Commentary - Exodus 16:1-7

Bird's-eye view

In this passage, we find the children of Israel just one month out from their spectacular deliverance from Egypt. The elation of the Red Sea crossing has worn off, and the reality of the wilderness has set in. This is the first great complaint of the entire congregation, and it centers on the basic necessity of food. Their grumbling is not a simple request for provisions; it is a full-throated accusation against Moses and Aaron, and therefore against God Himself. They romanticize their slavery in Egypt, remembering full bellies and forgetting the bitter bondage. God's response is one of astonishing grace. He doesn't rebuke them with fire; He promises to rain bread from heaven. This provision, the manna, is not just food. It is a test. It is a daily object lesson in dependence, obedience, and trust. The structure of the provision, a daily gathering with a double portion on the sixth day for the Sabbath, is designed to teach them God's law and His rhythm of work and rest. The passage concludes with Moses and Aaron clarifying the issue: their grumbling is against Yahweh, and His provision will be a revelation of His glory, silencing their complaints and demonstrating His presence with them.

This entire episode is a foundational type in Scripture. Israel's hunger in the wilderness and God's provision of manna prefigure the deeper spiritual hunger of all mankind and God's ultimate provision of the true Bread from Heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ (John 6:31-35). The grumbling of Israel is a picture of the unbelief that resides in every human heart, and God's patient, gracious response is a picture of the Gospel.

Outline

The Text

1 Then they set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the sons of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure from the land of Egypt.

The geography and the chronology are stated with precision. They are moving from a place of refreshment, Elim with its twelve springs and seventy palm trees, into a place called Sin. The name has nothing to do with our word for transgression, but in the divine irony of the text, it is certainly a fitting name for the events that transpire there. They are exactly one month out from their departure. The memory of the Passover lamb, the drowned Egyptian army, and the song of victory should be fresh. But a month in the wilderness is a long time for a people accustomed to walking by sight.

2 And the whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.

This is not a factional dispute. This is the whole congregation. The rot of unbelief is corporate. And notice against whom they grumble: Moses and Aaron. This is a classic tactic of rebellion. You cannot see God, so you aim your complaints at His visible representatives. But as Moses will point out, this is a thin veil. Their real quarrel is with Yahweh. Grumbling is the audible expression of a heart that believes God has made a mistake. It is the sound of discontent with Providence. It is a sin that God takes very seriously throughout the wilderness wanderings, as it reveals a fundamental lack of faith in His goodness and power.

3 And the sons of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of Yahweh in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to put this whole assembly to death with hunger.”

Here the sin of grumbling blossoms into the full flower of slanderous accusation. Unbelief has a notoriously bad memory. They have selectively edited their experience of Egypt. They remember the food but have forgotten the whips. They remember full stomachs but have forgotten the murdered children. They even have the audacity to say they would have preferred to die "by the hand of Yahweh" in Egypt, perhaps referring to the final plague. This is high rebellion. They are saying that a swift death under God's judgment in a land of plenty is preferable to a slow death under God's leadership in a land of promise. They accuse Moses and Aaron of malicious intent, of a conspiracy to commit mass murder by starvation. This is what a lack of faith does; it twists God's glorious deliverance into a malevolent plot.

4 Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My law.

God's response is breathtaking in its grace. He answers their slander not with wrath, but with a promise of miraculous provision. He will rain bread from heaven. The food will come from above, a direct gift, leaving no doubt as to its source. But this gift comes with a structure, a rule. It is a test. God is not just interested in filling their stomachs; He is interested in shaping their hearts. The test is one of simple obedience and daily dependence. Will they trust Him for tomorrow's bread, or will they try to hoard? Will they follow His instructions? Faith is not an abstract feeling; it is demonstrated in whether or not we will walk in His law. God's provision is always a call to His lordship.

5 Now it will be on the sixth day, they shall prepare what they bring in, and it will be twice as much as they gather daily.”

The test is further defined. It is not just about daily trust, but also about weekly rhythm. The Sabbath principle is woven into the very fabric of this provision. God will provide for their day of rest. This command, given before the formal giving of the law at Sinai, shows that the Sabbath is a creation ordinance, a fundamental pattern for the life of God's people. Their obedience in this matter will demonstrate whether they trust God to provide for their needs even when they cease from their labor. It is a test of faith in His sufficiency.

6 So Moses and Aaron said to all the sons of Israel, “At evening you will know that Yahweh has brought you out of the land of Egypt;

Moses and Aaron now act as God's heralds. They confront the people's accusation head-on. The people had accused them of bringing them out to die. Moses says that the coming provision will be undeniable proof that it was Yahweh who brought them out. God's miraculous intervention will vindicate His own actions and His own servants. The provision of quail in the evening will be the first sign. The deliverance from Egypt was not a mistake, and it was not the work of man. It was the sovereign act of God, and He will now confirm it.

7 and in the morning you will see the glory of Yahweh, for He hears your grumblings against Yahweh; and what are we, that you grumble against us?”

The morning will bring an even greater revelation. With the manna, they will see the glory of Yahweh. God's glory is the manifestation of His character, His weightiness. Here, His glory is seen in His patient, overwhelming, gracious provision in the face of their sinful rebellion. He hears their grumblings, and His response is not destruction but sustenance. Moses concludes by deflecting the personal attack and redirecting it to its proper object. "What are we?" he asks. He and Aaron are merely instruments. The people's fight is not with their human leaders; their fight is with God. This is a crucial lesson for the people of God in every age. When we grumble against the circumstances God has ordained or the leaders He has appointed, our complaint ascends to the throne of heaven.

Application

The human heart has not changed one bit since the wilderness of Sin. We are all prone to grumbling. We receive God's great salvation in Christ, a deliverance far greater than the exodus from Egypt, and yet within a month, a week, or even a day, we can find ourselves complaining about the heat in the wilderness. We forget the bondage of sin and begin to romanticize the "leeks and onions" of our old life. We look at our circumstances and accuse God of mismanagement.

The answer to our grumbling is the same as it was for Israel: we must look to the Bread that God has rained down from heaven. Jesus Christ is the true Manna. He is our daily bread. We are called to a life of daily dependence on Him, trusting Him for grace for today and not attempting to hoard it for tomorrow. "Give us this day our daily bread" is a prayer of faith, a renunciation of anxious self-reliance.

Furthermore, God's provision in Christ is also a test. Will we walk in His law? Will we live in the rhythm of His grace, which includes both labor and rest? The Christian life is a life of trusting obedience. When we are tempted to grumble, we must do what Moses did. We must identify the true object of our complaint. It is never ultimately about our boss, our spouse, or our circumstances. It is always about whether we trust the goodness and sovereignty of God. And then, we must look for His glory. He has promised to reveal it, not always in changing our circumstances, but in sustaining us through them with the true Bread of Heaven, the Lord Jesus.