When to Keep the Passover, According To the Truth of God
Greetings, Wayne, a servant of God, by the grace of God, teaching truth under the authority of Jesus Christ to any who are willing to receive it, or as Jesus put it, to any who have ears to hear (Mat 11:15).
I will be the words in green. Purple Highlights will be key words or phrases of truth.
First of all, who has supreme authority over the feast of the Passover , God or men?
Exo 12:11 And thus shall you eat it [sacrificial lamb]; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD'S Passover.
It is the Lord's Passover. Therefore everything we need to know about the Lord's Passover, including unleavened bread, will be commanded by God and recorded in the Holy Bible.
And truth is not always discerned from one scripture alone and often requires piecing scriptures together - here a little and there a little:
Isa 28:9 Whom shall He [God] teach knowledge? and whom shall He make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.
Isa 28:10 For precept [command, principle, or general rule] must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:
So let us go here a little and there a little to piece together the immutable word of God (Heb 6:18) in order to draw a sound conclusion as to which days the feast of the Passover and unleavened bread should be kept. The word Hebrew is one of the keys that unlocks the truth.
God gave His law to Moses, a Hebrew:
Exo 2:11 And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren.
Is God the God of the Hebrews?
Exo 9:1 Then the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus says the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
So clearly Moses and his brethren were Hebrews, the same people Moses led out of Egypt - the house of Jacob, or house of Israel:
Exo 19:3 And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel;
Jacob (Israel) is a seed or descendant of Abram the Hebrew who is now referred to as Abraham:
Gen 50:24 And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.
Now, Jacob's name changed to Israel:
Gen 32:28 And he said, your name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince have you power with God and with men, and have prevailed.
Abram the Hebrew:
Gen 14:13 And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner: and these were confederate with Abram.
Abram's name changed to Abraham:
Gen 17:5 Neither shall your name any more be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made you.
1Ch 1:27 Abram; the same is Abraham.
Neh 9:7 You are the LORD God, who did choose Abram, and brought him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gave him the name of Abraham;
So now that we have established that Moses and the house of Israel are Hebrews descended from Abraham the Hebrew, let us see what Moses was put in charge of to deliver to the house of Israel - Hebrew Israelites (Jos 13:13):
Act 7:37 This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall you hear.
Act 7:38 This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spoke to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles [Hebrew: utterances] to give unto us:
Oracles, or utterances of course being the words or commandments of God (Rom 3:1,2; Heb 5:12; 1Pe 4:11).
Let us now focus our attention on the Lord Jesus Christ - the lamb of God (Joh 1:29,36). Is the sacrifice of Jesus Christ as the lamb of God connected to the Hebrew house of Israel?
Act 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God has made that same Jesus, whom you have crucified, both Lord and Christ.
Is there any chance that Jesus Christ might have changed the dates of the Passover feast based on the law and Hebrew calendar of the Old Testament?
Mat 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
Mat 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
Ok then, back to the Old Testament to see what the law says:
Exo 12:1 And the LORD spoke unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying,
Exo 12:2 This month [Hebrew calendar: Nisan] shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.
Does not a spring new year make more sense than a fall or winter new year?
Exo 12:3 Speak you unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house:
In preparation for the feast of the Passover and unleavened bread. Christians understand that Jesus is a one-time sacrifice as the lamb of God, but what is of the utmost importance is the day that we observe that sacrifice:
Is the Passover separate from the days of unleavened bread? The following verses show they are of the same seven day feast:
Luk 2:41 Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover.
Luk 22:1 Now the feast of unleavened bread drew nigh, which is called the Passover.
Continuing with the feast of the Passover:
Exo 12:6 And you shall keep it [the chosen lamb] up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.
In the evening meaning, at twilight or sunset concluding the fourteenth day which ushers in the fifteenth day, which commences the feast of the Passover , which includes the days of unleavened bread, which continues seven days up to the twenty first day of Nisan at even (sunset), concluding the feast of the Passover. Notice these scriptures with the phrase "in the evening" and how the context clearly shows "in the evening" concluding, or finishing a day:
Gen 8:10 And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark;
Gen 8:11 And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf plucked off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth.
1Ki 17:6 And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
Psa 90:6 In the morning it flourishes, and grows up; in the evening it is cut down, and withered.
Ecc 11:6 In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening withhold not your hand: for you know not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.
