The word “Easter” appears in the King James Version of the Bible only once (Acts 12:4), and in its use it is a mistranslation. In the original language, the word, pascha, correctly translated, is Passover. The Easter weekend is usually not even the real Passover weekend. In the Hebrew calendar this weekend was the fourteenth of Abib, which was the first month of the year, or somewhere around the end of what we call March or the beginning of April. I would like to study with you some lessons that we could learn from the Passover.
Significance of Feast Days
I am not suggesting that we keep the Passover—celebration of the feast days holds no significance since the crucifixion of Christ. But study of the Sanctuary and of the feast days associated with the Sanctuary will save us from a lot of problems.
The Sanctuary cannot be studied without looking at the feast days that accompanied the work going on in it. The feast days and the Sanctuary were a lesson book to the children of Israel. They were actually a picture of the plan of salvation. From these rituals, the people could see God’s plan to save His people from sin. As we study to make the connection between the lesson and the reality of what God is really doing in the anti-typical Day of Atonement, we will gain understanding that will save us from a lot of false theology, false gospels, and heresies.
These feast days pointed forward to Christ and to what He would accomplish on the cross. Most of them were fulfilled in Christ. The Day of Atonement is being fulfilled right now. The only other feast day that has not yet been fulfilled is the Feast of Tabernacles, but we are told by the Spirit of Prophecy that we should enter into the spirit exhibited during the Feast of Tabernacles. “Well would it be for us to have a feast of tabernacles, a joyous commemoration of the blessings of God to us as a people. As the children of Israel celebrated the deliverance that God wrought for their fathers, and his miraculous preservation of them during their journeyings from Egypt to the promised land, so should the people of God at the present time gratefully call to mind the various ways he has devised to bring them out from the world, out from the darkness of error, into the precious light of truth. We should often bring to remembrance the dependence upon God of those who first led out in this work. We should gratefully regard the old way-marks, and refresh our souls with memories of the loving-kindness of our gracious Benefactor.” Review and Herald, November 17, 1885. Our camp meetings are commemorative of that day! (See The Bible Echo, December 8, 1893.)
Symbolism of the Passover
As we study the feast days, we get a better picture of how God works for His people and how His people are to respond to that work. The Passover was very symbolic of Christ’s crucifixion, and is both commemorative and typical. It not only points back to the typical, the deliverance from bondage and slavery in Egypt, but forward to the greater deliverance of His people from sin at the end of time.
You may remember the story of God’s people in Egypt—of how Moses was sent to deliver them; of Pharaoh’s refusal to release them when Moses came to him with a message from God; of the plagues that God sent to help Pharaoh change his mind. Each plague was progressively worse, until the last one—the death of all the first-born of Egypt. The first-born of every family—from Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the person in the dungeons—was to die in this last plague unless they were under the protection of God. God gave very specific instruction to His people of how they could be protected and delivered.
Exodus 12:1–5 says, “And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, This month [shall be] unto you the beginning of months: it [shall be] the first month of the year to you. Speak ye 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: And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take [it] according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take [it] out from the sheep, or from the goats: And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.”
Remember, an important feature of this is that the lamb was actually selected on the tenth day of the month. It was set aside from the rest of the herd and kept until the fourteenth day of that month, when it was killed at the ninth hour. On the fourteenth of Abib, this would be about 3:00 in the afternoon. The time equates to the time of the crucifixion, and the lamb represents Christ. Just as the Passover lamb had been for centuries, up until the time of Christ, set aside on the tenth day of Abib and singled out to be killed, so Christ, several days before He was actually crucified, was singled out by the Sanhedrin and marked for death. Just as people would look at that lamb singled out from the rest of the lambs, and say, “That lamb is marked for death,” in their minds the Sanhedrin considered Christ marked for death.
“Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles. If we let him thus alone, all [men] will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation. And one of them, [named] Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put Him to death. Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with His disciples.” John 11:47–54.
So we see, just as the Passover lamb was separated and marked for death, Jesus was separated from the rest of the Jews and marked for death. It says He walked no more among them from that point on. It is quite ironic that these people, who were so into keeping the Passover, were about to kill the real Lamb to whom all of those other Passover lamb sacrifices had pointed. They were so into keeping the Passover, it was so important to them, that when they wanted to condemn Him to death they would not go into the judgment hall, because they did not want to defile themselves. They thought that, if they went into the judgment hall, they would not be able to keep the Passover. While they were so careful not to defile themselves, they were killing the real Passover Lamb! (See John 18:28.) They were very particular regarding these details, while doing such an horrific act.
Shadow of Christ
We are told that the Sanctuary, and the feast days and everything connected with them, were a shadow of Christ and of what He was about to do. I always like to picture in my mind the glory of heaven shining on a coming Saviour, casting a shadow, and that shadow is the Sanctuary, and all of the services connected with it. These people were keeping the shadow and killing the One who cast that shadow. What a lesson and a warning for us to be careful that we do not get so caught up in ceremony and form that we lose touch with reality and do not realize what is actually occurring.
Jesus was crucified about the ninth hour, or 3:00, on Friday afternoon, the fourteenth of Abib—exactly right on time. When God gives a prophecy, in His time it comes true, and that is exactly what happened. So much was it on time, that when Jesus cried, “It is finished,” and gave up the ghost, the priest, at the temple, had his hand raised with the knife ready to slay the sacrificial lamb, but the sacrifice never happened. The lamb ran away, and the veil of the temple was rent in half from top to bottom, signifying an end of that shadow. The shadow had been fulfilled by the real event. No longer were there to be any services of that type.
If you have studied the Sanctuary, you know that the thickness of the curtain, which was rent in half from top to bottom, was about the width of a man’s hand. It was a special weave of cloth, approximately four inches thick. That the curtain ripped from top to bottom was no coincidence. (See The Story of Redemption, 226; The Desire of Ages, 774, 775.) The blindness of those who get so caught up in rituals, that they cannot see they are actually fulfilling prophecy, should frighten each one of us. The Jews were very much into prophecy, yet they could not see that they were fulfilling prophecy in a negative way.
Not Rejecting or Accepting
The Passover lamb was entirely roasted. Not a single bone of its body was broken. Exodus 12:46 states: “In one house shall it [the lamb] be eaten . . . neither shall ye break a bone thereof.” John 19:36 says, “For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.”
The lamb had to be slain, but was that the end of the story? No, it was not. Was that all that was necessary to save God’s people from the death angel? No, it was not the end. There is a theology being spread about right now, even invading the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and somewhat among historic churches, which says that Christ died for all men; therefore, since Christ died for all men, the only way that we cannot be saved is to reject that salvation. That sounds pretty good, but . . . We know that Christ died for all men. The problem comes in the part about as long as you do not reject it you are saved. There is more involved than not just rejecting it—it actually has to be accepted. That might sound like minor details and semantics, but it is really a very important issue.
There is a lot of difference between not rejecting something and actually accepting it. For example, perhaps today someone might come up to you and tell you something that they have learned from Scripture or Spirit of Prophecy—something that you have never thought about. They may say, “Did you ever realize this?” Your response might be, “Well, I will have to think about that,” or “I will have to study that out; I have never thought about that before.” You have not rejected the idea, but that does not mean that you have accepted it either. There is a lot of difference between not rejecting and accepting.
Preparation
Exodus 12:7–13 gives us some detail of just what else had to be done besides just killing the lamb. “They shall take of the blood, and strike [it] on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; [and] with bitter [herbs] they shall eat it. Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast [with] fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof. And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire. And thus shall ye eat it; [with] your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it [is] the Lord’s passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I [am] the Lord. And the blood shall be to you for a token 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.”
“It was not enough that the Pascal lamb be slain; its blood must be sprinkled upon the door posts; so the merits of Christ’s blood must be applied to the soul.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 277. That is our present day application.
In verse 22 it says, “And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip [it] in the blood that [is] in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that [is] in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning.” The blood had to be applied with a bunch of hyssop; hyssop is a symbol of purification. Psalm 51:7 says, “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” David is talking about the hyssop being used in the purification of his heart.
Must eat the Flesh
Let us look at Exodus 12:8 again, “And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; [and] with bitter [herbs] they shall eat it.” The flesh had to be eaten. That was another condition of their salvation and protection. It had to be eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Concerning this, Mrs. White says, “The flesh was to be eaten. It is not enough even that we believe on Christ for the forgiveness of sin; we must by faith be constantly receiving spiritual strength and nourishment from Him through His word. Said Christ, ‘Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life.’ John 6:53, 54. And to explain His meaning He said, ‘The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.’ Verse 63. Jesus accepted His Father’s law, wrought out its principles in His life, manifested its Spirit, and showed its beneficent power in the heart. Says John, ‘The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.’ John 1:14. The followers of Christ must be partakers of His experience. They must receive and assimilate the word of God so that it shall become the motive power of life and action. By the power of Christ they must be changed into His likeness, and reflect the divine attributes. They must eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of God, or there is no life in them. The spirit and work of Christ must become the spirit and work of His disciples.
