Study Notes Pesach + The Lord’s Supper

Study Notes for Pesach Topic Study

• Torah: Exodus 12:1-51; Exodus 13:1-20
• Apostolic: Luke 22:1-20; 1 Corinthians 11:17-34
• Additional: Jubilees 49:1-23

12:1 YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “This new moon shall be to you the beginning of new moons. It shall be the first new moon of the year to you. 3 Speak to all the congregation of [the sons of]^{(DSS)(SP)(LXX)} Israel, saying, ‘On the tenth day of this new moon, they shall take to them every man a lamb [for each household, a lamb according to the fathers’ households].^(DSS) 4 and if the household is too little for a lamb, then he and his neighbor next to his house shall take one according to the number of the souls. You shall make your count for the lamb according to what everyone can eat. 5 Your lamb shall be without defect, a male a year old. You shall take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6 You shall guard it for a charge until the fourteenth day of the new moon; and the whole assembly of the congregation of [the sons of]^{(DSS)(SP)(LXX)} Israel shall kill [them]^(DSS)at evening. 7 They shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two door posts and on the lintel, on the houses in which they shall eat it. 8 They shall eat the meat in that night, roasted with fire, with unleavened bread. They shall eat it with bitter herbs. 9 Don’t eat it raw, nor [cooked or boiled]^(DSS) with water, but roasted with fire; with its head, its legs and its inner parts. 10 You shall let nothing of it remain until the morning [and a bone of it you shall not break];^(LXX) but that which remains of it until the morning you shall burn with fire. 11 This is how you shall eat it: with your belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste: it is the Pesach of YHWH. 12 For I will go through the land of Egypt in that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and animal. I will execute judgments against all the Elohim of Egypt. I am YHWH. 13 The blood shall be to you for a sign on the houses where you are. When I see the blood, I will [shelter]^(LXX) you, and no plague will be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. 14 This day shall be a memorial for you. You shall hold a feast to YHWH. You shall hold a feast throughout your generations by a statute forever. 15 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread; even the first day you shall put away leaven out of your houses, for whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel. 16 In the first day there shall be to you a holy convocation, and in the seventh day a holy convocation; no kind of work shall be done in them, except that which every man must eat, only that may be done by you. 17 You shall guard the feast of unleavened bread; for in the bone of this day I have brought your armies out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall guard this day throughout your generations by a statute forever. 18 In the first new moon, on the fourteenth day of the new moon at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the twenty first day of the new moon at evening. 19 There shall be no leaven found in your houses for seven days, for whoever eats that which is leavened, that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a stranger, or one who is born in the land. 20 You shall eat nothing leavened. In all your habitations you shall eat unleavened bread.’ ” 21 Then Moses called for all the elders of [the sons of]^(LXX) Israel, and said to them, “Draw out, and take lambs according to your families, and kill the Pesach. 22 You shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two door posts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. 23 For YHWH will cross over to strike the Egyptians; and when he sees the blood on the lintel, and on the two door posts, YHWH will hop over the door, and will not allow the destroyer to come in to your houses to strike you. 24 You shall guard this word for an ordinance to you and to your sons forever. 25 It shall happen when you have come to the land which YHWH will give you, as he has promised, that you shall guard this service. 26 It will happen, when your sons ask you, ‘What do you mean by this service?’ 27 that you shall say, ‘It is the slaughtering of the Pesach of YHWH, who [sheltered]^(LXX) the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians, and spared our houses.’ ” The people bowed their heads and did obeisance. 28 The sons of Israel went and did so; as YHWH had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. 29 At midnight, YHWH struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of livestock. 30 Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one dead. 31 He called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, “Rise up, get out from among my people, both you and the sons of Israel; and go, serve YHWH, as you have said! 32 Take both your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone; and bless me also!” 33 The Egyptians were urgent with the people, to send them out of the land in haste, for they said, “We are all dead men.” 34 The people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading troughs being bound up in their garments on their shoulders. 35 The sons of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they asked of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and clothing. 36 YHWH gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. They plundered the Egyptians. 37 The sons of Israel traveled from Rameses to Sukkot, about six hundred thousand on foot who were men, in addition to little ones. 38 A mixed multitude went up also with them, with flocks, herds, and even very much livestock. 39 They baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought out of Egypt; for it wasn’t leavened, because [Egypt drove them out],^(DSS) and couldn’t wait, and they had not prepared any food for themselves. 40 Now the time that the sons of Israel lived in [the land of Canaan and the land of]^(LXX) Egypt was four hundred thirty years. 41 At the end of four hundred thirty years, to the day, all of armies of YHWH went out from the land of Egypt. 42 It is a night to be much observed to YHWH for bringing them out from the land of Egypt. This is that night of YHWH, to be much observed by all the sons of Israel throughout their generations. 43 YHWH said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the statute of the Pesach. No son of a foreigner shall eat of it, 44 but every man’s servant who is bought for money, when you have circumcised him, then shall he eat of it. 45 A sojourner and a hired-servant shall not eat of it. 46 It must be eaten in one house. You shall not carry any of the meat outside of the house. Do not break any of its bones. 47 All the congregation of Israel shall do it. 48 When a stranger sojourns with you, and would like to do the Pesach to YHWH, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and do it. He shall be as one who is born in the land; but no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. 49 One Torah shall be to him who is born at home, and to the stranger who sojourns among you.” 50 All the sons of Israel did so. As YHWH commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did. 51 That same day, YHWH brought the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their armies.

