Reference: Manna
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The miraculous food given by God to the Israelites during their wanderings in the desert. It was a small grain, white like hoarfrost, round, and of the size of coriander-seed, Ex 16; Nu 11. It fell every morning, with the dew, about the camp of the Israelites, and in so great quantities during the whole forty years of their journey in the wilderness, that it was sufficient to serve the entire multitude instead of bread, Ex 16:35; De 29:5-6; Jos 5:12. It is nowhere said that the Israelites had no other food, that numerous flocks and herds accompanied the camp of Israel is clear from many passages. Certainly the daily sacrifices were offered, and no doubt to her offerings affording animal food on which the priests and Levites subsisted, according to their offices.
When manna was first sent the Israelites "knew not what it was," and "said one to another, MAN-HU, which means, What is it? Most interpreters think that form the frequent repetition of this inquiry the name MAN or manna arose. Burckhardt says, that in the valleys around Sinai a species of manna is still found, dropping from the sprigs of several trees, but principally from the tamarisk, in the month of June. It is collected by the Arabs, who make cakes of it, and call it honey of betrouk. See Ex 16:31. Since his time it has been ascertained by Dr. Ehrenburg that the exudation of this manna is occasioned by an insect, which he has particularly described. Besides this substance and the manna of commerce, which is used as a laxative medicine, and is produced by the ash-trees of southern Europe, several other vegetable products in Arabia, Persia, etc., of similar origin and qualities, are known by the same name. It is in vain, however, to seek to identify with any of these the manna of the Israelites, which was evidently a special provision for them, beginning and terminating with their need of it. It was found, not on trees and shrubs, but on "the face of the wilderness" wherever they went; and was different in its qualities from any now known by that name, being dry enough to grind and bake like grain, but breeding worms on the second day. It was miraculous in the amount that fell, for the supply of millions; in not falling on the Sabbath; in falling in double quantities the previous day; and in remaining fresh during the Sabbath. By these last three peculiarities God miraculously attested the sanctity of the Sabbath, as dating from the creation and not from Mount Sinai. Moreover, a specimen of manna as laid up in a golden vase in the ark of the covenant in memory of a substance which would otherwise have perished, Heb 9:4.
In Ps 78:24-25, manna is called "angels' food" and "corn of heaven," in token of its excellence, and that it came directly from the hand of God. The people gathered on an average about three quarts for each man. They who gathered more than they needed, shared it freely with others; it could not be hoarded up: and thus, as Paul teaches us, 2Co 8:13-15, it furnishes for all men a lesson against hoarding the earthly and perishable gifts of God, and in favor of freely imparting to our brethren in need.
This great boon of God to the Israelites also offers many striking analogies, illustrative of "the true Bead" which came down form heaven to rebellious and perishing man, Joh 6:31-58; Re 2:17. Like the manna, Christ descends from above around the camp of his church in daily abundant supplies, to meet the wants of every man.
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And this bread was named manna by Israel: it was white, like a grain seed, and its taste was like cakes made with honey.
And the children of Israel had manna for their food for forty years, till they came to a land with people in it, till they came to the edge of the land of Canaan.
For forty years I have been your guide through the waste land: your clothing has not become old on your backs, or your shoes on your feet. You have had no bread, or wine, or strong drink: so that you might see that I am the Lord your God.
And there was no more manna from the day after they had for their food the produce of the land; the children of Israel had manna no longer, but that year the produce of the land of Canaan was their food.
And he sent down manna like rain for their food, and gave them the grain of heaven. Man took part in the food of strong ones; he sent them meat in full measure.
Our fathers had the manna in the waste land, as the Writings say, He gave them bread from heaven. Jesus then said to them, Truly I say to you, What Moses gave you was not the bread from heaven; it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. read more. The bread of God is the bread which comes down out of heaven and gives life to the world. Ah, Lord, they said, give us that bread for ever! And this was the answer of Jesus: I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never be in need of food, and he who has faith in me will never be in need of drink. But it is as I said to you: you have seen me, and still you have no faith. Whatever the Father gives to me will come to me; and I will not send away anyone who comes to me. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my pleasure, but the pleasure of him who sent me. And this is the pleasure of him who sent me, that I am not to let out of my hands anything which he has given me, but I am to give it new life on the last day. This, I say, is my Father's pleasure, that everyone who sees the Son and has faith in him may have eternal life: and I will take him up on the last day. Now the Jews said bitter things about Jesus because of his words, I am the bread which came down from heaven. And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we have seen? How is it then that he now says, I have come down from heaven? Jesus made answer and said, Do not say things against me, one to another. No man is able to come to me if the Father who sent me does not give him the desire to come: and I will take him up from the dead on the last day. The writings of the prophets say, And they will all have teaching from God. Everyone whose ears have been open to the teaching of the Father comes to me. Not that anyone has ever seen the Father; only he who is from God, he has seen the Father. Truly I say to you, He who has faith in me has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers took the manna in the waste land--and they are dead. The bread which comes from heaven is such bread that a man may take it for food and never see death. I am the living bread which has come from heaven: if any man takes this bread for food he will have life for ever: and more than this, the bread which I will give is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world. Then the Jews had an angry discussion among themselves, saying, How is it possible for this man to give us his flesh for food? Then Jesus said to them, Truly I say to you, If you do not take the flesh of the Son of man for food, and if you do not take his blood for drink, you have no life in you. He who takes my flesh for food and my blood for drink has eternal life: and I will take him up from the dead at the last day. My flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. He who takes my flesh for food and my blood for drink is in me and I in him. As the living Father has sent me, and I have life because of the Father, even so he who takes me for his food will have life because of me. This is the bread which has come down from heaven. It is not like the food which your fathers had: they took of the manna, and are dead; but he who takes this bread for food will have life for ever.
And I am not saying this so that others may get off free, while the weight comes on you: But so that things may be equal; that from those things of which you have more than enough at the present time their need may be helped, and that if you are in any need they may be a help to you in the same way, making things equal. read more. As it says in the Writings, He who had taken up much had nothing over and he who had little had enough.
