King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Wednesday, February 04, 2026
Chapters: Exodus 16-18
Message: Exodus: Bread From Heaven
Hello My Friend,
As we continue in the reading of Exodus, it had been about forty‑five days since Israel stepped out of Egypt and began their journey toward the promised land. Food was growing scarce, yet it was not the mixed multitude who reproached Moses. It was the Israelites themselves who lifted their voices in complaint.
[Exodus 16:1-3 And they took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt. 2 And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness: 3 And the children of Israel said unto them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.]
To murmur is to complain and to let discontent spill out in a low and half‑formed voice. Murmuring is not the honest cry of suffering; it is the quiet protest of unbelief. The very people upon whom God had taken vengeance for casting their infants into the river, the very ones He had freed from cruel bondage and led safely through the Red Sea on dry ground, were now murmuring about what they had left behind. I get it, there are times when I reminisce about the things I use to have and when I actually had some money stored in the bank and could pay a bill on arrival and buy what I wanted, then it occurs to me what I did not have. We are far better off struggling with God beside us than prospering in a place of bondage, [Matthew 16:26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?]
God could have told them to fend for themselves, to search the wilderness for whatever scraps they could find. Instead, He chose to provide for them with remarkable tenderness: bread in the morning and meat in the evening. Yet even His provision came with specific instructions, because obedience was part of their training. Moses faithfully relayed the message, and he made it clear that God had heard every word of their murmuring.
[Exodus 16:4-5,7-8 Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no. 5 And it shall come to pass, that on the sixth day they shall prepare that which they bring in; and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily. 7 And in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the LORD; for that he heareth your murmurings against the LORD: and what are we, that ye murmur against us? 8 And Moses said, This shall be, when the LORD shall give you in the evening flesh to eat, and in the morning bread to the full; for that the LORD heareth your murmurings which ye murmur against him: and what are we? your murmurings are not against us, but against the LORD.]
Notice what God says, He is going to prove or test them to see if they were going to obey His commands. Moses, mentions twice that he and Aaron are not the ones that they were murmuring against, it was God Himself. Now, God, actually encourages us to pour our complaints to Him but what He does not want is for those complaints to be in question to His abilities, [Psalms 102:1-2 A Prayer of the afflicted, when he is overwhelmed, and poureth out his complaint before the LORD. Hear my prayer, O LORD, and let my cry come unto thee. 2 Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble; incline thine ear unto me: in the day when I call answer me speedily.]
The glory of the LORD is a light so brilliant that it would be like staring into the sun. It is the very Spirit of God, the same Spirit who now dwells within every soul that has received Christ as Saviour. We do not need to stand in the first century, before Christ came in the flesh, in order to behold the glory of the LORD. We can still see Him today, but our eyes, our ears, and our hearts must be open to Him. And just as Aaron was speaking, the LORD, in all His glory, appeared out of the cloud. His presence was unmistakable.
[Exodus 16:10-13,15 And it came to pass, as Aaron spake unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud. 11 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 12 I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God. 13 And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host. 15 And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat.]
The word manna literally means, “What is it?” They were so wound up in their flesh that they failed to see that God was right there with them in that cloud that they saw in front of them. The second we ask Christ to save us, we belong to God and that means He will always take care of our needs, we may not have everything we want, but He never fails to provide for us the essentials that we need. If we are constantly murmuring then we are not trusting God and of course we are going to struggle more. The same God who revealed Himself to Israel in the wilderness still reveals Himself to those who seek Him with a willing heart.
[Luke 12:29-31 And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. 30 For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. 31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.]
For six days of the week, the ground was covered with manna. They were to gather only what was needed for that day, use all of it, and leave nothing for the next—except on the sixth day, when they were commanded to gather enough for two days. God built a rhythm of trust into their routine.
[Exodus 16:16-19 This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every man, according to the number of your persons; take ye every man for them which are in his tents. 17 And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less. 18 And when they did mete it with an omer, he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack; they gathered every man according to his eating. 19 And Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning.]
An omer is the tenth part of an ephah, in other words about six pints or eight cups of grain. This was certainly a generous portion, more than enough to satisfy even a man of great strength and appetite. In fact, it might seem excessive were it not for the nature of the manna itself. It was light, delicate, and easily digested, requiring a larger measure to sustain them. God’s provision was not stingy; it was abundant, perfectly suited to their need, and tailored to the very food He had chosen to give and yet some still not listen and left it overnight only to spoil. And here is where God was going to test them.
