The Hebrew noun man is the word for manna — the miraculous bread God provided for Israel in the wilderness for forty years. The name derives from the question: man hu — 'What is it?' (Exodus 16:15). White, sweet like honey, appearing with the dew each morning — manna was tangible proof that God provides beyond all human calculation.
Manna is one of Scripture's great theological types. Deuteronomy 8:3 interprets it: 'man does not live on bread alone but on every word from the mouth of God' — a verse Jesus quotes directly (Matthew 4:4). John 6 presents the deepest fulfillment: Jesus identifies himself as 'the true bread from heaven' (John 6:32-35). The forty-year manna was a sermon about the One who is the bread of life.