Plants and Foods of the Bible · Pasture and Beehive · Food from heaven
Manna
The bread God sent every morning for forty years in the desert
- Key verse
- Exodus 16:15
- Where we find it
- The Sinai desert, all around the camp of the people of Israel
- What it reminds us of
- God’s care every day
Stories from Scripture
Manna in the stories of the Bible
Moses and the people of Israel
The first morning with manna
In the evening quails came up and covered the camp, and in the morning, when the dew was gone up, there lay on the face of the desert a small round thing, as small as frost. The Israelites said to one another, “It is manna: for they wist not what it was.” Moses told them, “This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat.”
Exodus 16:13-15Moses and the leaders of the congregation
A double portion before the Sabbath
On the sixth day the people gathered twice as much manna. Moses explained that the next day was the Sabbath, the day of rest for the Lord, so they could keep food for the following day.
Exodus 16:22-23Joshua and the people of Israel
The day the manna stopped
After forty years, the people entered the land of Canaan. The day after the Passover they ate the grain of the land, and the manna ceased. God fed them until the last day of the journey.
Joshua 5:12
From the world of the Bible
Did you know?
The Bible says that manna looked like coriander seed, was white and tasted like wafers made with honey (Exodus 16:31).
Every family gathered in the morning as much as it needed for one day, and on the sixth day they gathered twice as much, for the Sabbath.
The people of Israel ate manna for forty years, until they came to the borders of the land of Canaan (Exodus 16:35).
From the Holy Scriptures
What do we read in the Bible about manna?
15 And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat.
In kids’ words: No one had ever seen food like it. God found a way to feed His people even in the desert.
3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.
In kids’ words: The manna taught the Israelites that we need not only bread, but also the word of God.
Verses are quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Read each passage in the context of its chapter in the Bible.
What manna teaches us
Care every day
Manna could not be gathered for a whole week: it came fresh every morning. That is how God taught the Israelites to trust Him day by day. And today God still knows what we need and calls us to ask Him for our daily bread.
How we can live this out today
In the morning, before breakfast, thank God for today and put everything that is coming in His hands.
Mini-Quiz
What did you learn about manna?
Where did the manna come from?
For parents and children
At home and in Sunday school
A question for parents and children
What things do we sometimes worry about “for tomorrow”? How has God taken care of us until today?
“Lord, You fed Your people with manna in the desert. Thank You for knowing what I need today. Help me to trust in You every morning. Amen.”
Activity at home
Today’s portion
Prepare a small snack “just for today.” Talk about the manna: God knows what we need today.