Another point to consider: if the feast of the Passover started the evening before the fourteenth day and lasted to the twenty-first day at even, the feast would last eight days instead of seven:
Exo 12:18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even.
Exo 12:19 Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eats that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land.
Let us now look at some scriptures that link the feast of the Passover with days of unleavened bread:
Exo 12:13 And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where you are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.
Exo 12:14 And this day [Passover - the first day which commenced at sunset] shall be unto you for a memorial; and you shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; you shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.
Exo 12:15 Seven days shall you eat unleavened bread; even the first day you shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.
Notice the word "memorial" from Exodus 12:14 and compare its use in the following verse concerning the Feast of Trumpets:
Lev 23:24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall you have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.
Back to more scriptures tying the feast of the Passover with unleavened bread:
Exo 12:16 And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you.
Exo 12:17 And you shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day [the first day, the day of the Passover] have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall you observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever.
Exo 12:18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even [after sunset: at the same time that the Passover lamb was to be sacrificed (Exo 12:6, Mar 14:12)], you shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day [twenty-first day of Nisan] of the month at even [sunset].
2Ch 35:17 And the children of Israel that were present kept the Passover at that time, and the feast of unleavened bread seven days.
Eze 45:21 In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, you shall have the Passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten.
At this point, we will establish a parallel of observance between the Old Testament Passover meal and the same Passover meal Jesus Christ kept with His disciples.
Exodus 12:6 clearly shows that they were preparing, on the fourteenth day of Nisan, for a killing of a sacrificial lamb, coming up in the evening.
Now notice the same preparation, during the day, for the Passover observance coming up, in the evening, as Jesus Christ spoke to His disciples:
Mat 26:17 Now the first day of the feast of unleavened bread [which would begin at even along with the Passover (Exo 12:14-18)] the disciples came to Jesus, saying unto him, Where will you that we prepare for you to eat the Passover?
Mat 26:18 And he said, Go into the city to such a man, and say unto him, The Master says, My time is at hand; I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.
Mat 26:19 And the disciples did as Jesus had appointed them; and they made ready the Passover.
Again, we see a parallel account of preparation, during the day, for the Passover meal which would begin at even, or in the evening of the same day. Notice now when the Passover meal began:
Mat 26:20 Now when the even [sunset] was come, he sat down with the twelve.
Jesus sat down with the twelve to eat and drink and observe the Passover in the evening after sunset:
Mat 26:21 And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.
Here is another example from the book of Mark:
Mar 14:1 After two days was the feast of the Passover, and of unleavened bread: and the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might take him by craft, and put him to death.
Mar 14:12 And the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the Passover, his disciples said unto him, Where will you that we go and prepare that you may eat the Passover?
Mar 14:16 And his disciples went forth, and came into the city, and found as he had said unto them: and they made ready the Passover.
Mar 14:17 And in the evening he comes with the twelve.
Mar 14:18 And as they sat and did eat, Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, One of you which eats with me shall betray me.
And to confirm that Jesus was indeed eating the Passover meal with His disciples:
Luk 22:15 And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer:
Now, we have established two indisputable facts from Exodus 12:
1. The feast of the Passover and unleavened bread was to last seven days.
2. The feast of the Passover and unleavened bread was to end on the twenty first day of Nisan at Even (Exo 12:18).
Let us now see the truth of God using His Hebrew calendar:
The feast of the Passover and unleavened bread begins on the fourteenth day of Nisan at even - twilight, or sundown.
To even of the fifteenth day - Day 1 Holy Convocation (Exo 12:16)
To even of the sixteenth day - Day 2
To even of the seventeenth day - Day 3
To even of the eighteenth day - Day 4
To even of the nineteenth day - Day 5
To even of the twentieth day - Day 6
To even of the twenty first day - Day 7 Holy Convocation (Exo 12:16)
Seven, twenty-four hour days, just as God commanded.
2Ch 35:17 And the children of Israel that were present kept the Passover at that time, and the feast of unleavened bread seven days.
Eze 45:21 In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, you shall have the Passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten.
So regardless of how some may interpret the Bible, the "here a little, there a little" scriptures of the Holy Bible can not be broken (Joh 10:35). Exodus 12, containing God's oracles, or utterances, holds the keys for the correct days of the feast of the Passover and unleavened bread during the month of Nisan from the Hebrew calendar.
Freely I have received, freely I have given.
Farewell,
Servanthood