Having a vessel of gold in it for burning perfumes, and the ark of the agreement, which was covered with gold and which had in it a pot made of gold for the manna, and Aaron's rod which put out buds, and the stones with the writing of the agreement;
He who has ears, let him give ear to what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give of the secret manna, and I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name, of which no one has knowledge but he to whom it is given.
Easton
Heb man-hu, "What is that?" the name given by the Israelites to the food miraculously supplied to them during their wanderings in the wilderness (Ex 16:15-35). The name is commonly taken as derived from man, an expression of surprise, "What is it?" but more probably it is derived from manan, meaning "to allot," and hence denoting an "allotment" or a "gift." This "gift" from God is described as "a small round thing," like the "hoar-frost on the ground," and "like coriander seed," "of the colour of bdellium," and in taste "like wafers made with honey." It was capable of being baked and boiled, ground in mills, or beaten in a mortar (Ex 16:23; Nu 11:7). If any was kept over till the following morning, it became corrupt with worms; but as on the Sabbath none fell, on the preceding day a double portion was given, and that could be kept over to supply the wants of the Sabbath without becoming corrupt. Directions concerning the gathering of it are fully given (Ex 16:16-18,33; De 8:3,16). It fell for the first time after the eighth encampment in the desert of Sin, and was daily furnished, except on the Sabbath, for all the years of the wanderings, till they encamped at Gilgal, after crossing the Jordan, when it suddenly ceased, and where they "did eat of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more" (Jos 5:12). They now no longer needed the "bread of the wilderness."
This manna was evidently altogether a miraculous gift, wholly different from any natural product with which we are acquainted, and which bears this name. The manna of European commerce comes chiefly from Calabria and Sicily. It drops from the twigs of a species of ash (Illustration: Flower of Manna Ash) during the months of June and July. At night it is fluid and resembles dew, but in the morning it begins to harden. The manna of the Sinaitic peninsula is an exudation from the "manna-tamarisk" tree (Tamarix mannifera, Illustration: Branch of Manna-Tamarisk Tree), the el-tarfah of the Arabs. This tree is found at the present day in certain well-watered valleys in the peninsula of Sinai. The manna with which the people of Israel were fed for forty years differs in many particulars from all these natural products.
Our Lord refers to the manna when he calls himself the "true bread from heaven" (Joh 6:31-35; 21:25). He is also the "hidden manna" (Re 2:17; comp. Joh 6:49,51).
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And when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, What is it? for they had no idea what it was. And Moses said to them, It is the bread which the Lord has given you for your food. This is what the Lord has said, Let every man take up as much as he has need of; at the rate of one omer for every person, let every man take as much as is needed for his family.
This is what the Lord has said, Let every man take up as much as he has need of; at the rate of one omer for every person, let every man take as much as is needed for his family. And the children of Israel did so, and some took more and some less.
And the children of Israel did so, and some took more and some less. And when it was measured, he who had taken up much had nothing over, and he who had little had enough; every man had taken what he was able to make use of.
And when it was measured, he who had taken up much had nothing over, and he who had little had enough; every man had taken what he was able to make use of. And Moses said to them, Let nothing be kept till the morning. read more. But they gave no attention to Moses, and some of them kept it till the morning and there were worms in it and it had an evil smell: and Moses was angry with them. And they took it up morning by morning, every man as he had need: and when the sun was high it was gone. And on the sixth day they took up twice as much of the bread, two omers for every person: and all the rulers of the people gave Moses word of it. And he said, This is what the Lord has said, Tomorrow is a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord: what has to be cooked may be cooked; and what is over, put on one side to be kept till the morning.
And he said, This is what the Lord has said, Tomorrow is a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord: what has to be cooked may be cooked; and what is over, put on one side to be kept till the morning. And they kept it till the morning as Moses had said: and no smell came from it, and it had no worms. read more. And Moses said, Make your meal today of what you have, for this day is a Sabbath to the Lord: today you will not get any in the fields. For six days you will get it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any. But still on the seventh day some of the people went out to get it, and there was not any. And the Lord said to Moses, How long will you go against my orders and my laws? See, because the Lord has given you the Sabbath, he gives you on the sixth day bread enough for two days; let every man keep where he is; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. So the people took their rest on the seventh day. And this bread was named manna by Israel: it was white, like a grain seed, and its taste was like cakes made with honey. And Moses said, This is the order which the Lord has given: Let one omer of it be kept for future generations, so that they may see the bread which I gave you for your food in the waste land, when I took you out from the land of Egypt. And Moses said to Aaron, Take a pot and put one omer of manna in it, and put it away before the Lord, to be kept for future generations.
And Moses said to Aaron, Take a pot and put one omer of manna in it, and put it away before the Lord, to be kept for future generations. So Aaron put it away in front of the holy chest to be kept, as the Lord gave orders to Moses. read more. And the children of Israel had manna for their food for forty years, till they came to a land with people in it, till they came to the edge of the land of Canaan.
Now the manna was like a seed of grain, like small clear drops.
And he made low your pride and let you be without food and gave you manna for your food, a thing new to you, which your fathers never saw; so that he might make it clear to you that bread is not man's only need, but his life is in every word which comes out of the mouth of the Lord.
Who gave you manna for your food in the waste land, a food which your fathers had never seen; so that your pride might be broken and your hearts tested for your good in the end;
And there was no more manna from the day after they had for their food the produce of the land; the children of Israel had manna no longer, but that year the produce of the land of Canaan was their food.
Our fathers had the manna in the waste land, as the Writings say, He gave them bread from heaven. Jesus then said to them, Truly I say to you, What Moses gave you was not the bread from heaven; it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. read more. The bread of God is the bread which comes down out of heaven and gives life to the world. Ah, Lord, they said, give us that bread for ever! And this was the answer of Jesus: I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never be in need of food, and he who has faith in me will never be in need of drink.
Your fathers took the manna in the waste land--and they are dead.
I am the living bread which has come from heaven: if any man takes this bread for food he will have life for ever: and more than this, the bread which I will give is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world.
And Jesus did such a number of other things that, if every one was recorded, it is my opinion that even the world itself is not great enough for the books there would be.
He who has ears, let him give ear to what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give of the secret manna, and I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name, of which no one has knowledge but he to whom it is given.
Fausets
There is a connection between the natural manna and the supernatural. The natural is the sweet juice of the tarfa, a kind of tamarisk. It exudes in May for about six weeks from the trunk and branches in hot weather, and forms small round white grains. It retains its consistency in cool weather, but melts with heat. It is gathered from the twigs or from the fallen leaves. The Arabs, after boiling and straining, use it as honey with bread. The color is a greyish-yellow, the taste sweet and aromatic. Ehrenberg says it is produced by an insect's puncture. It abounds in rainy seasons, some years it ceases. About 600 or 700 pounds is the present produce of a year. The region wady Gharandel (Elim) and Sinai, the wady Sheich, and some other parts of the peninsula, are the places where it is found. The name is still its Arabic designation, and is read on the Egyptian monuments (mennu, mennu hut, "white manna".) Gesenius derives it from manah, "to apportion." The supernatural character of the manna of Exodus at the same time appears.
(1) It was found not under the tamarisk, but on the surface of the wilderness, after the morning dew had disappeared.
(2) The quantity gathered in a single day exceeded the present produce of a year.
(3) It ceased on the sabbath.
(4) Its properties were distinct; it could be ground and baked as meal, it was not a mere condiment but nutritious as bread.
(5) It was found not merely where it still is, but Israel's whole way to Canaan (and not merely for a month or two each year, but all the year round). The miracle has all the conditions and characteristics of divine interpositions.
(1) A necessity, for Israel could not otherwise have been sustained in the wilderness.
(2) A divine purpose, namely to preserve God's peculiar people on which His whole providential government and man's salvation depended.
(3) Harmony between the natural and the supernatural; God fed them, not with the food of other regions, but with that of the district.
The local coloring is marked. Moses the writer could neither have been deceived as to the fact, nor could have deceived contemporaries and eye-witnesses. (Speaker's Commentary) The Scripture allusions to it are in Ex 16:14-36; Nu 11:7-9; De 8:3-16; Jos 5:12; Ps 78:24-25 ("angels' food"; not as if angels ate food, but food from the habitation of angels, heaven, a directly miraculous gift), Mt 4:4; Joh 6:31-50; 1Co 10:3. The manna was a "small round thing as the hoar-frost on the ground," falling with the dew on the camp at night. They gathered it early every morning before the sun melted it.
If laid by for any following day except the sabbath it bred worms and stank. It was like coriander seed and bdellium, white, and its taste as the taste of fresh oil, like wafers made with honey (Nu 11:7-9). Israel subsisted on it for 40 years; it suddenly ceased when they got the first new grain of Canaan. Vulgate, Septuagint, and Josephus (Ant. 3:1, sec. 6) derive manna from Israel's question to one another, maan huw' " 'what is this?' for they knew not what it was." God "gave it to His beloved (in) sleep" (Ps 127:2), so the sense and context require. Israel each morning, in awaking, found it already provided without toil. Such is the gospel, the gift of grace, not the fruit of works; free to all, and needed by high and low as indispensable for true life.
To commemorate Israel's living on omers or tenth deals of manna one omer was put into a golden pot and preserved for many generations beside the ark. Each was to gather according to his eating, an omer apiece for each in his tent, a command testing their obedience, in which some failed, gathering more but gaining nought by it, for however much he gathered, on measuring it in his tent he found he had only as much as he needed for his family; type of Christian charity, which is to make the superfluity of some supply the needs of others. "that there may be equality" (2Co 8:14-15); "our luxuries should yield to our neighbor's comforts, and our comforts to his necessities" (John Howard). The manna typifies Christ.
(1) It falls from above (Joh 6:32, etc.) as the dew (Ps 110:3; Mic 5:7) round the camp, i.e. the visible church, and nowhere else; the gift of God for which we toil not (Joh 6:28-29); when we were without merit or strength (Ro 5:6,8).
(2) It was gathered early; so we, before the world's heat of excitement melt away the good of God's gift to us (Ps 63:1; Ho 5:15; 6:4; Mt 13:6).
(3) A double portion must be gathered for the sabbath.
(4) It was ground in the mill, as Christ was "bruised" for us to become our "bread of life."
(5) Sweet as honey to the taste (Ps 34:8; 119:103; 1Pe 2:3).
(6) It must be gathered "day by day," fresh each day; so today's grace will not suffice for tomorrow (1Ki 8:59 margin; Mt 6:11; Lu 11:3). Hoarded up it putrefied; so gospel doctrine laid up for speculation, not received in love and digested as spiritual food, becomes a savor of death not life (1Co 8:1).
(7) To the carnal it was "dry" food though really like "fresh oil" (Nu 11:6,8; 21:5): so the gospel to the worldly who long for fleshly pleasures of Egypt, but to the spiritual it is full of the rich savor of the Holy Spirit (2Co 2:14-16).
(8) Its preservation in the golden pot in the holiest typifies Jesus, now in the heavenly holiest place, where He gives of the hidden manna to him that overcometh (Re 2:17); He is the manna hidden from the world but revealed to the believer, who has now a foretaste of His preciousness; like the incorruptible manna in the sanctuary, the spiritual food offered to all who reject the world's dainties for Christ is everlasting, an incorruptible body, and life in Christ at the resurrection.
(9) The manna continued with Israel throughout their wilderness journey; so Christ with His people here (Mt 28:19).
(10) It ceases when they gain the promised rest, for faith then gives place to sight and the wilderness manna to the fruit of the tree of life in the midst of the paradise of God (Re 2:7; 22:2,14).
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And when the dew was gone, on the face of the earth was a small round thing, like small drops of ice on the earth. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, What is it? for they had no idea what it was. And Moses said to them, It is the bread which the Lord has given you for your food. read more. This is what the Lord has said, Let every man take up as much as he has need of; at the rate of one omer for every person, let every man take as much as is needed for his family. And the children of Israel did so, and some took more and some less. And when it was measured, he who had taken up much had nothing over, and he who had little had enough; every man had taken what he was able to make use of. And Moses said to them, Let nothing be kept till the morning. But they gave no attention to Moses, and some of them kept it till the morning and there were worms in it and it had an evil smell: and Moses was angry with them. And they took it up morning by morning, every man as he had need: and when the sun was high it was gone. And on the sixth day they took up twice as much of the bread, two omers for every person: and all the rulers of the people gave Moses word of it. And he said, This is what the Lord has said, Tomorrow is a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord: what has to be cooked may be cooked; and what is over, put on one side to be kept till the morning. And they kept it till the morning as Moses had said: and no smell came from it, and it had no worms. And Moses said, Make your meal today of what you have, for this day is a Sabbath to the Lord: today you will not get any in the fields. For six days you will get it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any. But still on the seventh day some of the people went out to get it, and there was not any. And the Lord said to Moses, How long will you go against my orders and my laws? See, because the Lord has given you the Sabbath, he gives you on the sixth day bread enough for two days; let every man keep where he is; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. So the people took their rest on the seventh day. And this bread was named manna by Israel: it was white, like a grain seed, and its taste was like cakes made with honey. And Moses said, This is the order which the Lord has given: Let one omer of it be kept for future generations, so that they may see the bread which I gave you for your food in the waste land, when I took you out from the land of Egypt. And Moses said to Aaron, Take a pot and put one omer of manna in it, and put it away before the Lord, to be kept for future generations. So Aaron put it away in front of the holy chest to be kept, as the Lord gave orders to Moses. And the children of Israel had manna for their food for forty years, till they came to a land with people in it, till they came to the edge of the land of Canaan. Now an omer is the tenth part of an ephah.
But now our soul is wasted away; there is nothing at all: we have nothing but this manna before our eyes. Now the manna was like a seed of grain, like small clear drops.
Now the manna was like a seed of grain, like small clear drops. The people went about taking it up from the earth, crushing it between stones or hammering it to powder, and boiling it in pots, and they made cakes of it: its taste was like the taste of cakes cooked with oil.
The people went about taking it up from the earth, crushing it between stones or hammering it to powder, and boiling it in pots, and they made cakes of it: its taste was like the taste of cakes cooked with oil.
The people went about taking it up from the earth, crushing it between stones or hammering it to powder, and boiling it in pots, and they made cakes of it: its taste was like the taste of cakes cooked with oil. When the dew came down on the tents at night, the manna came down with it.
And crying out against God and against Moses, they said, Why have you taken us out of Egypt to come to our death in the waste land? For there is no bread and no water, and this poor bread is disgusting to us.
And he made low your pride and let you be without food and gave you manna for your food, a thing new to you, which your fathers never saw; so that he might make it clear to you that bread is not man's only need, but his life is in every word which comes out of the mouth of the Lord. Through all these forty years your clothing did not get old or your feet become tired. read more. Keep in mind this thought, that as a son is trained by his father, so you have been trained by the Lord your God. Then keep the orders of the Lord your God, fearing him and walking in his ways. For the Lord your God is guiding you into a good land, a land of water-springs, of fountains, and deep streams flowing out from the valleys and the hills; A land of grain and vines and fig-trees and fair fruits; a land of oil-giving olive-trees and honey; Where there will be bread for you in full measure and you will be in need of nothing; a land where the very stones are iron and from whose hills you may get copper. And you will have food enough and be full, praising the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. Then take care that you are not turned away from the Lord your God and from keeping his orders and decisions and laws which I give you this day: And when you have taken food and are full, and have made fair houses for yourselves and are living in them; And when your herds and your flocks are increased, and your stores of silver and gold, and you have wealth of every sort; Take care that your hearts are not lifted up in pride, giving no thought to the Lord your God who took you out of the land of Egypt, out of the prison-house; Who was your guide through that great and cruel waste, where there were poison-snakes and scorpions and a dry land without water; who made water come out of the hard rock for you; Who gave you manna for your food in the waste land, a food which your fathers had never seen; so that your pride might be broken and your hearts tested for your good in the end;
And there was no more manna from the day after they had for their food the produce of the land; the children of Israel had manna no longer, but that year the produce of the land of Canaan was their food.
And may these my words, the words of my prayer to the Lord, be before the Lord our God day and night, so that he may see right done to his servant and to his people Israel, day by day as we have need.
By experience you will see that the Lord is good; happy is the man who has faith in him.
O God, you are my God; early will I make my search for you: my soul is dry for need of you, my flesh is wasted with desire for you, as a dry and burning land where no water is;
And he sent down manna like rain for their food, and gave them the grain of heaven. Man took part in the food of strong ones; he sent them meat in full measure.
I have made search for you with all my heart: O let me not go wandering far from your teaching.
I will go back to my place till they are made waste; in their trouble they will go after me early and will make search for me.
O Ephraim, what am I to do to you? O Judah, what am I to do to you? For your love is like a morning cloud, and like the dew which goes early away.
And the rest of Jacob will be among the mass of peoples like dew from the Lord, like showers on the grass, which may not be kept back by man, or be waiting for the sons of men.
But he made answer and said, It is in the Writings, Bread is not man's only need, but every word which comes out of the mouth of God.
Give us this day bread for our needs.
And when the sun was high, it was burned; and because it had no root it became dry and dead.
Go then, and make disciples of all the nations, giving them baptism in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit:
Give us every day bread for our needs.
Then they said to him, How may we do the works of God? Jesus, answering, said to them, This is to do the work of God: to have faith in him whom God has sent.
Our fathers had the manna in the waste land, as the Writings say, He gave them bread from heaven. Jesus then said to them, Truly I say to you, What Moses gave you was not the bread from heaven; it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven.