Now the feast of unleavened bread, which is called the Pesach, was approaching. 2 The chief priests and the scribes sought how they might put him to death, for they feared the people. 3 Satan entered into Judah, who was also called Iscariot, who was counted with the twelve. 4 He went away and talked with the chief priests and captains about how he might deliver him to them. 5 They were glad, and agreed to give him money. 6 He consented and sought an opportunity to deliver him to them in the absence of the multitude. 7 The day of unleavened bread came, on which the Pesach must be slaughtered. 8 Yeshua sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Pesach for us, that we may eat.” 9 They said to him, “Where do you want us to prepare?” 10 He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered into the city, a man carrying a pitcher of water will meet you. Follow him into the house which he enters. 11 Tell the owner of the house, ‘The Rabbi says to you, “Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Pesach with my disciples?” ‘ 12 He will show you a large, furnished upper room. Make preparations there.” 13 They went, found things as Yeshua had told them, and they prepared the Pesach. 14 When the hour had come, he sat down with the twelve emissaries. 15 He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Pesach with you before I suffer, 16 for I tell you, I will no longer by any means eat of it until it is fulfilled in the reign of Elohim.” 17 He received a cup, and when he had given thanks, he said, “Take this and share it among yourselves, 18 for I tell you, I will not drink at all again from the fruit of the vine, until the reign of Elohim comes.” 19 He took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body which is given for you. Do this in memory of me.” 20 Likewise, he took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the renewed covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

11:17 But in giving you this command I don’t praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse. 18 For first of all, when you come together in the assembly, I hear that divisions exist among you, and I partly believe it. 19 For there also must be factions among you, that those who are approved may be revealed among you. 20 When therefore you assemble yourselves together, it is not the Lord’s supper that you eat. 21 For in your eating each one takes his own supper first. One is hungry, and another is drunken. 22 What, don’t you have houses to eat and to drink in? Or do you despise the assembly of Elohim and put them to shame who don’t have enough? What shall I tell you? Will I praise you? In this I don’t praise you. 23 For I received from the Lord that which also I delivered to you, that the Lord Yeshua on the night in which he was betrayed took bread. 24 When he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “Take, eat. This is my body, which is broken for you. Do this in memory of me.” 25 In the same way he also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the renewed covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink, in memory of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. 27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks the Lord’s cup in a way unworthy of the Lord will be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy way eats and drinks judgment to himself if he doesn’t discern the Lord’s body. 30 For this cause many among you are weak and sickly, and not a few sleep. 31 For if we discerned ourselves, we wouldn’t be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. 33 Therefore, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34 But if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, lest your coming together be for judgment. The rest I will set in order whenever I come.

