4. The Feast of the Passover

The people of Israel were explicitly instructed that the annual feasts were to be celebrated on the times and in the specific ways determined by God: “These are the feasts of the Lord, holy convocations which you shall proclaim in their appointed times. On the fourteenth day of the first month at twilight is the Lord’s Passover” (Lev. 23:4-5).

The establishment of the Passover was the first guideline for God’s plan of salvation that was to be fulfilled 1 500 years later when the Messiah was crucified for the sins of the world. Moses told the people of Israel: “Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year ... Now you shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. They shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it ... For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt ... Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt” (Ex. 12:5‑7, 12-13).

Passover celebrates the deliverance of Israel from the bondage of Egypt, where they were slaves to the Egyptians. In a spiritual application of this event it is obvious that Egypt is a type of the evil world and its systems, while its leader, Pharaoh, was a type of Satan. The children of Israel were delivered from their bondage by putting the blood of a lamb on the doorposts of their houses, thereby picturing the Messiah’s deliverance from sin and the rule of Satan.

The Passover is the first of the seven great feasts of Yahweh because the slain Lamb was the foundation and starting point of God’s salvation of His people. Religiously, the Passover month had to be the beginning of months (Ex. 12:2). The seventh month of the civil year became the first month in the religious year. God was about to reveal Himself in a new way. Hitherto He had revealed Himself in a variety of ways, but not as Saviour-God. Up to this point, Israel had existed as downtrodden slaves with no national status or spiritual ambitions. Now, a new beginning was made in their history through divine power. The past, with its bondage and subsequent miseries, was blotted out. They were now redeemed from slavery and death by the token of the lamb’s blood and the power of God. It was the beginning of months, because it was the birthday of a nation (Downie, 1994:34).

The birthday of a believer is also the beginning of months and years because the day of the new birth eclipses the day of the natural birth. Then the past is under the blood, forgiven and forgotten by God: “... old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Cor. 5:17).

Spiritually speaking, and also with regard to their physical habitation, Passover (during the spring month) was the beginning of a new life to Israel. So too in a New Testament context, receiving Jesus into our lives is the beginning of a new life. Passover is the first of the feasts. Likewise, repenting of our sins and believing in the shed blood of Jesus is the first step in our walk with God (Chumney, 1994:25).

The meaning of the Passover is obvious and easily understood. Paul tells us that “Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us” (1 Cor. 5:7), thereby pointing to the cross upon which the Lord Jesus Christ would die as the true Paschal Lamb. Despite the fact that for a long time the Passover remained unfulfilled, God’s salvation was the foundation of His dealings with Israel. When He gave His law He said: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage” (Ex. 20:2). When the Passover was fulfilled during the crucifixion of Jesus, the cross became the final basis for the saving of both Jews and Gentiles. The cross represents the transition from the old to the new and is the true centre of all things. Old Testament saints looked forward to it, and New Testament saints look back to it.

It was truly a moment of destiny when God intervened in such a dramatic and manifest way to deliver His people from Egypt. For this reason, the Passover was to be regularly observed in memory of the wonderful event of Israel’s deliverance from Egypt. Orthodox Jews today still keep the Passover in a solemn way, yet without giving any recognition to its fulfilment by the Messiah. They eat unleavened bread and observe all the rites connected with their bondage and deliverance from Egypt, but the paschal lamb is lacking. They put a piece of roasted shank bone from a lamb on the table, but not the lamb itself. This piece of shank bone is a witness against them because, having rejected Christ, there is no paschal lamb for them. The blood is also lacking in all their other feasts and solemn offerings.

Why did God use such an unusual way of deliverance when His people were in Egypt? Why the slaying of a lamb, its blood shed and sprinkled on the doors of houses as protection against a destroying angel who was about to pass through the land of Egypt in judgement? Surely God could have delivered Israel by using His mighty power and saving them all the trouble of selecting and slaying a lamb and sprinkling its blood on their houses! God could have destroyed the Egyptian armies at the onset as He did in the end and thus delivered Israel from their power. But such a method of deliverance, while effective, would not have addressed the question of man’s sin and the demand of God’s righteousness. The children of Israel were not only slaves in the land of Egypt, they were also sinners in Egypt. 

During the long time of their stay in a foreign country, Israel not only adapted to the Egyptian culture but they also worshipped Egyptian idols, as demonstrated in the worship of a golden calf at Mount Sinai. The lesson had to be taught to them that they could only be spiritually delivered by means of sacrifice and blood shedding. God could not, in the interests of His justice and righteousness, deliver Israel on any other ground, “for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul” (Lev. 17:11). The same principle applies to us: “... without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Heb. 9:22).

God’s law demands the death penalty for sinners (Gen. 2:17; Ezek. 18:4; Rom. 5:12), but in His infinite love He devised a plan of substitutionary death in which an innocent person could die in the place of sinners, to bear their guilt. This is where the slaying of the paschal lamb comes in: a spotless and innocent lamb was to be slain and its blood, as a sign of its life that was laid down, was to be sprinkled on the doorposts of sinners’ homes. But the lamb was an animal and therefore only a type of the true Lamb of God that would be slain in the fullness of time:

“For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins. Therefore, when He [the Messiah] came into the world, He said: Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure. Then I said, Behold, I have come; in the volume of the book it is written of Me; to do Your will, O God ... By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Heb. 10:4-10).

Requirements of the lamb

The paschal lamb in Egypt had to conform to certain well-defined requirements since it was to be a true type of Christ, the Paschal Lamb of God.

The lamb was to be a male (Ex. 12:5). It was through one man’s sin that sin came into the world (Rom. 5:12). Because Adam, the first male, sinned, a sinless male, Jesus, had to die to atone for that sin: “For if by the one man’s offence death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. Therefore, as through one man’s offence judgement came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man’s righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous” (Rom. 5:17-19). “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive” (1 Cor. 15:22)

The lamb was to be of the first year (Ex. 12:5). The firstborn of both man and beast was to be set aside and given to God (Ex. 13:2, 11-13). Chumney (1994:27-28) indicates that the theme of the firstborn runs through the Bible. Cain was set aside for Abel, Ishmael for Isaac, and Esau for Jacob. Spiritually, God gave us these examples to teach us that the firstborn after the flesh (that which is natural) is set aside to bring forth the firstborn after the spirit (that which is spiritual). In this process, God distinguishes between the first or natural birth and the second or spiritual birth. The first birth constitutes us as sinners and the second birth makes us believers and children of God (John 1:12; 3:1-7; 1 Cor. 15:45-47). Jesus was the firstborn of Mary naturally, and the firstborn of God spiritually (Matt. 1:21-25; Rom. 8:29; Col. 1:15, 18; Rev. 3:14).

