Preparing for the first Passover
God takes a little segue here, in chapter 12, as He relays some of the laws that He’s going to implement among the Hebrews for their benefit.
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, “This month is to be the beginning of months for you; it is the first month of your year. Ex. 12:1 – 3. CSB
This refers to the Hebrew calendar month of ‘Nisan’ when Passover is to be celebrated. And God rearranges their calendar to lead off the first month of the year (March / April) with Passover.
Announce to the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each family must choose a lamb or a young goat for a sacrifice, one animal for each household. If a family is too small to eat a whole animal, let them share with another family in the neighborhood. Divide the animal according to the size of each family and how much they can eat. The animal you select must be a one-year-old male, either a sheep or a goat, with no defects. Ex. 12:3 – 5. NLT
Why an animal with no defects? Because this animal is being sacrificed to Jehovah. Offering a defective animal would not constitute a sacrifice.
“Take special care of this chosen animal until the evening of the fourteenth day of this first month. Then the whole assembly of the community of Israel must slaughter their lamb or young goat at twilight. They are to take some of the blood and smear it on the sides and top of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the animal.” Ex. 12:6, 7. NLT
Heretofore, the people of Israel were referred to as ‘Hebrews’ or ‘sons of Israel.’ Now they are referred to as a ‘whole community’ or ‘whole assembly’ that is being created through the common experience of the Passover.
The sacrificial lamb is slaughtered by everyone on the same day and at the same time. Then the blood is drained and spread on the door frames. The entire animal was then ‘fire roasted’ to remove any remaining blood most effectively.
“That same night they must roast the meat over a fire and eat it along with bitter salad greens and bread made without yeast. Do not eat any of the meat raw or boiled in water. The whole animal—including the head, legs, and internal organs—must be roasted over a fire. Do not leave any of it until the next morning. Burn whatever is not eaten before morning.” Ex. 12:8 –10. NLT
‘Bitter herbs’ were indigenous to Egypt and served as a reminder of the bitterness of the Hebrew enslavement experience. Bread without yeast (unleavened) is a bread speedily prepared with no time to rise, because the people had to eat hastily to begin their exodus before the Egyptians would seek retribution when God’s tenth judgment struck them.
Be fully dressed, wear your sandals, and carry your walking stick in your hand. Eat the meal with urgency, for this is the Lord’s Passover. On that night I will pass through the land of Egypt and strike down every firstborn son and firstborn male animal in the land of Egypt. I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt, for I am the Lord! But the blood on your doorposts will serve as a sign, marking the houses where you are staying. When I see the blood, I will pass over you. This plague of death will not touch you when I strike the land of Egypt. Ex. 12:11 – 13. NLT
(Even though the Passover is all about the deliverance of the Hebrews, it is highly analogous to the New Testament sacrifice of the Lamb of God[1] on the cross, where His innocent blood was shed for everyone for their redemption.)
“This is a day to remember. Each year, from generation to generation, you must celebrate it as a special festival to the Lord. This is a law for all time. For seven days the bread you eat must be made without yeast…Celebrate this Festival of Unleavened Bread, for it will remind you that I brought your forces out of the land of Egypt on this very day.” Ex. 12:14, 15 & 17. NLT
For the Lord will pass through the land to strike down the Egyptians. But when he sees the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe, the Lord will pass over your home. He will not permit his death angel to enter your house and strike you down. Ex. 12:23 NLT
The people prepared themselves accordingly to what Moses instructed:
So the people of Israel did just as the Lord had commanded through Moses and Aaron. And that night at midnight, the Lord struck down all the firstborn sons in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn son of Pharaoh, who sat on his throne, to the firstborn son of the prisoner in the dungeon. Even the firstborn of their livestock were killed. Pharaoh and all his officials and all the people of Egypt woke up during the night, and loud wailing was heard throughout the land of Egypt. There was not a single house where someone had not died. Ex. 12:28 – 30. NLT
Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron and acquiesced to all God’s terms; and then he angrily told Moses to get his people out of Egypt immediately. The Egyptians were anxious to see the Hebrews leave. To facilitate this, the Egyptians gave up a vast amount of their wealth to the Hebrews – just as Jehovah had prophesied.[2]
The Bible tells us that 600,000 men left during the exodus. Many scholars estimate that if you add the women and children, that figure could be as high as 2.5 million.
The people of Israel had lived in Egypt for 430 years. In fact, it was on the last day of the 430th year that all the Lord’s forces left the land. Ex. 12:40, 41. NLT
On this night the Lord kept his promise to bring his people out of the land of Egypt. So this night belongs to him, and it must be commemorated every year by all the Israelites, from generation to generation…On that very day the Lord brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt like an army. Ex. 12:42 & 51. NLT
Moses speaks to the people:
On this day in the month Abib, (spring), you are about to go onward. And it shall be when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, which He swore to your fathers to give you, a land [of abundance] flowing with milk and honey, that you shall keep and observe this rite (service) in this month. Ex. 13:4, 5. AMP
Thus, the exodus was purposeful, so that the nation could occupy the Promised Land.
God begins to lead His children:
So it happened, when Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, even though it was nearer; for God said, “The people might change their minds when they see war [that is, that there will be war], and return to Egypt.” Ex. 13:17 AMP
That would have been the shortest route, but the Philistines were warlike. The Hebrews, at this juncture in time, were only a mass of ragtag ex-slaves:
But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea; the sons of Israel went up in battle array (orderly ranks, marching formation) out of the land of Egypt…and camped at Etham on the edge of the wilderness. Ex. 13:18 & 20 AMP
And how did Jehovah lead them?
The [presence of the] Lord was going before them by day in a pillar (column) of cloud to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light, so that they could travel by day and by night. He did not withdraw the pillar of cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from going before the people. Ex. 13:21, 22. AMP
Stay tuned for Pharaoh has a change of heart…
Goodnight and God Bless.
[1] Jn. 1:29
[2] Ex. 3:19 – 22.