Torah Summary
Context and coherence (Nehemiah 8:8)

Exodus 12:1-11 YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “This new moon shall be to you the beginning of new moons. It shall be the first new moon of the year to you. 3 Speak to all the congregation of [the sons of]^{(DSS)(SP)(LXX)} Israel, saying, ‘On the tenth day of this new moon, they shall take to them every man a lamb [for each household, a lamb according to the fathers’ households].^(DSS) 4 and if the household is too little for a lamb, then he and his neighbor next to his house shall take one according to the number of the souls. You shall make your count for the lamb according to what everyone can eat. 5 Your lamb shall be without defect, a male a year old. You shall take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6 You shall guard it for a charge until the fourteenth day of the new moon; and the whole assembly of the congregation of [the sons of]^{(DSS)(SP)(LXX)} Israel shall kill [them]^(DSS)at evening. 7 They shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two door posts and on the lintel, on the houses in which they shall eat it. 8 They shall eat the meat in that night, roasted with fire, with unleavened bread. They shall eat it with bitter herbs. 9 Don’t eat it raw, nor [cooked or boiled]^(DSS) with water, but roasted with fire; with its head, its legs and its inner parts. 10 You shall let nothing of it remain until the morning [and a bone of it you shall not break];^(LXX) but that which remains of it until the morning you shall burn with fire. 11 This is how you shall eat it: with your belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste: it is the Pesach of YHWH.

Sabbath to Sunday and Passover to The Lord’s Day: How Constantine’s Edict Changed Church History

