Exodus 12:13-33

13 And this blood shall be to you for a sign upon the houses where ye 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.

14 And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it as a feast unto the LORD throughout your ages; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance forever.

15 Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses, for whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.

16 And in the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, except that which every person must eat, that only may be done of you.

17 And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread, for in this same day have I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt; therefore, shall ye observe this day for your ages by an ordinance forever.

18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month in the evening, ye shall eat unleavened bread until the twenty-first day of the month in the evening.

19 For seven days there shall be no leaven found in your houses; for whoever eats that which is leavened, that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a stranger or born in the land.

20 Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations ye shall eat unleavened bread.

21 Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said unto them, Draw out and take lambs according to your families and sacrifice the passover.

22 And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin and touch the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the basin; and none of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning.

23 For the LORD will pass through smiting the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood upon the lintel and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over that door and will not allow the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you.

24 And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons forever.

25 And it shall come to pass, when ye have entered into the land which the LORD will give you, according as he has promised, that ye shall keep this service.

26 And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What do you mean by this service?

27 That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the LORD’s passover, who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians and delivered our houses. Then the people bowed and worshipped.

28 And the sons of Israel went away, and as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they.

29 And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the animals.

30 And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his slaves and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one dead.

31 And he called for Moses and Aaron by night and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the sons of Israel, and go, serve the LORD as ye have said.

32 Also take your sheep and your cows, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also.

33 And the Egyptians were urgent upon the people that they might send them out of the land in haste, for they said, We are all dead men.

Exodus 12:13-33 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 12

This chapter begins with observing, that the month in which the above wonders were wrought in Egypt, and the following ordinance appointed to the Israelites, should hereafter be reckoned the first month in the year, Ex 12:1,2 on the tenth day of which a lamb here described was to be taken and kept till the fourteenth, and then slain, and its blood sprinkled on the posts of the houses of the Israelites, Ex 12:3-7, the manner of dressing and eating it is shown, Ex 12:8-11 and the reason of the institution of this ordinance being given, Ex 12:12-14, and an order to eat unleavened bread during seven days, in which the feast was to be kept, Ex 12:15-20, directions are also given for the immediate observance of it, and particularly about the sprinkling of the blood of the lamb, and the use of it, Ex 12:21-23, and this ordinance, which they were to instruct their children in, was to be kept by them in succeeding ages for ever, Ex 12:24-27 about the middle of the night it was first observed, all the firstborn in Egypt were slain, which made the Egyptians urgent upon the Israelites to depart in haste, Ex 12:28-33 and which they did with their unleavened dough, and with great riches they had borrowed of the Egyptians, Ex 12:34-36, the number of the children of Israel at the time of their departure, the mixed multitude and cattle that went with them, their baking their unleavened cakes, the time of their sojourning in Egypt, and of their coming out of it that night, which made it a remarkable one, are all particularly taken notice of, Ex 12:37-42, laws and rules are given concerning the persons that should partake of the passover, Ex 12:43-49 and the chapter is concluded with observing, that it was kept according to the command of God, and that it was on the same day it was first instituted and kept that Israel were brought out of Egypt, Ex 12:50,51.