Exodus 12: 1-14
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, “This month is to be the first month, the first month of your year. Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month, each man is to take a lamb for his family, one for each household. If any household is too small for a whole lamb, they must share one with their nearest neighbor, having taken into account the number of people there are. You are to determine the amount of lamb needed in accordance with what each person will eat. The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect, and you may take them from the sheep or the goats. Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month, when all the people of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight. Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs, and bread made without yeast. Do not eat the meat raw or cooked in water, but roast it over fire–heads, legs, and inner parts. Do not leave any of it till morning; if some is left till morning, you must burn it. This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste; it is the Lord’s Passover.
“On the same night I will pass through Egypt and struck down every firstborn–both men and animals–and I will bring judgement on the gods of Egypt. I am Lord. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I struck Egypt.
“This is the day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord–a lasting ordinance.
A Thought
God had spoken that about midnight all the firstborn in Egypt were to die. Now the Lord speaks to Moses and Aaron the way of deliverance for all the firstborn of the Israelites who will obey his instructions concerning the blood sacrifice of a lamb or either a goat–a year old male without blemish. They were to place the blood on the sides and tops of the doorframes of their houses, roast the meat on an open fire, and eat it in haste while they are dressed. God told them the ‘I am the Lord’ will pass over the land to kill all the firstborn and will bring judgement on the gods of Egypt. The blood was a sign to pass over and deliver the people of Israel. This paints a picture of what was to come when the perfect blood sacrifice of the lamb of God, Jesus Christ, was slain for our redemption and deliverance.
Our Prayer
Father thank you for our deliverance from the power of sin and death by the shed blood of your Son. You are our only hope because we have all sinned against you. Help us to humble ourselves in repentance, obedience to you and your word by the power of your Holy Spirit. We ask in Jesus’ name, amen.
