God gave the Israelites manna to eat, and manna only, so that they would understand that man does not live by bread alone. I think this verse is more famous for it's quote by Christ in the gospels during His temptation than it is it's actual context. That's okay. But it did hit home tonight. Really, God could have provided them with a feast every day for forty years (though even I can see why that wouldn't have been wise or good for them). He could have had herds of cattle to sprout up from the ground, and indeed they did take herds in with them. So why weren't they eating them? God had ordained that the Israelites ate manna, that they depended on manna, that when they complained for meat, He engorged them so much on it that they no longer wanted it. Why? To teach them that it is not by their will or their bread that they live: that it was His supply, His guidance, His love, His providence. Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. It is God's Word that created the earth. It is by God's Word that the earth shall be destroyed and then made new. It awes me.
Certainly, if Israel was to be reminded that it was not for their own merit or righteousness that they entered the land, then they had the track record to prove it. Moses could bring forth example after example to prove to them that they had been stubborn, willful, disobedient, and ungrateful. Remember Horeb? Right. Remember the golden calf? Yeah. Remember Taberah? Massah? Meribah? Kibroth-hattaavah? Remember Kadesh-barnea? Uh-huh, just to name a few, folks. Israel hadn't merited the favor they were receiving, but God was faithful to His promises. It was the wickedness of the people they were to drive out that really sealed the deal: their pagan worship, their idolatry, their immorality. These peoples would never bow the knee to God and those that were allowed to remain were always enticing God's people away from Him. It almost seems discouraging, leaving it here. But there is a lesson here: it is not for our righteousness that God loves any of us. "While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8). It is not because of our good qualities that He loves us. He loves us because of who He is. That means that no matter what we've done, or what we could do, we can come to Him. It is not conditional upon us, but upon Himself, who will never change. He has said He loves us, that He wants us. He will do all the work to make us what we should be, if we will only let Him and not rebel as the Israelites did. They were a mighty people when they were obedient. They were impotent when they weren't. We can learn from that.
Tomorrow's Reading: Deuteronomy 10:1-11:32
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