The Bread from Heaven
“And they took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came into the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt.
“And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.
“And the children of Israel said unto them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh-pots, and when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.
“Then said the Lord unto Moses, Behold I will rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them whether they will walk in my law, or no.”
We left the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sin, where they had to remain a long time, for it was of great extent — a horrible wilderness, full of thorns, and yielding nothing that could contribute to the support of life. And, in reaUty, the whole earth, as regards the Spirit, is nothing but a great and barren desert. We will not seek to prove this to those who, as Jude says, “have not the Spirit.” It may be, that to such
F 3 this world may offer such satisfaction, that they would gladly leave heaven to God and his saints, if but the earth were left to them, and they to the earth. To the Spirit, however, the earth, with all its valuables, is only a wilderness, which furnishes no food adapted for it, and for which it longs. What is the world and all that it contains, considered as it is in reality? “Vanity of vanities,” says Solomon. This he asserts upon his own experience, and from possessing himself the highest glory the world could bestow; and what he says is valid still. Happy is he, therefore, to whose feelings and judgment this world is only a barren waste, and who seeks only to travel through it as well as he is able! Happy he who knows and seeks another and a better country, as did the holy patriarch! No true Christian is here at home, nor can he find on earth what can satisfy his soul.
We will now resume the thread of our narrative, and see how the Israelites acted, and what the Lord did for them.
The people behaved very ill. It is true their distress was extreme; famine appeared amongst them, and they s:aw no means of procuring food. They therefore expected nothing but a dreadful death, unless God himself appeared in their behalf. Let us have compassion on them, but reflect at the same time, that we ought so to perceive the greatness of our distress, as to be conscious that the ordinary means do not suffice, and that God himself must really interpose. He must draw me, otherwise I cannot come; he must teach me, otherwise I shall not understand; he must grant me faith, otherwise I shall be unable to believe; he must fight for me, otherwise I shall not conquer. We must then also feel a hunger after Christ, which can be satisfied with nothing less than the possession and enjoyment of him. And happy is the country into which the Lord sends such a hunger!
Egypt occurred to the children of Israel in their painful circumstances — not its -bondage and its heavy burdens, but its agreeable things — its flesh-pots and its bread, of which they had abundance, as they asserted. Individual Christians also sometimes experience such painful events, they that feel tempted to esteem the wicked happier than they. Was it not the case with Job and Jeremiah, that they wished they had never been born? Certainly a true Christian has great reason not to think it strange as regards the fiery trial, by which he is tried, and if some strange thing happened to him; yet it often appears strange and incomprehensible enough to him.. If every thing is to work together for good to them that fear God, he may certainly consider himself safe in every situation, and under the m.ost painful trials; but he is not thereby saved from them.
The children of Israel wished, that if death were inevitable, they had rather died in another manner, and in Egypt. Were they wrong in this? Is not dying of hunger one of the most dreadful species of deaths? We must, however, renounce our own will, and leave God to do as he pleases.” But this is easier said than practised. It caused even Jesus himself to sweat blood. When called upon to die to ourselves, we would gladly <:hoose the kind of death. But this choice is not left us. A surgeon knows better than his patient where and how deep he ought to make the incision. We are not always in a situation to perceive what end some particular suffering is to answer; but have then so much
ti the superior opportunity of saying with Job, “I will lay my hand upon my mouth;” and be mute as a lamb, according to the example of Christ, who opened not his mouth.
The children of Israel express the greatest distrust of Moses and his brother Aaron. They accuse them- of the basest intentions, as if they had only brought them thither to cause them to die of hunger. Could any thing be more absurd? Had they any more to eat than the rest? and were not they as much in danger of perishing as themselves? But doth not Jesus say, that folly is one of the evil things that proceedeth out of the heart of man? And every thought and every expression, which is not in accordance with the word of God, deserves this appellation. How full of folly is the world, the greater part of the books that are published, many sermons that are preached, and our own hearts! If we were to attempt to prove this in detail, we should never have done. We will only remark, that Christ is alone the truth, and that all truth must proceed from him to us. Further, that there is much irrationality in most of the objections of those that are concerned for their salvation.
The distrust expressed by the people of Israel was, however, very culpable and unreasonable. It was neither the first nor the greatest extremity to which they had been reduced,, and out of which they had been delivered; that which they had experienced at the Red Sea was much greater. There they became acquainted with God, as one who never suffers those that hope in him to be confounded. And why, therefore, do they not trust in him? why not resignedly commit themselves to him? He had promised to conduct them to Canaan, and he will keep his word. If they do not know where to obtain food, neither did they know how to pass through the Red Sea; and yet they did pass through it. God’s knowledge is as boundless as his power. Nor do we expect too much from the children of Israel, in supposing this would have produced a permanent impression upon them; they ought rather to have rejoiced over their wants and their helplessness, because both gave the Lord opportunity to prove, that both counsel and performance are his. But nothing of all this: they act as if there were no God — as if he were unable to help. Such is human nature: whgre the bodily eye does not see, and the hand grasp, mistrust manifests itself; and this is both very lamentable and very culpable.
But are men in a state of nature able to act otherwise? Confidence in God is regarded by the natural man as a species of superstition; and he seeks to justify his want of it by saying, “God works no more miracles.” Nor are any outward means able to root out this mistrust; otherwise, the Jews would have been compelled to believe, because of the many undeniable miracles which Jesus did. It even happens occasionally, that those who have had the most powerful assurances of their state of grace, have afterwards been the most violently assaulted on that very point, and induced to regard every thing with a suspicious eye, which had previously been so strikingly clear to them. He that desires an immutable security, must seek it in Him, whose promises are yea, and amen.
