I might have been asleep when we discussed it in Hebrew class, but I don’t remember learning what the word manna means.    I know it is the food gathered and eaten by the ancient Israelites during the exodus.    It’s described as being “like coriander seed, white, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.”  (Exodus 16:31)   But what does the word manna mean?   There’s an explanation given in Exodus 16:15.  “When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, ‘What is it?’”    That phrase in Hebrew is “man hu.”  The implication is that manna means, “What is it?”

I understand why they might have called it that.  Serve a new casserole to children and the first words out of their mouths will probably be, “What is it?”  This is not really a question, but a judgment.

God gave the people manna in the wilderness and they responded, “What is it?”  How often is that the people’s response to the gifts of God?  I think the “prosperity preachers” are so popular because they promise material goods from God.  We know what it is to have a pocket full of money.  But what is it to be full of grace?    What is peace?  What is love?  What is hope?   I can look up these words in a dictionary much like I looked up manna, but what do they mean to me?

This is not a devotion filled with answers, only questions.   What are the gifts God has given to me and what do they mean to my life?  It’s something to ponder.

Read John 6:30-36 and remember:  God loves YOU unconditionally.

Posted by Wayne in August 2018