Contributor: Dolapo Williams
INTRODUCTION
In the last bible study, we looked at “Worship as Our First Response”. In that study, we learnt that worship is more than songs and more a surrender. We were also reminded that in all things, we are to cultivate the act of worship.
This week, we will be looking at God’s provision. Today’s study will remind us to focus on God's provision and protection during "wilderness" seasons. Remember seasons of scarcity are designed to force us out of our comfort zones and into a deeper reliance on God. The lesson of manna is about learning to trust God for daily needs rather than hoarding. God provides "enough" for our current need so rely on Him daily rather than relying on your own efforts.
EXODUS 16: TRUSTING DAILY PROVISIONS.
Verses 1-3:
The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt. In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the LORD’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”
Think about it, Moses came to get them out of years of slavery! Even though they prayed that God will send a deliverer, when the answer (Moses) came, they rejected what they prayed for! They were fighting the deliverer asking him if “there were no graves in Egypt….”! They had one foot in Egypt (where there were pots of meat and plenty to eat) and one foot on the promise of God. Yet the moment trouble arose, they began longing for the past. Funny how selective they were about the past they remembered (how they sat by meat pots and ate bread to full).
Meanwhile, they have been brought out of Egypt for something greater than food and drinks, they have been brought out to rediscover themselves by reconnecting with God! You will NEVER find you (your identity, your self-esteem) without Him.
Verses 4-5:
Then the LORD said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.”
God promises miraculous provision in response to the people's grumbling, showing grace despite their lack of faith. The Israelites were to collect only enough for each day. This taught them to trust that God would provide again the next day, preventing anxiety. The primary goal was to see if they would follow instructions, which was a test of their obedience and reliance on God rather than their own efforts. There are so many incidents of grace when it comes to God. He is truly a God of grace and mercy.
Verses 6-16:
So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “In the evening you will know that it was the LORD who brought you out of Egypt, and in the morning you will see the glory of the LORD, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we, that you should grumble against us?”Moses also said, “You will know that it was the LORD when he gives you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the morning, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the LORD.” Then Moses told Aaron, “Say to the entire Israelite community, ‘Come before the LORD, for he has heard your grumbling.’” While Aaron was speaking to the whole Israelite community, they looked toward the desert, and there was the glory of the LORD appearing in the cloud. The LORD said to Moses, “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.’ That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor. When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, “It is the bread the LORD has given you to eat. This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Everyone is to gather as much as they need. Take an omer for each person you have in your tent.’”
Moses and Aaron confront the people, clarifying that their complaints are not against human leadership but against God, who delivered them from Egypt. God’s glory appears in the cloud to show His presence and power, acting as both a manifestation of His presence and a sign of imminent divine action. God promises to satisfy their hunger with meat in the evening and bread (manna) in the morning. This provision is designed to teach them that He is "the Lord your God". This provision is also a test to see if the people will follow instructions and live by faith, relying on God daily, rather than accumulated, supply. Gathering manna daily taught the Israelites to trust that God would provide again the next day, rather than relying on hoarding for security—since any excess they stored spoiled. Regardless of how much was gathered, everyone had enough. It directly shows God's provision in the desert, countering their doubt.
Verses 17-20:
The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much, some little. 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. Everyone had gathered just as much as they needed. Then Moses said to them, “No one is to keep any of it until morning.” However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell. So Moses was angry with them.
The people complained about lack of food, and openly wished for the culinary situation they had back in Egypt. God provided food for them. First came meat. All the meat they could eat. It literally fell from the sky as huge numbers of quail on their migration from one part of the region to another got tired and dropped to the ground in mass just as they happened to be flying over Israel’s encampment. Then came the bread. Once again, God miraculously demonstrated both His ability and His willingness to take care of them.
People who gathered a lot because that’s what they needed had enough. People who gathered just a little because that was all they needed had plenty too. Because God was going to give them enough for each day, they didn’t need to save any of it. This was the point of the test. Did they really trust in God’s character? Did they trust Him enough to do what He said?
Verses 21-30:
Each morning everyone gathered as much as they needed, and when the sun grew hot, it melted away. On the sixth day, they gathered twice as much—two omers for each person—and the leaders of the community came and reported this to Moses. He said to them, “This is what the LORD commanded: ‘Tomorrow is to be a day of Sabbath rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD. So bake what you want to bake and boil what you want to boil. Save whatever is left and keep it until morning.’” So they saved it until morning, as Moses commanded, and it did not stink or get maggots in it. “Eat it today,” Moses said, “because today is a Sabbath to the LORD. You will not find any of it on the ground today. Six days you are to gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any.” Nevertheless, some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather it, but they found none. Then the LORD said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep my commands and my instructions? Bear in mind that the LORD has given you the Sabbath; that is why on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Everyone is to stay where they are on the seventh day; no one is to go out.” So the people rested on the seventh day.