1. The first ever Sunday Law in history was written by Constantine in 321 AD as an Imperial Edict. It was later codified in in the Codex Justinianus (Lib. 3, Tit. 12, 3) in 534 AD. The Exact Wording (Translated from Latin):
   “On the venerable Day of the Sun [venerabili die Solis] let the magistrates and people residing in cities rest, and let all workshops be closed. In the country, however, persons engaged in agriculture may freely and lawfully continue their pursuits; because it often happens that another day is not so suitable for grain-sowing or for vine-planting; lest by neglecting the proper moment for such operations the bounty of heaven should be lost.“
   1. Constantine uses the phrase “Day of the Sun.” At this time, he was balancing his role as the High Priest of the Roman sun cult (Sol Invictus) with his favor toward Christianity. He does not use the term “Sabbath” or “Lord’s Day” in this legal document.
   2. This Civil Law made Sunday the official day of rest for the Empire for the sake of social and political unity.
   3. Constantine held the title of Pontifex Maximus—the high priest of the Roman state religion—until his death. This meant he was technically the head of all pagan cults while simultaneously presiding over Christian councils like Nicaea.
   4. Pontifex Maximus more literally translates as ‘Chief Bridgemaker/Pathfinder’ because he formed a bridge between man and “the gods.”
   5. Solar Coinage: For over a decade after his supposed conversion (c. 312 AD), Constantine continued to mint coins featuring himself on one side and Sol Invictus on the other, with the inscription “To the Unconquered Sun, my companion.“
2. While Constantine’s law was a civil decree as an Imperial Edict about rest, the Council of Laodicea (c. 363–364 AD) was a gathering of church leaders who sought to regulate religious practice. Canon 29 of this council is the specific ruling that sought to separate Christian practice from Jewish Sabbath-keeping. The Exact Wording (Translated from Greek):
   “Christians must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honoring the Lord’s Day; and, if they can, resting then as Christians. But if any shall be found to be judaizers, let them be anathema [excommunicated/cursed] from Christ.“
   1. Let no one enrolled in the sacerdotal list, or any layman, eat the unleavened wafers manufactured by the Jews, or in any way become familiar with the Jews or call them in case of sickness, or take any medicines from them, or even bathe with them in public bathing beaches or bathhouses. If anyone should attry to do this, in case he is a clergyman, let him be deposed from office; or, in case he is a layman, let him be excommunicated. – 11th Canon of the Quinisext Ecumenical Council (691-692 AD)
   2. Inasmuch as some persons who have been misled by their inferences from the religion of the Jews have seen fit to sneer at Christ our God, while pretending to be Christians, but secretly and clandestinely keeping the Sabbath and doing other Jewish acts, we decree that these persons shall not be admitted to communion, nor to prayer, nor to church, but shall be Jews openly in accordance with their religion; and that neither shall their children be baptized, nor shall they buy or acquire a slave. But if any one of them should be converted as a matter of sincere faith, and confess with all his heart, triumphantly repudiating their customs and affairs, with a view to censure and correction of others, we decree that he shall be accepted and his children shall be baptized, and that the latter shall be persuaded to hold themselves aloof from Jewish peculiarities. If, on the other hand, the case is not thus, they are not to be accepted under any other circumstances whatever. – 8th Canon of the Seventh Ecumenical Council (787 AD)
   3. You can read more about the Nicene Creed and Canons of the Seven Ecumenical Councils at https://thecord.life/topic/the-nicene-creed-and-canons-of-the-seven-ecumenical-councils/
3. Many Sabbatarian scholars argue that the shift from the Seventh-day Sabbath to Sunday wasn’t a “revelation from God,” but a political merger. By the time of the Council of Laodicea (363 AD), the Church was so intertwined with Roman politics that keeping the “Jewish” Sabbath was seen as an act of rebellion against the “Christian” Roman order.
4. The “Fourteenthers”
   1. Quartodecimanism (from the Vulgate Latin quarta decima in Leviticus 23:5, meaning fourteenth) is the name given to the practice of celebrating the death of Yeshua on the day of Passover on the 14th of Nisan according to the Biblical dating, being on whatever day of the week.
   2. The Quartodeciman controversy in the Church was over the question of celebrating “Easter” on the first day of the week, Sunday, or at the same time as the sacrifice of the Passover lamb.
      1. Polycarp of Smyrna (c. 155 AD) Polycarp was the Bishop of Smyrna and a direct student of the apostle John. When he traveled to Rome to meet with Pope Anicetus, they disagreed on several things, but the “14th” was the most significant. The Account of the Meeting (as recorded by Irenaeus): “For neither could Anicetus persuade Polycarp to forego the observance [the 14th], inasmuch as these things had been always observed by John the disciple of our Lord, and by other apostles with whom he had been conversant; nor, on the other hand, could Polycarp succeed in persuading Anicetus to keep it, for Anicetus maintained that he was bound to adhere to the usage of the presbyters who preceded him.“