The lamb was hidden for four days (Ex. 12:3, 6). Israel were commanded to take a lamb on the 10th day of Nisan and set it aside for four days until the 14th of Nisan. Jesus fulfilled these four days during the week prior to the Passover. He went up to Jerusalem, became part of public life in the city while preparations were made for the Passover, and made various appearances before He was arrested, tried and crucified. However, there is also another interpretation of the four days, given by Chumney (1994:26):

“Eschatologically, these four days that the lamb was hidden is prophetic of the people’s expectations that the Messiah would come 4 000 years from the creation of Adam as part of the 7 000-year plan of God to redeem both man and the earth back to how things were in the Garden of Eden. These four days are prophetic of the Messiah Yeshua being hid from the world and not coming to earth for four days or 4 000 years from the creation of Adam. A day is understood to be prophetic of a thousand years, based upon Psalm 90:4 and 2 Peter 3:8. Linking Psalm 90:4 to each day in creation ... the entire redemption [of man would thus] take 7 000 years to complete from the fall of man in the Garden of Eden.”

The lamb had to be without blemish (Ex. 12:5). Centuries later, the spotless Lamb of God was provided for humanity’s need: “John saw Jesus coming towards him, and said, Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). Of all who ever came into this world He alone was the sinless one. Hebrews 4:15 says that although Christ was tempted He was without sin.

The lamb had to be slain (Ex. 12:6). A living lamb, however carefully selected, could not save the Israelites; it had to die. Likewise, Christ’s life of righteousness, apart from the cross, would have availed us nothing. It would have left the question of sin and a broken law unsettled and unsatisfied. Judicial righteousness demands the death of the sinner. For man’s offence, some man must die. But what man? Only a man whose own life was not forfeited because of personal sin. Therefore the Lord Jesus came forth, the sinless and spotless One, upon whom sin and death had no claim, and of His own voluntary will gave His life for sinners (Downie, 1994:37).

The lamb was slain in the evening (Ex. 12:6). According to Chumney (I994:29), from 6 a.m. to noon is the morning part of the day. From noon to 6 p.m. is the evening part of the day. The phrase “between the evening” (original rendering of Exodus 12:6) refers to the period of the day that goes from noon to 6 p.m., which is 3 p.m. This would be the 9th hour of the day, counting from 6 a.m. The slaying of the paschal lamb in Egypt on the 9th hour (3 p.m. our time) on the 14th day of Nisan, took place at exactly the same hour when the Lamb of God died on the cross on Passover day (Mark 15:33-37).

The blood had to be sprinkled (Ex. 12:22-25). “The hyssop was dipped into the basin and the blood applied to the lintels and doorposts of the houses. This was a token that a life had been forfeited for that home. Faith had to appropriate the blood. The lamb could have been selected, even slain, but if the token of an obedient faith had not been manifested, death would have been the result. It is not enough for us that the blood of Jesus Christ has been shed for the remission of sins. We must appropriate to ourselves, by an obedient faith, the benefits and blessings of Calvary. We must dip the hyssop of our faith into that blood and apply it to our hearts. ... God said, ‘When I see the blood, I will pass over you’ (Ex. 12:13). It was the blood alone that was the ground of deliverance for the Israelite. ... So the blood of Christ is the only ground of our deliverance from the guilt and doom of sin and our acceptance with God. That is why the blood alone will be the subject of the eternal new song which the redeemed will sing in heaven” (Downie, 1994:38).

The elders in heaven will have a strong consciousness of the redemptive merit of the slain Lamb of God who has redeemed them: “And they sang a new song, saying: You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth” (Rev. 5:9-10).

Peter also underscores the great significance of the blood of the Lamb: “... knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Pet. 1:18-19). Paul says: “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Eph. 1:7).

When did Christ die?

The Lord Jesus compares His burial and resurrection from the dead to the experience of Jonah: “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Matt. 12:40). Jonah 1:17 reads, “And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.” John Hannah (1985:1467) says, “The phrase three days and three nights need not be understood as a 72-hour period, but as one 24-hour day and parts of two other days.” Compare in this regard also Esther 4:16 and 5:1, where Esther asked for a fast of three days and three nights; but on the third day, before the end of the day, she had accomplished her purpose with the fast.

Some people have a problem with the view that Jesus was not in the grave for three full days (i.e. 72 hours), and endeavour to move the crucifixion from Friday to the preceding Wednesday. However, in the inclusive chronology of the Jews a part of a day is also reckoned as a full day. Louis Barbieri (1983:47) makes the following remarks on Matthew 12:40: “Since the Jews reckoned part of a day as a full day, the ‘three days and three nights’ could permit a Friday crucifixion.” In an addendum to the Strong’sConcordance (Harmony of the Gospels), 41 events are listed, together with Scripture references, that all occurred during the week of Christ’s crucifixion – the week commencing with His triumphal entry into Jerusalem on a Sunday, and ending with His crucifixion and burial (Strong, 1990). This sequence of events proves beyond any doubt that He was crucified on a Friday.

According to the Bible, as well as other supporting sources, Jesus was crucified on Friday, early in the morning, and buried on that Friday afternoon shortly before the start of the Sabbath, while He rose early on the first day (Sunday) of the following week. The day when He was crucified (Friday) was the first day of the Passover events, Saturday (the Sabbath) was the second day, and Sunday (His resurrection) was the third day. In Jewish chronology, a period of this nature is described as “three days and three nights” or simply as “three days”. Jewish days elapse between sundown and sundown the next day. Therefore, the third day after the crucifixion already commenced on the Saturday evening at dusk.

The men on their way to Emmaus confirm these facts. The day (Sunday) when Jesus rose from the dead they were walking along the way to Emmaus (Luke 24:13). Not being aware of the fact that Jesus Himself had joined them, they discussed the events related to His crucifixion early on the Friday morning, and added: “We were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb early, astonished us. When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive” (Luke 24:21-23). Sunday was, therefore, the third day after the crucifixion of Jesus, which occurred the preceding Friday.

On this Sunday afternoon, on the third day, when the men of Emmaus talked to Jesus, He had already risen from the grave several hours earlier: “On the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb” (John 20:1). After Jesus had met with the travellers to Emmaus, still on the day of His resurrection, He also appeared to His disciples (John 20:19).

