And the whole congregation of the people of Israel (A)grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, and the people of Israel said to them, (B)“Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, (C)when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain (D)bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may (E)test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, (F)it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” So Moses and Aaron said to all the people of Israel, (G)“At evening (H)you shall know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, and in the morning you shall see the (I)glory of the Lord, because he has heard your grumbling against the Lord. For (J)what are we, that you grumble against us?” And Moses said, “When the Lord gives you in the evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because the Lord has heard your grumbling that you grumble against him—(K)what are we? Your grumbling is not (L)against us but against the Lord.”

Then Moses (M)said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, (N)‘Come near before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling.’” 10 And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the (O)glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. 11 And the Lord said to Moses, 12 “I (P)have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘At (Q)twilight you shall eat meat, and (R)in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’”

13 In the evening (S)quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning (T)dew lay around the camp. 14 And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. 15 When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, (U)“What is it?”[a] For they (V)did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, (W)“It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat.

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Footnotes

  1. Exodus 16:15 Or “It is manna”; Hebrew man hu

In the desert the whole community grumbled(A) against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt!(B) There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food(C) we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”(D)

Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven(E) for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test(F) them and see whether they will follow my instructions. On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice(G) as much as they gather on the other days.”

So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “In the evening you will know that it was the Lord who brought you out of Egypt,(H) and in the morning you will see the glory(I) of the Lord, because he has heard your grumbling(J) against him. Who are we, that you should grumble against us?”(K) Moses also said, “You will know that it was the Lord when he gives you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the morning, because he has heard your grumbling(L) against him. Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord.”(M)

Then Moses told Aaron, “Say to the entire Israelite community, ‘Come before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling.’”

10 While Aaron was speaking to the whole Israelite community, they looked toward the desert, and there was the glory(N) of the Lord appearing in the cloud.(O)

11 The Lord said to Moses, 12 “I have heard the grumbling(P) of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.’”(Q)

13 That evening quail(R) came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew(S) around the camp. 14 When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost(T) on the ground appeared on the desert floor. 15 When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know(U) what it was.

Moses said to them, “It is the bread(V) the Lord has given you to eat.

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10 When God saw what they did, (A)how they turned from their evil way, (B)God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.

Jonah's Anger and the Lord's Compassion

But it displeased Jonah exceedingly,[a] and (C)he was angry. And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? (D)That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a (E)gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and (F)relenting from disaster. (G)Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, (H)for it is better for me to die than to live.” And the Lord said, (I)“Do you do well to be angry?”

Jonah went out of the city and sat to the east of the city and (J)made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, till he should see what would become of the city. Now the Lord God appointed a plant[b] and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be a shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort.[c] So Jonah was exceedingly glad because of the plant. But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the plant, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God appointed a scorching (K)east wind, (L)and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he (M)was faint. And he asked that he might die and said, (N)“It is better for me to die than to live.” But God said to Jonah, (O)“Do you do well to be angry for the plant?” And he said, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to die.” 10 And the Lord said, “You pity the plant, for which you did not labor, nor did you make it grow, which came into being in a night and perished in a night. 11 And should not I pity (P)Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much (Q)cattle?”

Footnotes

  1. Jonah 4:1 Hebrew it was exceedingly evil to Jonah
  2. Jonah 4:6 Hebrew qiqayon, probably the castor oil plant; also verses 7, 9, 10
  3. Jonah 4:6 Or his evil

10 When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented(A) and did not bring on them the destruction(B) he had threatened.(C)

Jonah’s Anger at the Lord’s Compassion

But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry.(D) He prayed to the Lord, “Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew(E) that you are a gracious(F) and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love,(G) a God who relents(H) from sending calamity.(I) Now, Lord, take away my life,(J) for it is better for me to die(K) than to live.”(L)

But the Lord replied, “Is it right for you to be angry?”(M)

Jonah had gone out and sat down at a place east of the city. There he made himself a shelter, sat in its shade and waited to see what would happen to the city. Then the Lord God provided(N) a leafy plant[a] and made it grow up over Jonah to give shade for his head to ease his discomfort, and Jonah was very happy about the plant. But at dawn the next day God provided a worm, which chewed the plant so that it withered.(O) When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die,(P) and said, “It would be better for me to die than to live.”

But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”(Q)

“It is,” he said. “And I’m so angry I wish I were dead.”

10 But the Lord said, “You have been concerned about this plant, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. 11 And should I not have concern(R) for the great city of Nineveh,(S) in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”

Footnotes

  1. Jonah 4:6 The precise identification of this plant is uncertain; also in verses 7, 9 and 10.