Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Exodus 16:19
And Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning.
19, 20. None to be left over till the morning. The manna was to be the daily food of the Israelites in the wilderness, and so to be eaten fresh every day. In the East, it is the custom to bake bread daily, and yesterday’s bread is not eaten.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 19. Let no man leave of it till the morning.] For God would have them to take no thought for the morrow, and constantly to depend on him for their dally bread. And is not that petition in our Lord’s prayer founded on this very circumstance, Give us day by day our daily bread?
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
viz. For the provision of the next day, as distrusting Gods care and goodness in giving them more. Not that every one was bound to eat all of it, which certainly many of their stomachs could not bear; but that they were to dissolve it, or but it, as they did the remains of some sacrifices, Exo 12:10; 29:34, or consume it some other way.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
And Moses said unto them,…. At the same time he gave the direction to them about gathering it, and measuring out to every man an omer:
let no man leave of it until the morning; not that every man was bound to eat up the quantity distributed to him; he might give what he could not eat to those that could eat more, if there were any such; or he might give it to his cattle, or cast it away, but he was not to reserve it until the next day for his use; which was to teach him that God would bestow this benefit and blessing on him daily, and he might expect it, whose mercies are new every morning; and to instruct him to live every day upon the providence of God for his daily food; as indeed every man ought to do so, let his circumstances be ever so affluent; and, in a more spiritual and evangelic sense, it teaches believers to live continually every day by faith on Christ, and to say day by day, Lord, evermore give us this bread, Joh 6:34.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
In the second place, Moses commanded them, that no one was to leave any of what had been gathered till the next morning. Some of them disobeyed, but what was left went into worms ( literally rose into worms) and stank. Israel was to take no care for the morrow (Mat 6:34), but to enjoy the daily bread received from God in obedience to the giver. The gathering was to take place in the morning (Exo 16:21); for when the sun shone brightly, it melted away.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
19. And Moses said, Let no man. Moses here recounts that, when he had commanded them all not to take more than enough for their daily food, and to gather a double portion the day before the Sabbath, some were disobedient on both points. As to the former, since God would supply their food to them just as the breast is given to babes, it was a sign of perverse unbelief that they would not depend on God’s providence, but sought for a provision which would last them many days. It was also a proof of their obstinacy that they would give credit to no warnings until they were convinced by experience that they laid up in their houses nothing’ but a mass of corruption; for they were not induced to cease from their insatiable greediness till they had received their just punishment. Now, although the case of the manna and the food of our ordinary nourishment is not; altogether similar, yet the comparison holds to a certain extent, for it is so far lawful to keep our corn and wine laid up in granaries and cellars, as that all should still ask truly their daily bread of God. And this will be, if the rich do not greedily swallow up whatsoever they can get together; if they do not avariciously scrape up here and there; if they do not gorge themselves upon the hunger of the poor; if they do not, as far as in them lies, withhold the blessing of God; in a word, if they do not immoderately accumulate large possessions, but: are liberal out of their present abundance, are not too anxious as to the future, and are not troubled, if needs be, that their wealth should suffer diminution; nay, if they are ready to endure poverty, and glory not in their abundance, but repose upon the paternal bounty of God. And surely we often see that what misers collect by theft, rapine, fraud, cruelty, trickery, or meanness, is often turned into corruption. When he adds that, after they saw that their intemperate ardor profited them nothing, they submitted to the command, he implies that their obedience was not voluntary, but extorted from them, for fools are never wise except after adversity. (184) The melting of the manna when the sun waxed hot was a stimulus to correct their idleness or laziness; for, if the manna had remained entire during the whole day, they would not have been so intent upon their duty. Wherefore, by giving them only a short time for its collection, God urged them to diligence.
(184) “Sinon apres avoir este bien batus;” except after being well beaten. — Fr.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(19) Let no man leave of it.Moses must have been divinely instructed to issue this command. It was doubtless given in order that the Israelites might realise their absolute dependence upon God for food from day to day, and might so be habituated to complete trust and confidence in Him.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
‘And Moses said to them, “Let no man leave of it until the morning.” In spite of this they did not listen to Moses but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them.’