      2. Polycrates of Ephesus (c. 190 AD) A generation later, the Roman Bishop Victor I tried to force the Asian churches to abandon the 14th. Polycrates, representing the Eastern bishops, wrote a scathing and defiant letter: “We observe the exact day; neither adding, nor taking away. For in Asia also great lights have fallen asleep, which shall rise again on the day of the Lord’s coming… Among these are Philip, one of the twelve apostles… and John, who was both a witness and a teacher, who reclined upon the bosom of the Lord… All these observed the fourteenth day of the passover according to the Gospel, deviating in no respect, but following the rule of faith.” Polycrates ends his letter by telling the Bishop of Rome that he is not intimidated by threats of excommunication: “I, therefore, brethren, who have lived sixty-five years in the Lord, and have met with the brethren throughout the world, and have gone through every Holy Scripture, am not affrighted by terrifying words. For those greater than I have said ‘We ought to obey God rather than man.‘”
   3. Quartodecimanism was mainly popular in Asia Minor, Jerusalem and Syria, however it was rejected by churches in other regions. Polycarp, like other Asiatics, kept Passover on the fourteenth day of the month of Aviv. According to Eusebius, Polycarp claimed that his practice came from the apostle John. Western churches claimed that their views of “Easter” were inherited from Paul and Peter, despite overwhelming Scriptural evidence on the contrary, of the actual practices and words of Paul and Peter:
      1. Paul’s Practice: In 1 Corinthians 5:7-8, Paul writes, “For even Messiah our passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast…” Quartodecimans argued this was a direct command to keep the Passover (the 14th).
      2. Paul’s Travel: In Acts 20:6, Paul waits until after the Days of Unleavened Bread to sail from Philippi, showing he was still observing the Biblical festival calendar.
      3. Peter’s Letters: Peter never mentions a specific day for the Eucharist. He focuses on the “Lamb without blemish” (1 Peter 1:19), which is Passover imagery.
      4. The East had a stronger “historical” claim (since the 14th of Nisan is the Biblical date for the Passover).
      5. The West had a stronger “political” claim (since Rome was the center of the Empire and Sunday was becoming the dominant day of assembly).
      6. By the time of the Council of Nicaea (325 AD), the “Peter and Paul” tradition was used as the official justification to suppress the “John and Philip” tradition. The Roman Church effectively argued that the “universal” tradition of the West outweighed the “local” tradition of the East.
   4. By the 4th century the influence of Quartodecimans became smaller, later the Quartodecimans would be even persecuted.
      1. Excommunication (c. 190 AD): Pope Victor I attempted to excommunicate all the churches of Asia Minor for refusing to switch to the Sunday-only model. He was rebuked by other bishops (like Irenaeus) for being too harsh over a matter of “tradition,” but the move signaled Rome’s intent to dominate.
      2. The Council of Nicaea (325 AD): Under Constantine, the Council officially mandated that the “Pascha” (Easter/Eucharist) must be celebrated on a Sunday and never on the Jewish Passover.
      3. Outlawed: By the late 4th century, Quartodecimanism was declared a heresy. Those who continued to observe the Eucharist annually on the 14th of Nisan were forced into hiding or labeled as “Judaizers.”
5. The question of whether 1 Corinthians 11:17-34 speaks of an annual or weekly practice of the Lord’s Supper seems clear in light of the “Controversy of the Fourteenthers”:
   1. But in giving you this command I don’t praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse. 18 For first of all, when you come together in the assembly, I hear that divisions exist among you, and I partly believe it. 19 For there also must be factions among you, that those who are approved may be revealed among you. 20 When therefore you assemble yourselves together, it is not the Lord’s supper that you eat. 21 For in your eating each one takes his own supper first. One is hungry, and another is drunken. 22 What, don’t you have houses to eat and to drink in? Or do you despise the assembly of Elohim and put them to shame who don’t have enough? What shall I tell you? Will I praise you? In this I don’t praise you. 23 For I received from the Lord that which also I delivered to you, that the Lord Yeshua on the night in which he was betrayed took bread. 24 When he had given thanks (eucharist G2168), he broke it and said, “Take, eat. This is my body, which is broken for you. Do this in memory of me.” 25 In the same way he also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the renewed covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink, in memory of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. 27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks the Lord’s cup in a way unworthy of the Lord will be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy way eats and drinks judgment to himself if he doesn’t discern the Lord’s body. 30 For this cause many among you are weak and sickly, and not a few sleep. 31 For if we discerned ourselves, we wouldn’t be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. 33 Therefore, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. 34 But if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, lest your coming together be for judgment. The rest I will set in order whenever I come.

