Exodus 16

1 They/We left Elim, and all the Israeli people came to the desert [named] Sin. That is between Elim and Sinai [Mountain]. That was on the fifteenth day of the second month after they/we left Egypt.

And they departed from Aelim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Aelim and Sina; and on the fifteenth day, in the second month after their departure from the land of Egypt,

2 There in the desert, the Israeli [HYP] people complained to Aaron and Moses/me.

all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron.

3 They said to them/us, “We wish that Yahweh had killed us in Egypt! There we had meat to eat, and all the bread that we wanted. But you have brought us into this desert in order that we will all starve to death!”

And the children of Israel said to them, Would we had died struck by the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh-pots, and ate bread to satiety! for you have brought us out into this wilderness, to kill all this congregation with hunger.

4 Yahweh said to Moses/me, “Listen to what I am going [to do]. I am going to send something from the sky that will [take the place of] bread for all of you. When I do that, the people must go out of their tents every day and gather just enough to eat on that day. [When I do that], I will find out whether they will obey my instructions or not.

And the Lord said to Moses, Behold, I [will] rain bread upon you out of heaven: and the people shall go forth, and they shall gather their daily portion for the day, that I may try them whether they will walk in my law or not.

5 On the sixth day [after I start doing that], they will be able to gather twice as much as on the other days, [and not have to gather any on the seventh day]. Then they can prepare it [to eat it on the 6th and 7th days].”

And it shall come to pass on the sixth day that they shall prepare whatever they have brought in, and it shall be double of what they shall have gathered for the day, daily.

6 So Aaron and Moses/I said to all the Israeli people, “This evening you will know that it was Yahweh, [not we], who brought you out of Egypt.

And Moses and Aaron said to all the congregation of the children of Israel, At even you shall know that the Lord has brought you out of the land of Egypt;

7 And tomorrow morning you will see how great Yahweh is, because he has heard what you have complained about. He is the one whom you have really complained to, because we are just his servants.” [RHQ]

and in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord, inasmuch as he hears your murmuring against God; and who are we, that you continue to murmur against us?

8 Then Moses/I also said, “[From now on, each] evening Yahweh will give you meat to eat, and [each] morning he will give you [something that will take the place of] bread, because he has heard what you have complained about. Yahweh is the one to whom you have really complained, not us. We are just his servants.” [RHQ]

And Moses said, [This shall be] when the Lord gives you in the evening flesh to eat, and bread in the morning to satiety, because the Lord has heard your murmuring, which you murmur against us: and what are we? for your murmuring is not against us, but against God.

9 Then Moses/I said to Aaron, “Tell all the Israeli people, ‘Come and stand here in the presence of Yahweh, because he has heard what you have been complaining about.’”

And Moses said to Aaron, Say to all the congregation of the children of Israel, Come near before God; for he has heard your murmuring.

10 So Aaron told them that. And as Aaron was talking to all the Israeli people, they looked toward the desert, and were surprised to see the (dazzling light/incredible brightness) of Yahweh in the cloud [that had been leading them].

And when Aaron spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and they turned towards the wilderness, then the glory of the Lord appeared in a cloud.

11 Then Yahweh said to Moses/me,

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

12 “I have heard what the Israeli people have been complaining about. So say to them, ‘From now on, each evening, you will have meat to eat. And each morning you will have something that will take the place of bread. You will have all you want of it to eat.’ Then you will know that I, Yahweh, [have the power to do what I say that I will do].”

I have heard the murmuring of the children of Israel: speak to them, saying, Towards evening you shall eat flesh, and in the morning you shall be satisfied with bread; and you shall know that I am the Lord your God.

13 That evening, (quails/small plump birds) appeared, and [there were so many that] they covered the campsite. The next morning there was [something like] dew all around the campsite.

And it was evening, and quails came up and covered the camp:

14 When the dew evaporated, on the surface of the desert there was a thick layer of something that looked like white flakes. It looked like frost.

in the morning it came to pass as the dew ceased round about the camp, that, behold, on the face of the wilderness [was] a small thing like white coriander seed, as frost upon the earth.

15 When the Israeli people saw it, since they [had never seen it before and] did not know what it was, they said to each other, “What is it?” Moses/I replied to them, “It is something Yahweh has given you to eat, to take the place of bread.

And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, What is this? for they knew not what it was; and Moses said to them,

16 This is what Yahweh has commanded: ‘Each of you should gather as much as you need to eat. Gather two quarts/liters for each person who lives in your tents.’”

This [is] the bread which the Lord has given you to eat. This is that which the Lord has appointed: gather of it each man for his family, a homer for each person, according to the number of your souls, gather each of you with his fellow-lodgers.

17 So that is what the Israeli people did. Some gathered more and some gathered less.

And the children of Israel did so, and gathered some much and some less.