Each days supply was to be for that day alone, and Moses ordered them not to leave any over until the morning. But some, having learned in the wilderness to preserve food supplies, were disobedient and kept some for the next day. Then to their horror they found it teeming with worms (or ants – the Hebrew word is a general one and can be used of ants or any number of wriggling creatures) and smelling. This counts against seeing it as the excretion of plant lice as, while that is gathered by ants, it does not smell horribly.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Exo 16:19-20. Moses said, Let no man leave of it, &c. A striking peculiarity of this bread from heaven is here mentioned, which abundantly proves to us, that it was different from common manna; for this putrifies not: whereas that which God sent for the daily food of the Israelites, if kept till the next morning, bred worms and stank. See Dr. Bentley’s 4th Sermon at Boyle’s Lectures. Desirous to keep the people dependent upon his providence, the Almighty determined to give them this heavenly food from day to day. Accordingly, as the preservation of it betrayed great want of faith in the preserver, so was it to no purpose; for, as what remained, after the Israelites had gathered their quantity, melted away by the heat of the sun, so, what they preserved, became utterly unserviceable; see note on Exo 16:4. Another proof, that this was different from the ordinary manna, is, the way in which it was daily dropped down with the dew from heaven: for common manna, as is generally agreed, is a kind of gum which distils from certain trees at a certain season of the year, and is never found in the dew on the ground; nor indeed ever on the ground, except under its own tree. So that, granting there is a species of manna, or honey-dew, found in these parts of Arabia, there is enough in the account of this manna to designate its miraculous and extraordinary nature. See Saurin’s 50th Dissert.
REFLECTIONS.Observe, 1. The manna and quails are sent; not only necessaries, but delicacies. Note; He who gives us appetite for our food, has given our food pleasing qualities to gratify it. We have his provision, not merely to live upon as slaves fed with bread and water, but as children richly to enjoy.
2. They must gather the manna every day; for we must use the means while we are depending on the Divine blessing. As much as they needed, and no more; because we may not abuse God’s gifts by needless hoarding or luxurious profusion. None must be left till morning; because we ought every one to trust upon God for daily bread: not that we are forbidden a provident care for our families, but we must avoid anxious distrust.
3. The disobedience of some. They saved it out of covetousness or unbelief, and it bred worms and stank; which justly provoked Moses’s anger, though the meekest man upon earth. Note; (1.) Covetousness is God’s abhorrence. (2.) A holy jealousy in a minister’s heart for the people’s souls will vent itself in just displeasure against their sins.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Sweet thought suggested here! Faith wants no hoards. And he who most knows God, will best know how to trust him. But beside this instruction, I think there is another equally sweet. Considered as a figure of better things to come, a whole Christ, a finished salvation, is perhaps implied. Let no man leave off this. See by way of clue to this subject, Exo 12:10 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Exo 16:19 And Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning.
Ver. 19. Let no man leave of it, &c. ] It was to be gathered in the morning, and not kept till the morrow. “I made haste and delayed not,” saith David. Psa 119:60
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Exo 12:10, Exo 23:18, Mat 6:34
Reciprocal: Exo 29:34 – burn Lev 8:11 – General Lev 22:30 – General
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Exo 16:19. Let no man leave of it till the morning For the provision of the next day, as distrusting Gods care and goodness in giving him more. Not that every one was bound to eat the whole of what he had gathered; but they were to dissolve or burn it, as they did the remains of some sacrifices, or to consume it some other way. Thus, they were to learn to go to bed quietly, though they had not a bit of bread in their tents, nor in all their camp, trusting God with the following day to bring them their daily bread. Never was there such a market of provisions as this, where so many hundred thousand men were daily furnished without money and without price: never was there such an open house kept as God kept in the wilderness for forty years together, nor such free and plentiful entertainment given. And the same wisdom, power, and goodness that now brought food daily out of the clouds, doth, in the constant course of nature, bring food yearly out of the earth, and gives us all things richly to enjoy.