The Lord said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you.” Exodus 16:4
In August 2020, residents of Olten, Switzerland, were startled to find that it was snowing chocolate! A malfunction in the ventilation system of the local chocolate factory had caused chocolate particles to be diffused into the air. As a result, a dusting of edible chocolate flakes covered cars and streets and made the whole town smell like a candy store.
When I think of delicious food “magically” falling from the heavens, I can’t help but think of God’s provision for the people of Israel in Exodus. Following their dramatic escape from Egypt, the people faced significant challenges in the desert, especially a scarcity of food and water. And God, moved by the plight of the people, promised to “rain down bread from heaven” (Exodus 16:4). The next morning, a layer of thin flakes appeared on the desert ground. This daily provision, known as manna, continued for the next forty years.
When Jesus came to earth, people began to believe He was sent from God when He miraculously provided bread for a large crowd (John 6:5–14). But Jesus taught that He Himself was the “bread of life” (v. 35), sent to bring not just temporary nourishment but eternal life (v. 51).
For those of us hungry for spiritual nourishment, Jesus extends the offer of unending life with God. May we believe and trust that He came to satisfy those deepest longings.
Read: Exodus 16:4-5, 13-18 (NIV)
4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heavent for you.
The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day.
In this way I will testu them and see whether they will follow my instructions.
5 On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in,
and that is to be twicev as much as they gather on the other days.”
13 That evening quailg came and covered the camp, and in the
morning there was a layer of dewh around the camp.
14 When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frosti
on the ground appeared on the desert floor.
15 When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?”
For they did not knowj what it was. Moses said to them,
“It is the breadk the Lord has given you to eat.
16 This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Everyone is to gather as much as they need.
Take an omera l for each person you have in your tent.’ ”
17 The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much, some little.
18 And when they measured it by the omer, the one who gathered
much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.m
Everyone had gathered just as much as they needed.
INSIGHT
- When did you come to realize your need for Jesus?
- How have you experienced being spiritually satisfied?
Scholars have attempted to explain the source of manna that fed Israel during the exodus from Egypt. Some have theorized that it was the product of tamarisk bushes that grow in the Sinai region. But this isn’t likely. Such desert plants are insufficient in number to have fed an entire nation. The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible reports another theory, suggesting that manna may have been a type of insect secretion. Regardless of how the manna appeared, the fact remains that God said, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you” (Exodus 16:4).
John 6:30–51 provides insight on this. Here, Jesus referred to “my Father” (v. 32) as the source of the manna. He said, “The bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world” (v. 33). He then applied this to Himself: “I am the bread of life” (v. 35).
PRAYER
Jesus, thank You for choosing to come to earth to offer Your life so that I could enjoy a relationship with God for all eternity. In Your name, I pray. Amen!!
Read: Exodus 16:4-5, 13-18 (NIV) | Bible in a Year: 1 Chronicles 7-9; John 6:22-44
