Exodus 16

They left Elim, and all the Israelite people came to the wilderness of Sin between Elim and Sinai Mountain. That was on the fifteenth day of the second month after they left Egypt. \*

There in the wilderness, the Israelite people complained against Moses and Aaron.

They said to them, “We wish that God had killed us in Egypt! There we had meat to cook and all the bread that we wanted to eat. But you have brought us into this desert in order that we will all starve until we die!” \*

God said to Moses, “Watch what I am going to do. I am going to send bread from the sky for you. When I do that, the people must go out of their tents every day and gather enough to eat on that day. When I do that, I will find out whether they will obey me or not.

On the sixth day {of each week}, they should gather and prepare twice as much as on the other days {so they do not have to gather any on the seventh day}.” \*

So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelite people, “This evening you will know that it was God{, not us,} who brought you out of Egypt.

In the morning you will see how great God is, because he has heard how you have complained against him. We are not important enough for your complaints.”

Then Moses also said, “Each evening God will give you meat to eat, and each morning he will give you enough bread to make you full. He has heard how you have complained about him. We are unimportant; when you complain, it is really about God, not us.” \*

Then Moses said to Aaron, “Tell all the Israelite people, ‘Come and stand here in the presence of God, because he has heard what you have been complaining about.’”

So as Aaron told the Israelites that, they turned to look toward the desert and were surprised to see the dazzling light of God in the cloud {that had been leading them}. \*

Then God said to Moses,

“I have heard what the Israelites have been complaining about. So say to them, ‘At twilight, you will have meat to eat, and in the morning you will have bread. You will have all you want of it to eat. Then you will know that I am God, your God.’” \*

That evening quails appeared, and there were so many that they covered the campsite. The next morning there were small drops of water all around the campsite.

When the water on the ground dried up, they saw a thin layer of something that looked like {small white} flakes on the desert ground. It looked like a thin layer of ice on the ground.

When the Israelites saw it, they did not know what it was, so they said to each other, “What is it?” \* Moses replied to them, “It is the food God has given you to eat.

This is what God has commanded: Each of you should gather as much as you need to eat. Gather two liters for each person who lives in your tents.”

So that is what the Israelite people did. Some gathered more and some gathered less.

Because they gathered two liters per person, when they measured what they had gathered, those who had gathered a lot did not have anything left over. Those who had gathered less still had enough to eat. Each person gathered just enough. \*

Moses said to them, “Do not leave any of it to eat tomorrow morning!”

Some of them did not obey what Moses said. They kept some of it until the next morning. However, it was full of maggots and smelled rotten. That made Moses angry.

Each morning they gathered as much as they needed. Later, when the sun got hot, what was left on the ground melted. \*

On the sixth day, each person was able to gather four liters of bread, which was twice as much as they gathered on the other days. When the leaders of the people came to Moses and told him about that,

Moses said to them, “This is what God has told you: Tomorrow will be a day for you to rest. It will be a day set apart for God. So today, bake or boil what you will need for today and for tomorrow. Whatever is left this evening, you should put aside and keep it to eat tomorrow.” \*

So they did what Moses told them. What was left over, they kept until the next day. It did not spoil and did not get maggots in it!

On that day, Moses said, “Eat today what you have saved from yesterday because today is a day of rest to God. Today you will not find any of that food outside.

Every week, you must gather it for six days; but on the seventh day, which will be a day of rest for you, there will not be any to gather.” \*

On the seventh day, some of the people went outside their tents to gather some of that food, but could not find any.

Then God told Moses to say this to the people: “God is angry because for a long time you people have refused to do all the things that he has told you to do!

Listen! Since God has given you a day of rest, on the sixth day of each week, he will therefore be giving you enough of this food for two days. Each of you should stay in his tent, not going anywhere on the seventh day!”

So the people rested on the seventh day. \*

The Israelites called this food “manna.” It looked white, like the color of coriander seeds, and it tasted like thin wafers made with honey.

Moses said, “This is what God has told you: ‘You must keep two liters of it for all future generations so that they can see the food that I gave you to eat in the desert when I brought you out of Egypt.’” \*

And he said to Aaron, “Take a jar, and put two liters of manna in it. Then put it in a place where God can see it. You must keep it like that for all future generations.”

{Later} Aaron {would} put the jar in front of the record of the agreement between God and Israel in order to keep the manna as God had commanded Moses.

The Israelites ate manna every day for forty years until they came to where there were people, at the border of the land of Canaan.

{Now two liters is called} an omer, which is a tenth of an ephah. \*