 Why did God cause the people of Israel to wander around in the wilderness for 40 years without the ability to plant crops, eating manna from heaven which he provided each morning? Well, God tells Israel why through Moses in Deuteronomy chapter 8. He says, "...and he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that you might know, that he might make you know."