Exodus 16 reminds me of the dreaded “Reply To All” email button. I don’t think I am alone in erroneously including everyone in an inappropriate response. I have been embarrassed to learn my angry criticism included the object of my ire. Today’s lesson is that criticizing the Boss can ruin your day. The chapter begins on day fifteen of the second month with the Israelite nation arriving at “the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai”. Everyone was gathered in the break room complaining about the latest rumor claiming leadership was out of touch: “the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron”. They reminisced about the good old days under previous management: “in Egypt… There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted”. It is very convenient to forget about the slavery and cruelty in Egypt. We can mischaracterize the past when we want to undermine the current executive team. Moses responded: “Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord.” Moses also gave them the memo: “Come before the Lord, for He has heard your grumbling.” I’m sure they were expecting to be fired. We read: “the whole Israelite community… looked toward the desert, and there was the glory of the Lord appearing in the cloud.” God’s abundant grace is beyond anything our HR team can devise to fix morale issues. The Lord told Moses: “I will rain down bread from heaven for you.” So often, God provides a way, but requires that we also clock in. The people had to “go out each day and gather enough for that day.” Interestingly, God notes that they can listen and follow His instruction, or go hungry. “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.” If you won’t read the Employee Handbook, it is very wise to pay attention to the spoken instruction.
Next, we learn a little more about this daily bread. “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.” It is important to note that this substance still needed to be gathered and prepared. It is also important to realize that manna was a new thing, created specifically for them. “When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, ‘What is it?’” The name stuck. Today no one remembers using carbon paper to type a second copy of a letter, yet we still see “CC” used every day. Moses simply said: “It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat… Everyone is to gather as much as they need… for each person you have in your tent.” It seems that this substance was ideal even for the gluten-free, lactose intolerant, low-carb crowd. Moses added one more important detail: “No one is to keep any of it until morning”. Everyone looks for shortcuts. “Some of them… kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell.” Ignoring God’s instruction can get ugly sometimes.
The chapter closes with manna being used to train the people about the Sabbath. Everyone looks forward to the weekend! The manna was available and free every morning but: “when the sun grew hot, it melted away.” Over-sleep, and you go hungry. The Lord commanded them: “Tomorrow is… a holy sabbath to the Lord. So bake what you want… and boil what you want… Save whatever is left and keep it until morning.” To the people’s surprise, on the Sabbath, “it did not stink or get maggots”. As always, there were some that would not listen to God’s Word. On the Sabbath: “some of the people went out… to gather it, but they found none”. Speaking through Moses, the Lord asked: “How long will you refuse to keep My commands and My instructions?” He adds: “the Lord has given you the Sabbath”. Many of us do not have 9-5 jobs. We take work home, we do planning, we book travel we study, or have a side gig. Mark Chapter 2 includes a list of things Jesus did that the religious leaders criticized, including forgiving sins, healing, and feeding the hungry. Jesus responded with a direct response: “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” Working to survive is not a sin. God is not looking for reasons to fire you! We are created to worship and we are created to have a time of Sabbath rest. God knows your heart and He desires time with you every day. He is waiting for you to reply.