Jesus then said to them, Truly I say to you, What Moses gave you was not the bread from heaven; it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. The bread of God is the bread which comes down out of heaven and gives life to the world. read more. Ah, Lord, they said, give us that bread for ever! And this was the answer of Jesus: I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never be in need of food, and he who has faith in me will never be in need of drink. But it is as I said to you: you have seen me, and still you have no faith. Whatever the Father gives to me will come to me; and I will not send away anyone who comes to me. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my pleasure, but the pleasure of him who sent me. And this is the pleasure of him who sent me, that I am not to let out of my hands anything which he has given me, but I am to give it new life on the last day. This, I say, is my Father's pleasure, that everyone who sees the Son and has faith in him may have eternal life: and I will take him up on the last day. Now the Jews said bitter things about Jesus because of his words, I am the bread which came down from heaven. And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we have seen? How is it then that he now says, I have come down from heaven? Jesus made answer and said, Do not say things against me, one to another. No man is able to come to me if the Father who sent me does not give him the desire to come: and I will take him up from the dead on the last day. The writings of the prophets say, And they will all have teaching from God. Everyone whose ears have been open to the teaching of the Father comes to me. Not that anyone has ever seen the Father; only he who is from God, he has seen the Father. Truly I say to you, He who has faith in me has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers took the manna in the waste land--and they are dead. The bread which comes from heaven is such bread that a man may take it for food and never see death.
For when we were still without strength, at the right time Christ gave his life for evil-doers.
But God has made clear his love to us, in that, when we were still sinners, Christ gave his life for us.
Now about things offered to images: we all seem to ourselves to have knowledge. Knowledge gives pride, but love gives true strength.
But praise be to God who makes us strong to overcome in Christ, and makes clear through us in every place the value of the knowledge of him. For we are a sweet perfume of Christ to God in those who are getting salvation and in those who are going to destruction; read more. To the one it is a perfume of death to death; to the other a perfume of life to life. And who is enough for such things?
But so that things may be equal; that from those things of which you have more than enough at the present time their need may be helped, and that if you are in any need they may be a help to you in the same way, making things equal. As it says in the Writings, He who had taken up much had nothing over and he who had little had enough.
He who has ears, let him give ear to what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give of the fruit of the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.
He who has ears, let him give ear to what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give of the secret manna, and I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name, of which no one has knowledge but he to whom it is given.
In the middle of its street. And on this side of the river and on that was the tree of life, having twelve sorts of fruits, giving its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree give life to the nations.
A blessing on those whose robes are washed, so that they may have a right to the tree of life, and may go in by the doors into the town.
Hastings
The food of the Israelites during the wanderings (Ex 16:1; Jos 5:12), but not the only food available. Documents of various dates speak of (a) cattle (Ex 17:3; 19:13; 34:3; Nu 7:3,6 f.), especially in connexion with sacrifice (Ex 24:5; 32:8; Le 8:2,25,31; 9:4; 10:14; Nu 7:15 ff.); (b) flour (Nu 7:13,19,25 etc., Le 10:12; 24:5); (c) food in general (De 2:3; Jos 1:11).
1. The origin of the word is uncertain. In Ex 16:13 the exclamation might be rendered, 'It is m
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And they went on their way from Elim, and all the children of Israel came into the waste land of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they went out of the land of Egypt.
And it came about that in the evening little birds came up and the place was covered with them: and in the morning there was dew all round about the tents. And when the dew was gone, on the face of the earth was a small round thing, like small drops of ice on the earth. read more. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, What is it? for they had no idea what it was. And Moses said to them, It is the bread which the Lord has given you for your food.
And when it was measured, he who had taken up much had nothing over, and he who had little had enough; every man had taken what he was able to make use of. And Moses said to them, Let nothing be kept till the morning.
And they took it up morning by morning, every man as he had need: and when the sun was high it was gone.
And he said, This is what the Lord has said, Tomorrow is a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord: what has to be cooked may be cooked; and what is over, put on one side to be kept till the morning.
And he said, This is what the Lord has said, Tomorrow is a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord: what has to be cooked may be cooked; and what is over, put on one side to be kept till the morning.
And this bread was named manna by Israel: it was white, like a grain seed, and its taste was like cakes made with honey.
And this bread was named manna by Israel: it was white, like a grain seed, and its taste was like cakes made with honey.
And this bread was named manna by Israel: it was white, like a grain seed, and its taste was like cakes made with honey.
And Moses said to Aaron, Take a pot and put one omer of manna in it, and put it away before the Lord, to be kept for future generations.
And the people were in great need of water; and they made an outcry against Moses, and said, Why have you taken us out of Egypt to send death on us and our children and our cattle through need of water?
He is not to be touched by a hand, but is to be stoned or have an arrow put through him; man or beast, he is to be put to death: at the long sounding of a horn they may come up to the mountain.
And he sent some of the young men of the children of Israel to make burned offerings and peace-offerings of oxen to the Lord.
Even now they are turned away from the rule I gave them, and have made themselves a metal ox and given worship to it and offerings, saying, This is your god, O Israel, who took you up out of the land of Egypt.
No one is to come up with you, and let no man be seen anywhere on the mountain; let no flocks or herds come near to get their food at its foot.
Take Aaron, and his sons with him, and the robes and the holy oil and the ox of the sin-offering and the two male sheep and the basket of unleavened bread;
And he took the fat, and the fat tail, and the fat on the inside parts, and the fat on the liver, and the two kidneys with their fat, and the right leg;
And Moses said to Aaron and to his sons, The flesh is to be cooked in water at the door of the Tent of meeting, and there you are to take it as food, together with the bread in the basket, as I have given orders, saying, It is the food of Aaron and his sons.
And an ox and a male sheep for peace-offerings, to be put to death before the Lord; and a meal offering mixed with oil: for this day you are to see the Lord.
And Moses said to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons who were still living, Take the rest of the meal offering from the offerings of the Lord made by fire, and take it for your food, without leaven, at the side of the altar, for it is most holy.
And the breast which is waved and the leg which is lifted up on high, you are to take as your food in a clean place; you and your sons and your daughters with you: for they are given to you as your right and your sons' right, from the peace-offerings of the children of Israel.
And take the best meal and make twelve cakes of it, a fifth part of an ephah in every cake.
