Psalm 78:14–40

¹⁴He guided them with the cloud by day

and with light from the fire all night.ⁱ

¹⁵He split the rocks^j in the wilderness

and gave them water as abundant as the seas;

¹⁶he brought streams out of a rocky crag

and made water flow down like rivers.

¹⁷But they continued to sin^k against him,

rebelling in the wilderness against the Most High.

¹⁸They willfully put God to the test^l

by demanding the food they craved.^m

¹⁹They spoke against God;ⁿ

they said, “Can God really

spread a table in the wilderness?

²⁰True, he struck the rock,

and water gushed out,^o

streams flowed abundantly,

but can he also give us bread?

Can he supply meat^p for his people?”

²¹When the Lord heard them, he was furious;

his fire broke out^q against Jacob,

and his wrath rose against Israel,

²²for they did not believe in God

or trust^r in his deliverance.

²³Yet he gave a command to the skies above

and opened the doors of the heavens;^s

²⁴he rained down manna^t for the people to eat,

he gave them the grain of heaven.

²⁵Human beings ate the bread of angels;

he sent them all the food they could eat.

²⁶He let loose the east wind^u from the heavens

and by his power made the south wind blow.

²⁷He rained meat down on them like dust,

birds^v like sand on the seashore.

²⁸He made them come down inside their camp,

all around their tents.

²⁹They ate till they were gorged—^w

he had given them what they craved.

³⁰But before they turned from what they craved,

even while the food was still in their mouths,^x

³¹God’s anger rose against them;

he put to death the sturdiest^y among them,

cutting down the young men of Israel.

³²In spite of all this, they kept on sinning;^z

in spite of his wonders,^a they did not believe.^b

³³So he ended their days in futility^c

and their years in terror.

³⁴Whenever God slew them, they would seek^d him;

they eagerly turned to him again.

³⁵They remembered that God was their Rock,^e

that God Most High was their Redeemer.^f

³⁶But then they would flatter him with their mouths,^g

lying to him with their tongues;

³⁷their hearts were not loyal^h to him,

they were not faithful to his covenant.

³⁸Yet he was merciful;ⁱ

he forgave^j their iniquities^k

and did not destroy them.

Time after time he restrained his anger^l

and did not stir up his full wrath.

³⁹He remembered that they were but flesh,^m

a passing breezeⁿ that does not return.

⁴⁰How often they rebelled^o against him in the wilderness^p

and grieved him^q in the wasteland!