Exodus 12:8
And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.
On that night of final judgment when at midnight the firstborn in Egypt were smitten, Israel was to stay inside their houses and eat the slain lamb without blemish roasted whole, with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, in haste with belt, shoes and staff ready to leave slavery for freedom. The eating within belonged with the blood without upon the doorposts as the token, so that the destroying angel passed over the marked houses while slaying the Egyptian firstborn, after which Israel went out as an independent nation. The meal was instituted to be kept yearly to keep in memory God's deliverance from Egypt, calling minds from worldly cares to review His miracles and mercies and telling children it was the sacrifice of the Lord's passover who passed over Israel's houses. The innocent lamb was a symbol of the death of the Son of God for the life of the world, and its blood on the doorposts symbolized His blood shed for sin, which alone cleanses the believing sinner and shelters from wrath and condemnation to come upon the impenitent. To eat the lamb was to receive Christ by faith, for eating His flesh gives eternal life and power for the resurrection to immortality, yet none were benefited unless they did what God commanded, and even a Hebrew house that disregarded the instruction was not protected. The bitter herbs recalled the bitterness of bondage and call for contrition, and as leaven was put away so sin must be put away by those nourished by Christ, while the marked household shows parental faith covering children and foreshadows the sealing and protection of God's people through the perilous conflict to the end.
Setting and Observance
The meal was commanded for that night of the last and most severe plague, when at midnight the firstborn of man and beast in Egypt were smitten in judgment against the gods of Egypt. That night was terrible to the Egyptians and glorious to the people of God. Its nature and effect were made known beforehand by Moses to Pharaoh, to the people of Egypt, and to the Israelites, while the king and his idolatrous priests still opposed letting Israel go. The direction was given to prepare departure from Egypt and especially to preserve from the coming judgment.
The Israelites were to remain inside their own houses, each family alone or joined with others, gathered around the table in night assembly. They were to eat that night the flesh of the slain lamb without blemish roasted whole, with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. It was eaten with waist belted, shoes on feet and staff in hand, in haste and solemn readiness to leave slavery in Egypt for the journey to freedom. This was the Lord's passover on the last night of bondage when there appeared no token of deliverance, to prepare the Hebrews for immediate release.
The eating inside belonged together with the blood outside upon the doorposts, lintel and side posts as a token and sign. While they ate within, the destroying angel swept over the land and passed over the marked houses, slaying all the firstborn of the Egyptians. Then Pharaoh commanded Israel to rise up and go serve the Lord, and the Hebrews went out from Egypt as an independent nation. The judgment was also meant to show Pharaoh that the Lord alone is God.
The household observance required gathering and complete obedience as faith in God's message in order to be preserved from the coming judgment and general ruin. The blood marked the doors as a sign of belonging to God.
Memorial and Instruction
The meal of lamb with unleavened bread and bitter herbs was especially instituted to be kept yearly so that Israel would keep in memory God's wonderful works in deliverance from Egypt. It was a memorial of that night of deliverance, joining the lamb with the bread and herbs to hold the people mindful of what God had done. The ordinance was designed to call minds away from world-loving interests and from cares and anxieties about temporal concerns, to review the works of God and call to mind His miracles, mercies and loving-kindness. That remembering was to increase love and reverence for Him and lead to ever looking to Him and trusting in Him in all trials instead of turning to other gods, renewing love, reverence, trust and loyalty to Him. It helped impress upon Israel the story of deliverance from bondage — the sprinkled blood, the death-dealing angel, and the march out of Egypt.
The Lord commanded the Passover to be kept yearly, so that when children asked what the service meant they would be told it was the sacrifice of the Lord's passover who passed over the houses of Israel when He smote the Egyptians. By that answer the wonderful deliverance was to be repeated from generation to generation. The hasty night meal belonged to that instruction, eaten as part of the night assembly to fix the story in the mind. It was eaten in solemn silence while the story of the sprinkled blood, the death-dealing angel and the march out of bondage was rehearsed.
That rehearsal was meant to stir the imagination, impress the heart, and fix the memory of children and youth through sight, song, nature and kindly association.
Meaning of Bread and Herbs
The meal was eaten at night as Israel was about to leave slavery in Egypt in readiness for the journey to freedom, the lamb roasted and taken with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. The bitter herbs represented the bitterness of Israel's slavery and recalled the bitterness of bondage in Egypt. Feeding on Christ is likewise to be joined with contrition for sin. The unleavened bread was significant, for as leaven was excluded from the homes during the feast, so sin must be put away by those who receive life and nourishment from Christ.
Lamb Pointing to Christ
The slain lamb without blemish eaten that night was a symbol of the death of the Son of God, the sinless Lamb, and those who celebrated were to associate and connect its slaughter with His future death. That meal was instituted by Christ Himself before His incarnation, and He is the foundation of the whole Jewish economy. The lamb eaten at the feast was a symbol of Christ's body, His flesh given for the life of the world. Its eating pointed forward to His approaching death as the only true propitiation for the sins of humanity.
