These are the original teaching notes from this passage.
Review…
- the plagues of Egypt…
- inconvenient plagues: FIRST – FOURTH – Nile / Frogs / Lice / Flies…
- devastation plagues: FIFTH – EIGHT – Death of livestock / Boils / Hailstorm / Locusts…
- The NINETH plague – Darkness – God is greater than the greatest god of Egypt – sun god Ra!
- Egypt was in ruins – but the heart of Pharoah was still hard…
- Instead of OBEYING the Word of the Lord – he tried to get Israel to compromise!
- Pharaoh offered to let the children of Israel worship their God in Egypt…
- Pharaoh offered to let the men of Israel go to worship in the wilderness – but no kids…
- Pharaoh offered to let all the people go – but they must leave their possessions behind…
The Passover… (5 points)
- 1st – The Final Plague… vs. 1-10
- 1st – There would only be one more plague on Pharoah and Egypt… vs. 1
- All NINE plagues had been building to this FINAL judgement of Egypt…
- The LAST plague would be so SEVERE – Pharaoh would not just let Israel go…
- He would SEND (piel) them away – absolutely CAST [גָּרַשׁ] x2 – (piel) them out!
- The INTENSITY in the Hebrew emphasis the QUICK and FORCEFULL reaction of the Pharoah!
- 2nd – Overflowing with blessings… vs. 2-3
- Let (imperative) all of Israel ASK (jussive – permission) his neighbor…
- When Israel was SENT – they were to ask their Egyptian neighbors – for silver and gold…
- The Lord gave the people FAVOR in the eyes of the Egyptians…
- And Moses was considered VERY GREAT [גָּדוֹל מְאֹד] – even in the house of Pharaoh…
- Because they would NOT compromise – they obeyed the Word of the Lord!
- The Children of Israel were going to leave Egypt – but NOT empty-handed…
- Because Israel completely obeyed the Word of the Lord – did NOT compromise…
- They were blessed by the LORD – and left Egypt VERY wealthy!
- The word COMPROMISE – means two people CO – agree on a PROMISE…
- God I will read my Bible (conditional) – IF you bless my life – COMPROMISE…
- The problem is the PROMISES of God are NOT negotiable!
- The truth is we CANNOT afford to walk a COMPROMISED life with Jesus…
- If we only give ourselves conditionally to the Lord – COMPROMISE – there is little fruit…
- ONLY when follow Jesus – unconditionally – we will see the blessings poured out!
- Luke 6:38 – “Whatever measure you use in giving—large or small—it will be used to measure what is given back to you.”
- 3rd – The final plague… vs. 4-10
- Before leaving – Moses gave one last Word from the Lord to Pharaoh…
- Around midnight – the Lord would go into the midst of Egypt – as a RESULT…
- Shall DIE (sequential imperfect) ALL the firstborn of the land of Egypt…
- From the son of Pharaoh – to the son of the lowest servant who mills flour…
- The result of which would be a cry in all of Egypt such as never has been heard before!
- In Israel it would be so peaceful – not even a dog would bark…
- That Pharaoh would KNOW [יָדַע] God makes a difference between Israel and Egypt!
- All of Egypt would bow down before Moses – plead for Israel to GO (imperative)!
- Then Moses left Pharaoh – for the last time Exodus 10:29 – in GREAT ANGER!
- But the Lord told Moses – Pharaoh will NOT listen – so I can multiply my WONDERS…
- And the Lord hardened [חָזַק] the heart of Pharoah – he did not let the children of Israel go!
- Moses was ANGRY – because of what was coming…
- The HARD HEART of Pharaoh – was about to cause unimaginable SORROW…
- Moses was frustrated that he would NOT listen – would not obey the Word of God!
- It can be difficult to CONFRONT people about their sin – they may NOT listen…
- But we are called to CONFRONT others despite how they respond…
- Our motive is love – we want to see them clean / forgiven – Ephesians 4:15
- Not that we can make people OBEY – but we can WARN them!
- Hebrews 3:13 – “Exhort one another daily – while it is called Today – lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”
- 1st – There would only be one more plague on Pharoah and Egypt… vs. 1
- 2nd – The Passover… vs. 1-20
- Exodus chapter 12 is one of the most important chapters in the Bible…
- It establishes the Passover – the picture of how God would save the world from sin…
- In almost every aspect – it looks forward to Jesus and the cross – the solution of God for sin…
- We were all in bondage to sin (Egypt) and God set us free through Jesus (the Lamb)!
