Numbers 11:7 kjv
And the manna was as coriander seed, and the color thereof as the color of bdellium.
Numbers 11:7 nkjv
Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its color like the color of bdellium.
Numbers 11:7 niv
The manna was like coriander seed and looked like resin.
Numbers 11:7 esv
Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium.
Numbers 11:7 nlt
The manna looked like small coriander seeds, and it was pale yellow like gum resin.
Numbers 11 7 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ex 16:15 | When the Israelites saw it, they asked each other, "What is it?" (...). | Manna: "What is it?" meaning, God's unknown provision. |
| Ex 16:31 | The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. | Original description; white, taste. |
| Deut 8:3 | ...that He might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. | Spiritual lesson of manna; dependence on God's word. |
| Neh 9:20-21 | You gave Your good Spirit to instruct them... You sustained them forty years in the wilderness. | God's faithful sustenance of Israel. |
| Ps 78:24-25 | ...and rained down on them manna to eat; He gave them the grain of heaven. Man ate of the bread of angels... | Manna as "grain of heaven," "bread of angels." |
| Ps 105:40 | They asked, and He brought quails, and He satisfied them with bread from heaven. | Manna as "bread from heaven." |
| Num 11:4-6 | ...the people who were among them craved only the food of pleasure. (...), "Our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at." | Israel's complaint and disdain for the manna, context. |
| Num 21:5 | And the people spoke against God and against Moses: "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? (...), for we loathe this worthless food." | Israel's further contempt for manna ("worthless food"). |
| Ex 16:3 | And the children of Israel said to them, "Oh, that we had died (...), when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full (...)" | Early grumbling over food in Egypt. |
| Jn 6:31-35 | Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.' Then Jesus said (...), "I am the bread of life." | Manna foreshadows Jesus, the true Bread of Life. |
| Jn 6:47-51 | "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died." | Contrasting manna (temporal) with Christ (eternal life). |
| Jn 6:58 | This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever. | Manna as a type for Christ, the superior spiritual sustenance. |
| 1 Cor 10:3 | and all ate the same spiritual food, | Manna as "spiritual food" for Israel. |
| Heb 9:4 | (...); in it was the golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron's staff that budded... | Manna in the Ark of the Covenant, a memorial. |
| Rev 2:17 | To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone with a new name written on it (...). | Future spiritual "hidden manna" for believers. |
| Gen 2:12 | The gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. | Bdellium also mentioned in reference to preciousness and purity. |
| Matt 4:4 | But He answered, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" | Jesus quoting Deut 8:3, reinforcing dependence on God's word. |
| Matt 6:11 | Give us this day our daily bread, | Daily physical provision, echoes manna's daily supply. |
| Lk 12:22-24 | And He said to His disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food..." | Encouragement against anxiety, trusting God for provision. |
| Php 4:19 | And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. | God's unfailing provision for His people. |
| Ps 23:5 | You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies... | God's protective and sustaining provision even amidst adversaries. |
| Deut 2:7 | For the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hand. He knows your going through this great wilderness. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you; you have lacked nothing. | Affirmation of God's complete provision throughout the 40 years. |
Numbers 11 verses
Numbers 11 7 Meaning
Numbers 11:7 describes the appearance of the manna that God provided daily to the Israelites in the wilderness. It compares the manna to a common, small coriander seed in its size and shape, and to the transparent or translucent quality of bdellium resin in its color or luster. This description serves to characterize the unique and miraculous sustenance provided by God, setting it apart as a divine provision despite its humble and consistent appearance. The verse immediately follows the Israelites' grumbling against the manna, emphasizing its divinely pure and precious nature even as they despised it.
Numbers 11 7 Context
Numbers chapter 11 opens with the Israelites complaining against the Lord, followed by a specific outburst from the "rabble" (mixed multitude) among them, who incite the whole congregation to desire meat, fish, cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic, which they remembered from Egypt. They expressed profound weariness with the manna, calling it "worthless food" and expressing disdain for its constant presence. This verse, Numbers 11:7, is inserted immediately after this outburst of complaint (Num 11:4-6), providing a concise and precise description of the very substance they were despising.