The blood placed on the doorposts, which caused the destroying angel to pass over Israelite homes, symbolized Christ's blood shed for the sins of the world. That blood is efficacious to cleanse the believing sinner from sin and to shelter the believer from the wrath of a sin-hating God to come upon the impenitent and unbelieving world. His merits alone avert judgment and condemnation and bring salvation. The Passover and Israel's religious ceremonies represented the Saviour revealed in the Old Testament, whose voice spoke through Moses and the prophets and patriarchs from Adam onward. Its ceremonies prove His identity as the Messiah in His mission, suffering, death, resurrection and ascension.
The Passover cannot be fully explained apart from Christ, and to continue those services while rejecting Him when now revealed leaves them valueless. Christ is the key that unlocks the Old Testament and gives access to its rich treasures. Christ identified Himself as the Passover's great antitype when He connected the Lord's Supper with the Passover. Its fulfillment as the type of Christ, the antitypical Lamb observed for centuries, came when Jesus was slain and lay in Joseph's tomb.
At His trial type was meeting antitype, for He with divinity clothed with humanity stood in their midst as their Saviour. Priests, scribes and rulers kept exact ceremonial cleanness to eat the Passover and refused to enter the judgment hall lest they be defiled. Their exactness about their own maxims and traditions was joined to working directly contrary to the light, condemning to death under satanic deception and hardening of heart the very One the ceremony pointed to. The Jews celebrating the Passover at Jerusalem in commemoration of that night of deliverance made the symbol all-important while its significance went unnoticed. They celebrated with great display while the very person the lamb represented stood in their midst presenting Himself as Saviour, and they discerned not the Lord's body in it but refused His offers of mercy.
As a child, Jesus saw the meaning of the Passover service whose rites pointed to His life and mission more clearly. He then began to understand the work He would do for the heirs of the covenant promises.
Receiving Christ by Faith
God desired Israel to behold the Lamb of God in the paschal lamb eaten on the night of deliverance when the destroying angel smote the homes of Egypt, and through the symbol of eating it to receive Him who gave His flesh for the life of the world. Eating His flesh by faith means receiving Him, and pointed to the same truth Christ taught that eating His flesh gives eternal life. The lamb recalled the sign of protection when Egypt's firstborn were slain, and represented Christ, giving believers hope that He will raise them to immortal life. Those celebrating at Jerusalem in commemoration of that night made the symbol all-important while its significance went unnoticed, and they discerned not the Lord's body in it.
The bread Christ gives is His flesh given for the life of the world, offered as salvation to all who accept Him clothed in humanity as Redeemer with access to the Father and divine authority. Eating His flesh and drinking His blood by faith gives power for the final resurrection, giving believers a sure hope of resurrection to immortal life in the kingdom of God. This carries the promise that all the Father gives will come and none will be cast out or lost, but everyone who sees the Son and believes will have everlasting life and be raised up at the last day. The blood on the doorposts that gave safety and marked protection for the Hebrews represented the blood of Christ shed for the sins of the world, so that the lamb and its blood point to salvation through Christ received by faith as spiritual food.
None could be benefited by this special provision for salvation unless they did the work left for them to do. Receiving the provision required doing what God commanded, and their actions showed their faith in the salvation provided. Each household was to gather together and eat the Passover as directed, prepared to leave, showing faith through complete obedience to God.
The blood-marked homes of Israel were spared and passed over. Those who did not follow the commanded protection were not distinguished from the Egyptians and were not protected from judgment. Even a Hebrew household that disregarded the instruction would not be protected.
Protection for Households Today
The slain lamb and its blood upon the house marked a household that trusted and obeyed God on the night judgment fell on Egypt. That blood signified acceptance of Christ as the promised Redeemer and prefigured the saving efficacy of His blood, and the destroyer passed over every marked house. The parents' obedience showed their faith, and that faith covered their children. It stands as a symbol of parental faith extending to children and shielding them from destruction.
The blood on the lintel and side posts is faith in the blood of Christ and faith in Jesus the only-begotten Son. It marks the dwelling places of Christ's followers as an acknowledgment of faith in Christ and a sign that they belong to God and will be preserved from general ruin. Christians must keep this mark of faith and gather their households and children about them under this protection amid deception and false teaching. Believing parents have the duty to gather and protect their children from influences opposed to God and from wicked influences, to teach them obedience and bring them to God to save them from the destructive power of the evil one. They are not to expect God or His angels to do the work entrusted to them, and the judgment will reveal the character formed in family life and shown in dealings with family members, neighbors and the world.
Only by that faith will they pass safely through the perilous times just ahead. The conflict between Christ and Satan will increase in intensity until the end of this earth's history. The marked doorposts foreshadow the sealing of God's people, who will be protected during the time of divine judgment.