Exodus 16 ~ Omer

His Mercies Renew Each Day

Exodus 16

16 They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt. 2 And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, 3 and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. 5 On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” 6 So Moses and Aaron said to all the people of Israel, “At evening you shall know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, 7 and in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your grumbling against the Lord. For what are we, that you grumble against us?” 8 And Moses said, “When the Lord gives you in the evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because the Lord has heard your grumbling that you grumble against him—what are we? Your grumbling is not against us but against the Lord.”

9 Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling.’” 10 And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. 11 And the Lord said to Moses, 12 “I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’”

13 In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. 14 And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. 15 When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat. 16 This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Gather of it, each one of you, as much as he can eat. You shall each take an omer, according to the number of the persons that each of you has in his tent.’” 17 And the people of Israel did so. They gathered, some more, some less. 18 But when they measured it with an omer, whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat. 19 And Moses said to them, “Let no one leave any of it over till the morning.” 20 But they did not listen to Moses. Some left part of it till the morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them. 21 Morning by morning they gathered it, each as much as he could eat; but when the sun grew hot, it melted.

22 On the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers each. And when all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses, 23 he said to them, “This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord; bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over lay aside to be kept till the morning.’” 24 So they laid it aside till the morning, as Moses commanded them, and it did not stink, and there were no worms in it. 25 Moses said, “Eat it today, for today is a Sabbath to the Lord; today you will not find it in the field. 26 Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is a Sabbath, there will be none.”

27 On the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, but they found none. 28 And the Lord said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws? 29 See! The Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Remain each of you in his place; let no one go out of his place on the seventh day.” 30 So the people rested on the seventh day.

31 Now the house of Israel called its name manna. It was like coriander seed, white, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. 32 Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Let an omer of it be kept throughout your generations, so that they may see the bread with which I fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.’” 33 And Moses said to Aaron, “Take a jar, and put an omer of manna in it, and place it before the Lord to be kept throughout your generations.” 34 As the Lord commanded Moses, so Aaron placed it before the testimony to be kept. 35 The people of Israel ate the manna forty years, till they came to a habitable land. They ate the manna till they came to the border of the land of Canaan. 36 (An omer is the tenth part of an ephah.)

Psalm 63
4 So I will bless you as long as I live;
in your name I will lift up my hands.


I read the most wonderful article in Norman Vincent Peale's Guidepost Magazine more than thirty years ago. Realistic. About looking for the mercies in each day. In each season of life. This was about waking up earlier in summer - an old man told a young man. The young man laughed, why would anyone want to get up earlier in the lazy days of summer? Because the afternoon is scorching. The mornings are glorious.

Let's be honest January and February drag a little. We are tired of being in the house. The sunset is starting to give us a glow longer in the day. This is the time of year we pay property tax and think about income tax. We think things like how many months we work to pay for Christmas and Tax. Where vacation will be be and how to afford this. This is a practical time of year. Resolutions of not joy.

Winter is like Exodus 16. The earth sleeps and is a wilderness. Renewal is in the sleep. Yet we can become so practical we forget to rely on God who makes and changes plans. We bump up against each other because we are all having some cabin fever. Our gratitude is for warm drinks as we are grateful to have the warmth in our homes.

Think about the Children of God stuck in the Wilderness of Sin for 40 years. Manna. Manna. Manna. And suddenly - the environment changes dramatically and Manna for decades is leaving. Gone.

And we look forward to something new and think of weeks to Spring. And really. Our plans are for the continuation of what was pleasant and the renewal of what we knew. We do not often plan for something radically new.

The summer for those who graduate from High School will be one that my sons recalled this with me - you almost feel as if you are asked to jump off a cliff and told it will be a good adventure in only about 12 weeks. College Graduation feels like a milder echo of this.

Something NEW??? Is "Un-Dis-Comforting." The Children of Israel were in something like winter - blah - meh - the colors are muted dusty and dry. The hope of Glory was in the sunset or sunrise. We become so used to liking beige - the brilliant colors are muted.


We are on a journey. If you are too comfortable. Try something New. Betcha that got a "No" response.



The Omer principle. Gratitude for what God provides. Gratitude for needs met. What will you do weekly, daily or monthly that calls you to do something for someone else?

Omer can can get to be boring. Same ol. Love is not just an emotion. Love is an action.

Something New is Discomforting.

With deliberation and intent - William created changes that move the modern world today. His first steps on English soil was to Bellow, "God had given him England with Both Hands!"

William is a prime example of weaving new and old. The Church has so many columns demonstrating a column as a new entrance or exit. Support the roof and have changes. Old meet variation.

This is the St Paul's Cathedral - William the Conqueror Built to celebrate uniting the Island for the first time. This Church stood for hundreds of years. King William knew he was building something of value in his life. Something solid to show Jesus. One marriage that the widowhood crippled him, permanently - 9 children.

William created a Dynasty lasting more than a thousand years. He might have done something right in life.

William did not come in and do away with all of the old life. His reign in England was marked by the construction of new and enduring buildings. He did not try to integrate his various domains into one empire, but instead continued to administer each part with the understanding this was not one unit but instead each child and each area had unique talents and abilities.

Both Hands. Many Churches. Many Solid Structures we can see today.

The impact on England of William's conquest was profound. Changes in the Church - he brought in new people and kept the old, aristocracy, culture, and language of the country - all have persisted into modern times. William's government blended elements of the English and Norman systems into a new -  putting down the foundations of the later medieval English kingdom. Lasting. Enduring.

Why would we be interested in a History Lesson? God speaks to us of Kings. Why does God do that? We see personalities and generations in our own families.

We are all Eternal beings. All will stand and bow our knees to Jesus as Lord. We are all builders. We just have to take the regular, average day and see with intent and deliberation - Give us this Day.

God was working in the Exodus during the 40 years. Caleb and Joshua were aging. Not much seemed to be happening. Betcha Hope, Faith and Love were the work of belief God calls all of mankind.

If we are a king, if we are a vassel - our Potter is God. These pots are from Jerusalem during the time of Jesus. They have outlasted a Cathedral...

We are Lights of God. We are creating the Eternal Today.

GOD is about Love. Diligence. Loyalty. Give us This Day.

Father God,
Bless my nephew, Johnny. He is building his house today in marriage, surely a New thing. I know that boy right well. Things are going to work out. He has Love. Facing the Unknown. The Eternal begins again.

Jesus answered and said to them: “This is the service of God, that you trust in him whom he has sent.” 1 Timothy 4:10. Timothy is the one who stayed to the end. We work and strive. To create a life of meaning. The intersection of God and Man - this is the Cross. And this is Victory.

Thank You. God. Amen.

♔ Lord Jesus Saves †

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