Jesus was in the grave for only a part of the third day, and also for only a part of the preceding Friday. But the Jews nevertheless regard this as three days and nights, although only parts of these days constitute the entire period. The discussion of the men from Emmaus nullifies all speculation on an earlier day for the crucifixion. If Christ was crucified and buried on Wednesday (the fourth day of the week), then the following Sunday would have been the fifth day since the event took place, but these men clearly said it was “the third day”!  For a full discussion of the atoning death of Christ, see Jesus Christ and our life in Him (Malan, 2012).

The fulfilment of Passover

The fulfilment of the Old Testament Passover was during the crucifixion of the spotless Lamb of God who was incarnated in the fullness of time to lay down His life on our behalf. Because of the typological nature of the Passover, referring to the future sacrifice of the Lamb of God, it was obvious that this feast would be fulfilled during one of its future celebrations. The Lord Jesus was indeed crucified on the feast of the Passover. According to Mark 14:1-2, the Jews in fact wanted to avoid such a situation: “After two days it was the Passover ... And the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might take Him by trickery and put Him to death. But they said, Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar of the people.”

But the Jews could not succeed in averting the exact fulfilment of this feast, and Jesus was crucified on Friday 14th Nisan (11 April 32). On the ninth hour of the day (3 p.m.) He died (Mark 15:34-37), on precisely the same hour when the lamb was slaughtered during the first Passover in Egypt. Pilate was surprised that Jesus had died so soon, and gave permission for His burial (Mark 15:42-45). That was done before six o’clock on the Friday evening, when the Sabbath started, on which no one was allowed to be buried (Luke 23:52-54; John 19:31).

We read the following about the day of the crucifixion in Mark: “Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member ... went in boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus” (Mark 15:42-43). John Grassmick (1983:191) comments as follows on this passage: “Jesus’ burial officially confirmed His death, an important point in early Christian preaching (cf. 1 Cor. 15:3-4). The designation Preparation Day is used here as a technical name for Friday, the day before the Sabbath (Saturday) as Mark explained to his non-Jewish readers. Since no work was allowed on the Jewish Sabbath, Friday was used to prepare for it. This reference confirms that Jesus was crucified on a Friday.”

Friday (the day before the Sabbath, or the Preparation Day) and Saturday (the Sabbath) are the only two days with specific names in the Jewish week. The other days are simply numbered, e.g. the first day of the week (Sunday), the second day (Monday), etc. Should a religious feast such as Passover (the 14th day of Nisan) be celebrated on any particular day of the week, it is celebrated like a Sabbath, but not referred to as a Sabbath; the Sabbath is the seventh day of the week. Likewise we may also, on any day of the week, celebrate certain religious feasts as a Sunday, but that does not however, turn such a day into a Sunday.

The crucifixion of Jesus on the Preparation Day is clearly evident from John 19: “Therefore,   because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a solemn day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away ... But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out” (John 19:31-34). The Sabbath directly following upon the Preparation Day on which Christ was crucified, was described as a solemn day (NKJV) or a special Sabbath (NIV) because it was at the same time as the weekly Sabbath and the important first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Luke also confirms the fact that the burial of Jesus occurred on the Preparation Day: “Then he [Joseph from Arimathea] took it [the body of Jesus] down, wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a tomb that was hewn out of the rock, where no one had ever lain before. That day was the Preparation, and the Sabbath drew near” (Luke 23:53-54). The Sabbath that would start at sundown that evening was, without any doubt, the weekly Sabbath. If it was the Passover that would begin, it would mean that Jesus was crucified a day before the Passover and that this feast would then not have been fulfilled on its appointed time. He was indeed crucified on the day of the feast, the day when the sacrificial lamb was slaughtered in Egypt to mark the beginning of Israel’s exodus from slavery.

We should have an unwavering confession of Christ’s atoning death and His resurrection, regardless on which specific day they occurred. Nevertheless, it is edifying to have specific historical points of reference for these important events.

Great significance of the lamb

The Passover, strictly speaking, was the sacrificing of the lamb – the sprinkling of the blood – and nothing else: “It is the Passover sacrifice of the Lord” (Ex. 12:27). The blood of the lamb was sprinkled on the doors of the houses in which the Israelites lived, and God said, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you” (Ex. 12:13). Thus the sacrifice of the lamb gave the name to this day. This took place on the 14th day of Nisan, in the closing hours of that day. Immediately afterwards, the lamb was taken into the homes of the Israelites, roasted with fire, and eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. By this time a new day had commenced; it was the 15th of Nisan and was called the “feast day”, or “the feast of the Passover” (Downie, 1994:44).

Thus we see that the Passover was on the 14th day and the feast of the Passover on the 15th day, although only a few hours elapsed between the killing of the lamb and the eating of it. The killing of the lamb and the sprinkling of its blood was just the beginning of Israel’s exodus; it was, however, the basis of all that followed.

The significance of the Passover was evident in three different ways. Firstly, the blood made them safe. They had to accept God’s provision of salvation by slaying the lamb, sprinkling their houses and taking refuge under the blood – only then would they be safe. Secondly, they had the word of God as a firm promise that He would accept and protect them if they heeded His commands. Thirdly, the lamb was also to be eaten to provide them with nourishment and strength for the difficult journey that lay ahead.

In like manner, the believer in Christ has the blood of the Lamb for salvation, but he needs to appropriate the atoning death of Christ in faith by closely identifying with His death and becoming conformed to it (Rom. 6:5; Gal. 2:20, 6:14; Phil. 3:10). If we are cleansed by the blood, God will “pass over” us by exempting us from judgement. The believer also has the Word of God with its many promises of salvation and protection. Furthermore, Christ is to us the bread and water of life (John 6:33-35). He daily strengthens us to fight the good fight of faith and to keep on making progress on our journey of faith.

It is important to note that the Israelites first had to apply the blood to the divinely designated place and then go inside the house and feed on the lamb. They could not feed on it outside as they first had to be under the shelter of the blood – saved first. It is exactly here where many Christians go astray and transpose the order by trying to get certain blessings from Christ without first of all knowing the saving and cleansing power of His blood. They try to love, serve, and follow Christ without success and wonder why they fail. Many of them trust Him for healing and other blessings without intending to become followers of Him (cf. Luke 17:11-19).

When God saved the Israelites He did not only save them from death, He gave them life and also the means by which that life was to be sustained. Salvation is always that there is deliverance from death and judgement caused by sin, but also the gift of new life imputed by the Holy Spirit: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life” (John 5:24). After salvation and regeneration there is new life which must be sustained and strengthened by a caring God. 