[Exodus 16:22-24,27-28 And it came to pass, that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. 23 And he said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning. 24 And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein. 27 And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none. 28 And the LORD said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws?]
Why was God so angry with them? The heart of the matter was this: if they could not obey this one simple command, how could they expect God to entrust them with anything greater than this miracle food? The Sabbath was holy, set apart by God Himself, and their refusal to rest revealed more than impatience. By going out to gather when He had already provided enough, they were not only disregarding the Sabbath; they were declaring, through their actions, that His Word could not be trusted. Their disobedience exposed a deeper issue—a lack of faith in the very God who had delivered them, fed them, and walked with them every step of the way. Nevertheless, they finally listened at least in regards to what they now saw and Moses goes on to describe what it looked like.
[Exodus 16:31-34 And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it was like coriander seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. 32 And Moses said, This is the thing which the LORD commandeth, Fill an omer of it to be kept for your generations; that they may see the bread wherewith I have fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you forth from the land of Egypt. 33 And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a pot, and put an omer full of manna therein, and lay it up before the LORD, to be kept for your generations. 34 As the LORD commanded Moses, so Aaron laid it up before the Testimony, to be kept.]
Later on we will learn more about the Testimony when God would have Moses build a wooden chest to place a bowl of the Manna in. Incidentally, Jesus, is the Manna that we consume upon our faith in Him, [John 6:47-51 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. 48 I am that bread of life. 49 Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. 50 This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. 51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.]
By this point, one would think the Israelites would have developed great faith. I am certain the strangers who journeyed with them had, but not the very people who were supposed to know they belonged to God. As soon as the next challenge arose, they completely forgot everything He had already done for them. Their memories faded the moment their comfort was threatened. And once again, they were tested. This time, there was no water at all.
[Exodus 17:1-4 And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys, according to the commandment of the LORD, and pitched in Rephidim: and there was no water for the people to drink. 2 Wherefore the people did chide with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said unto them, Why chide ye with me? wherefore do ye tempt the LORD? 3 And the people thirsted there for water; and the people murmured against Moses, and said, Wherefore is this that thou hast brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst? 4 And Moses cried unto the LORD, saying, What shall I do unto this people? they be almost ready to stone me.]
To chide means to scold, to find fault, to contend with words of anger—often directed at someone, not merely about something. At this point in the journey, their behavior had become, frankly, exasperating. They were not simply afraid or confused; they were combative, accusatory, and relentless in their dissatisfaction. Moses himself grew perturbed with them. You can almost hear the strain in his voice as he confronts their accusations and then turns to God, asking what he should do with this people. His words carry the weight of a leader who has reached the edge of his patience, standing between a frustrated nation and a faithful God who has never failed them. And yet God still took care of them. God instructs Moses on what to do/
[Exodus 17:5-7 And the LORD said unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and thy rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thine hand, and go. 6 Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7 And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the LORD, saying, Is the LORD among us, or not?]
Again—really? They literally had bread falling from heaven every morning, a visible miracle they could gather with their own hands. They had a pillar of cloud blazing with a light so bright it could be seen for miles, guiding them step by step. And yet here they were, asking if God was with them. After all they had witnessed, after all He had done, they still questioned His presence. These are the same kind of people who put Jesus on the cross, [John 11:49-50,53 And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, 50 Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. 53 Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death.]
God created us, He knows precisely what our bodies are made of and what they require to survive—physically, mentally, and spiritually. And often, the way He gets our attention and reminds us that He alone is our source for all these needs is through discomfort. We must feel hunger to understand how essential food is, and we must feel thirst to recognize how desperately we need Jesus every moment of the day. Now, two months had passed since the Israelites left Egypt. While they were camped at Rephidim, the people of Amalek launched an attack.
[Exodus 17:8-11 Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim. 9 And Moses said unto Joshua, Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek: to morrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in mine hand. 10 So Joshua did as Moses had said to him, and fought with Amalek: and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11 And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.]
So long as Moses held both arms raised, Israel prevailed. But the moment his hands began to droop, the battle shifted and they started to lose ground. This is an illustration of a profound spiritual truth. Victory did not come from Israel’s strength, nor from Joshua’s skill with the sword, but from dependence on God. Moses’ uplifted hands were a visible symbol of intercession, surrender, and reliance on divine power. When his arms fell, it revealed our physical weakness; when they were lifted again, it revealed the strength of God’s intervention. Well Aaron and Hur came up with a plan to help Moses keep his arms raised until they won the battle.