Thus did the people act, and by so doing, rendered themselves deserving of punishment. But although Moses pointed out to them their sinful conduct, yet the
Lord did not punish them for it: he had suffered them to fall into these distressing circumstances, in order to manifest the glory of his presence in helping them; for God said he would rain bread upon them in abundance, and give them flesh besides.’ The latter was fulfilled the same evening; for an innumerable multitude of quails fell round their tents, which they killed and ate. Bread they found the next morning, which, from their question,” ManhuV — What is it? obtained the name of Manna. The Israelites found the manna the next morning round about the encampment, as soon as the dew had departed. It had descended quietly and noiselessly about day-break, and formed little pearl-white globules. It fell from heaven during the six week days, but not on the Sabbath; in the former. it kept no longer than from day to day; but that which was gathered on the Friday remained good over the Sabbath. According to the book of Wisdom, the manna tasted to every one as he pleased. Certain it is from Scripture, that he that gathered little had no lack, and he that gathered much had nothing over; but each one had gathered as much as he required for himself. To explain this, we must either admit of a new miracle, or perhaps more correctly suppose, that the whole mass was brought to certain persons appointed for the purpose, who measured out an omer unto each, so that all received alike. Thus Paul views it in 2 Cor. viii. on which he founds the remark, that the abundance of the one should supply the deficiencies of the other. Although it was the only .food which the Israelites had, yet it was not only satisfying to all, but suitable and salutary for all. It was adapted for little children, as well as for those that were grown up; for the sick, as well as for those that were in health.
But even with respect to this manna, there were those amongst the people who soon transgressed: some went out to seek for it on the Sabbath, but found it not; others wished to lay it up for the following day; nothing but greediness and unbelief could have incited them to this: the former being never satisfied, and not content with daily bread; the latter induced them to provide themselves with some stock for the future, which seemed only acting prudently, because, irrespective of the divine promise, it could not be foreseen what might happen on the morrow, or the day after, and whether this singular phenomenon might not be discontinued. Both of these motives arise from the disinclination to live in dependence upon God, and from a wish to subsist as of themselves, which was the object of the first sin, from whence every other has sprung. God accustoms and renders his people capable of an entirely opposite manner of life — a life of complete dependence upon him. He might have so ordered it that the manna should have kept for a long period; but he would have it so, and no otherwise. Merely on the Sabbath day did it continue good, and on no other; but the manna which was preserved, in a golden cruse, in the most holy place, kept for centuries together. What other intention had God in this arrangement, than to lead his people to place implicit confidence in himself, his power, goodness and faithfulness? Every evening they were just as poor as they had been the day before, and just as helpless. They were therefore compelled to hope in God, and to venture upon him. If they understood how to do this, they might have felt extremely happy. They had no particular trouble in gathering the manna, and were entirely relieved from care; for God cared for them in the most obvious manner. Their continued poverty might have proved a source of pleasure to them, because the lordhad thereby an opportunity of manifesting his riches in them.
But this state of mind the Lord required not of the Israelites alone — he requires it still: “Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” With these words Christ began his sermon on the mount; and in its continuation we clearly see what he intends to produce. He makes the most astonishing requirements of his followers; and the immediate* object of Jesus in this sermon is, that we may be most strikingly convinced of our inability, as of ourselves, to fulfil them. Hence it is not a mere fortuitous circumstance that, in the next chapter, the history of the leper is related, who applied to Jesus, saying, “Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean I” as if to point out to us the way, which is still more confirmed by the succeeding narrative of the healing of the centurion’s servant.
We must therefore become poor, to experience the unsearchable riches of Christ. But the sequel is not such as we suppose at the commencement. For what else do we imagine, particularly after the first reception of the blessings of reconciliation and peace, than that we shall now grow increasingly stronger; and even suppose that we shall in future have less and less need of Jesus, and become less and less troublesome to him.
We expect to grow up, in due time, from a weak infant to a strong man, and rejoice in the anticipation of all that we shall accomplish, when we are only able to walk a little more firmly.
We find, however, afterwards, that the case is very different; that we do not proceed from walking to running, and from running to flying, as with the wings of an eagle; but just the reverse. Poor, poorer, most poor: always poor, yet looking to him that is always rich: not leaning upon ourselves but upon him. Every morning going forth with an empty vessel, to gather fresh manna without the camp.
This manna has also another mysterious and typical signification, of which we read in John vi.; our Lord there expressly calls himself the Bread of Life, and gives us clearly to understand, that they only who feed upon him, have eternal life. By this we are to understand, that the hunger of the soul, which, even after conversion, seeks in a great measure to gratify itself with any thing else rather than with Christ, must be abstracted from all other objects, however laudable they may be in themselves, and be centered in Christ as the chief among ten thousand, and the altogether lovely — as the overflowing fountain of all that is good, and all that can render us happy, both in this world and that which is to come. Those who thus’ hunger and thirst after him as the food of their souls, shall assuredly be satisfied by him, as with marrow and fatness, so that they shall be able to praise him with joyful lips. But this is “a hidden manna,” which, after all that is said and believed of it by professing Christians, is only communicated to, and enjoyed by few — even by those who overcome in the times of trial and temptation, and who cease to eat that which is sacrificed to idols; and unto such also will be given a white stone, a favourable testimony in the presence of angels and of God, and a new name, which he alone knoweth, upon whom it is bestowed.