In the detailed instruction about feeding on the lamb, the Israelites were told that it must be roasted with fire: “Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. Do not eat it raw, nor boiled at all with water, but roasted in fire” (Ex. 12:8-9). Roasting the lamb with fire alludes to the judgement of God. This idea could not be appropriately represented by a raw or boiled lamb; therefore the lamb had to pass through the fire. This reminds us of the true Lamb of God who passed through the fire of God’s judgement with regard to sin. As it was the death, and not the life of the lamb, that brought deliverance to the Israelites, so it is the death of Christ that has brought salvation to us.

The Person of Christ must never be separated from His death. Paul said: “For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2). We should ever praise Him for His sacrificial love. It is for this reason that the memories of Calvary will be eternally fresh, even long after our earthly life had passed away (Rev. 5:9).

The bitter herbs also relate to the suffering of the lamb. Fellowship with Christ involves fellowship in His sufferings (Phil. 3:10; 1 Pet. 4:13). We have to take up a cross if we wish to follow Him (Luke 9:23). Downie (1994:48) says: “How often would we like to escape the bitters of life, the bitter herbs, the bitter waters! Yet the graces of the Christian life are fostered by these very things. We become matured Christians by suffering. Trials call out faith, patience, meekness, and gentleness. Through much tribulation the soul enters into the gates and riches of the heavenly kingdom.”

Haste of the journey of the redeemed

The lamb was to be eaten in great haste (Ex. 12:11); the girded loins, shod feet, and the staff in the hand indicate the eagerness and readiness to leave Egypt that characterised the old life. There was no time to be lost. Believers should be quick to leave Egypt (the sinful world of which they were part) and run towards the life that is in the Messiah. Eagerness and commitment should be features of our new life and service to the Lord: “Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:13).

Shoes must be on our feet: “… having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace” (Eph. 6:15). “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!” (Rom. 10:15). We should not be slack concerning divine opportunities, privileges and promises. The staff in our hands refers to the believer’s authority in Christ. “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage” (Gal. 5:1). Sin should not be allowed to reign over us again.

The haste with which the Israelites ate the paschal lamb suggests that we, as believers in Christ, have only a short life in which to learn more of Christ and to prepare ourselves to be larger vessels of glory in the expanding of His kingdom. Are we using our time to the best possible advantage? Are we feeding on the Word that became flesh and are we learning more of Him each day?

There is no turning back on the journey towards the Promised Land, difficult though it may prove to be. Never ever, like the backsliders, revert to the world and seek the help of the wicked in solving your problems: “Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help ... but who do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord!” (Isa. 31:1). Christ is our Shepherd who leads us in paths of righteousness.

The Passover meal (Seder)

How do modern Jews celebrate Passover?

Elaborate preparations are needed for the Passover meal, as indicated by Arnold Fruchtenbaum (1991) in his book: A Passover haggadah for Jewish believers. When laying the table a place of honour is reserved for Elijah, the herald of the Messiah, should he come on this most solemn night to announce the joyful news that the Messiah has at last come. Victor Buksbazen (1954:8) says: “The rabbis say Messiah is most likely to come on the night of the Passover. And so a place at the table is set for Elijah, the traditional cup of Elijah is filled, and an empty chair awaits the heavenly guest. Will he come? Will he sip the wine? These are the secret questions of every heart. ... What high hopes that cup symbolises and what dreams are shattered at the sight of its remaining untouched!”

Chumney (1994:37-46) identifies the following 15 steps to the Passover Seder as it is observed today:

1.   The cup of sanctification (kaddesh). The first cup of unfermented wine is called the cup of sanctification. Before the wine is drunk a blessing is recited: “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.” During the Feast of Passover Jesus said: “I am the true vine” (John 15:1).

2.   The washing of hands (u-r’chatz). No blessings recited.

3.   The eating of green herbs (karpas). This refers to the place in the Seder when the celebrants dip green vegetables in salt water and eat it.

4.   The breaking of bread (yachatz). During the celebration of Passover, three cakes of unleavened bread (sing. matzah pl. matzot) are placed one upon another with a napkin between each cake. The middle cake, known as afikomen (“that which comes after”) is broken in two. One piece is distributed among the people present, and the bigger piece is hidden in a napkin to be eaten later. The Messianic understanding is that these three pieces of matzot represent God the Father, the Messiah Yeshua, and the Holy Spirit. The central piece, the afikomen, is broken, a portion is eaten, and the remainder hidden and then brought forth to testify of the death, burial and resurrection of Yeshua. Jesus Christ is the unleavened bread which was broken for us (cf. Luke 22:19).

5.   The telling of the story of the Exodus (maggid). The maggid concludes with the second cup of wine, which is called the cup of wrath. This cup is not drunk, but is poured out on the table as the plagues of Egypt are recited. In telling the story of the Exodus, each person is to see the Exodus as if God personally redeemed them: “And you shall tell your son in that day, saying, This is done because of what the Lord did for me when I came up from Egypt” (Ex. 13:8). Jesus drank the cup of God’s wrath when He was in Gethsemane, shortly before He died on the tree (Luke 22:42-44).

6.   The washing of hands with a blessing (rachtzah).

7.   The blessings over bread (motzi). This blessing is expressed as follows: “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe, who brings forth the bread from the earth.” This blessing is a prophecy of the resurrection of the Messiah from the earth because He is the believer’s bread (John 6:47-51).

8.   The eating of the bread (matzah). The Passover is called the season of our freedom. On this day, you are freed from the slavery of Egypt, which was associated with the bondage of sin. Now that you are freed you are seen as a king. Kings traditionally recline at their meals, so celebrants recline during portions of the Passover Seder. Believers in Jesus are priests and kings before God (1 Pet. 2:9; Rev. 1:6; 5:10).

9.   Bitter herbs (maror) are blessed and eaten. These bitter herbs symbolically refer to the sufferings of the Messiah.

10.The bread and bitter herbs are eaten together (korech).

11.The meal is eaten (shulchan orech).

12.The matzot that was hidden (afikomen) is found, ransomed and then eaten (tzafun).

13.Grace after the meals (barech). At the conclusion of barech the blessing for wine is recited over the third cup, after which the cup is drunk. This is the cup of redemption: “Likewise He [the Messiah] also took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you” (Luke 22:20). Paul says: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?” (1 Cor. 10:16).

14.Songs of praise (hallel). Psalms 115 to 118 are chanted in special praise to God. The fourth cup is now filled, and a door is opened for Elijah to enter and proclaim the coming of Messiah.

15.All is finished (nirtzah). A final song is sung and ends with the phrase: “Next year in Jerusalem!” (cf. Matt. 26:30).

