Exodus 16:15

Exodus 16:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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.
• New International Version (NIV)When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, “It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat.
• English Standard Version (ESV)When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, "What is it?" For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, "It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat.
• New King James Version (NKJV)So when the children of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “This is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat.

Context of Exodus 16:15

13So at evening quail came and covered the camp. In the morning there was a layer of dew all around the camp. 14When the layer of dew evaporated, there were fine flakes on the desert surface, as fine as frost on the ground. When the Israelites saw it, they asked one another, “What is it?” because they didn’t know what it was. Moses told them, “It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat. 16This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Gather as much of it as each person needs to eat. You may take two quarts per individual, according to the number of people each of you has in his tent.’” 17So the Israelites did this. Some gathered a lot, some a little.

Exodus 16:15 word by word

וַיִּרְא֣וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל וַיֹּ֨אמְר֜וּ אִ֤ישׁ אֶל־אָחִיו֙ מָ֣ן ה֔וּא כִּ֛י לֹ֥א יָדְע֖וּ מַה־ה֑וּא וַיֹּ֤אמֶר מֹשֶׁה֙ אֲלֵהֶ֔ם ה֣וּא הַלֶּ֔חֶם אֲשֶׁ֨ר נָתַ֧ן יְהוָ֛ה לָכֶ֖ם לְאָכְלָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And when the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• sawרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• they saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• oneאִישׁ'îysh · man: anyoneH376
• to anotherאָח'âch · brother: compatriotH251
• mannaמָןmân · What?H4478
• for they wistיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
• And Mosesמֹשֶׁהmôsheh · MosesH4872
• the breadלֶ֫חֶםlechem · food: breadH3899
• which the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• hath givenנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• you to eatאׇכְלָה'ôklâh · foodH402

Cross-references for Exodus 16:15

• Exodus 16:31The house of Israel named the substance manna. It resembled coriander seed, was white, and tasted like wafers made with honey.
• Deuteronomy 8:3He humbled you by letting you go hungry; then he gave you manna to eat, which you and your ancestors had not known, so that you might learn that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
• Joshua 5:12And the day after they ate from the produce of the land, the manna ceased. Since there was no more manna for the Israelites, they ate from the crops of the land of Canaan that year.
• Nehemiah 9:15You provided bread from heaven for their hunger; you brought them water from the rock for their thirst. You told them to go in and possess the land you had sworn to give them.
• John 6:31Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, just as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”
• 1 Corinthians 10:3They all ate the same spiritual food,
• Hebrews 9:4It had the gold altar of incense and the ark of the covenant, covered with gold on all sides, in which was a gold jar containing the manna, Aaron’s staff that budded, and the tablets of the covenant.
• Revelation 2:17“Let anyone who has ears to hear listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name is inscribed that no one knows except the one who receives it.
• Exodus 16:4Then the Lord said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. This way I will test them to see whether or not they will follow my instructions.
• Numbers 21:5The people spoke against God and Moses: “Why have you led us up from Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread or water, and we detest this wretched food!”
• Proverbs 9:5“Come, eat my bread, and drink the wine I have mixed.
• Luke 12:30For the Gentile world eagerly seeks all these things, and your Father knows that you need them.

Commentaries on Exodus 16:15

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 15They said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was - This is a most unfortunate translation, because it not only gives no sense, but it contradicts itself. The Hebrew הוא מן man hu, literally signifies, What is this? for, says the text, they wist not what it was, and therefore 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 Exodus 16:31; we…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15It is manna - “Man” or “man-hut,” i. e. white manna, was the name under which the substance was known to the Egyptians, and therefore to the Israelites. The manna of the Peninsula of Sinai is the sweet juice of the Tarfa, a species of tamarisk. It exudes from the trunk and branches in hot weather, and forms small round white grains. In cold weather it preserves its consistency, in hot weather it melts rapidly. It is either gathered from the twigs of…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 13-21Verses 13-21 At evening the quails came up, and the people caught with ease as many as they needed. The manna came down in dew. They called it "Manna, Manhu," which means, "What is this?" "It is a portion; it is that which our God has allotted us, and we will take it, and be thankful." It was pleasant food; it was wholesome food. The manna was rained from heaven; it appeared, when the dew was gone, as a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost, like…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15The Hebrew term man hu (meaning "What is it?") became the name for the miraculous food called manna (see 16:31). For 40 years, the people ate what is it? Jesus referred to himself as the fulfillment of the meaning of this miracle. He is the "true bread from heaven" that gives life (John 6:32–35, 48, 51, 63).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 13-3113-31. at even the quails came up, and covered the camp--This bird is of the gallinaceous kind [that is, relating to the order of heavy-bodied, largely terrestrial birds], resembling the red partridge, but not larger than the turtledove. They are found in certain seasons in the places through which the Israelites passed, being migratory birds, and they were probably brought to the camp by "a wind from the Lord" as on another occasion (Nu 11:31). and in…Read the comment

Topics related to Exodus 16:15

• Israel
• Manna
• Miracles
• Sin

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Moses
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• Children of Israel
• Ashamed
• Exodus
• Manna
• None
• Remain

Commentaries on Exodus 16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings