Chapter 16
They reach the Wilderness of Sin about a month after leaving Egypt, and grumble because they are hungry. They grumbled about the water at Mara, and now they grumble about the food in Sin. They say they'd rather be by the meatpots in Egypt and eat bread until they're full in Egypt than to die of hunger in the desert. This is less than a month after God destroyed the entire Egyptian military to save their lives.
2023 - This verse: 4 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Behold, I am about to 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 they will walk in my law or not. [Exo 16:4 ESV]. Another test. This time, God is giving them food with specific instructions on gathering it. It is to see if they will do as he says. At Mara, he gave them water and told them he would take care of them if they obeyed. Now we have a second, more specific tests. Wonder how many times in Exodus God speaks of testing? They fail here also. They keep the manna overnight, though they are told not to do so. They go out to gather on the Sabbath, though they are told not to do so. They need a lot of training...they are like stubborn, self-reliant children. They do what seems best to them, and they never trust anyone but themselves.
7 ...For what are we, that you grumble against us?" [Exo 16:7 ESV]
Another example of displacement. As we often don't realize that when we disagree with God, we make ourselves equal to God, it is also true when we grumble against our leaders - that the Bible clearly teaches were put in place by God - we are telling God He did it wrong. Our national, state and local leaders are given authority by God - no matter which side of the aisle they sit on.
Possible FB post.
8 And Moses said, "When the LORD gives you in the evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because the LORD has heard your grumbling that you grumble against him--what are we? Your grumbling is not against us but against the LORD." [Exo 16:8 ESV]
When you complain and whine about anyone, you are complaining against the Lord. All your circumstances are by Him, or for Him, or the result of his judgement. Flip off a bad driver? Guess who you're really flipping off. You sure you want to do that??? Gripe about how slow the service is at the restaurant? Guess who is really being slow. Wonder what lesson I'm supposed to learn from it? What test am I failing that I have to take again and again until I pass? All that happens, good or bad, is in His will, for His good. We credit God with what we think of as random or coincidental good that happens to us, but we always blame specific people for the bad. Unless it's really awfully bad, and in that case then yes, we blame God for those.
Another possible FB post - maybe an either/or with the one above.
The evening of the griping, God sent quail - all they could eat. So they had meat. The next morning was the first morning the manna fell. I hadn't realized that God sent them quail this first time, separate from the later time when He sends quail for a week.
21 Morning by morning they gathered it, each as much as he could eat; but when the sun grew hot, it melted. [Exo 16:21 ESV]
This is what He gives each of us every day. All that we can handle, all that we need, and all that we could reasonably want. If we would just use what He gives us, we would have more than enough.
It is interesting that this manna fell six days a week, but every seventh day was skipped. Who could doubt that God was doing this? There is no way that this could happen by any natural means. Even so, people went out to gather on that seventh day. It is amazing that even in so small a thing, so tiny a thing, these people could not obey. They were so caught up in serving their own bellies that they defied God's simplest commands. Note that back in vs 4 God said that this would be a test for the people. So far, they seem to be failing miserably.
31 Now the house of Israel called its name manna. It was like coriander seed, white, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. [Exo 16:31 ESV]
Guess the Hebrews had a bit of a sweet tooth.