And the manna was as coriander seed, and the colour thereof as the colour of bdellium.
Parallel translations
- WEB The manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like the appearance of bdellium.
- BSB Now the manna resembled coriander seed, and its appearance was like that of gum resin.
- NKJV Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its color like the color of bdellium.
- NASB Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium.
- NLT The manna looked like small coriander seeds, and it was pale yellow like gum resin.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The text describes the manna's appearance, underscoring it as a real, tangible gift. God's provision was concrete and recognizable.
Overview
A brief description of the manna—like coriander seed, with the look of bdellium—affirms its reality and consistency. The detail rebukes the people's contempt by reminding the reader of the daily miracle they dismissed. It also prepares for the comparison Jesus draws between this perishable bread and himself, the bread that endures (John 6).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Exod 16:31And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it was like coriander seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.
- Gen 2:12And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
- Exod 16:14–15And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground.
- 1 Cor 1:23–24But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;
- Rev 2:17He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.
How Numbers 11:7 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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