Each family was required to sprinkle the blood of the
lamb to avert the doom by birth (not by conduct) of its first born (Exodus 12:21-23)
The Passover service was to be a perpetual reminder of
the Lord Who passed over Israel and judged her enemies - the Egyptians (Exodus 12:24-27)
Joshua - Entrance into the Inheritance (Joshua 5:9-11)
It was at the time of the Passover (when Israel was to
finally possess her inheritance) that God rolled (Hebrew, Gilgal) away the "reproach of Egypt" in which
Pharaoh said that the wilderness has "shut them in" (Exodus 14:3)
It was at this same time that the wilderness food (the
manna) ceased and that Israel started to eat of the fruit of the Land (Joshua 5:12)
The Passover was kept in the second month because of the
defilement of the priests (II Chronicles 30:1-4), which provision was made according to the Law (Numbers 9:6-11)
The king exhorted the people to keep the Passover according
to the "Word of the Lord" (II Chronicles 30:12), since for a "long time" it was not kept according to "as
it was written" (II Chronicles 30:5) and the king prayed pardon for those who ate the Passover "otherwise
than it was written" (II Chronicles 30:18)
There was "not the like" of Hezekiah's Passover
since the time of Solomon (II Chronicles 30:26)
Josiah's Passover was the greatest of the Passovers observed
in all the times of the judges and the kings (II Kings 23:21-23)
Josiah's Passover surpassed even the earlier great Passover
of Hezekiah's time - it was the greatest since the days of Samuel (II Chronicles 35:18), who was the last of the judges (I Samuel 7:15; I Samuel 8:4-8) and the first of the prophets (Acts 13:20)
Ezra's Passover (Ezra 6:19-22) bears the same testimony as to that of Joshua's Passover (Joshua 5:9-11)
- Israel's possession and repossession of the Land was only made possible by the blood of the Passover lamb (Exodus 12:12-14)
Messiah - Examination by the Scribes (Luke 2:41-51)
Messiah began His "Father's business" (being
examined by the scribes) (Luke 2:48-51) at the time of the Passover (Luke 2:41-43) - the beginning of Israel's spiritual calendar (Exodus 12:1-2)
The scribes expressed the same "astonishment"
(Luke 2:46-47) as the people - for He taught "with authority" and not as
the scribes (Matthew 7:28-29) who made the Word of God of "none effect" by their traditions
(Matthew 15:1-6), but His Word was with "with power" (Luke 4:32)
for His words were not His own, but God's Words (John 3:34),
i.e. His Father's Words (John 17:8)
Messiah began His public ministry via cleansing His "Father's
house" (John 2:14-17 cf. Psalms 69:8-9) at the time of the Passover (John 2:12-13) - the beginning of Israel's spiritual calendar (Exodus 12:1-2)
Messiah did NOT commit Himself to those who believed in
Him because of the miracles that He worked in Jerusalem at this Passover - He knew what was in all men (deceitful
wickedness) and, therefore, did not need their testimony (John 2:23-25 cf. Jeremiah 17:9-10)
Messiah's physical feeding of the 5000 (John 6:10-12)
at the time of the Passover (John 6:4-6)
typified His spiritual feeding of Himself (John 6:53-58) to those to whom it was given to believe in Him (John 6:44-51)
concerning the words of spiritual and eternal life (John 6:63-69)
To believe the Lord's Words - one needs to have "ears
that hear" (Matthew 13:13-17)
PropheticFulfillment
The Passover lamb was to be hidden for four days (Exodus 12:3,6)
In God's time keeping He likens a day to a thousand years
(II Peter 3:8) and so from the first Messianic type of the lamb at the Fall (Revelation 13:8)
until the appearing of the true Antitype (John 1:29)
was 4000 years
The Passover lamb was to be "without blemish"
(Exodus 12:5)
Messiah is said to be a lamb "without blemish"
and "without spot" (I Peter 1:18-20)
The chief priests and the council sought for witness against
Him and "found none" (Mark 14:55)
The repentant thief on the cross said that He "hath
done nothing amiss" (Luke 23:39-43)
The Passover lamb was to be a male of the first year (Exodus 12:5)
Messiah was the natural first born son of Mary (Matthew 1:21-25)
Messiah is also the spiritual first born among many brethren
(Romans 8:29)
The Passover lamb was to be killed "in the evening"
(Exodus 12:6)
- literally, "between the evenings" according to the Hebrew expression (beyn ha'arbayim)
There are two evenings according to Scripture:
The evening that is referred to as night (Genesis 1:5)
Messiah died at the ninth hour of the day (Matthew 27:45-50) -
that is 3:00 PM - dead center between the start of the 1st evening (noon
- 12:00 PM) and the start of the 2nd evening (twilight - 6:00 PM)
The blood of the Passover lamb was to be applied by hyssop
to the posts and lintel of the house for protection against death (Exodus 12:21-23)
The wine was applied by hyssop to Messiah's mouth which
resulted in His death for us (John 19:28-30)
NOT a bone was to be broken of the Passover lamb (Exodus 12:43-46)
The Passover lamb was to be sacrificed "outside the
gates" of the city (Deuteronomy 16:5)
Messiah was crucified in Golgotha, which was "nigh
to the city" (John 19:16-20), which was "without the camp" and "without the gate"
of the city (Hebrews 13:10-14)
SpiritualApplication
In Messiah's millenial kingdom - His earthly people (Israel)
will be the sole celebrants of an annual Passover (Ezekiel 45:21-22) to mark her much greater redemption (from all nations) than her redemption
from Egypt (Jeremiah 16:14-15)