Exodus 12:27

27 you will answer, "It is the sacrifice of Passover to honor the Lord, because he passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt. He killed the Egyptians, but spared us.' " The Israelites knelt down and worshiped.

Exodus 12:27 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 12:27

That ye shall say, it is the sacrifice of the Lord's
passover
This lamb is a sacrifice, both eucharistical, or by way of thanksgiving for their safety, when the firstborn of the Egyptians were slain, and for their deliverance out of Egypt; and also propitiatory, the blood of this lamb being a propitiation or atonement for all within the house where it was sprinkled, as before observed from Aben Ezra; and typical of the atoning sacrifice of Christ our passover, ( 1 Corinthians 5:7 ) and this was commanded by the Lord, and approved of and accepted by him, and therefore called his sacrifice as well as passover, for the following reason: who passed over the houses of the children of Israel, when he smote the
Egyptians, and delivered our houses;
their families, not suffering the destroying angel to enter into them, which was a very distinguishing mercy, and worthy of remembrance. Now in this they were to instruct their children in successive generations, that the memory of it might be kept up, and a sense of the goodness of God continued, and his name glorified. Maimonides F25 says,

``it is a command to make this known to children, even though they do not ask it, as it is said, "and thou shall show thy son", ( Exodus 13:8 ) . According to the son's knowledge, his father teaches him; how if he is a little one or foolish? he says to him, my son, all of us were servants, as this handmaid, or this servant, in Egypt; and on this night the holy blessed God redeemed us, and brought us into liberty: and if the son is grown up, and a wise man, he makes known to him what happened to us in Egypt, and the wonders which were done for us by the hand of Moses our master, all according to the capacity of his son; and it is necessary to make a repetition on this night, that the children may see, and ask, and say, how different is this night from all other nights! until he replies and says to them, so and so it happened, and thus and thus it was:''
and the people bowed the head and worshipped;
signifying the deep sense they had of the mercy shown them, their thankfulness for it, and their readiness to observe the ordinance now instituted.
FOOTNOTES:

F25 Hilchot Chametz Umetzah, c. 7. sect. 2, 3.

Exodus 12:27 In-Context

25 When you enter the land that the Lord has promised to give you, you must perform this ritual.
26 When your children ask you, "What does this ritual mean?'
27 you will answer, "It is the sacrifice of Passover to honor the Lord, because he passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt. He killed the Egyptians, but spared us.' " The Israelites knelt down and worshiped.
28 Then they went and did what the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron.
29 At midnight the Lord killed all the first-born sons in Egypt, from the king's son, who was heir to the throne, to the son of the prisoner in the dungeon; all the first-born of the animals were also killed.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.