Tuesday after Laetare
Posted on March 16, 2021 by under
Scripture: Exodus 16:4-15 (NKJV)
16:4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not. 5 And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.”
6 Then Moses and Aaron said to all the children of Israel, “At evening you shall know that the Lord has brought you out of the land of Egypt. 7 And in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord; for He hears your complaints against the Lord. But what are we, that you complain against us?” 8 Also Moses said, “This shall be seen when the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening, and in the morning bread to the full; for the Lord hears your complaints which you make against Him. And what are we? Your complaints are not against us but against the Lord.”
9 Then Moses spoke to Aaron, “Say to all the congregation of the children of Israel, ‘Come near before the Lord, for He has heard your complaints.’” 10 Now it came to pass, as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud.
11 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 12 “I have heard the complaints of the children of Israel. Speak to them, saying, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. And you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’”
13 So it was that quails came up at evening and covered the camp, and in the morning the dew lay all around the camp. 14 And when the layer of dew lifted, there, on the surface of the wilderness, was a small round substance, as fine as frost on the ground. 15 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.
Devotion
In their wilderness wanderings the Israelites found themselves in the Desert of Sin. Even though its name is not connected to our English word, it is coincidental this is a desolate place where food and water are scarce or nonexistent. After having left the lush oasis of Elim, the Israelites’ food supplies were running out and their hunger turned to grumbling and blaming. Though God had every right and reason to lash out, out of His great mercy He promised to sustain them with manna—God’s bread from heaven. In addition, He would provide meat in the form of quail. But most importantly, they would experience the presence of the Lord God Himself: “Now it came to pass, as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud.” God not only gave His people earthly sustenance, He gave them Himself. And thus He assured them He will always be with them, and with us.
But how often do we lament, “if only I had been there it would be easier to believe”? In reality, we are the more highly privileged, as God has made Himself available through the means of Word and Sacrament. The faithful message of Law and Gospel is only an arm’s reach away, if only we avail ourselves of their riches. May God grant us the wisdom to behold the glory of God, given to us in His Means of Grace in His Church.
Prayer: Grant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that we, who for our evil deeds do worthily deserve to be punished, by the comfort of Thy grace may mercifully be relieved, through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