From practises such as preparing for the possible appearance of Elijah at the Seder, it is evident that orthodox Jews do not recognise Jesus as Messiah and are still waiting for another messiah to come. The fulfilment of all the symbolic acts in the Seder meal still eludes them, and will continue to do so until their eyes are opened to see the wonderful fulfilment of the Passover rites in the sacrifice of the spotless Lamb of God. Believers in Jesus know that the fourth cup will be drunk anew in the kingdom of the Messiah after His second coming (Matt. 26:29).

In the light of the Old Testament Feast of the Passover it is all the more wonderful how the Lord Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper, thereby fulfilling all the sublime principles and prophetic expectations of the Passover. Paul says:

“For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me. In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes” (1 Cor. 11:23-26).

This Christian ceremony of remembrance and dedication also provides for a wide perspective of the new life in which we look back to the Saviour’s crucifixion, while also looking ahead to His second coming when His kingdom will be revealed in glory. Within this perspective of our lives no provision is made for the time before Christ when we were still in the bondage of sin. Therefore, all of us also have a “religious calendar” in which we forget the things which are behind (Egypt and the wilderness life of unbelief), while looking ahead to the coming of the King when we will rule with Him. In this sense we can also say, “Next year in Jerusalem!” since we believe that Jesus Christ will soon return to restore the throne of David in Jerusalem and rule the world from there (Luke 1:32).

Until then, we must run with endurance the race which is set before us (Heb. 12:1-2). The Messiah encourages us to fight the good fight of faith to the end: “And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations” (Rev. 2:26). The basis of a life of victory over the flesh and the powers of darkness is the Lamb who laid down His life for us. For this reason, Passover celebrations (the Lord’s Supper) should be observed right down to the end of the church dispensation: “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26).

 

5. The Feast of the Unleavened Bread

An extended feast of one week was instituted directly after the day of Passover, aimed at the spiritual and moral transformation of Israelites who accepted the deliverance which God offered to them through the sacrifice of the paschal lamb: “And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; seven days you must eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall do no customary work on it” (Lev. 23:6-7).

A proper reaction to Passover was to be demonstrated by those who were pardoned by God; that is why this feast is actually an extension of Passover: “Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called the Passover” (Luke 22:1).

While the Passover is a type of Christ’s atoning death in which He met all the righteous claims against sin, the Feast of Unleavened Bread points to the obligation of believers to change their lifestyles in such a way that their conduct would conform to God’s holiness and therefore be acceptable to Him. Various guidelines were given, including symbolic acts which were prescribed to promote communion with God among the Israelites who were delivered from their sinful past in Egypt.

For the Jews this was a feast of soul‑searching and cleansing. As yeast is a symbol of sin, eating unleavened bread would mean that the believer was honestly committed to living a holy life. Therefore, they had to remove all the yeast from their houses for the duration of the feast. This rule was to be applied so stringently, that they even had to sweep out crumbs of leavened bread and burn it outside: “Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel” (Ex. 12:15).

This feast was fulfilled when Christ died. He was the ear of wheat that had fallen in the ground and died in order to grow and bear fruit (John 12:24). As the perfect and sinless Son of God, He was the unleavened bread of life through whom we could come to spiritual life. That was why Jesus said: “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world” (John 6:51).

Paul says that this feast is indeed a Christ‑centred occasion that is to be observed by all of us: “Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (1 Cor. 5:6‑8).

Purging leaven from the house

In the Old Testament, a ceremony of searching and removing leaven from the houses of the Israelites was conducted in preparation for the festival of Unleavened Bread. First, the wife thoroughly cleansed the house to remove all leaven (usually crumbs of bread baked with leaven) from it. In the Bible, leaven is symbolic of sin. Chumney (1994:59) explains this practice as follows:

“In cleaning the house, the wife is instructed to purposely leave ten small pieces of leaven (bread) in the house. Then the father takes the children, along with a candle, a wooden spoon, a feather, and a piece of linen cloth, and searches through the house for the ten pieces of leaven. By nightfall on the day before Passover (Pesach), a final and comprehensive search is performed. At this time, the house is completely dark except for the candles. Once the father finds the leaven (bread), he sets the candle down by the leaven and lays the wooden spoon beside the leaven. Then he uses the feather to sweep the leaven onto the spoon. Without touching the leaven, he takes the feather, spoon, and leaven, wraps them in a linen cloth, and casts them out of the door of the house. The next morning (the fourteenth of Nisan), he goes into the synagogue and puts the linen cloth and its contents into a fire to be burnt.”

The New Testament expression of this practice is explained as follows by Chumney (1994:59-60): “Spiritually, we are to cleanse the leaven (sin) from our houses (lives) by allowing the Holy Spirit (Ruach Ha Kodesh) to reveal to us, through the knowledge of Yeshua and the Scriptures, the sin that is in our lives. It is only through God’s Word that we are able to identify sin in our lives, as it is written in Psalm 119:105, ‘Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.’ So the spiritual understanding of the candle is that it represents the Word of God. The feather represents the Holy Spirit. Even though we have the Word of God, we need the Spirit of God to illuminate the entire Bible to us. ... The spoon represents the tree that Yeshua died upon (Deut. 21:22-23). The leaven (sin) was swept on the spoon (the tree) as part of the ceremony. Likewise, our sin was swept or cast upon Yeshua (2 Cor. 5:21) when He died upon the tree.”

The Holy Spirit who regenerates us has also come to sanctify us by enabling us to walk in newness of life: “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another” (Gal. 5:25-27). All the leaven of sin and carnality should be removed from our lives.

The leaven of sin

The Feast of Unleavened Bread was to be kept for seven days. In the Bible, seven is the number of completion or fullness. The believer who keeps this feast should keep it fully to the Lord and set himself aside to Him. This feast demands complete separation from all things that are sinful, while feeding only on Jesus who is the unleavened bread of life.

We are repeatedly warned against the destructive consequences of harbouring the leaven of sin in our lives. The following are various kinds of leaven spoken of in the Bible:

The old leaven (1 Cor. 5:7-8). This refers to old habits and sins that people indulged in before conversion. These sins became established forms of conduct through the force of habit, and are apt to reassert themselves during moments of weakness or a lack of vigilance. God said to Israel: “According to the doings of the land of Egypt, where you dwelt, you shall not do; and according to the doings of the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you, you shall not do; nor shall you walk in their ordinances” (Lev. 18:3). The sinful behaviour of the pagan world where we come from, as well as the wicked customs of unsaved people whom we will meet during the course of our new life, should not be followed by a Christian. No compromise whatsoever should be made, since “a little leaven leavens the whole lump” (1 Cor. 5:6). If the things which are regarded as right and proper by the world do not conform to biblical standards, they should have no part in the lives of Christians.

