◄ Deuteronomy 8:16 ►
He fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers had not known, in order to humble you and test you, so that in the end He might cause you to prosper.
Study Bible
He fed you in the wilderness
This phrase highlights God's provision for the Israelites during their 40-year journey in the wilderness. The Hebrew word for "fed" is "אכל" (akal), which means to eat or consume. This provision was not just physical sustenance but a demonstration of God's faithfulness and care. The wilderness, or "מדבר" (midbar), represents a place of testing and reliance on God. Historically, the wilderness journey was a formative period for Israel, teaching them dependence on God rather than on human means.

with manna
Manna, or "מן" (man), was the miraculous food provided by God. Its etymology is uncertain, but it is often associated with the question "What is it?" due to its mysterious nature. Manna symbolizes God's supernatural provision and is a type of Christ, the Bread of Life, as seen in John 6:31-35. It served as a daily reminder of God's presence and care.

which your fathers had not known
This phrase emphasizes the uniqueness of God's provision. The Hebrew word for "known" is "ידע" (yada), meaning to know or experience. The manna was unprecedented, highlighting God's ability to provide in ways beyond human understanding or expectation. It underscores the newness of God's work and His ability to do the unimaginable.

to humble and test you
The purpose of God's provision was not just sustenance but spiritual growth. The Hebrew word for "humble" is "ענה" (anah), meaning to afflict or humble. The testing, "נסה" (nasah), was to refine and prove their faith. This process of humbling and testing was meant to develop trust and obedience in God, teaching reliance on Him alone.

so that in the end
This phrase points to the ultimate purpose of God's actions. The Hebrew "אחרית" (acharit) refers to the latter end or future. God's dealings with Israel were not arbitrary but aimed at a future outcome. It reflects the biblical principle that God's discipline and provision are for our ultimate good and His glory.

He might cause you to prosper
The Hebrew word for "prosper" is "יטב" (yatab), meaning to do good or make well. God's intention was to bless and prosper Israel, not just materially but spiritually. This prosperity is contingent upon obedience and faithfulness to God. It serves as a reminder that God's plans for His people are for their welfare and flourishing, aligning with the promise in Jeremiah 29:11.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Moses
The leader of the Israelites who delivered God's laws and instructions, including the message in Deuteronomy.

2. Israelites
The people of God who were led out of Egypt and wandered in the wilderness for 40 years.

3. Wilderness
The desert region where the Israelites wandered and were tested by God.

4. Manna
The miraculous food provided by God to sustain the Israelites during their time in the wilderness.

5. God
The sovereign deity who provided for, tested, and sought to prosper the Israelites.
Teaching Points
Dependence on God
Just as the Israelites depended on manna, we must rely on God for our daily needs and spiritual sustenance.

Purpose of Testing
God's testing is designed to humble us and strengthen our faith, preparing us for future blessings.

Prosperity through Obedience
True prosperity comes from following God's commands and trusting His provision.

Remembering God's Faithfulness
Reflect on past experiences of God's provision to strengthen faith in current and future challenges.

Humility in Provision
Recognize that all we have is from God, and maintain a humble heart in times of abundance and need.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the provision of manna in the wilderness illustrate God's care and provision in your own life?

2. In what ways has God used testing or trials to humble and strengthen your faith?

3. How can you apply the lesson of dependence on God in your daily life, especially in times of uncertainty?

4. What are some practical ways to remember and celebrate God's past faithfulness in your life?

5. How does understanding God's purpose in testing change your perspective on current challenges you face?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Exodus 16
This chapter describes the initial provision of manna to the Israelites, highlighting God's miraculous provision and the people's dependence on Him.

Matthew 4:4
Jesus references the importance of relying on God's word, not just physical sustenance, echoing the lesson of dependence taught through manna.

James 1:2-4
This passage discusses the testing of faith and perseverance, similar to how God tested the Israelites in the wilderness.

Philippians 4:19
Paul speaks of God's provision for all needs, reflecting the same divine care shown through the provision of manna.

Hebrews 12:11
This verse discusses discipline and its purpose in producing righteousness, akin to the humbling and testing of the Israelites.
Sermons
Good At the Latter EndJ. Orr Deuteronomy 8:16
God Forgotten Amid Second CausesR.M. Edgar Deuteronomy 8:7-20
Wealth Perilous to PietyD. Davies Deuteronomy 8:7-20
The Dangers of WealthJ. Orr Deuteronomy 8:10-19
Danger of RichesDeuteronomy 8:11-17
Forgetful of GodThos. le Blanc.Deuteronomy 8:11-17
Forgetfulness of GodJ. Bibb.Deuteronomy 8:11-17
God ForgottenDeuteronomy 8:11-17
National WealthC. Kingsley, M. A.Deuteronomy 8:11-17
Prosperity and Spiritual RuinJ. Halsey.Deuteronomy 8:11-17
The Christian Aspect and Use of PoliticsCanon D. J. Vaughan.Deuteronomy 8:11-17
The Journey Towards the Promised LandFrank Coulin, D. D.Deuteronomy 8:11-17
The Manna Which Humbled IsraelD. F. Jarman, M. A.Deuteronomy 8:11-17
The ScorpionR. Newton, D. D.Deuteronomy 8:11-17
People
Moses
Places
Beth-baal-peor, Egypt
Topics
Afflict, Broken, Causing, Desert, Didn't, Eat, Fathers, Fed, Hearts, Humble, Latter, Manna, Order, Pride, Prove, Test, Tested, Try, Waste, Wilderness
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Deuteronomy 8:16

