The Pulpit Commentary — Exodus — Volume 2 — Section 34

EXPOSITION. Vers. 4-8.-THE PnomSE OF BREAD PROM "proved" the obedience of the Israelites by a BEAVEN. When men who are in real distress definite, positive command-they were not to mu.kc complaint, even though the tone of their gather on ordinary days more than was suffi- cient for the day. All life is intended as a compla.int be not l!llch as it ought to be, God probation. in his mercy is wont to have compassion upon Ver. 5.--0n the sixth day. That a period of them, to " hear their murmurings,'' &c., and seven days was known to the Hebrews as a week grant them some relief. But the relief is appears from the story of Jacob audLaban (Gen. seldom of the kind which they expect, or xxix. 27). But there is no distinct evidence the.t the year was as yet divided into weeks, pray for. The Israelites wished for actual much less that the severe.I days of the week bread, made of wheaten or barley flour. God were as yet distinguished as the first, second, gave them, not such bread, bnt a robstitute third day, etc. "The sixth day,'' here pro- for it. And first, before giving it, he promised bably means (as Kalisch says), "the sixth thAt it should be given. Thus expectation day after the first l!llpply of the manna.." They shall prepare. The preparation would ,ms aroused ; faith was exercised ; the roper- be, tirst, by measurement ( ver. 18 ), e.nd then natural character of the relief was indicated! by pounding and grinding (Nnm. xi. 8). It the power and the goodness of God. were, shall be double. Some commentators sup- both of them, shown forth. And with the pose that in these words is implied au order promise was given a law. They were on that on the sixth day they should set them- selves to gather a double qW1.11tity. Bnt the each occasion to gather no more than would natural meaning of the words is, that, having snflice for the day. Thus they would con- gathered the usual quantity, they should find, tinually "live by faith," taking no thought when they measured it,· that, by miracle, the for the morrow, bnt trnsting all to God. l!llpply su.fficient for one day was multiplied, so BS to suffice for two. (So Ke.hsch, Knobel, Ver. 4.-Bread from heaven. Compare Kurtz, and others.) This view is in harmony Fs. lxxviii. 24; Neh. ix. 15; John vi. 31-51. with verse 18, which tellB of a miraculollS The expression is of co1Ir8e not to be under- expansion and diminntion of the manna after stood literally. The substance was not actnal it had been gathered, and with verse 22, which bread, neither was it locally transferred from shows llS "the rnlers" surprised by the miracle the distant region called "heaven " to the of the sixth day. soil of the Sinaitic peninsnla. Bnt it was Ver. 6.-At even, then ye shall know. See called " bread,'' because it was intended to verses 12 and 13. The first evidence which serve instead of bread, as the ma.in l!llpport of the Israelites would he.ve, that God had heard life during the sojourn of Israel in the wilder- and considered their complaints, would be the ness ; and it was said to be " from heaven,'' descent of the quails at even of the day ()0 first, as descending on the ground out of which Moses and Aaron addressed them the circwnambient air; and secondly, as That the Lord bath brought you out----i.e., miraculonsly sent by him, whose seat is in "that it is not we who, to gratify our own heaven. The people ehall gather a certain personal ambition, have induced yon to quit rate every day. Bather "a day', supply Egypt under our guidance : but that all which every day," snch a qW1.11tity as shall seem we have done has been to act as God's instru to ea.eh man reasonably sufficient for himself ments, and to carry out his designs." and his family. That I ma.:, prove them. As Ver. 7.-And in the morning then ye shall in Paradise God coupled with his free gift of - the glory of the Lord. This has been "every tree of the garden" the positive pre- supposed to refer to the manifestation of God's cept, " But of the tree of the knowledge presence recorded in verse 10; but the hal1rnce of good e.ud evil thou shalt not eat,"-that of the two clauses in verses 6 and 7 implies he might prove our first parents, whether two similar manifestations, and their arraugc- they wuuld obey hilll or nut-so now be ment shuws the priority of UJC evening one CJI. XVI. 1-8.] ·nm IlOOK OF EXODUS Now the m1mifceto.tioa of verse 10 pre~eded 11ncl to murmur against us is t-, murmur tho coming of the qno.ile. The manifestation against Jehovah." which followed it, which WW! similar. o.acl in Ver. 8.-Wheu the Lord shall give you Uic morning, wo.e the fall of the mo.nna. For in the evening fteeh to eat. Moses must have that he heareth your murmurings, The received a distinct intimation of the coming connection of this clo.use with the preceding arrival of the quails, though he has not re: furnishes o.n additional argument in favour of corded it, his desire of brevity causing hirr. b the exposition tho.t " the glory of God," spoken retrench all that is not absolutely neces;..1ry of in this verse is the mo.nno.. Against the for the right understanding of the narrative. Lord Professedly o.ad directly against us, It is, comparatively, seldom that he records but indirectly and really against God, whose both the Divine me<sage and his delivery of it. instruments we have been in the whole matter In general, he places upon record either the of the exodus. What are we 1-i.e., " What message only, or its delivery only. Bre«d to power have we of our own? We have no the full. Compare above, verse 4 ; and infra, hereditary rank, no fixed definite position. verses 12 and HI. The Lord heareth your We are simply the 11!8.ders whom yon have murmurings. The latter part of this verse chosen to follow, becaaae you believed ns to is, in the main, a repetition of verse 7; but it have a commission from God. Apart from emphasises the statements of that verse, and this, we are nobodies. Bnt, if oar commission prepares the way for what follows iB conceded, we are to yon in the place of God ;