Exodus 16
As the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, grumbling in hunger and doubt, God graciously provided manna, a miraculous bread from heaven, to sustain them.
Jesus, in John 6:35, 49-51, explicitly connects Himself to this Old Testament miracle, declaring, I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst …. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.
The manna’s divine origin is central to its significance, as it descended directly from heaven by God’s command. Its miraculous nature of appearing each morning like dew, unrelated to human effort, marked it as a gift from above. This heavenly source prefigures Jesus, who explicitly identifies Himself as the bread sent from heaven. In John 6:32-33, Jesus declares, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. Both the manna and Jesus originate from God’s gracious initiative.
The Israelites were instructed to gather only what they needed for each day. This daily dependence speaks to our need for continual reliance on Christ. Just as the Israelites had to trust God for fresh provision, so we must daily abide in Jesus, who said in John 6:57, Whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me.
The manna sustained physical life, but Jesus gives spiritual and eternal life, emphasizing that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4; cf. Deuteronomy 8:3).
God’s provision of manna came with instructions, testing the Israelites’ faith and obedience. They were to gather only what they needed daily, trusting God for tomorrow’s provision, except on the sixth day for the Sabbath. Disobedience, such as hoarding, led to spoilage, underscoring the need for obedience and reliance on God’s faithfulness. In John 6:29, Jesus says, This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.
Furthermore, the manna was a gracious gift, undeserved by the grumbling Israelites. Likewise, Jesus is God’s ultimate gift to a rebellious world. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the GIFT of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Some Israelites despised the manna in Numbers 21:5, saying, Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread. Similarly, many rejected Jesus, the true bread: From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more (John 6:66). And to this day, people reject Jesus.
A portion of manna was preserved in the Ark of the Covenant as a memorial, symbolizing God’s enduring faithfulness. Jesus, however, is not merely a memorial but the living bread, whose broken body on the cross brings everlasting redemption. The manna ceased when Israel entered the Promised Land, but Jesus is the eternal provision.
In conclusion, the manna in the wilderness was a shadow of the true and greater reality found in Jesus Christ. As the bread from heaven, Jesus fulfills and surpasses the Old Testament type, offering not temporary sustenance but eternal life to all who partake of Him by faith. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever (John 6:58).
Let us pray that:
- We may depend on God daily.
- God may strengthen our faith to believe that Jesus is the Bread of Life who satisfies our deepest hunger.
- We may feast on God’s Word and share this life-giving truth with others.