[Exodus 17:12-16 But Moses’ hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. 13 And Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. 14 And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven. 15 And Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Jehovah-nissi: 16 For he said, Because the LORD hath sworn that the LORD will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.]
We cannot walk this path alone. Jesus is our strength, our salvation, and our source, but God has also designed us to be upheld by other God‑fearing men and women. We need people who will stand beside us, support us, and help keep our arms lifted when our strength begins to fail. Without that kind of Godly community, we will eventually grow weary and be overtaken by the battles we face, [I Corinthians 12:12,26 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. 26 And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.]
God wanted Moses to record this event so that Israel would understand, from that day forward, that Amalek would never again rise as a nation. Their destruction would unfold in stages—beginning in part under Saul, who was commanded to strike them, and continuing through the generations until their memory was wiped out just as God declared, [I Samuel 15:8 And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.] Then with David, [1 Samuel 30:17 And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day: and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, which rode upon camels, and fled.]
This is what God was trying to show Moses: he could not carry the weight of leadership alone. In order to teach him that truth, God sent his father‑in‑law, Jethro. Apparently, Moses had sent Zipporah and his sons back to Midian while he confronted Pharaoh and endured the plagues. And since Midian was not far from where Israel was camped, Jethro brought them to him.
[Exodus 18:1-4,9 When Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father in law, heard of all that God had done for Moses, and for Israel his people, and that the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt; 2 Then Jethro, Moses’ father in law, took Zipporah, Moses’ wife, after he had sent her back, 3 And her two sons; of which the name of the one was Gershom; for he said, I have been an alien in a strange land: 4 And the name of the other was Eliezer; for the God of my father, said he, was mine help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh: 9 And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which the LORD had done to Israel, whom he had delivered out of the hand of the Egyptians.]
Do you see how quickly word spread about Israel and the God who led them? This is why many nations would rise to fight them, while a few would choose instead to join them. The presence of God draws some and provokes others. And no matter how fed or refreshed we think we are—physically, mentally, or spiritually—we deplete far more quickly than we realize, especially when we attempt to carry burdens in our own strength. Jethro rejoiced when he heard all that God had done for Israel, but he was deeply troubled when he saw Moses bearing the entire weight of the people’s needs alone.
[Exodus 18:11-13,17-18 Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods: for in the thing wherein they dealt proudly he was above them. 12 And Jethro, Moses’ father in law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God: and Aaron came, and all the elders of Israel, to eat bread with Moses’ father in law before God. 13 And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people: and the people stood by Moses from the morning unto the evening. 17 And Moses’ father in law said unto him, The thing that thou doest is not good. 18 Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee: for this thing is too heavy for thee; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone.]
Moses was trying to shepherd an entire nation by himself, and even with God’s power behind him, no human being can sustain that kind of load. Jethro’s concern was not criticism; it was wisdom. God used him to show Moses that leadership requires shared responsibility, godly support, and a structure that protects both the leader and the people. This is exactly why He has people of all sorts in His Church.
[I Corinthians 12:27-31 Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. 28 And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles? 30 Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret? 31 But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.]
I am the queen of wearing myself out by trying to do everything on my own, and it truly is not good for us. I used to believe that if I wanted something done correctly, then I needed to do it myself—or that I could finish it faster if no one else was in the way. But I have come to realize two important truths: many hands do make light work, and I am not invincible. We do grow weak. We do become tired. And we do need help sometimes. There is no shame in admitting that. In fact, it is wisdom. God never intended for us to carry every burden alone.
[Philippians 2:1-5 If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, 2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. 4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. 5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:]
Today’s Prayer: God, I know that you are always with me, and will always provide for me. You have proved time and time again that You take care of my every need and also will feed and water me with Your Word and Spirit. I also know that I cannot do everything by myself, I need family, friends, and those You send my way to help me on my walk to the promised land, and without them I will tire and lose faith. Lord, give me Your power and strength to endure all the challenges and reproaches that life brings for my faith in You, let me not be too proud to seek help, fill me with Your mercy and grace, and also let me be a helping hand to someone who may need my help. When I am thirsty, give me that spiritual water I know I am in need of, and when I am hungry, feed by spirit with Your bread, for it is what gives me life. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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