God commanded them to gather manna six days a week and rest on the seventh, establishing the Sabbath. The miracle of a "double portion" on the sixth day which did not spoil allowing them to rest on the seventh day. It was not merely about doing "no work," but rather a rest from labour of providing for themselves. When some people disobeyed and went to gather manna on the seventh day, they found nothing. God used this to teach obedience, trust, and to break their reliance on their own labour, encouraging them to rest in His provision.
Verses 31-36:
The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. Moses said, “This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Take an omer of manna and keep it for the generations to come, so they can see the bread I gave you to eat in the wilderness when I brought you out of Egypt.’” So Moses said to Aaron, “Take a jar and put an omer of manna in it. Then place it before the LORD to be kept for the generations to come.” As the LORD commanded Moses, Aaron put the manna with the tablets of the covenant law, so that it might be preserved. The Israelites ate manna forty years, until they came to a land that was settled; they ate manna until they reached the border of Canaan. (An omer is one-tenth of an ephah.)
These verses establish a lasting testimony of how God fed Israel in the wilderness for 40 years until they reached the Promised Land, connecting this miraculous sustenance to the sacred ark of the covenant. God commands Moses to have Aaron fill a jar (or omer) with manna and place it inside the Ark of the Covenant ("before the Testimony") to be preserved for future generations. This served as a tangible witness to God's miraculous provision during their wilderness journey. The Israelites ate this manna for 40 years; from the time they entered the wilderness until they reached the borders of Canaan.
EXODUS 17: MANAGING "ROAD RAGE" AND ANXIETY.
Verses 1-4:
The whole Israelite community set out from the Desert of Sin, traveling from place to place as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. So they quarrelled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses replied, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the LORD to the test?” But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses. They said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?” Then Moses cried out to the LORD, “What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.”
The Israelites did exactly what God commanded, following the pillar of cloud and fire; yet there was no water to drink. They were in the will of God but in a difficult time. It is possible to be completely in the will of God yet also in a season of great problems. The people focused their complaint against Moses, but Moses understood that their problem was with the LORD. The lack of water wasn’t Moses’ fault. But as the leader, he had to lead them to the answer – and crying out to the LORD was the right way to lead them to the solution.
Verses 5-6:
The LORD answered Moses, “Go out in front of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel.
If God had not stood upon the rock, Moses would have struck it in vain. Means must be used, but only depend on God for success. You shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it: Moses was commanded, in the presence of the LORD, to strike the rock with his rod, and water would gush forth to satisfy the thirst of God’s people. Collaboration with God: While God provides, humans have a responsibility to act such as Moses striking the rock. This was a remarkable miracle. Moses (and everyone else) knew that water does not normally come from rocks in such a way.
Verses 7-11:
And he called the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarrelled and because they tested the LORD saying, “Is the LORD among us or not? The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.” So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning.
Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill so they could see, so they could be seen, and so that they could pray. Moses supported the battle behind the scenes, busy in prayer. The fate of Israel in battle depended on Moses’ intercession because when he prayed Israel prevailed and when he stopped praying Amalek prevailed. This amazing passage shows us that life or death for Israel depended on the prayers of one man. Moses prayed as we should pray with passion, believing that life and death perhaps eternally depended on prayer.
Verses 12-13:
When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.
Aaron and Hur came alongside Moses and literally held his hands up in prayer. They helped him and partnered with him in intercession. Their help was successful. Though this was Moses’ work to do, it was more than he could do by himself. Moses alone could not win the battle of prayer. He needed others to come by his side and strengthen him in prayer. Exodus 17, emphasizes the importance of community and support systems (like Aaron and Hur holding up Moses' hands) to maintain victory. We can conclude that many times the people of God are defeated today because they will not pray, or prayer does not support their work. Nevertheless, Joshua had to fight. Praying Moses did not eliminate what Joshua had to do. The battle was won with prayer, but also through normal instruments – the work of the army, led by Joshua.
Verses 14-16:
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered and make sure that Joshua hears it, because I will completely blot out the name of Amalek from under heaven.” Moses built an altar and called it The LORD is my Banner. He said, “Because hands were lifted up against the throne of the LORD, the LORD will be at war against the Amalekites from generation to generation.”
And Moses built an altar and called its name, THE-LORD-IS-MY-BANNER: Though Moses knew his prayer was important, he wasn’t foolish enough to think that he won the battle. As an act of worship he built an altar and praised God (returning all glory back to Him). In this chapter, we see examples of God’s power and man’s effort working together. We sometimes are even more aware of the power and the help of God when we work together with Him than we are when God does the work all by Himself.
CONCLUSION
God is teaching us to trust in Him. After all, that they have been through He is still sensitive to the fact that they are not used to a God who will be faithful to them and so, bit by bit, He is trained them to learn to trust in Him. He does the same thing with us, each day. We step out in what faith we have and He, in His compassion and lovingkindness, helps us to grow that faith.
We are being told these stories so that we will know and understand our own tendencies as people. God, in His wisdom and kindness, not only gives us guidelines (commandments) on how to live our lives successfully, but He also gives us examples of what happens when we turn from Him and what happens when we turn to Him. What a loving Father He is!
