Exodus 13:5

5 and when the Lord hath led thee into the land of Canaanites, and of Hittites, and of Amorites, and of Hivites, and of Jebusites, which land he swore to thy fathers, that he should give to thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, thou shalt hallow this custom of holy things in this month (thou shalt keep this rite in this month).

Exodus 13:5 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 13:5

And it shall be when the Lord shall bring thee into the land of
the Canaanites
Though the whole land was called the land of Canaan, yet there was one tribe or nation of them particularly so called as here, distinct from those that follow: and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites;
there were seven nations in all, but two are here omitted, the Girgashites and Perizzites, but they are added in the Septuagint version, see ( Deuteronomy 7:1 ) which he swore unto thy fathers to give thee;
to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; so that they might be assured they would be brought into it, since they had both the word and oath of God for it; and which is the rather mentioned now for their encouragement, since they were at this time set forward in their journey thitherwards: a land flowing with milk and honey; (See Gill on Exodus 3:8), that thou shalt keep this service in this month;
the month of Abib; that is, the following service concerning unleavened bread; it is concluded from hence by some, that those laws concerning the passover, and eating unleavened bread, and sanctifying the firstborn, did not oblige the Israelites, while in the wilderness, only when they came into the land of Canaan; and it seems pretty clear that this was the case with respect to the two latter, but not the former, since it is certain they did keep the passover in the wilderness, and were obliged to it, ( Numbers 9:1-5 ) but then it may be observed, that there is no mention there of their keeping the feast of unleavened bread, only of the passover, as here no mention is made of the feast of the passover, which, though they followed one another, were, two distinct feasts.

Exodus 13:5 In-Context

3 And Moses said to the people, Have ye mind of this day, in which ye went out of Egypt, and of the house of servage, for in [a] strong hand the Lord led you out of this place, that ye eat no bread dighted with sourdough. (And Moses said to the people, Remember ye this day, in which ye went out of Egypt, and out of the house of servitude, or of slavery, for by his strong hand the Lord led you out of this place, and remember to not eat any bread made with yeast on this day.)
4 Today ye go out, in the month of new fruits; (Go ye out today, in the month of Abib;)
5 and when the Lord hath led thee into the land of Canaanites, and of Hittites, and of Amorites, and of Hivites, and of Jebusites, which land he swore to thy fathers, that he should give to thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, thou shalt hallow this custom of holy things in this month (thou shalt keep this rite in this month).
6 Seven days thou shalt eat therf loaves, and the solemnity of the Lord shall be in the seventh day; (For seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, and a Feast unto the Lord shall be held on the seventh day;)
7 ye shall eat therf loaves seven days, nothing dighted with sourdough shall appear at thee, neither in all thy coasts. (ye shall eat unleavened bread for seven days, and nothing made with yeast shall be seen among thee, not in all thy land.)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.