dar334

In my study of Revelation, I found myself comfortably settled in the study notes.  By reading them first, it’s slightly more likely I will understand the verses. Revelation is hard.  I am determined.

I was slowly reading along, sometimes rereading when I realized my attention was on something else, when out of nowhere manna appeared. Not literally of course, but I have read about manna several times in the Old Testament. It first appeared in chapter 16 of Exodus.  The Israelites had been led out of their captivity in Egypt by Moses after he killed an Egyptian and had taken off for several years until he saw a burning bush and God sent him back to Egypt to rescue the enslaved Israelites. Now you would think with the help of God it would have been an easy task to get the Israelites out of Egypt.  But I’ve learned the hard way that with God comes stuff. A lot of stuff.  And before he let Moses lead the Israelites out of Egypt a lot of stuff happened.  Frogs, locusts, lice, livestock, flies, darkness, bloody water, hail, festering boils, flies, and lets not forget the death of the firstborn. Then there was a huge river, chariots, a Pharaoh, clouds, light, and finally peace at last in the wilderness. Then the whining and complaining started. The Israelites had witnessed all the miraculous things God had done but they still didn’t trust him enough to get them safely to the Promised Land. They were hungry. This is where the manna came in to play.   From Exodus 16:13 “That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. 14 When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost 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 what it was.  Moses said to them, “It is the bread the LORD has given you to eat.”

Anyways, the study note that caused this whole ponder was for Revelation 2:17.  “Hidden manna” suggests the spiritual nourishment that the faithful believers will receive. As the Israelites traveled toward the Promised Land, God provided manna from heaven for their physical nourishment.  Jesus, as the living bread of life, provides spiritual nourishment that satisfies our deepest hunger.”

Now wait a minute.  Manna was Old Testament.  Old Old Testament.  So then I had to go to the actual scripture in Revelation:  “Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna.  I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it.”

Manna like Jesus came from Heaven to give us nourishment.  One was physical, the other spiritual.

I’m a fan of the Old Testament. It’s act 1, and without an act 1 you can’t have an act 2. As I’m pondering this I wonder about when act 3 will be written. The final book in the Bible is Revelation, it predicts what is yet to come, perhaps when Jesus returns, act 3 will be written.

Now there’s about 5 minutes of your life you will never get back, I hope it was worth it.

Pondering a lot of stuff today,

-dar