Apostolic Summary
Context and coherence (Nehemiah 8:8)

1. Today I would like to cover two important questions regarding Passover.
   1. Should we celebrate it?
   2. If so, how should we celebrate it?
2. Even though these aren’t necessarily questions that Messianics wrestle with, it is still important for us to be confident in what we believe and why.  
3. In our portion from Exodus 13, we read in two places that Passover is described as a “sign”.
   1. “And it shall serve as a sign to you on your hand, and as a reminder on your forehead, that the Torah of the LORD may be in your mouth; for with a powerful hand the LORD brought you out of Egypt. Therefore, you shall keep this ordinance at its appointed time from year to year. So it shall serve as a sign on your hand and as phylacteries on your forehead, for with a powerful hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt” (Exo. 13:9-10,16).
4. This description of Passover as a sign has always been a bit mysterious to me.
   1. What is it about eating a meal and not eating yeast for a week that marks us with a sign?
   2. Is this a spiritual thing? If so, why does it refer to our physical hands and our foreheads?
5. Before the Exodus, we see in scripture that signs are associated with covenants.
   1. Noaḥic: “I have set My rainbow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the covenant” (Genesis 9:12-17).
   2. Abrahamic: “You are to circumcise… and this will be a sign of the covenant” (Genesis 17:11).
6. Why does God associate covenants with a sign?
   1. What is their purpose? Who are they for? When does it apply and for how long?
      1. These questions not only relate to Passover but also to circumcision.
         1. Should all Christians circumcise their boys? Or would this apply only to Jewish Believers?
   2. Unfortunately, this is one area among many where systematic theology can make things overly complicated and result in obscuring God’s original meaning and intention.
7. Understanding signs is easier when we begin with a clear definition of “covenant”.
   1. A covenant is an agreement, a commitment, and an obligation, that binds together two or more parties.
8. A sign of the covenant, therefore, is simply a visible acknowledgment of an invisible covenant.
   1. One passage that reveals this is the narrative of Rahab and the spies.
      1. “Then Joshua the son of Nun sent two men as spies secretly from Shittim, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” So, they went and entered the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and rested there. Now before they lay down, she came up to them on the roof, and said to the men, ‘I know that the LORD has given you the land, and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land have melted away before * you.Now therefore, please swear to me by the LORD, since I have dealt kindly with you, that you also will deal kindly with my father’s household, and give me a pledge (#226) of truth (#571)(KJV – “true token”; LEB -“sign of good faith”). The men said to her, ‘We shall be free from this oath to you which you have made us swear, unless, when we come into the land, you tie this cord of scarlet thread in the window through which you let us down, and gather to yourself into the house your father and your mother and your brothers and all your father’s household. She said, ‘According to your words, so be it.’ So she sent them away, and they departed; and she tied the scarlet cord in the window.(Jos. 2:1,8-9,12,17-18,21).
         1. H226. oth – “sign”.
         2. H571. emeth – “truth; faithfulness”.
9. In this passage, we see that Rahab and the spies had entered into a covenant with each other that spared them from certain death. 
   1. It was a verbal agreement for salvation that was manifested and displayed by an outward sign – the scarlet cord.
      1. Specifically, by hanging the very same red rope that provided salvation to the spies, Rahab ensured her own salvation. 
         1. The blood shall be a sign (oth) for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt” (Exo. 12:13).
10. By God’s own design, signs are inseparable from the covenants they represent.
    1. Re– intensive prefix, + praesentare “to present,” literally “to place before.” Thus, to make “make present, set in view, show, exhibit, display”.

KEY POINT:

Covenant signs “make present” and exhibit the saving works of God so that we remember them and He receives glory in every generation.  

11. Remember that faith is not mere mental assent but rather faith-fulness to the covenant.
    1. Thus, to “believe” in God’s salvation is more than just knowing in our heads that it’s true.
    2. It also includes personally taking His prescribed actions to display that it is true (emet) and conforms to reality – past, present and future.
       1. “For seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the LORD. Unleavened bread shall be eaten throughout the seven days; and nothing leavened shall be seen among you, nor shall any leaven be seen among you in all your borders. You shall tell your son on that day, saying, “It is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.” And it shall serve as a sign (oth) to you on your hand, and as a reminder on your forehead, that the Torah of the LORD may be in your mouth; for with a powerful hand the LORD brought you out of Egypt. Therefore, you shall keep this ordinance at its appointed time from year to year” (Exo. 13:6-10).
12. But who is it for – the Jewish people or all Believers?
    1. Even though the essence of Passover is memorializing God’s glory, we have turned it into a debate about us.
13. So, who is it for?
    1. We definitely know that it was for the Exodus generation.
       1. “Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying, ‘On the tenth of this month they are each one to take a lamb for themselves, according to their fathers’ households, a lamb for each household’” (Exo. 12:3).
    2. We also know that it was for their sons.
       1. “’And when in time to come your son asks you, “What does this mean?” you shall say to him, “By a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore, I sacrifice to the LORD all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem” Exo.13:14–15).
    3. What about their sons, which would be the grandsons of the Exodus generation?
       1. Would the sign of remembrance be important for them?
          1. We’d probably all agree that God would still want them to remember the salvation He wrought for their grandparents.
             1. After all, many of them wouldn’t even exist because the grandfathers would have perished with the first born of Egypt.
             2. If they weren’t the firstborn, they would all still be slaves in Egypt.
14. Who else would not have existed without the Passover?
    1. Almost certainly one of the descendants of Judah from whose line came the Messiah.
       1. Specifically, scripture suggests that this would have been Nahshon (Luk. 3:32) who was a prince or leader of Judah during the Exodus (Num. 1:7; 2:3).
    2. Whether it is through the physical lineage of the Exodus generation or the spiritual lineage of Abraham’s seed, Yeshua, all of the redeemed can connect their salvation to Pesach.

