they turned toward the wilderness, and there was the glory of the LORD appearing in the cloud.

The LORD said to Moses,

"I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them: 'At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will have your fill of bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.'"

That evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew all around the camp.

When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness lay something thin and flaky, fine as frost on the ground.

When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, "What is it?"—for they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, "It is the bread the LORD has given you to eat." [Footnote: The Hebrew words behind "What is it?" sound like the name manna given in verse 31.]

This is what the LORD has commanded: Each of you is to gather as much as you need—an omer for every person in your tent."

The Israelites did so, and some gathered much, some little.

But when they measured it by the omer, the one who gathered much had nothing left over, and the one who gathered little had no lack. Each had gathered as much as he needed.

Then Moses said to them, "No one is to keep any of it until morning."

But some paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, and it was full of maggots and began to stink. So Moses was angry with them.

Morning by morning they gathered it, each as much as he needed, and when the sun grew hot, it melted away.

On the sixth day they gathered twice as much—two omers for each person—and the leaders of the community came and reported it to Moses.

He said to them, "This is what the LORD has said: Tomorrow is to be a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD. So bake what you want to bake and boil what you want to boil, and save what is left, keeping it until morning."

So they saved it until morning, as Moses commanded, and it did not stink or get maggots in it.

"Eat it today," Moses said, "because today is a Sabbath to the LORD. Today you will not find any of it in the field.

Six days you are to gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will be none."

Even so, some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather it, but they found nothing.

Then the LORD said to Moses, "How long will you refuse to keep my commands and my instructions?

Understand that the LORD has given you the Sabbath; that is why on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Everyone is to stay where he is on the seventh day; no one is to leave his place."

So the people rested on the seventh day.

The house of Israel called it manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.

Moses said, "This is what the LORD has commanded: Take a full omer of it and keep it for the generations to come, so they can see the bread I fed you in the wilderness when I brought you out of Egypt."

So Moses said to Aaron, "Take a jar and put a full omer of manna in it. Then place it before the LORD, to be kept for the generations to come."

So Aaron placed it before the testimony, to be kept, as the LORD commanded Moses. [Footnote: That is, before the tablets of the covenant, which were kept in the ark.]

The Israelites ate manna forty years, until they came to a land where people lived; they ate manna until they reached the border of Canaan.

An omer is a tenth of an ephah.

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Summary2

Chapter 16

Main Theme: God provides Israel with manna and quail in the wilderness and institutes the Sabbath rest.

Content: The Israelites complain about a lack of food in the Wilderness of Sin, and God promises to send bread from heaven as a test of their obedience. In the evening, quail arrive, and in the morning, manna falls—a white, honey-sweet bread. The people are instructed to gather only enough for each day, but double on the sixth day, because the seventh day is the Sabbath when no manna will appear. An omer of manna is preserved as a testimony for future generations, and Israel eats manna for forty years.

Key Words/Images:

Manna – Bread from heaven that God gives daily; symbolizes God’s faithful provision.
Sabbath – The seventh day set apart for rest; the first time the Sabbath command is put into practice.
Test – The instructions regarding manna test whether the people will obey God’s torah.
Omer – A measure for the daily portion; an omer is kept as a reminder for future generations.
Grumbling/Complaining – The people’s discontent reveals their lack of trust in God and Moses.

Historical context

Historical and Cultural Context for Exodus 16

Places

The Wilderness of Sin (מִדְבַּר־סִין, midbar-Sin) is the geographical setting for this chapter, located between Elim and Mount Sinai. This is not the same as the Wilderness of Sinai but a distinct area along the route through the Sinai Peninsula. The Hebrew name סִין (Sin) has no connection to the English word "sin"; it is simply a place name. The region is characterized by dry, rocky desert with limited water resources and vegetation—explaining the people’s desperation for food. Its exact location remains debated among scholars.

Events and Customs

Sabbath observance is introduced here in practical form for the first time before the giving of the Law at Sinai. The people were to gather a double portion on the sixth day and rest on the seventh. This represents the first practical institutionalization of the Sabbath as a weekly day of rest. The concept of a fixed weekly day of rest was unique in the ancient world.

Quails as food provision (שְׂלָו, selav, v. 13) reflects a known phenomenon on the Sinai Peninsula, where migratory birds—especially quails—pass through the area in spring and autumn on their way between Europe and Africa. Often exhausted after crossing the Mediterranean Sea, these birds can be caught relatively easily. This natural occurrence became a means of God’s provision.

Key Terms

Manna (מָן, man) is a central term in this chapter. Its name is explained in verse 15 from the question "What is it?" (מָן הוּא, man hu), where מָן may be an archaic form of the interrogative word "what". The description—white, like coriander seed, with a taste like honey cakes (צַפִּיחִת בִּדְבָשׁ)—has led scholars to compare it with natural phenomena such as secretions from tamarisk trees caused by scale insects. The best-known parallel is the secretion from tamarisk trees (Tamarix mannifera) that forms when scale insects pierce the bark. This substance falls at night, is white and sweet, and melts in the sun—features matching the biblical description. Bedouins in the area still call it "mann" and collect it as a sweetener. Nevertheless, this natural "manna" is produced only in small quantities during summer, which cannot account for the quantity, regularity, or Sabbath pattern of manna described in the text.

Omer (עֹמֶר) was a volume measure equivalent to about 2.2 liters (one-tenth of an ephah, as verse 36 specifies). This was the daily ration per person. The unit was well known in the ancient Near East, and standardization of measures was important in agricultural societies.

Jar (צִנְצֶנֶת, tsintsenet, v. 33) was to preserve manna as a testimony for future generations. This is a rare Hebrew word that appears only here in the Old Testament. The Septuagint translates it with στάμνος (stamnos), a type of jar. Hebrews 9:4 refers to it as a "golden jar" (χρυσῆ στάμνος).

People2

Aaron6 Moses10

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Key words8

Manna — A miraculous bread-like substance that God sent from heaven to feed the Israelites in the wilderness.
Evening — The time of day when the sun sets and it becomes dark; often used to mark the end of a day.
Morning — The time of day when the sun rises and it becomes light; often used to mark the beginning of a day.
Sabbath — A weekly day of rest, usually the seventh day of the week, which God commanded the Israelites to observe and keep holy.
Israelites — A people descended from the twelve sons of Israel; they were God's chosen people and were led out of Egypt under Moses' leadership.
Wilderness — A dry and inhospitable landscape with little water and vegetation; the Israelites wandered through the wilderness after fleeing Egypt.
Omer — A unit of measurement for volume, about 3.5 liters; used to measure the manna that the Israelites gathered.
Worship service — A gathering of people to worship and honor God, often including prayer, singing, and teaching.