And they came with their offerings before the Lord, six covered carts and twelve oxen; a cart for every two of the chiefs, and for every one an ox.
And his offering was one silver plate, a hundred and thirty shekels in weight, one silver basin of seventy shekels, by the scale of the holy place; the two of them full of the best meal mixed with oil for a meal offering;
One young ox, one male sheep, one he-lamb of the first year, for a burned offering;
He gave one silver plate, a hundred and thirty shekels in weight, one silver basin of seventy shekels, by the scale of the holy place; the two of them full of the best meal mixed with oil for a meal offering;
His offering was one silver plate, a hundred and thirty shekels in weight, one silver basin of seventy shekels, by the scale of the holy place; the two of them full of the best meal mixed with oil for a meal offering;
Now the manna was like a seed of grain, like small clear drops.
Now the manna was like a seed of grain, like small clear drops. The people went about taking it up from the earth, crushing it between stones or hammering it to powder, and boiling it in pots, and they made cakes of it: its taste was like the taste of cakes cooked with oil.
The people went about taking it up from the earth, crushing it between stones or hammering it to powder, and boiling it in pots, and they made cakes of it: its taste was like the taste of cakes cooked with oil.
You have been journeying round this mountain long enough: now go to the north;
Go through the tents and give orders to the people, saying, Get ready a store of food; for in three days you are to go over this river Jordan and take for your heritage the land which the Lord your God is giving you.
And there was no more manna from the day after they had for their food the produce of the land; the children of Israel had manna no longer, but that year the produce of the land of Canaan was their food.
There was nothing in the ark but the two flat stones which Moses put there at Horeb, where the Lord made an agreement with the children of Israel when they came out of the land of Egypt.
And you gave your good spirit to be their teacher, and did not keep back your manna from their mouths, and gave them water when they had need of it.
If it is pleasing to the king, let an order go out from him, and let it be recorded among the laws of the Persians and the Medes, so that it may never be changed, that Vashti is never again to come before King Ahasuerus; and let the king give her place to another who is better than she.
And he sent down manna like rain for their food, and gave them the grain of heaven.
Let your voice be sounding in songs and melody; let all your thoughts be of the wonder of his works.
At the people's request he sent birds, and gave them the bread of heaven for food.
Our fathers had the manna in the waste land, as the Writings say, He gave them bread from heaven.
Having a vessel of gold in it for burning perfumes, and the ark of the agreement, which was covered with gold and which had in it a pot made of gold for the manna, and Aaron's rod which put out buds, and the stones with the writing of the agreement;
He who has ears, let him give ear to what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give of the secret manna, and I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name, of which no one has knowledge but he to whom it is given.
He who has ears, let him give ear to what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give of the secret manna, and I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name, of which no one has knowledge but he to whom it is given.
Morish
The food miraculously supplied from heaven to the Israelites during the forty years of their wanderings. Its name signifies 'what is it?' for they knew not what it was. It fell every morning except on the Sabbath, and had to be gathered early, or it melted. If kept till the second day it bred worms, except the double quantity gathered on the day before the Sabbath, which was good on the second day. The quantity to be gathered was on an average an omer (about 4 pints) for every man. Some gathered more and some less, and when they measured it with an omer "he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack; they gathered every man according to his eating."
The explanation given by the Rabbis is that though several in a family went out to gather the manna, when it was brought home and measured it was found to be just an omer for each of them. The more probable explanation is that though on an average an omer was the portion for each, some needed more and others less, and therefore every one gathered 'according to his eating,' according to what he knew he would require, and thus every one had enough and there was nothing wasted. The former part of the passage is quoted in 2Co 8:15, to show that in making a collection for the poor saints there should be the carrying out of this divine principle of 'equality,' the abundance of some contributing to the need of others.
The manna ceased as soon as the Israelites had crossed the Jordan, and eaten of the old corn of the promised land. The manna is described as being like coriander seed, of the colour of bdellium. It was ground in mills, or pounded in a mortar, and baked in pans, or made into cakes. It tasted like wafers made with honey, Ex 16:31; but afterwards, when the people had lost their relish for it, like fresh oil. Nu 11:6-9. The people, alas, murmured because they had nothing to eat but the manna.
The manna is typical of Christ Himself, the vessel of God's good pleasure, and of heavenly grace here on earth
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And when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, What is it? for they had no idea what it was. And Moses said to them, It is the bread which the Lord has given you for your food. This is what the Lord has said, Let every man take up as much as he has need of; at the rate of one omer for every person, let every man take as much as is needed for his family. read more. And the children of Israel did so, and some took more and some less. And when it was measured, he who had taken up much had nothing over, and he who had little had enough; every man had taken what he was able to make use of. And Moses said to them, Let nothing be kept till the morning. But they gave no attention to Moses, and some of them kept it till the morning and there were worms in it and it had an evil smell: and Moses was angry with them. And they took it up morning by morning, every man as he had need: and when the sun was high it was gone. And on the sixth day they took up twice as much of the bread, two omers for every person: and all the rulers of the people gave Moses word of it. And he said, This is what the Lord has said, Tomorrow is a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord: what has to be cooked may be cooked; and what is over, put on one side to be kept till the morning. And they kept it till the morning as Moses had said: and no smell came from it, and it had no worms. And Moses said, Make your meal today of what you have, for this day is a Sabbath to the Lord: today you will not get any in the fields. For six days you will get it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any. But still on the seventh day some of the people went out to get it, and there was not any. And the Lord said to Moses, How long will you go against my orders and my laws? See, because the Lord has given you the Sabbath, he gives you on the sixth day bread enough for two days; let every man keep where he is; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. So the people took their rest on the seventh day. And this bread was named manna by Israel: it was white, like a grain seed, and its taste was like cakes made with honey.