KEY POINT:

The Passover meal and the festival of Unleavened Bread are a permanent ordinance for the people of God because we would not exist without it.

15. Now that we have affirmed that Passover is a covenant that all Believers are called to observe, the question becomes, “How do we do it?”
    1. After 25 years of keeping the feast, I have seen many people struggle with a sincere heart to find the true meaning and significance with the Passover seder.
       1. Some view any tradition that is not explicitly scriptural as suspect and even sinful.
       2. Others strive to do everything according to what is prescribed in the original Exodus Passover.
          1. The issue I see with this approach is that there are a lot of details regarding the first Passover, but not all of them seem to apply to the recurring festival.
             1. For example, roasting the entire lamb including the legs and entrails and then burning any leftovers over a fire (see Exo. 12:10).
                1. I view this as the torah (teaching and instruction) for that first generation, but not those that would follow.
                   1. “‘Now you shall eat it in this manner: with your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste -it is the LORD’S Passover” (Exo. 12:11).

KEY POINT:

Because Passover is a sign and remembrance, there can be value in celebrating it with unique traditions and expressions that uphold and display the biblical text.

16. However, In finding the right balance between tradition and biblical instruction, we need to focus on the central aspect and sign of the memorial, which is the sacrifice itself.
    1. “And you shall observe this event as an ordinance for you and your children forever (olam). When you enter the land which the Lord will give you, as He has promised, you shall observe (#8104, shamar, keep; guard) this rite (#5656 abodah, “service”). And when your children say to you, ‘What does this rite mean to you?’ you shall say, ‘It is a Passover sacrifice to the Lord who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He smote the Egyptians, but spared our homes.’” And the people bowed low and worshiped” (Exo. 12:24-27).

KEY POINT:

The core and center of Passover is the lamb that is slain.

17. The sacrifice of the Son of God — the Lamb who was slain before the foundation of the world (Rev. 13:8) – is the reason we keep the Passover.
    1. Yeshua is the meaning and significance we’re searching for in this festival and in all the moedim.
18. We observe the sign of the covenant – including the retelling — in order to memorialize the deliverance from Egypt and display YHWH’s salvific work to our children and the next generation.
    1. However, our ultimate focus is not on the sign but on the substance.
       1. “Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the coming things and the body is of the Messiah” (Col. 2:16-17).
       2. “[B]ut we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness. For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Cor. 1:23; 2:2).

Does anyone have specific questions or need any clarification from what was said during the Summary or Exhortation?

Application & Discussion
Living the Word and following Yeshua (Acts 2:37; Romans 2:13)
Questions, input, and sharpening (Proverbs 27:17; Luke 2:46)

Romans 2:13 For it isn’t the hearers of the Torah who are righteous before Elohim, but the doers of the Torah will be justified.

James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not only hearers, deluding your own selves.

1. 1. What questions or comments came up during your family’s discussion of this week’s study?
   2. “What other related Scriptures did you find during your study of this week’s portion?”
   3. Have you ever experienced something from this study or something related to it?
   4. “What changes do you need to make in your life to align with what you learned during this week’s Torah Study?”
   5. Can or should families celebrate Passover by themselves in their own homes?
   6. Is a large communal Passover dinner/celebration/seder Biblical?
   7. Should “communion” or the “eucharist” be done weekly, annually, or whenever we want?
   8. How has the celebration of Passover changed for you over time?

Additional Notes