The leaven of malice and wickedness (1 Cor. 5:8). It is startling to note how often these two concepts which describe a highly depraved lifestyle are mentioned in the New Testament with regard to Christians. Paul says to the Ephesians: “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice” (Eph. 4:31). Peter warns fellow Messianic Jews against the same tendency towards wickedness: “Therefore, laying aside all malice, all guile, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking” (1 Pet. 2:1). It is hard to believe how wanton Christians can sometimes become. People who persist in sinning are returning in a spiritual sense to Egypt and stand to lose their faith if they do not repent. Paul admonished backsliding Hebrew Christians, and called them to repentance and perseverance:

“Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called Today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end” (Heb. 3:12-14).

The leaven of sin was eroding their faith in the Messiah, and they no longer actively nourished their souls with the unleavened bread of life. If they continued sinning they would end up having evil and unbelieving hearts, thereby departing from the living God.

The leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees (Matt. 16:6). Their deceptive teachings were like pervasive yeast, penetrating and corrupting the nation. The Pharisees were hiding their worldliness and covetousness behind a cloak of religion, and used it as a mask to cover up their real character. Outwardly they were the most religious people of their day, but inwardly they were full of corruption. They did not recognise Jesus as the promised Messiah and utterly rejected His claim to be the Son of God. The Sadducees were of a kindred spirit, but unlike the Pharisees they did not believe in angels, the afterlife and resurrection from the dead. These leaders were secular in their outlook and regarded politics as more important than religion. The ordinary people were repeatedly warned against the double standards and false teachings of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

We live in similar times today: the deity of the Lord Jesus, as well as His resurrection from the dead, is rejected by many of the modern scribes. The end-time hypocrites are also very covetous and power-hungry. They speak evil of evangelical believers who oppose them by refusing to heed to their false teachings. Nevertheless, evangelically-minded people have no choice but to reject the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

The leaven of Herod (Mark 8:15). This man was a religious opportunist. He knew much about the Jewish religion and was also well informed on the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. He actually desired to see Jesus, and was glad when it happened (Luke 23:6-8). However, Herod had no intention of repenting and becoming a disciple of Jesus – he only wanted to see some of the miracles performed by Him. This kind of religious opportunism is rife today. Many people are flocking to meetings where healing services and other sensational signs and wonders are offered, but they have no desire to humble themselves and become disciples of the Lamb of God. They are interested in divine blessings and a show of supernatural power, but not in meeting the demands of the gospel.

The leaven of false doctrine (Gal. 5:9). Paul addressed a serious problem related to a false gospel of legalism which was proclaimed by certain people in the congregation of the Galatians, and he likened it to the pervasive working of leaven. The false prophets contended that faith in the Messiah was not sufficient for salvation, and that members of the church also had to observe the Torah and be circumcised. Paul warned them in no uncertain terms against the false gospel of mixing law and grace:

“Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage [to the law]. Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace” (Gal. 5:1-4).

Paul was highly disturbed at the way in which the Galatians opened themselves to the leaven of deceit by trying to add requirements of the law to the salvation offered to them by the Lamb of God: “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?” (Gal. 3:1-3). Paul vividly and graphically proclaimed the crucified Christ to them, but their eyes had been diverted from the Cross to the Law. They were without excuse.

A different gospel (cf. 2 Cor. 11:4) based on a convergence of law and grace is rapidly gaining in popularity these last days. It usually starts with the observing of ceremonial laws pertaining to feasts and holy days (Sabbaths), but some go further and also confirm the old covenant by way of circumcision. As far as the holy days of the old covenant are concerned, Paul says: “But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage? You observe days and months and seasons and years. I am afraid for you, lest I have laboured for you in vain” (Gal. 4:9-11). In his comment on this Scripture, Campbell (1983:602 says:

“Under the influence of the Judaizers the Galatians had at least begun to observe the Mosaic calendar. They kept special days (weekly sabbaths), and months (new moons), and seasons (seasonal festivals such as Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles), and years (sabbatical and jubilee years). (Cf. Col. 2:16). They observed these special times, thinking that they would thereby gain additional merit before God. But Paul had already made it clear that works [of the law] could not be added to faith as grounds for either justification or sanctification.”

Instead of the leaven of false doctrines we should proclaim the true message of God’s plan with humanity. The basic and very precious lesson that we learn from the seven feasts is that they reveal God’s plan of salvation for Israel and the nations. In the Messianic era the feasts are celebrated in such a way that the Messiah is honoured and exalted, and this should be done on a much more regular basis than was required by the Old Testament’s programme of annual feasts. That is the reason why, under the new covenant, Passover is substituted by the Lord’s Supper, which can be celebrated as often as we like.

The crucifixion of Christ is the core of the gospel message and should always be preached. It would be wrong for Christians to celebrate an Old Testament Passover in which the symbols (wine and unleavened bread) are not directly related to Jesus as the Lamb of God, and in which the door is left open for Elijah to announce the coming of the Messiah – as if He has not yet come. That amounts to a denial of the Messiahship of Jesus, and Christians can have no part in the denial of the Messianic fulfilment of Passover symbols.

Likewise, the Feast of Unleavened Bread has been fulfilled in Jesus, and we have the obligation to teach Christian holiness as often and comprehensively as possible. The Feast of Firstfruits was fulfilled in the resurrection of Christ, and we have the privilege to reflect on that every day of the week, but particularly on Sundays. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost is the cause of a New Testament celebration of Pentecost which is quite different from the Old Testament’s rejoicing in the Torah.

As far as the message of the last three feasts is concerned, we delight in the prophetic perspective gained from a study of the feasts, but we give expression to this expectation by way of preaching and writing on the second coming of Christ, and also by warning unrepentant sinners against the coming Antichrist’s spiritual deception and subsequent reign of terror. We have a vast amount of New Testament prophecies to add to those of the Old Testament, thus enabling us to speak with great authority on end-time events, but without trying to set dates for the coming of Christ.

Israelites were to remove all leaven from their houses (Ex. 12:15). The head of the house was not only forbidden to eat leaven during the feast, but he had to make sure that there was no leaven in his house. Hugh Downie (1994:60-61) says that both personal and collective holiness is incumbent on us today. Our individual lives must be clean and our associations pure. This raises an important question of what to allow, not only in our own lives but also in the circles in which we move. As individuals, we are responsible to keep leaven out of our own lives; as parents we should see that there is no leaven in our homes. Many who are very zealous about keeping leaven out of the church are not so particular about leaven in the home, although home life is just as important as church life.