And this bread was named manna by Israel: it was white, like a grain seed, and its taste was like cakes made with honey. And Moses said, This is the order which the Lord has given: Let one omer of it be kept for future generations, so that they may see the bread which I gave you for your food in the waste land, when I took you out from the land of Egypt. read more. And Moses said to Aaron, Take a pot and put one omer of manna in it, and put it away before the Lord, to be kept for future generations. So Aaron put it away in front of the holy chest to be kept, as the Lord gave orders to Moses. And the children of Israel had manna for their food for forty years, till they came to a land with people in it, till they came to the edge of the land of Canaan.
But now our soul is wasted away; there is nothing at all: we have nothing but this manna before our eyes. Now the manna was like a seed of grain, like small clear drops. read more. The people went about taking it up from the earth, crushing it between stones or hammering it to powder, and boiling it in pots, and they made cakes of it: its taste was like the taste of cakes cooked with oil. When the dew came down on the tents at night, the manna came down with it.
And he made low your pride and let you be without food and gave you manna for your food, a thing new to you, which your fathers never saw; so that he might make it clear to you that bread is not man's only need, but his life is in every word which comes out of the mouth of the Lord.
Who gave you manna for your food in the waste land, a food which your fathers had never seen; so that your pride might be broken and your hearts tested for your good in the end;
And there was no more manna from the day after they had for their food the produce of the land; the children of Israel had manna no longer, but that year the produce of the land of Canaan was their food.
And you gave your good spirit to be their teacher, and did not keep back your manna from their mouths, and gave them water when they had need of it.
And he sent down manna like rain for their food, and gave them the grain of heaven.
As it says in the Writings, He who had taken up much had nothing over and he who had little had enough.
Having a vessel of gold in it for burning perfumes, and the ark of the agreement, which was covered with gold and which had in it a pot made of gold for the manna, and Aaron's rod which put out buds, and the stones with the writing of the agreement;
He who has ears, let him give ear to what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give of the secret manna, and I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name, of which no one has knowledge but he to whom it is given.
Smith
(what is this?) (Heb. man). The most important passages of the Old Testament on this topic are the following:
Ex 16:14-36; Nu 11:7-9; De 11:5,16; Jos 5:12; Ps 78:24-25
From these passages we learn that the manna came every morning except the Sabbath, in the form of a small round seed resembling the hear frost that it must be gathered early, before the sun became so hot as to melt it; that it must be gathered every day except the Sabbath; that the attempt to lay aside for a succeeding day, except on the clay immediately preceding the Sabbath, failed by the substance becoming wormy and offensive; that it was prepared for food by grinding and baking; that its taste was like fresh oil, and like wafers made with honey, equally agreeable to all palates; that the whole nation, of at least 2,000,000, subsisted upon it for forty years; that it suddenly ceased when they first got the new corn of the land of Canaan; and that it was always regarded as a miraculous gift directly from God, and not as a product of nature. The natural products of the Arabian deserts and other Oriental regions which bear the name of manna have not the qualities or uses ascribed to the manna of Scripture. The latter substance was undoubtedly wholly miraculous, and not in any respect a product of nature, though its name may have come from its resemblance to the natural manna The substance now called manna in the Arabian desert through which the Israelites passed is collected in the month of June from the tarfa or tamarisk shrub (Tamarix gallica). According to Burckhardt it drops from the thorns on the sticks and leaves with which the ground is covered, and must be gathered early in the day or it will be melted by the sun. The Arabs cleanse and boil it, strain it through a cloth and put it in leathern bottles; and in this way it can be kept uninjured for several years. They use it like honey or butter with their unleavened bread, but never make it into cakes or eat it by itself. The whole harvest, which amounts to only five or six hundred pounds, is consumed by the Bedouins, "who," says Schaff consider it the greatest dainty their country affords." The manna of European commerce conies mostly from Calabria and Sicily. It's gathered during the months of June and July from some species of ash (Ornus europaea and O. rotundifolia), from which it drops in consequence of a puncture by an insect resembling the locust, but distinguished from it by having a sting under its body. The substance is fluid at night and resembles the dew but in the morning it begins to harden.
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And when the dew was gone, on the face of the earth was a small round thing, like small drops of ice on the earth. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, What is it? for they had no idea what it was. And Moses said to them, It is the bread which the Lord has given you for your food. read more. This is what the Lord has said, Let every man take up as much as he has need of; at the rate of one omer for every person, let every man take as much as is needed for his family. And the children of Israel did so, and some took more and some less. And when it was measured, he who had taken up much had nothing over, and he who had little had enough; every man had taken what he was able to make use of. And Moses said to them, Let nothing be kept till the morning. But they gave no attention to Moses, and some of them kept it till the morning and there were worms in it and it had an evil smell: and Moses was angry with them. And they took it up morning by morning, every man as he had need: and when the sun was high it was gone. And on the sixth day they took up twice as much of the bread, two omers for every person: and all the rulers of the people gave Moses word of it. And he said, This is what the Lord has said, Tomorrow is a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord: what has to be cooked may be cooked; and what is over, put on one side to be kept till the morning. And they kept it till the morning as Moses had said: and no smell came from it, and it had no worms. And Moses said, Make your meal today of what you have, for this day is a Sabbath to the Lord: today you will not get any in the fields. For six days you will get it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any. But still on the seventh day some of the people went out to get it, and there was not any. And the Lord said to Moses, How long will you go against my orders and my laws? See, because the Lord has given you the Sabbath, he gives you on the sixth day bread enough for two days; let every man keep where he is; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. So the people took their rest on the seventh day. And this bread was named manna by Israel: it was white, like a grain seed, and its taste was like cakes made with honey. And Moses said, This is the order which the Lord has given: Let one omer of it be kept for future generations, so that they may see the bread which I gave you for your food in the waste land, when I took you out from the land of Egypt. And Moses said to Aaron, Take a pot and put one omer of manna in it, and put it away before the Lord, to be kept for future generations. So Aaron put it away in front of the holy chest to be kept, as the Lord gave orders to Moses. And the children of Israel had manna for their food for forty years, till they came to a land with people in it, till they came to the edge of the land of Canaan. Now an omer is the tenth part of an ephah.