- 1st – A new beginning… vs. 1
- This month shall be the FIRST month of the year…
- Jews have TWO sets of calendars – the secular and the religious…
- The FIRST month of the secular year begins with – Tishri (September) – Rosh-Hashanah…
- With Passover – the FIRST month of the year became – Nisan (April)!
- The Passover marked a new beginning for Israel…
- Where the Children of Israel had been slaves / they would be FREE – a new nation!
- John 3:3 – “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
- When we come to / believe in Jesus – our old life before Christ is gone / dead…
- We are no longer defined by our past mistakes – old labels no longer apply…
- We are BORN AGAIN – we have a fresh start in Jesus – a new beginning!
- 2nd – Choosing the Lamb… vs. 2-5
- SPEAK (imperative) to the congregation of Israel…
- On the TENTH day – every HOUSEHOLD (10-20 people) took a lamb without BLEMISH…
- BLEMISH – [תָּמִים] perfect or innocent – from the VERB to FINISH!
- The TENTH day of the FIRST month of the year – known to us as PALM SUNDAY…
- The day Jesus rode a donkey down the Mt. of Olives into Jerusalem – John 12:12-13
- The day multitudes gathered laying clothes and palm branches at His feet…
- Then began to worship Him as the Messiah crying out HOSANNA – save us NOW…
- The FIRST and ONLY time Jesus openly declared Himself to all as the Christ – Savior!
- FOUR days before Passover – when every house was choosing their sacrificial LAMB…
- That same day – Palm Sunday – God choose His lamb for the perfect sacrifice…
- The Lamb of God – who would take away the sin of the World – John 1:29
- 3rd – The sacrifice of the LAMB… vs. 6-13
- Keep the LAMB until the 14th day of the month – FOUR days…
- The LAMB would be sacrificed at sunset – paint the doorposts and lentil with the blood…
- Then they were to ROAST and eat the LAMB – nothing was to remain until morning…
- Eat the LAMB with UNLEAVENED bread – and BITTER herbs (not in Hebrew) …
- Eat it with a belt and shoes on – READY – to leave at ANY moment!
- God would PASS through the land of Egypt…
- He would STRIKE all the FIRSTBORN in the Land – both man and beast…
- He would JUDGE all the gods of EGYPT – showing I AM the Lord…
- BUT – when I see the BLOOD on the doors – it will be a SIGN…
- I will PASSOVER [פָּסַח] you – DEATH would NOT enter that house!
- The SIGN of the blood…
- SIGN [אוֹת] – a MARK – that establishes a PROMISE of God to His people…
- The Rainbow of Noah – Genesis 9:17 /the Circumcision of Abraham – Genesis 17:11
- The BLOOD – is the SIGN that promised DEATH would PASSOVER us!
- I Peter 1:19 – “[We are redeemed] with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”
- When God looks down – He does not see us – our mistakes / our sins…
- He sees the sacrifice of His son – He sees the MARK – the BLOOD of Lamb of God…
- Therefore – death PASSES OVER us – we are forgiven and given new life!
- NOT because of anything we have done – but because of what Jesus did for us…
- It is through the Cross of Jesus – the BLOOD of Jesus – we are saved!
- The CUP of redemption…
- Jesus took [הָגְּאֻלָּה] the CUP of REDEMPTION – on PASSOVER [פָּסַח]and said…
- Luke 22:20 – “This cup is the NEW covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.”
- It is important to note – if there is a NEW Covenant – there was also an OLD Covenant…
- The Old Covenant was all about what we had to do – the TO DO list…
- It gave us 613 commands – all of which we had to follow – every day!
- And if we made one mistake – broke even ONE law – we deserved judgment – death!
- James 2:10 – “Whoever keeps the whole law… yet stumble in one point… is guilty of all.”
- The NEW Covenant in Jesus – did away with the OLD Covenant…
- Hebrews 8:13 – “In that He says – a new covenant – He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.”
- It is the Covenant of – BETTER promises – Hebrews 8:6
- God will write His word on our mind and in our hearts – He will be our God
- He will forgive our sin and remember it no more – Jeremiah 31:33-34
- The NEW / BETTER Covenant is no longer about what we must do…
- It is instead all about what God has already DONE for us…
- Because of the BLOOD of Jesus – we are REDEEMED – our sins are PAID in FULL!
