Mercy Beyond Their Murmuring — Joseph Hall on Exodus 16

Mercy Beyond Their Murmuring

I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak to them, saying, At even you shall eat flesh, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread; and you shall know that I am the Lord your God.

Exodus chapter 16 verse 12

When a man would have looked that the anger of God should have appeared in fire, now, behold, his glory appears in a cloud. Oh the exceeding longsuffering of God, that hears their murmurings, and, as if he had been bound to content them, instead of punishing, pleases them! as a kind mother would deal with a crabbed child, who rather stills him with the breast, than calls for the rod.

One would have thought, that the sight of the cloud of God should have dispelled the cloud of their distrust; and this glory of God should have made them ashamed of themselves, and afraid of him: yet I do not hear them once say, What a mighty and gracious God have we distrusted! Nothing will content an impotent mind but fruition. When a heart is hardened with any passion, it will endure much, ere it will yield to relent.

Their eyes saw the cloud; their ears heard the promise; the performance is speedy and answerable. Needs must they be convinced, when they saw God as glorious in his work as in his presence; when they saw his word justified by his act. God tells them aforehand what he will do, that their expectation might stay their hearts. He does that which he foretold, that they might learn to trust him ere he perform. They desired meat, and received quails; they desired bread, and have manna.

If they had had of the coarsest flesh, and of the basest pulse, hunger would have made it dainty: but now God will pamper their famine; and gives them meat of kings, and bread of angels. What a world of quails were but sufficient to serve six hundred thousand persons! They were all strong, all hungry; neither could they be satisfied with single fowls. What a table has God prepared in the desert, for abundance, for delicacy! Never prince was so served in his greatest pomp, as these rebellious Israelites in the wilderness.

God loves to over-deserve of men, and to exceed, not only their sins, but their very desires, in mercy. How good shall we find him to those that please him, since he is so gracious to offenders! If the most graceless Israelites be fed with quails and manna, O what goodness is that he has laid up for them that love him! As, on the contrary, if the righteous scarce be saved, where will the sinners appear? O God, thou canst, thou will make this difference.

Howsoever, with us men, the most crabbed and stubborn oftentimes fare the best, the righteous Judge of the world frames his remunerations as he finds us: and if his mercy sometimes provoke the worst to repentance by his temporal favours, yet he ever reserves so much greater reward for the righteous, as eternity is beyond time, and heaven above earth.

It was not of any natural instinct, but from the over-ruling power of their Creator, that these quails came to the desert. Needs must they come whom God brings. His hand is in all the motions of his meanest creatures. Not only we, but they move in him. As not many quails, so not one sparrow falls without him. How much more are the actions of his best creature, man, directed by his providence?

How ashamed might these Israelites have been, to see these creatures so obedient to their Creator, as to come and offer themselves to their slaughter; while they went so repiningly to his service and their own preferment! Who can distrust the provision of the great House keeper of the world, when he sees how he can furnish his tables at pleasure? Is he grown now careless, or we faithless rather? Why do we not repose upon his mercy?

Rather than we shall want, when we trust him, he will fetch quails from all the coasts of heaven to our board. O Lord, thy hand is not shortened to give; let not ours be shortened, or shut in receiving.

Elijah's servitors, the ravens, brought him his full service of bread and flesh at once, each morning and evening. But these Israelites have their flesh at even, and their bread in the morning. Good reason there should be a difference. Elijah's table was upon God's direct appointment; the Israelites upon their mutiny. Although God will relieve them with provision, yet he will punish their impatience with delay; so shall they know themselves his people, that they shall find they were murmurers.

Not only in the matter, but in the order, God answers their grudging; first, they complain of the want of flesh-pots, then of bread. In the first place therefore they have flesh, bread after. When they have flesh, yet they must stay a time ere they can have a full meal, unless they would eat their meat breadless, and their bread dry. God will be waited on, and will give the consummation of his blessings at his own leisure.

In the evening of our life we have the first pledges of his favour; but in the morning of our resurrection, must we look for our perfect satiety of the true manna, the bread of life.

Now the Israelites sped well with their quails; they did eat and digest, and prosper; not long after, they have quails with a vengeance; the meat was pleasant, but the sauce was fearful. They let down the quails at their mouth, but they came out at their nostrils. How much better had it been to have died of hunger through the chastisement of God, than of the plague of God, with the flesh betwixt their teeth! Behold, they perish of the same disease then, whereof they now recover.

The same sin repeated is death, whose first act found remission. Relapses are desperate, where the sickness itself is not. With us men, once goes away with a warning, the second act is but whipping, the third is death. It is a mortal thing to abuse the lenity of God. We should be presumptuously mad, to hope that God will stand us for a sinning stock, to provoke him how we will. It is more mercy than he owes us, if he forbear us once; it is his justice to plague us the second time.

We may thank ourselves, if we will not be warned.