“The lamb was to be eaten with bitter herbs, as pointing back to the bitterness of the bondage in Egypt. So when we feed upon Christ, it should be with contrition of heart, because of our sins. The use of unleavened bread also was significant. It was expressly enjoined in the law of the Passover, and as strictly observed by the Jews in their practice, that no leaven should be found in their houses during the feast. In like manner the leaven of sin must be put away from all who would receive life and nourishment from Christ. So Paul writes to the Corinthian church, ‘Purge out therefore, the old leaven that ye may be a new lump. . . . For even Christ, our Passover is sacrificed for us: therefore, let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.’ 1 Corinthians 5:7, 8.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 277, 278.
Application of Symbols
We can see some very important things in these symbols as they are applied to our lives today. The bitter herbs, intended to remind the children of Israel of the bitter experience of bondage in Egypt, are to remind us of our bitter experience of bondage to sin, self, and Satan. In almost every instance in the Bible, leaven represents sin. All of the leaven was to be purged. In Exodus 12:19, it says that no leaven was to be found in the homes. “Whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off.” That phrase, cut off, is very significant also. In several places, Israel is told, if you do such and such, especially on the Day of Atonement, you will be cut off. To be cut off meant more than just to die a physical death; it meant there was no atonement for you on the Day of Atonement. It was a very serious thing to be cut off, and it was a very strong warning.
The death of the lamb provided the means of salvation, and the application of the blood made the means applicable—useful. It is one thing to be saved from death, but it is quite another thing to have the means of sustaining life. People who are put on respirators have been saved from death, but they certainly do not have the means to sustain life. Eating the flesh and drinking of the blood of the Son of God, which is assimilating His Word, provides this sustaining of life. On the other hand, another way that life is sustained is by abstaining from the leaven, or sin, which we are told will kill us. “The wages of sin is death.” Romans 6:23.
Examples of Leaven
Leaven usually represents sin of one kind or another, but it can be very specific. I would like to look at 11 different examples in the Bible of what leaven can be:
Leaven is false doctrine. “Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. . . . Then understood they how that He bade [them] not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.” Matthew 16:6, 12.
Leaven represents greed and injustice. “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.” Matthew 23:14.
Leaven is false zeal, not according to knowledge. “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.” Matthew 23:15.
Leaven is a wrong estimate of spiritual things—valuing that that will perish instead of valuing eternal things. “Woe unto you, [ye] blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! [Ye] fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. [Ye] fools and blind: for whether [is] greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.” Matthew 23:16–22.
Leaven is the omission of judgment, mercy, and faith. “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier [matters] of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.” Matthew 23:23.
Leaven is hypocrisy. “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. [Thou] blind Pharisee, cleanse first that [which is] within the cup and the platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead [men’s] bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.” Matthew 23:25–28.
Leaven is intolerance for the straight truth. It is a dislike of truth. “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. [Ye] serpents, [ye] generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?” Matthew 23:29–33.
Leaven is cruelty to others, especially God’s people. “Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and [some] of them ye shall kill and crucify; and [some] of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute [them] from city to city: That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.” Matthew 23:34–36.
Leaven is skepticism of the truth and lack of knowledge of the Scriptures. “The same day came to him the Sadducees, which say that there is no resurrection, and asked Him, Saying, Master, Moses said, If a man die, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. . . . Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.” Matthew 22:23, 29.
We are told, in 2 Timothy 2:15, to “study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” Through study we will know the Scriptures and protect ourselves from skepticism of truth.
Leaven is represented as flattery, worldliness, and hypocrisy. “And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any [man]: for thou regardest not the person of men. Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not? But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, [ye] hypocrites? Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny. And he saith unto them, Whose [is] this image and superscription? They say unto him, Caesar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s: and unto God the things that are God’s.” Matthew 22:16–21.
11 Leaven is plotting evil against God’s servants. “And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him.” Mark 3:6.
Jesus warned all of His disciples against being leavened with these things.
Consider again 1 Corinthians 5:6–8: “Your glorying [is] not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened [bread] of sincerity and truth.” When Paul talks about keeping the feast of the Passover, he is not talking about keeping a feast one day out of the year, as was done for several hundred years. He is talking about keeping it every single day. All of the principles of the Passover should be in our lives each day, not just one day out of the year.
