The whole congregation left Elim and reached the wilderness of Sin on the fifteenth day of the second month after leaving Egypt. There the people complained against Moses and Aaron. They said that in Egypt they had sat by pots of meat and eaten bread until full, but had now been brought into the wilderness to die of hunger. Moses said that their complaint was not against him and Aaron alone, but against the LORD.
God said that he would rain bread from heaven. The people were to gather enough for each day, and this would test whether they walked in God’s instruction. On the sixth day they were to gather twice as much. Moses and Aaron told the people that in the evening they would know who had brought them out of Egypt, and in the morning they would see the glory of the LORD.
That evening quail came up and covered the camp. In the morning dew lay around it, and when the dew lifted, a fine flaky thing like frost covered the ground. The Israelites asked what it was. Moses told them it was the bread the LORD had given them to eat. Each household gathered an omer for each person. Those who gathered much had nothing left over, and those who gathered little had no lack.
Moses told them not to keep any until morning. Some did, and it bred worms and stank. Each morning the people gathered what they needed before the heat melted it. On the sixth day they brought in a double portion. Moses explained that the next day was a holy Sabbath, so they should bake and boil what they needed and keep the rest.
The food kept for the Sabbath did not stink or breed worms. Moses told them not to search for it in the field on that day, but some went out and found none. God asked how long they would refuse to keep his commands, and the people rested on the seventh day.
Israel called the food manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. Moses ordered an omer preserved so later generations could see the food given in the wilderness. Aaron placed it before the testimony. Israel ate manna for forty years, until they came to inhabited land.
Moses told them to place an omer of manna before the LORD. Day after day they gathered a daily portion, and on the day before Sabbath they gathered two. In a wilderness without fields or grain, food lay around the camp each morning. People ground it in mills, crushed it in mortars, boiled it in pots, or made cakes from it. The food continued with Israel until they reached the border of Canaan.