Journey Through God's Word

¹⁷So it happened, when Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, even though it was nearer; for God said, "The people might change their minds when they see war [that is, that there will be war], and return to Egypt."

¹⁸But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea; the sons of Israel went up in battle array (orderly ranks, marching formation) out of the land of Egypt.

¹⁹Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had solemnly ordered (placed under an oath) the Israelites, saying, "God will assuredly take care of you, and you must carry my bones away from here with you."

²⁰They journeyed from Succoth [in Goshen] and camped at Etham on the edge of the wilderness.

²¹The [presence of the] LORD was going before them by day in a pillar (column) of cloud to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light, so that they could travel by day and by night.

²²He did not withdraw the pillar of cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from going before the people.

¹They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of Israel came to the Wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they left the land of Egypt.

²The whole congregation of the Israelites [grew discontented and] murmured and rebelled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness,

³and the Israelites said to them, " Would that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat and ate bread until we were full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this entire assembly with hunger."

⁴Then the LORD said to Moses, "Behold, I will cause bread to rain from heaven for you; the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, so that I may test them [to determine] whether or not they will walk [obediently] in My instruction (law).

⁵And it shall be that on the sixth day, they shall prepare to bring in twice as much as they gather daily [so that they will not need to gather on the seventh day]."

⁶So Moses and Aaron said to all Israel, "At evening you shall know that the LORD has brought you out of the land of Egypt,

⁷and in the morning you will see the glory of the LORD, for He hears your murmurings against the LORD. What are we, that you murmur and rebel against us?"

⁸Moses said, "This will happen when the LORD gives you meat to eat in the evening, and in the morning [enough] bread to be fully satisfied, because the LORD has heard your murmurings against Him; for what are we? Your murmurings are not against us, but against the LORD."

⁹Then Moses said to Aaron, "Say to all the congregation of Israel, 'Approach the LORD, because He has heard your murmurings.'"

¹⁰So it happened that as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory and brilliance of the LORD appeared in the cloud!

¹¹Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

¹²"I have heard the murmurings of the Israelites; speak to them, saying, 'At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread; and you shall know that I am the LORD your God.'"

¹³So in the evening the quails came up and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a blanket of dew around the camp.

¹⁴When the layer of dew evaporated, on the surface of the wilderness there was a fine, flake-like thing, as fine as frost on the ground.

¹⁵When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, " What is it?" For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, "This is the bread which the LORD has given you to eat.

¹⁶This is what the LORD has commanded: 'Let every man gather as much of it as he needs. Take an omer for each person, according to the number of people each of you has in his tent.'"

¹⁷The Israelites did so, and some gathered much [of it] and some [only a] little.

¹⁸When they measured it with an omer, he who had gathered a large amount had no excess, and he who had gathered little had no lack; every man gathered according to his need (family size).

¹⁹Moses said, "Let none of it be left [overnight] until [the next] morning."

²⁰But they did not listen to Moses, and some left a supply of it until morning, and it bred worms and became foul and rotten; and Moses was angry with them.

²¹So they gathered it every morning, each as much as he needed, because when the sun was hot it melted.

²²Now on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each person; and all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses.

²³He said to them, "This is what the LORD has said: 'Tomorrow is a solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD'; bake and boil what you will bake and boil [today], and all that remains left over put aside for yourselves to keep until morning."

²⁴They put it aside until morning, as Moses told them, and it did not become foul nor was it wormy.

²⁵Then Moses said, "Eat that today, for today is a Sabbath to the LORD; today you will not find it in the field.

²⁶Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will be none [in the field]."

²⁷Now on the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, but they found none.

²⁸Then the LORD said to Moses, "How long do you [people] refuse to keep My commandments and My instructions (laws)?

²⁹See, the LORD has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you the bread for two days on the sixth day. Let every man stay in his place; no man is to leave his place on the seventh day."

³⁰So the people rested on the seventh day.

³¹The house of Israel called the bread manna; it was like coriander seed, white, and it tasted like flat pastry (wafers) made with honey.

³²Then Moses said, "This is the word which the LORD commands, 'Let an omer of it be kept throughout your generations, that they may see the bread with which I fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.'"

³³So Moses said to Aaron, "Take a pot and put an omer of manna in it, and place it before the LORD to be kept throughout your generations."

³⁴As the LORD commanded Moses, so Aaron [eventually] placed it in the presence of the Testimony, to be kept.

³⁵The Israelites ate manna forty years, until they reached an inhabited land; they ate the manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan.

³⁶(Now an omer is the tenth of an ephah.)

¹Then all the congregation of the children of Israel moved on from the Wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the LORD, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink.

²Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, "Give us water so we may [have something to] drink." And Moses said to them, "Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you tempt the LORD and try His patience?"

³But the people were thirsty for water; and the people murmured against Moses and said, "Why did you bring us up from Egypt to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?"

⁴So Moses cried out to the LORD for help, saying, "What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me."

⁵Then the LORD said to Moses, "Pass before the people and take with you some of the elders of Israel; and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go.

⁶Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; there you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may [have something to] drink." And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

⁷He named the place [where this miracle occurred] Massah (test) and Meribah (contention) because of the quarreling of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the [patience of the] LORD, saying, "Is the LORD among us, or not?"