Necessity of Obedience
The lamb had to die; the blood had to be applied; the flesh had to be eaten, and it had to be eaten with bitter herbs and with unleavened bread. We must always remember that in fulfilling these requirements there are conditions. When we have fulfilled them, we have not earned a thing. That is where many Christians get into trouble. This issue of cooperation with God—fulfilling conditions by His grace—is where so many people end up in one ditch or the other. They are either on the side where we do not have to do anything—we do not have to obey God because we are under grace, or they go to the other extreme and become legalists and think that if we obey God we have somehow earned our salvation. There are whole systems of religion built on the premise that somehow we can earn our salvation. To keep this straight in our minds is probably one of the greatest lessons that God’s people must learn. By God’s grace we obey Him, but we do not earn anything. There is no merit in obedience.
In Luke 17:10, Christ said, “So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.” We do not earn anything; we just do what we are supposed to do in the first place. It is simply showing faith in the great deliverance to be accomplished when we obey God. To leave out any of these steps is to leave oneself without protection.
Mrs. White is very specific about this: “Before obtaining freedom, the bondmen must show their faith in the great deliverance about to be accomplished. The token of blood must be placed upon their houses, and they must separate themselves and their families from the Egyptians, and gather within their own dwellings. Had the Israelites disregarded in any particular the directions given them, had they neglected to separate their children from the Egyptians, had they slain the lamb, but failed to strike the doorpost with blood, or had any gone out of their houses, they would not have been secure. They might have honestly believed that they had done all that was necessary, but their sincerity would not have saved them. All who failed to heed the Lord’s directions would lose their first-born by the hand of the destroyer.
“By obedience the people were to give evidence of their faith. So all who hope to be saved by the merits of the blood of Christ should realize that they themselves have something to do in securing their salvation. While it is Christ only that can redeem us from the penalty of transgression, we are to turn from sin to obedience. Man is to be saved by faith, not by works; yet his faith must be shown by his works. God has given His Son to die as a propitiation for sin. He has manifested the light of truth, the way of life, He has given facilities, ordinances, and privileges; and now man must co-operate with these saving agencies; he must appreciate and use the helps that God has provided—believe and obey all the divine requirements.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 278, 279.
Exodus 12:11, 12 states: “And thus shall ye eat it; [with] your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it [is] the Lord’s passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I [am] the Lord.” “The Israelites obeyed the directions that God had given. Swiftly and secretly they made their preparations for departure.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 279.
Present Day Application
Let us look a little closer at some of the instructions that tell of how the children of Israel were, and of how we are, to eat God’s Word.
They were to eat with their loins girded. In the Bible this usually symbolizes service. Luke 12:35, 36 tells us about that: “Let your loins be girded about, and [your] lights burning; And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately.” How does that apply to us today? Are we seeking to serve God and our fellowmen with our loins girded about with truth as we are instructed in Ephesians 6:14? “Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness.”
The shoes were to be on their feet. This indicates that they were ready to leave. Are we prepared to walk in the narrow path of obedience today?
They were to eat with their staff in their hand. What was the purpose of the staff? For what did the shepherds use the staff? They used it to lead the sheep and to protect the sheep from predators. It was used as a tool. We are told that, in a special sense, this describes Seventh-day Adventists. “Seventh-day Adventists have been set in the world as watchmen and light bearers. To them has been entrusted the last warning for a perishing world. On them is shining wonderful light from the word of God. They have been given a work of the most solemn import—the proclamation of the first, second, and third angels’ messages. There is no other work of so great importance. They are to allow nothing else to absorb their attention.” Testimonies, vol. 9, 19. We are to be, as it were, in this world with staff in hand, to lead and protect the sheep with the Word of truth.
They were to eat in haste. Make haste to know God’s Word and do not be satisfied with what you already know. If we become satisfied with what we already know, if we do not continue to eat God’s Word in haste and to learn, then we become stagnant, and we die. We do not stand still very long—we either go forward or we go backward. To remain in one place is to die.
They were to prepare swiftly and secretly for departure. As I thought about that I asked myself a few questions: Are we preparing to leave this world, or are we settling in for the long stay? How serious are we about going to Heaven? What are we doing to cooperate with God? What are we doing in our homes? What do we read? What do we watch? What do we eat, wear, and think about? Are we seeking to live up to all of the light that has been given us or do we just pick and choose and take the part we like and disregard the part that rubs us wrong? God has told us, through His servant, many things that we are to be doing to prepare to leave this world. This includes the necessity of studying His Word, obeying it, and getting sin out of our lives. All of those things I just asked about—we have been given very specific instruction on what to do and what not to do, if we are really preparing for translation.
Exodus 12:29 says, “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 cattle.” It is almost midnight in this world’s history. There is a war going on between good and evil, and the battle is intensifying. Why not ask God right now to help you in the preparation of your life, before time runs out?
Steve Currey is currently a Bible worker for Steps to Life Ministry. He may be contacted by telephone at 316-788-5559.