Now the manna was like a seed of grain, like small clear drops. The people went about taking it up from the earth, crushing it between stones or hammering it to powder, and boiling it in pots, and they made cakes of it: its taste was like the taste of cakes cooked with oil. read more. When the dew came down on the tents at night, the manna came down with it.
And what he did for you in the waste land, till you came to this place;
But take care that your hearts are not turned to false ways so that you become servants and worshippers of other gods;
And there was no more manna from the day after they had for their food the produce of the land; the children of Israel had manna no longer, but that year the produce of the land of Canaan was their food.
And he sent down manna like rain for their food, and gave them the grain of heaven. Man took part in the food of strong ones; he sent them meat in full measure.
Watsons
MANNA, ??, Ex 16:15,33,35; Nu 11:6-7,9; Jos 5:12; Ne 9:20; Ps 78:24; ?????, Joh 6:31,49,58; Heb 9:4; Re 2:17; the food which God gave the children of Israel during their continuance in the deserts of Arabia, from the eighth encampment in the wilderness of Sin. Moses describes it as white like hoar frost, round, and of the bigness of coriander seed. It fell every morning upon the dew; and when the dew was exhaled by the heat of the sun, the manna appeared alone, lying upon the rocks or the sand. It fell every day except on the Sabbath, and this only around the camp of the Israelites. Every sixth day there fell a double quantity; and though it putrefied and bred maggots when it was kept any other day, yet on the Sabbath there was no such alteration. The same substance which was melted by the heat of the sun when it was left abroad, was of so hard a consistence when brought into the tent, that it was beaten in mortars, and would even endure the fire, being made into cakes and baked in pans. It fell in so great quantities during the whole forty years of their journey, that it was sufficient to feed the whole multitude of above a million of souls. Every man, that is, every male or head of a family, was to gather each day the quantity of an omer, about three quarts English measure; and it is observed that "he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack," because his gathering was in proportion to the number of persons for whom he had to provide. Or every man gathered as much as he could; and then, when brought home and measured by an omer, if he had a surplus, it went to supply the wants of some other family that had not been able to collect a sufficiency, the family being large, and the time in which the manna might be gathered, before the heat of the day, not being sufficient to collect enough for so numerous a household, several of whom might be so confined as not to be able to collect for themselves. Thus there was an equality; and in this light the words of St. Paul lead us to view the passage, 2Co 8:15. To commemorate their living upon manna, the Israelites were directed to put one omer of it into a golden vase; and it was preserved for many generations by the side of the ark.
Our translators and others make a plain contradiction in the relation of this account of the manna, by rendering it thus: "And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna; for they knew not what it was;" whereas the Septuagint, and several authors, both ancient and modern, have translated the text according to the original: "The Israelites seeing this, said one to another, What is it? ?? ???; they could not give it a name. Moses immediately answers the question, and says, "This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat." From Ex 16:31, we learn that this substance was afterward called ??, probably in commemoration of the question they had asked on its first appearance. What this substance was, we know not. It was nothing that was common in the wilderness. It is evident that the Israelites never saw it before; for Moses says, "He fed thee with manna which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know," De 8:3,16; and it is very likely that nothing of the kind had ever been seen before; and by a pot of it being laid up in the ark, it is as likely that nothing of the kind ever appeared after the miraculous supply in the wilderness had ceased. The author of the book of Wisdom, 16:20, 21, says, that the manna so accommodated itself to every one's taste that it proved palatable and pleasing to all. It has been remarked that at this day, what is called manna is found in several places; in Arabia, on Mount Libanus, Calabria, and elsewhere. The most famous is that of Arabia, which is a kind of condensed honey, which exudes from the leaves of trees, from whence it is collected when it has become concreted. Salmasius thinks this of the same kind which fed the children of Israel; and that the miracle lay, not in creating any new substance, but in making it fall duly at a set time every day throughout the whole year, and that in such plenty as to suffice so great a multitude. But in order for this, the Israelites must be supposed every day to have been in the neighbourhood of the trees on which this substance is formed; which was not the case, neither do these trees grow in those deserts. Beside, this kind of manna is purgative, and the stomach could not endure it in such quantity as is implied by its being eaten for food. The whole history of the giving the manna is evidently miraculous; and the manna was truly "bread from heaven," as sent by special interposition of God.
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And when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, What is it? for they had no idea what it was. And Moses said to them, It is the bread which the Lord has given you for your food.
And this bread was named manna by Israel: it was white, like a grain seed, and its taste was like cakes made with honey.
And Moses said to Aaron, Take a pot and put one omer of manna in it, and put it away before the Lord, to be kept for future generations.
And the children of Israel had manna for their food for forty years, till they came to a land with people in it, till they came to the edge of the land of Canaan.
But now our soul is wasted away; there is nothing at all: we have nothing but this manna before our eyes. Now the manna was like a seed of grain, like small clear drops.
And he made low your pride and let you be without food and gave you manna for your food, a thing new to you, which your fathers never saw; so that he might make it clear to you that bread is not man's only need, but his life is in every word which comes out of the mouth of the Lord.
Who gave you manna for your food in the waste land, a food which your fathers had never seen; so that your pride might be broken and your hearts tested for your good in the end;
And there was no more manna from the day after they had for their food the produce of the land; the children of Israel had manna no longer, but that year the produce of the land of Canaan was their food.
And you gave your good spirit to be their teacher, and did not keep back your manna from their mouths, and gave them water when they had need of it.
And he sent down manna like rain for their food, and gave them the grain of heaven.
Our fathers had the manna in the waste land, as the Writings say, He gave them bread from heaven.
Your fathers took the manna in the waste land--and they are dead.
This is the bread which has come down from heaven. It is not like the food which your fathers had: they took of the manna, and are dead; but he who takes this bread for food will have life for ever.
As it says in the Writings, He who had taken up much had nothing over and he who had little had enough.
Having a vessel of gold in it for burning perfumes, and the ark of the agreement, which was covered with gold and which had in it a pot made of gold for the manna, and Aaron's rod which put out buds, and the stones with the writing of the agreement;
He who has ears, let him give ear to what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give of the secret manna, and I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name, of which no one has knowledge but he to whom it is given.