Exodus 12:4, commentary and pictures

On the last night of bondage in Egypt, when Israel was to be released, any household too small to eat a whole lamb was to join with the nearest neighbor to share one, counting according to the number of souls and how much each would eat. The lamb was to be slain without blemish and its blood struck on the doorposts as the outward token, so that when judgment fell at midnight on the firstborn the destroying angel would pass over that house, and its roasted flesh was to be eaten that same night within with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, in haste and readiness for the journey. The innocent lamb and its slaughter stood for Christ, the sinless Lamb of God, and was fulfilled in His death as the antitypical Lamb slain at the crucifixion. Its blood on the doorposts represented Christ's blood shed for the sins of the world, whose merits alone shelter the believing sinner from wrath and avert judgment and condemnation. The provision benefited only those who gathered the family together and followed God's directions in faith, with parents implicitly obeying so that themselves and their children were covered, and the meal was to be kept as a solemn remembrance to turn hearts to God's mercy and to teach children to love, reverence and trust Him.

Sharing the Lamb That Night

If a household was too small for a whole lamb, it was to join with the nearest neighbor to share one lamb or kid without blemish, counting according to the number of souls and how much each person would eat. The sharing belonged to the household's meal and count, with provision made according to the size of the household and each one's share in eating. The direction allowed a small household to unite with others so that nothing would be wasted and all would partake.

The direction belonged to the first Passover, eaten on the night of release from slavery in Egypt. That night was the last night of bondage, the birth of the Hebrew nation, when there appeared no token of deliverance. God had warned Pharaoh of the final judgment on the Egyptians and commanded the Hebrews to prepare for immediate release.

God gave special directions through Moses to preserve Israel and their families from the plague about to be sent upon Egypt and for leaving Egypt. They were to slay a lamb or kid without blemish and strike its blood with hyssop upon the two side-posts and upper door-post as an outward token and sign. When God smote the firstborn of man and beast and executed judgment against the gods of Egypt, the destroying angel coming at midnight would pass over and not enter that marked house, keeping the destroying plague from them, while unmarked homes were left no different from the Egyptians.

The roasted flesh was to be eaten that same night within the houses, gathered together around a table with dishes prepared. It was eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, which represented the bitterness of slavery. The meal was eaten in haste and in readiness for the journey to freedom, with loins girded, shoes on feet and staff in hand, because it is the Lord's passover. In later reenactment at Jerusalem it was a hasty meal at a night assembly, rehearsed in solemn silence with the story of the sprinkled blood, the destroying angel sweeping over the buildings, and the march out of bondage with the slaying and mourning of the firstborn.

The solemn ordinance was instituted on the night of the last plague upon Egypt, more severe than any before it. That night was terrible to the Egyptians and glorious to the people of God. Its nature and effect had been told beforehand by Moses to Pharaoh, to the people of Egypt, and to the Israelites. At that time the king and his idolatrous priests still opposed Moses to the last, while the people desired that the Hebrews be permitted to leave Egypt.

Lamb Pointing to Christ

The innocent Passover lamb and its slaughter stood for Christ, the sinless Lamb of God, and pointed to His death, fulfilled in Jesus as the antitypical Lamb slain at the crucifixion. The household provision according to number and eating belonged to the instructions commemorating Israel's deliverance from Egypt, whose deliverance from destruction prefigured salvation through Christ. The lamb that caused the destroying angel to pass over Israelite homes prefigured the sinless Christ, and the feast kept that deliverance in memory.

The requirement that the lamb be set apart before sacrifice was fulfilled when, while the people were assembling at Jerusalem for Passover, Jesus by a voluntary act permitted the triumphal entry to present Himself publicly as Redeemer and set Himself apart as an oblation. He clearly foresaw that this would bring Him to the cross, but His purpose was to call attention to the sacrifice crowning His mission to a fallen world. The events preceding His great sacrifice were to direct all eyes to Him and bring Him before every mind, so that all would follow His rapid progress to the final scene. His death for the sins of the world was thus to become a subject of deep thought and study with every fact verified beyond doubt, leading many after His crucifixion to recall these events in connection with His trial and death, to search the prophecies, and to be convinced He was the Messiah.

The blood placed on the doorposts represented Christ's blood shed for the sins of the world, which cleanses the believing sinner from sin and shelters the believer from God's wrath and coming wrath. It was a sign of safety to the Hebrews, whose merits alone avert judgment and condemnation as the true propitiation for human sin. Eating the lamb recalled the protection given when Egypt's firstborn were slain and was meant to reveal the Lamb of God who gives His flesh for the life of the world. It was to be received through the symbol so that His life nourishes the soul unto everlasting life, and to make the symbol all-important while its significance goes unnoticed is not discerning the Lord's body, the same truth that eating Christ's flesh and drinking His blood gives eternal life.

The Passover and its counting for the lamb cannot be fully explained or understood apart from Christ, for its religious meaning points to Him as revealed in the Old Testament. He is identical with the Messiah foretold by Moses and the prophets in mission, suffering, death, resurrection and ascension, whose voice spoke through prophets and patriarchs from Adam onward, the key that unlocks the Old Testament and gives access to its rich treasures. Without receiving the Saviour now revealed, all the services and ceremonies are valueless, and rejecting Him makes them valueless. The ceremony was instituted by Christ before His incarnation and was bound up with His life and mission, part of the rite He observed as a child pointing to the work He would accomplish for the heirs of covenant promises. Its type met its antitype when He was present even as the religious leaders and priests who had condemned Him to die prepared to eat it.

Household Faith and Instruction

God's provision in the lamb availed only those who did the work He required, and their doing showed their faith in the provision He had made for salvation. The family was to gather together in the dwelling place, and all the members of the household were to follow God's directions together.

Israel was to gather its children and families inside the houses and mark the doorposts with blood so that the destroying angel would pass over. The blood-marked homes were spared while the Egyptians were not, and to fail to follow the instruction left an Israelite no different from the Egyptians.

The slain lamb prefigured the slaying of the Son of God and the efficacy of His blood shed for the salvation of the sinner. Its blood on the door was a sign that the household accepted Christ as the promised Redeemer and was shielded from the destroyer's power. The parents evidenced their faith by implicitly obeying the directions given, and their obedient faith covered themselves and their little children who have had no test of character, so that the destroying angel passed over every house that had the mark.

The lamb and its meal formed part of the solemn remembrance of the sprinkled blood, the death-dealing angel, and deliverance from bondage. That remembrance turned the people from worldly cares to remember God's works, mercy, and loving-kindness, and it strengthened love, reverence, and trust in Him. It was reenacted in a hasty meal at a night assembly, with loins girded, shoes on feet, and staff in hand, while in solemn silence the story of the sprinkled blood, the destroying angel, and the march out of bondage was rehearsed. Joined to the delight of the journey, the beauty of nature, kindly association, the recounting of past experiences, and the singing of wilderness songs and God's commandments, the ceremony stirred the imagination, impressed the heart, and fixed the memory in children and youth. In this the parents' responsibility is shown, to gather, teach, and prepare their children in obedience, standing in the place of God to them to educate them in obedience and submission.