     4438   eating
     4474   manna
     8276   humility
     8832   testing

Deuteronomy 8:10-18

     5776   achievement
     8670   remembering

Deuteronomy 8:11-17

     5960   success

Deuteronomy 8:15-16

     4019   life, believers' experience
     5473   proof, through testing

Library
God's Training
DEUTERONOMY viii. 2-5. And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the …
Charles Kingsley—Discipline and Other Sermons

The Lesson of Memory
'Thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these lofty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep His commandments, or no.'--DEUT. viii.2. The strand of our lives usually slips away smoothly enough, but days such as this, the last Sunday in a year, are like the knots on a sailor's log, which, as they pass through his fingers, tell him how fast it is being paid out from the reel, and how far it has …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

National Wealth
(Fifth Sunday after Easter.) Deut. viii. 11-18. Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day: lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; and when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth …
Charles Kingsley—The Gospel of the Pentateuch

Subterraneous Places. Mines. Caves.
Thus having taken some notice of the superficies of the land, let us a little search into its bowels. You may divide the subterraneous country into three parts: the metal mines, the caves, and the places of burial. This land was eminently noted for metal mines, so that "its stones," in very many places, "were iron, and out of its hills was digged brass," Deuteronomy 8:9. From these gain accrued to the Jews: but to the Christians, not seldom slavery and misery; being frequently condemned hither by …
John Lightfoot—From the Talmud and Hebraica

Emmanuel's Land
P. G. Deut. viii. 7-10 The land! the glory of all lands, Beyond the Jordan's wave; Beyond the weary desert sands-- The land beyond the grave! Now safe witin that glorious land, We prove His faithful Word; 'Midst Canaan's golden fields we stand, The ransomed of the Lord. Amidst the burning desert drought We learnt His watchful love; Streams from the flinty rocks He brought, Sent bread from Heaven above. Our God in weariness and need, His love was measured there By hunger which His hand would feed, …
Frances Bevan—Hymns of Ter Steegen, Suso, and Others

Palestine Eighteen Centuries Ago
Eighteen and a half centuries ago, and the land which now lies desolate--its bare, grey hills looking into ill-tilled or neglected valleys, its timber cut down, its olive- and vine-clad terraces crumbled into dust, its villages stricken with poverty and squalor, its thoroughfares insecure and deserted, its native population well-nigh gone, and with them its industry, wealth, and strength--presented a scene of beauty, richness, and busy life almost unsurpassed in the then known world. The Rabbis never …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

The Temptation of Christ
Matthew 4:1-11 -- "Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered. And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a …
George Whitefield—Selected Sermons of George Whitefield

Why all Things Work for Good
1. The grand reason why all things work for good, is the near and dear interest which God has in His people. The Lord has made a covenant with them. "They shall be my people, and I will be their God" (Jer. xxxii. 38). By virtue of this compact, all things do, and must work, for good to them. "I am God, even thy God" (Psalm l. 7). This word, Thy God,' is the sweetest word in the Bible, it implies the best relations; and it is impossible there should be these relations between God and His people, and …
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial

Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners:
A BRIEF AND FAITHFUL RELATION OF THE EXCEEDING MERCY OF GOD IN CHRIST TO HIS POOR SERVANT, JOHN BUNYAN; WHEREIN IS PARTICULARLY SHOWED THE MANNER OF HIS CONVERSION, HIS SIGHT AND TROUBLE FOR SIN, HIS DREADFUL TEMPTATIONS, ALSO HOW HE DESPAIRED OF GOD'S MERCY, AND HOW THE LORD AT LENGTH THROUGH CHRIST DID DELIVER HIM FROM ALL THE GUILT AND TERROR THAT LAY UPON HIM. Whereunto is added a brief relation of his call to the work of the ministry, of his temptations therein, as also what he hath met with …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

In Death and after Death
A sadder picture could scarcely be drawn than that of the dying Rabbi Jochanan ben Saccai, that "light of Israel" immediately before and after the destruction of the Temple, and for two years the president of the Sanhedrim. We read in the Talmud (Ber. 28 b) that, when his disciples came to see him on his death-bed, he burst into tears. To their astonished inquiry why he, "the light of Israel, the right pillar of the Temple, and its mighty hammer," betrayed such signs of fear, he replied: "If I were …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life

Meditations Before Dinner and Supper.
Meditate that hunger is like the sickness called a wolf; which, if thou dost not feed, will devour thee, and eat thee up; and that meat and drink are but as physic, or means which God hath ordained, to relieve and cure this natural infirmity and necessity of man. Use, therefore, to eat and to drink, rather to sustain and refresh the weakness of nature, than to satisfy the sensuality and delights of the flesh. Eat, therefore, to live, but live not to eat. There is no service so base, as for a man …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

Third Sunday Before Lent
Text: First Corinthians 9, 24-27; 10, 1-5. 24 Know ye not that they that run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? Even so run; that ye may attain. 25 And every man that striveth in the games exerciseth self-control in all things. Now they do it to receive a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. 26 I therefore so run, as not uncertainly; so fight I, as not beating the air: 27 but I buffet my body, and bring it into bondage: lest by any means, after that I have preached to others, …
Martin Luther—Epistle Sermons, Vol. II

Deuteronomy
Owing to the comparatively loose nature of the connection between consecutive passages in the legislative section, it is difficult to present an adequate summary of the book of Deuteronomy. In the first section, i.-iv. 40, Moses, after reviewing the recent history of the people, and showing how it reveals Jehovah's love for Israel, earnestly urges upon them the duty of keeping His laws, reminding them of His spirituality and absoluteness. Then follows the appointment, iv. 41-43--here irrelevant (cf. …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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