What was manna? CQ Kids
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What was manna?
Manna was special food from God that fed the Israelites while they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years. He provided manna after helping Moses lead the people out of slavery in Egypt.
Exodus (16:4, Christian Standard Bible) says, “Then the LORD said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you…’”
“When the layer of dew had evaporated, there were thin flakes on the desert floor, as fine as frost on the ground.” (Exodus 16:14, Berean Standard Bible)
Nobody knew what it was, because they had never seen anything like it before! Moses had to tell them God had provided bread from heaven so they would not starve.
God is so compassionate and wise. Not only did he lead the people out of slavery through Moses, but He had a plan in place to keep His people fed for forty years!
Exodus (See 16:31) tells us it was like coriander seed, white, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. Numbers (11:8) tells us the people ground or beat it to make baked cakes of bread, and it tasted like fresh oil.
Each household gathered what they needed for that day. There was always enough for everyone! (See Exodus 16:16‐18)
But there were important rules regarding this new miracle food. They had to eat each day’s potion without saving any extra for the next day. But some people didn’t listen, and the next morning, it smelled bad and had worms in it! (See Exodus 16:19-21)
They also had to gather it every morning, and if they didn’t, the sun would melt it!
However, the sixth day of the week was special. They were instructed to gather twice as much so they could rest and observe the seventh day, called the Sabbath. (See Exodus 16:22‐24) But in this case, the extra didn’t spoil overnight - another miracle!
By paying attention to God’s instructions through Moses, they learned to obey God’s rules. (See Exodus 16:4) This miraculous feeding system also required a daily faith that God would provide for their needs.
In Jesus’ time, many of the Jewish people weren’t convinced that he was the Messiah. A group came to him asking for proof as to who he was. They wanted to see a miracle similar to the “bread from heaven” given to their ancestors in the wilderness.(See John 6:30, 31)
Jesus said,“The true bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” (John 6:33, NLT) “Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.’” (John 6:35, NIV)
He was saying that they didn’t NEED to see a miracle of bread from heaven - the TRUE bread from heaven was standing right in front of them! HE was the source of their SPIRITUAL food, which was more important than physical food. (See Matthew 4:4) If they had accepted him, they could have fed on his teachings and learned how to live in a God-honoring way.
So, what was manna? Miraculous food from heaven that God provided to the Israelites after they left Egypt. Back then, manna was God’s gift of physical food to the Israelites. Today, Jesus is God’s gift of spiritual food for ALL people! What a neat picture God gave us!
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