When they did mete it with an omer, he that gathered much, &c.— An omer was the quantity allowed for each person, i.e. each person might, if he chose it, gather and use so much. Those who were aged and infirm, and could not themselves go out to gather it, were allowed the same quantity to be gathered by other persons for them; take ye every man for them which are in his tents, Exodus 16:16. Obedient to the injunctions of God, the children of Israel went out, and gathered, some more, some less; "that is," says Houbigant, "because there were in some tents or families more persons for whom manna was to be gathered, and in others fewer; for thus Moses had commanded, and thus the children of Israel did as they had been commanded, Exodus 16:17. But because, in that first gathering of the manna, the Israelites had not the measure of an omer ready, it happened to them that they guessed for the number of heads; and every one gathered as much as they imagined would be sufficient for each person: but, upon returning to their tents, when each came to use the omer, they found that they had, in fact, gathered so many omers as there were persons in each tent; God admonishing them by this event, that they should afterwards do that which he himself had now perfected by his own immediate agency." Houbigant supposes this applicable only to the first manna which fell. Others, averse to considering the matter as thus miraculous, imagine the fact was, that when the Israelites came to measure out what they had gathered, more or less, they, who had gathered more than their omer, readily imparted their overplus to those who had not gathered so much; and further, possibly, some, who thought an omer too much for their eating, supplied those who required more with what they had to spare. Thus they charitably assisted each other; and this appears to be the meaning of the passage, particularly as applied by St. Paul, 2 Corinthians 8:13-15 which, if the passage be understood in the first sense, must imply, that God, by his providential bounty, will bless and assist those who charitably aid their brethren.
Related Commentaries of Exodus 16:18
Exodus 16:18
18 And when they did mete it with an omer, he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack; they gathered every man according to his eating.