All parents who are thoughtful and discerning realise how difficult it is to keep children, especially adolescents, within reasonable bounds. The age in which we are living is a difficult and dangerous one for young people and we have sympathy with them in their problems and struggles. Yet the parents, not the children, should govern the home. The father and mother should have the final say as to what is to be allowed in the home and the parent who lets go of his or her God-given authority is heading for a domestic disaster.

A very severe penalty was attached to the discovery of leaven in the house. “Whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel” (Ex. 12:15). This cutting off might mean one of two things – actual death as in the case of the Sabbath breaker (Num. 15:36), or exclusion from the privileges of the people of God, as in the case of Azariah (2 Kings 15:5). Downie (1994:61-62) says:

“In the New Testament cutting off means one of two things and sometimes both – loss of fellowship with God or with the people of God. We cannot walk in darkness and have fellowship with Him who is the light, in whom is no darkness at all. There must be an unclouded sky between the soul and God if communion with Him is to be a reality. In extreme cases, like that dealt with in Corinth, the offender is put out of the local assembly. Yet even in a case like that, it must not be forgotten that restoration is the determined goal in all discipline. The Corinthians made the mistake of thinking that when they excommunicated the offender the matter was ended. They had to be reminded it was their duty to try and bring him back again. Too often a person is disciplined by a company of God’s people and no effort whatsoever is made to bring him back again. ... Cases of restoration are rare indeed and one can only conclude that it is because there are so few who measure up to the standard laid down in Galatians 6:1.”

Abide in Christ

Our relationship with the Lord Jesus is a matter of the utmost importance, and all of us should surrender ourselves to live holy lives by abiding in Christ. He pardons abundantly and it is only in extreme cases that the “cutting off” or “casting out” of an apostatised believer will occur: “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned” (John 15:4-6).

What about apostatised churches? Can they also be cut off from communion with God? Downie (1994:63) says that only the Lord can cut off a company of His people, or as it is put in Revelation 2:4-5, remove their lampstand from its place because they have left their first love. That is His prerogative and He did not hand it over to churches or anyone else to exercise. An assembly is cut off when it ceases to exist altogether and, unfortunately, that is by no means a rare thing. The discontinuance of an assembly means that the Lord has removed their lampstand from its place, as He did at Ephesus. What a solemn reflection!

The Lord is not content with the leaven of sin in our lives, and made it possible for us to live free from the domination of sin. Even if we do sin – which is always a possibility – our strained relationship with the Lord should immediately be corrected through confession and repentance. Johns says, “My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world” (1 John 2:1-2).

Keep on confessing any sin of which the Holy Spirit convicts you, while single-mindedly committing yourself to walk in the light: “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:6-7).

The verb by which cleansing is promised to us here is written in the continuous tense, which means that if we have fellowship with Him He will continuously cleanse us from all sin. In this way we can keep our moral and spiritual record with the Lord clean, thereby living free from contamination and domination by the leaven of sin.

 

6. The Feast of Firstfruits

This feast is also closely related to the annual agricultural activities in Israel. The action of gathering the harvest is used metaphorically to describe the gathering of a spiritual harvest for the kingdom of heaven in Israel, but in a New Testament context also among all nations:

“Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When you come into the land which I give to you, and reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest. He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted on your behalf; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it” (Lev. 23:10-11).

Israel is a winter rainfall area, therefore the first sheaf of grain was given to the Lord as a sacrifice in the spring. This had to be done on a Sunday (the day after the Sabbath), and it was a very significant event spiritually, as this celebration was meant to make the people of Israel acceptable to the Lord.

Edward Chumney (1994:69-70) says that the people of Israel were familiar with the concepts of “firstfruits” and the “firstborn”. The first fruits were always the choicest, the foremost, the first, the best, the pre-eminent of all that was to follow. They were holy to the Lord. The concept of the first fruits or firstborn is a major theme in the Bible. This can be seen by the following Scriptures: Exodus 23:16, 19; 34:26; Leviticus 2:12, 14; 23:20; Numbers 18:12-15, 26; Deuteronomy 18:1-5; 26:2-4, 10; 2 Chronicles 31:5; Nehemiah 10:35-39; Proverbs 3:9; Jeremiah 2:3; Ezekiel 44:30; 48:14; Hebrews 6:20.

The firstborn of both man and beast were sanctified and presented to the Lord (Ex. 13:2; 22:29). The first fruits of all the earth were presented to the Lord as first fruits at His altar in praise and thanksgiving (Deut. 26:1-11).

The Feast of the Firstfruits was celebrated close to the time of the Passover. The barley was nearly ready to be harvested when the Jews left Egypt (Ex. 9:31). This adds to the meaning of the spring month of Nisan as the beginning of a new life. Not only did Jesus rise from the grave in that month, but the Jews were also led out of Egypt in Nisan. In the year 32, the ceremony was conducted on Sunday morning 16th Nisan – the day on which Jesus rose from the grave. It was the day after the Sabbath: “Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene” (Mark 16:9).

The seed that had fallen in the ground (the death and burial of Jesus) gave its first fruit on that Sunday morning when Jesus rose from the grave. It also indicated the beginning of the harvest of souls, for the whole harvest that would be gathered after that, would be acceptable to God through the death and resurrection of Jesus. Furthermore, it signalled the transition from the old covenant to the new. That is why it had to happen on a Sunday, the first day of the week and symbolically the beginning of a new dispensation. The day of our rest in the Lord was changed from the seventh day of the preceding week to the first day of a new week in the dispensation of grace. Because of the finished work of the Messiah, we can celebrate resurrection day every Sunday. We have entered into the new covenant with God through His Son, and are therefore active partakers in the resurrection life of Jesus our Lord: “And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! (1 Cor. 15:17).

The Lord Jesus is depicted in different ways as the Firstfruits, the One who sanctified the entire harvest of people who would be saved in His name during the New Covenant. Together they constitute the harvest of souls to be gathered in the heavenly barn. The following statements about Christ as the Firstfruits are relevant to this discussion:

He is the firstborn of Mary: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which is translated, God with us. Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus” (Matt. 1:23-25).

He is the only begotten [or first-born] of the Father: “And the Word became 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).

He is the firstborn over all creation: “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” (Col. 1:15).

He is the beginning of the creation of God (Rev. 3:14).

He is the firstborn from the dead: “Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come ... and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood …” (Rev. 1:4-5).