- 4th – Unleavened bread… vs. 14-20
- This will be a MEMORIAL to you for ALL generations…
- You will keep this feast – UNLEAVENED bread – as an EVERLASTING law…
- SEVEN days eat only UNLEAVENED bread – from the 14th – 21st day of the FIRST month…
- Whoever eats LEAVEN during this week – will be CUT off from Israel (important)!
- UNLEAVENED – mentioned 6x – Exodus 12 / told NOT to eat LEAVEN 5x!
- Leaven – also called yeast – the main ingredient that causes bread to rise…
- Yeast is a micro-organism – plant – begins to decay when it touches flour…
- The gas given off by the process causes bread to puff up and rise…
- A little leaven is all that is needed to saturate a whole batch of bread dough!
- Leven is a picture of sin in the Bible – I Corinthians 5:7 / Galatians 5:9
- Imitating the ability to spread decay – and cause men to be puffed up with pride!
- Jews have a name for UNLEAVENED bread – Matzah…
- The Matzah is always pierced and stripped
- During the Passover there are three pieces of Matzah – only the center piece is taken
- The center piece of the Matzah is broken – then it is taken away and hidden / buried…
- The broken piece is called the Afikomen – He who comes after!
- The Afikomen – Jesus Christ
- Three pieces of Matzah – God the Father / God the SON/ God the Holy Spirit
- Without LEAVEN – Jesus is perfect / without sin – pierced and striped for our sin!
- Isaiah 53:5 – “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.”
- That there is no LEAVEN in the Passover – shows the Passover LAMB – takes away sin!
- Because SIN will CUT us off from the FEAST – the presence of God…
- Jesus was broken for our sins (the cross) and buried that we might be UNLEAVENED!
- Luke 22:19 – “He took bread… and broke it… This is My body which is given for you…”
- The FIRST and LAST (seventh) days – were HOLY gatherings…
- NO work could be done on these two days (except to cook) – they were SABBATH days…
- Which answers the question – what day Jesus was crucified – Thursday!
- Jesus said He would be THREE days and THREE nights in the grave – Mark 10:34
- If you count THREE days from Friday – you do not end up at Sunday morning!
- Jesus was buried the day before the Sabbath – Mark 15:43 – many assume was Saturday!
- EXCEPT it turns out Saturdays were not the only Jewish SABBATH days…
- The FIRST day of the PASSOVER – was a special High SABBATH day!
- After the TWO Sabbath days – Matthew 28:1 – Jesus was resurrected on Sunday!
- 3rd – For the children… vs. 21-28
- 1st – Stay inside… vs. 21-23
- Pick out a LAMB – pain the BLOOD on the doors – and do NOT go OUTSIDE…
- They were safe from the DESTROYER – as long as they were INSIDE the house!
- Too often I see Christians – who STROLL into the places they should not be…
- Like Cain who was warned by the Lord – sin lies at your door – and desires you – Genesis 4:6
- When we get TOO close to the world – we tend to be TOO far from Jesus…
- We get in trouble – fall into sin – and cannot figure out what went wrong…
- The safest place we can possibly be – is as close to Jesus as we can possibly get!
- 2nd – When your children ask… vs. 24-28
- The children of Israel were to observe the Passover EVERY year – to REMEMBER…
- Passover was a PERMENANT tradition for the Jews – and it had a PURPOSE…
- Inevitably – their children asked WHY – and they could tell them the story…
- Passover was a way to TEACH the kids about how they were delivered from Egypt…
- How God created the nation of Israel – from a ragtag bunch of slaves!
- Then the people worshiped – and did exactly as the Lord had commanded Moses!
- Traditions can be good – when they teach us about God…
- Children should see Baptisms / Communion – partake if they want to…
- It is incredibly important to take our kids to church – Bible studies…
- Not for the sake of the TRADITION – but so they can ask WHY do we do it…
- It gives the opportunity for us to teach our kids about God…
- Communion – teaches how we were saved from sin / death – by the sacrifice of Jesus…
- Baptism – teaches how we are no longer sinners – but new creations in Christ!
- 1st – Stay inside… vs. 21-23
- 4th – The Exodus… vs. 29-42
- 1st – Two kinds of people… vs. 29-30
- At midnight – the Lord struck all FIRSTBORN…
- This TENTH and final plague was directed right at the pride of Pharaoh…
- Pharaoh was seen – and thought of himself – as the greatest of the gods of Egypt…
- His FIRSTBORN son would be the next in line for the throne – the NEXT great god…
- God humbled Pharaoh showing him he was no different from anyone else!
