¹⁴ When the dew had gone, thin white pieces remained on the dry ground, there in the desert. It seemed like frost on the ground. ¹⁵ When the Israelites saw these pieces, they said, ‘What is it?’ They did not understand what it was. But Moses said to them, ‘This is the bread that the Lord has given to you. It is for you to eat. ¹⁶ This is what the Lord has commanded: “Each family must pick up as much as they need to eat. Pick up two litres for each person who lives in your tent.” ’

¹⁷ So the Israelites did this. Some of them picked up a lot of the food. Some of them picked up only a little food. ¹⁸ But when they measured the right amount, everyone had enough to eat. The person who had picked up a lot did not have too much. And the person who had picked up only a little food still had enough to eat. Each person had picked up what he needed.

¹⁹ Then Moses said to them, ‘Do not keep any of it until the morning.’ ²⁰ But some of the people did not listen to Moses. They kept part of the food until the morning. But worms appeared in it, and it began to have a bad smell. Then Moses was angry with those people.

²¹ Each morning, everyone picked up as much food as they needed. But when the sun became hot, the food would melt away. ²² On the sixth day, the Israelites picked up twice as much food. They picked up four litres for each person. Then the leaders of the people told Moses what they had done. ²³ Moses said to them, ‘This is what the Lord has said: “Tomorrow is a special day of rest. It is a Sabbath day, to worship the Lord. Today, you must bake any food that you want to bake. Boil the meat that you want to boil. Keep until the morning whatever food you do not eat today.” ’

²⁴ So they kept some food until the morning, as Moses had said. This time, the food did not have a bad smell and there were no worms in it. ²⁵ Moses said, ‘Eat the food today, because this day is a Sabbath day, to worship the Lord. You will not find any food on the ground today. ²⁶ On six days of each week, you must pick food up from the ground. But on the seventh day of the week, there will not be any food on the ground. That is because the seventh day is the Sabbath day of rest.’

²⁷ But on the seventh day, some of the people went out to pick up food. But they did not find any. ²⁸ Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘The people continue to refuse to obey my commands. They refuse to do what I tell them! ²⁹ Remember this: The Lord has given the Sabbath day to you. That is why, on the sixth day, he gives you enough food for two days. Then everyone must stay at home on the seventh day. Nobody must leave his home that day.’ ³⁰ So the people rested on the seventh day.

³¹ The Israelites called the special food ‘manna’. It was white, like seeds called coriander. When they tasted the manna, it was like thin pieces of bread with honey in it.