Institution of the Passover

Story: Institution of the Passover

Passage: Exodus 12:43-

Characters:  God, Israel

Summary:  The Lord laid out the rules for the Passover.  No foreigner could eat it, but slaves could if they were circumcised.  It was to be eaten in one house.  Nothing was to leave the house and no bones were to be broken.  A foreigner could eat it if he and all of his males were circumcised.  The people did exactly what God commanded them.

Notes: The Passover was to be for Israel, but a foreigner could eat it too if they were circumcised.  The purpose of circumcision was to set the Israelites apart.  In a similar way, the gospel was first for Israel, but Gentiles could also be included.  We also must be set apart to be saved though.  It is very interesting to me that the Passover lamb’s bones were not to be broken.  Jesus’ bones were not broken when He was killed, so He was indeed a valid Passover lamb! He even fulfilled the requirement that it is eaten in one house and indoors.  When He ate the last supper with His disciples, they broke bread and He told them that it was His flesh.  They did not realize it at the time, but when they ate the bread, they were taking part in the first Passover meal of the true Passover.

Questions:  Why were the bones not to be broken?  Why were foreigners excluded?

Lessons:  We are starting to see some of the ways in which Christ fulfilled the law.  In reading this passage we are learning what a perfect Passover lamb Christ really was!  Instead of questioning why God worked things out like this, we should worship the Lord who sacrificed His only son, the true Passover lamb, and has accepted His death as the punishment for our sins!