The broader historical context is the forty-year wilderness journey, a period during which God miraculously sustained an entire nation in a barren environment. The manna was their sole sustenance, appearing daily (except on the Sabbath) for forty years, serving as a continuous testament to God's faithful provision and Israel's utter dependence on Him. This verse's detailed description underscores the consistent, unique, and pure nature of this divine bread, highlighting the ingratitude and spiritual blindness of the people who scorned such a precious gift.
Numbers 11 7 Word analysis
- Now the manna: Hebrew wəhamman (וְהַמָּן). The term manna itself (from man) originates from the Hebrew question "Man hu?" (מָן הוּא), meaning "What is it?" (Ex 16:15). This name encapsulates its mysterious, supernatural origin—it was not a known natural food source, but a direct gift from God, uniquely provided.
- was like: Hebrew haya kĕ. This denotes a comparison or simile. The description provides earthly analogies to help understand a supernaturally provided substance. It was visible and tangible, yet its origins and composition were divine.
- coriander seed: Hebrew gad (גַּד). Coriander seeds are small, spherical, and typically whitish-yellow or grayish. Exodus 16:31 describes the manna as "white like coriander seed" in appearance and texture. This comparison suggests the manna's small, regular, and somewhat uniform size and shape, indicating its abundance and ease of collection.
- and its color: Hebrew wəʿeynāh (וְעֵינָהּ). The Hebrew word ʿayin (עַיִן), typically meaning "eye," is also used metaphorically for appearance, sheen, sparkling quality, luster, or even a fountain's "eye." Here, it likely refers to the visible aspect or characteristic luminosity, not merely a flat hue. It denotes a more nuanced visual quality than just "color."
- like the color of bdellium: Hebrew kəʿein habbəḏōlaḥ (כְּעֵין הַבְּדֹלַח). Bdellium (בְּדֹלַח) is mentioned only twice in the Old Testament: here and in Gen 2:12, where it is associated with the pure and precious elements found in the land of Havilah, a land rich in gold. Scholars identify bdellium as a translucent, waxy, or gummy resin, often yellowish, pearl-like, or amber in color, and possibly glowing or shimmering. Its inclusion here implies that despite the manna's common, seed-like form, it possessed an underlying preciousness, purity, or radiant quality, linking it to valuable and pristine substances, contrasting with the Israelites' perception of it as common or despised.
- Words-group by words-group analysis:
- "Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its color like the color of bdellium.": This full phrase is a precise, dual comparison that provides a complete visual description of the manna. The comparison to "coriander seed" speaks to its mundane, regular, small appearance, easily distributed and collected. The addition of "bdellium" elevates the description, hinting at an ethereal, pure, or valuable quality that transcended its humble form, revealing the divine nature of God's daily provision. This detailed description is given by God to underscore the quality of what the Israelites were complaining about.
Numbers 11 7 Bonus section
- The dual description of manna, linking it to both a common seed and a valuable, transparent resin, highlights that God's provisions often blend simplicity with profound spiritual significance. The humble exterior masked a divine and sustaining inner quality.
- The comparison to bdellium, found in Gen 2:12 associated with Edenic purity and preciousness, subliminally links the wilderness manna to the paradise God originally intended for humanity, elevating it beyond mere "bread." It suggested that despite the fallen state of the world and their wilderness journey, God's provision was still perfect and pure.
- The Israelites' complaint was not just against the food itself but against God's choice of provision, revealing a heart condition of ingratitude and lack of faith in His wisdom and goodness. They did not grasp that their wilderness journey was meant to teach them reliance on every word that came from the mouth of God (Deut 8:3), and the manna was a tangible symbol of that divine teaching.
Numbers 11 7 Commentary
Numbers 11:7 provides a profound description of the manna, emphasizing its divinely pure and precious nature, even as the Israelites grumbled against it. While outwardly appearing simple and like a common seed (coriander), its deeper essence, described by its lustrous, translucent quality like bdellium, points to its unique, supernatural origin and God's holiness in provision. The contrast between this divine description and the people's contempt for "this worthless food" (Num 11:5) reveals their spiritual dullness and ungrateful hearts. They were focused on the exotic foods of Egypt and worldly pleasures, neglecting the pure, life-sustaining "bread from heaven" that demonstrated God's intimate care and faithfulness daily. This serves as a perpetual lesson on humanity's tendency to devalue God's constant and sufficient provisions when desiring transient worldly gratification, reminding us to appreciate God's faithful sustenance, even in its most humble form.