- There was not a house where there was not one dead…
- There was no difference – from the son of Pharaoh – to the son of the man in prison…
- I am sure Pharaoh thought he was safe – high in his palace – powerful among men…
- But it turned out there were only TWO groups of people on this night…
- Those who were covered by the Blood of the Lamb – and those who were not!
- It does not make any difference how much money we have – how powerful we are…
- On Judgment day there are TWO options – those who believe in Jesus – those who do not…
- Either the blood of the Lamb covers us – or there is death!
- 2nd – Faithful God… vs. 31-39
- Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron by NIGHT…
- Rise up / Go out / Go serve your God – all of them are commands (imperative) …
- You and your children – your flocks and your herds – NO MORE compromise…
- And BLESS (piel) me – presumably the way to BLESS Pharaoh was to LEAVE NOW!
- The people of Egypt ALSO wanted them to leave quickly – afraid they would all die!
- Israel did not leave empty handed…
- The people took their dough before it was LEAVENED – and carried it with them…
- Suggesting not all of Israel OEBEYED – but circumstances kept the LEAVEN from forming!
- But they did OBEY – in asking all their neighbors for their WEALTH…
- And God gave them FAVOR – and they TOOK (piel) all the WEALTH of Egypt!
- Israel journeyed from Ramses (their city in Goshen) to Succoth (tents) – temporary stop…
- A MIXED multitude – not all were from Israel – other nations were included…
- The WONDERS of God – had convinced MANY people to believe in the Lord!
- They baked UNLEAVENED bread – because they had not time to let it RISE!
- They were THRUST (pual – intensive passive) out of Egypt!
- A group of 600k men plus women and kids – estimated 3-5 million people!
- Although Abraham had ONE son – promised decedents as the stars – Genesis 15:5
- Jacob – grandson of Abraham – arrived in Egypt with only 70 people – Genesis 46:27
- When the time came to leave – they were not longer a small group…
- They WENT out as a new nation – a nation of God – ready for the Promised Land!
- If God says He will do something – it is an absolute guarantee that He will…
- God cannot lie – and He never changes His mind – God says it / that settles it!
- 3rd – Never Forget… vs. 40-42
- Apparently – the EXODUS was the 430 anniversary of their ENTRANCE into Egypt…
- The ARMIES of the Lord went out from the Land of Egypt…
- That night was a SOLEMN observance to the Lord – for ALL Israel to every generation…
- SOLEMN observance – only here OT – to GUARD or REMEMBER…
- The phrase – out of Egypt – appears 56x after this point in the Bible!
- God does not want Israel to ever forget how He saved them from Bondage!
- What we receive by GRACE – our EXODUS from sin – cost God everything…
- Which is why we partake of communion – so that we NEVER forget…
- I Corinthians 11:26 – “As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.”
- 1st – Two kinds of people… vs. 29-30
- 5th – The Rules for Passover… vs. 43-50
- 1st – No TRANSFERS… vs. 46
- The Passover LAMB could not be transferred to another house!
- Because SALVATION is a personal choice – you cannot TRASNFER it!
- 2nd – No BROKEN bones… vs. 46
- They could not break even one bone of the Passover LAMB…
- When the Romans went to break the legs of those being crucified – John 19:31
- Not one of the bones of Jesus was broken – because Jesus was the LAMB of God!
- John 19:36 – “These things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled – Not one of His bones shall be broken.”
- 3rd – No FOREIGNER… vs. 43-45 / 47-50
- All of Israel had to keep the Passover EVERY year…
- But NO foreigner – or a hired servant – or visitor – could take part in the PASSOVER…
- Only those who were Jews (circumcised) could eat the Passover meal…
- If a stranger wanted to take part in the Passover – they must FIRST be CIRCUMCISED…
- Because there was only ONE law [תּוֹרָה] – for both the JEW (native) and the STRANGER!
- Because there is only ONE way to get to heaven – only ONE road – John 14:6
- And NO foreigners / hired servants / or visitors are allowed into HEAVEN – only SONS!
- The only way to become a SON – is by FAITH in the LAMB of God!
- Galatians 3:26 – “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.”
- Israel did ALL the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron…
- On that same day the Lord BROUGHT the children of Israel out of Egypt by their armies…
- BROUGHT – (hiphil – perfect) – He caused them to come out – and NEVER go back!
- 1st – No TRANSFERS… vs. 46