Having escaped Egypt, the Israelites now find themselves in the desert. They have left the relative safety of slavery in Egypt, and must now completely rely on God for everything they need: even their food and water.

Read Exodus 16:1-21

• Why do you think the Israelites grumbled the way they did, so soon after being saved from Egypt?

• Do you think this grumbling has a parallel for us as Christians saved by Jesus? What can we learn from this?

• What do you imagine it would have been like to receive quail and manna like this on the first day it happened? Or after a year of it? What about after the 40 years in the desert were over?

• What does God's provision in this way show us about His character? How does this understanding of His character change the way we relate to Him or pray to Him?

Read John 6:1-15

• How does this story about Jesus connect with Exodus 16?

• What would it have meant to the Jewish crowd at the time to receive bread and fish from Jesus in the wilderness like this?

Read John 6:25-69

• How does Jesus link himself to the manna in Exodus? Is anything about his explanation surprising to you?

• In what way is Jesus claiming to be greater than Moses and greater than the manna? What do His words here mean to you personally?

• How did the Jewish leaders respond to Jesus' teaching on this topic? How did the disciples respond?

• How do you respond to Jesus' claims here? Do you understand them in a fresh way in light of Exodus 16?