18 But when they measured [what they had gathered], those that had gathered a lot did not have anything left over. And those that gathered less still had enough to eat. Each person gathered just what they needed.

And having measured the homer [full], he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that had gathered less had no lack; each gathered according to the need of those who belonged to him.

19 Moses/I said to them, “Do not leave any of it to eat tomorrow morning!”

And Moses said to them, Let no man leave of it till the morning.

20 But some of them did not pay any attention to what Moses/I said. They kept some of it until the next morning. But it was full of maggots and smelled rotten. And that made Moses/me angry.

But they did not listen to Moses, but some left of it till the morning; and it bred worms and stank: and Moses was irritated with them.

21 Each morning they gathered as much as they needed. But [later], when the sun got hot, [what was left on the ground] melted.

And they gathered it every morning, each man what he needed, and when the sun waxed hot it melted.

22 On the sixth day after they started gathering it, each person was able to gather four quarts/liters, which was twice [as much as they gathered on the other days]. When the leaders of the people came to Moses/me and told him/me [about that],

And it came to pass on the sixth day, they gathered double what was needed, two homers for one [man]; and all the chiefs of the synagogue went in and reported it to Moses.

23 Moses/I said to them, “This is what Yahweh has commanded: ‘Tomorrow will be a day for you to rest completely. It will be a day dedicated to Yahweh. So today, bake or boil what you will [need for today and for tomorrow]. Whatever is left [this evening], you should put aside and keep it [to eat] tomorrow.’”

And Moses said to them, Is not this the word which the Lord spoke? To-morrow [is] the sabbath, a holy rest to the Lord: bake that you will bake, and seethe that you will seethe, and all that is over leave to be laid by for the morrow.

24 So they did what Moses/I commanded. What was left over, they kept until the next day. It did not spoil and did not get maggots in it!

And they left of it till the morning, as Moses commanded them; and it stank not, neither was there a worm in it.

25 [On that day], Moses/I said, “Eat today [what you have saved from yesterday], because today is a day dedicated to Yahweh. Today you will not find any of that food outside.

And Moses said, Eat [that] today, for today is a sabbath to the Lord: [it] shall not be found in the plain.

26 [Every week], you must gather it for six days; but on the seventh day, which will be a day of rest, you will not find any.”

Six days you shall gather it, and on the seventh day is a sabbath, for there shall be none on that [day].

27 On the seventh day, some of the people went outside their tents to gather some of that food, but there was none.

And it came to pass on the seventh day [that] some of the people went forth to gather, and found none.

28 Then Yahweh [told Moses/me to say this to] the people: “How long will you people refuse to do all the things that I tell you?

And the Lord said to Moses, How long are you unwilling to listen to my commands and my law?

29 Listen! Yahweh has given you a day of rest. So on the sixth day [of each week], he will be giving you enough of this food for two days. Each of you should stay in his tent [and do no work] on the seventh day!”

See, for the Lord has given you this day [as] the sabbath, therefore he has given you on the sixth day the bread of two days: you shall sit each of you in your houses; let no one go forth from his place on the seventh day.

30 So the people rested on the seventh day.

And the people kept sabbath on the seventh day.

31 The Israeli people called this food manna, [which sounds like the words in their language that mean ‘what is it]?’ It looked like small seeds [called] coriander, but it was white, and it tasted like thin wafers/biscuits made with honey.

And the children of Israel called the name of it Man; and it was as white coriander seed, and the taste of it as a wafer with honey.

32 Moses/I said, “This is what Yahweh has commanded: ‘You must keep two quarts/liters of it for all future generations, so that they can see the [food that took the place of] bread that I gave to your [ancestors] when I brought them out of Egypt.’”

And Moses said, This [is] the thing which the Lord has commanded, Fill an homer with manna, to be laid up for your generations; that they may see the bread which you ate in the wilderness, when the Lord led you forth out of the land of Egypt.

33 And he/I said to Aaron, “Take a jar, and put two quarts of manna in it. Then put it [in a place] where Yahweh can see it. It is to be kept like that for all future generations.”

And Moses said to Aaron, Take a golden pot, and cast into it one full homer of manna; and you shall lay it up before God, to be kept for your generations,

34 [Many years later], as Yahweh had commanded Moses/me, Aaron put the jar in front of the box [that contained the stone slabs on which] the Ten Commandments [were written].

as the Lord commanded Moses: and Aaron laid it up before the testimony to be kept.

35 The Israeli people were able to eat manna [every day] for 40 years, until they came to the border of Canaan land.

And the children of Israel ate manna forty years, until they came to the land they ate the manna, until they came to the region of Phoenicia.

36 (The standard measure [that they used at that time] held 20 quarts/liters.)

Now the homer was the tenth part of three measures.