He is the firstborn among many brethren (Rom. 8:29).

He is the firstfruits of the resurrected ones: “Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming” (1 Cor. 15:20-23).

He is the pre-eminent one: “And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the pre-eminence” (Col. 1:18).

Jesus Christ is the Most Holy One of God and is sanctified by the Father. As the Firstborn of the Father He is pre-eminent in the entire creation, and in Him the entire harvest of souls is sanctified and made acceptable to the Father.

Firstfruits as the token of justification

It is obvious that a ritual associated with the beginning of a new harvest season could in no way contribute towards Israel’s justification before the Lord. This feast clearly foreshadowed the new life that would be given to them by the Messiah, and also the fact that His resurrection would be the beginning of the gathering of a big harvest for the Lord on earth.

Christ “was raised again for our justification” (Rom. 4:25), and a risen and ascended Christ is the ground of our acceptance with God. The crucifixion of Christ would have lost its meaning apart from the resurrection. Without the resurrection, the death of Christ would only have appeared to men as the death of a noble martyr. Faith would have lost a sure anchorage without a living Christ who also conquered death. At the same time, He also gained a great victory over the devil, “that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil” (Heb. 2:14).

In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul shows us how vitally important the resurrection of Christ is. He rightly reasoned that if Christ is not risen we have nothing worth living for; but if He is risen we have everything that we require for this life and eternity. The resurrection is the great sign that God the Father is satisfied with the ransom price paid by Christ on the cross on behalf of all sinners. Furthermore, a belief in the resurrection is important for salvation since it pre-supposes a belief in the deity of Christ. Only the spotless Lamb of God could offer Himself as an acceptable substitute for sinners by carrying their guilt and conquering death and hell on their behalf. His resurrection is proof of a tremendous salvation.

Relationship between His death and resurrection

There is a very close relationship between the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, as the one is a precondition for the other. The way to victory and glory was through dying and rising from death again: “Jesus answered them, saying, The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain” (John 12:23-24).

The seed of grain first had to be sown into the ground; otherwise there would have been no wave sheaf and no subsequent harvest. So Christ had to die and rise again before there could be a harvest of redeemed souls for God. Downie (1994:68) says:

“As the corn of wheat, Christ stood absolutely alone. He was the only begotten of the Father, the sole object of His eternal love. Had he not died, He would always have remained alone in His solitary and unapproachable glory. As the corn of wheat, He died alone. None could share in His sufferings for sin; none could go with Him to the shameful cross of Calvary. Having died alone and risen from the dead, He is no longer alone. He has become ‘the firstborn from the dead’ (Col. 1:18), ‘the firstborn among many brethren’ (Rom. 8:29).”

We should identify closely with the death and resurrection of Christ by dying to the old life of sin, being pardoned by Christ, and then experience regeneration which is a raising up into a new life in the likeness of Christ:

“Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him” (Rom. 6:4-8).

From this Scripture it is clear that to be baptised into the death of Christ is a spiritual experience through which we are united together in the likeness of His death. Then, and then only, will we fully partake in His resurrection life. We have to make a full surrender to Christ in which we deny and crucify ourselves (laying off our old nature) before we will be able to put on Christ in all aspects of our life through being filled by the Holy Spirit, thus enabling us to walk in newness of life.

Christians who fail to make this surrender are spiritually bogged down by an uncrucified, fleshly nature: “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish” (Gal. 5:17; cf. 1 Cor. 3:1-3). The Spirit of God is not given full control of your life as long as the flesh is not surrendered to the cross of Christ. To such people, the following command is impossible to heed: “Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh” (Gal. 5:16). The spiritually immature Ephesians were reminded that they had to put off the old life before they would be able to fully put on the resurrection life of Christ: “... put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and ... put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:22-24).

In his personal life, Paul experienced that constant association with the death of Christ is the key to keep on growing in the knowledge of the power of His resurrection. He stated it as a personal objective, “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead” (Phil. 3:10-11).

Paul knew that leading a life in the power of Christ’s resurrection will ensure that a believer is spiritually qualified to share in the resurrection of the saints at the end of the church dispensation. This is a blessing which is only promised to believers.

Different resurrections

There are different ways and stages in which the promise of resurrection is fulfilled in believers. Firstly, at rebirth, we are spiritually quickened by receiving the resurrection life of Christ: “Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light” (Eph. 5:14). We arise from spiritual death, although physically we still live in mortal bodies. Nevertheless, we already have the assurance of eternal life (John 5:24).

As people who are spiritually alive and, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, walking in the resurrection life of Christ, we are strangers and pilgrims in an evil word. We are looking forward to the coming of Christ, when we will also be bodily resurrected to receive immortal, glorified bodies like the one with which Christ rose from the dead: “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body” (Phil. 3:20-21).

The Lord Jesus also explained the resurrection of believers as follows: “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die” (John 11:25-26).

This is a reference to the fact that some of the spiritually reborn people who will still be physically alive when Jesus comes, will never die – they will be changed from mortality to immortality in the twinkling of an eye (1 Cor. 15:51-54). The others, who have already died physically, will be resurrected in glorified bodies and live forever.

The Bible clearly distinguishes between two physical resurrections – one for believers and one for unbelievers. The one is called the resurrection of life, the first resurrection, or the resurrection of the just (Luke 14:14; John 5:29; Acts 24:15). The other one is called the resurrection of condemnation (John 5:29). There is at least one thousand years between these two resurrections, which not only differ in time but also in character and results (Rev. 20:4-6).

Paul refers to the important fact that the first resurrection occurs in different stages: “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming. Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power” (1 Cor. 15:22-24).

Jesus Christ Himself initiated the first resurrection and made it possible for all who believe in Him to share in the wonderful blessings of the first resurrection. When Christ comes at the end of the church dispensation, the main harvest of believers will be gathered in heaven (1 Thess. 4:16-17). Afterwards, the tribulation saints will also be resurrected (Rev. 20:4). They all form part of the first resurrection in Christ.

What an incredible future to look forward to! Jesus Christ, the spotless Lamb of God, has redeemed us by His precious blood, He defeated the enemy of our souls, He rose from the dead and also imparted His resurrection life to us. Now we can look forward to the day when we will receive new, glorified bodies during the resurrection of the just, and to eternal life in His divine presence.

 

7. Pentecost (the Feast of Weeks)

This feast is also known as the Feast of Weeks, due to the seven weeks that must elapse between the feasts of Firstfruits and Pentecost: “And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: Seven Sabbaths shall be completed. Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall offer a new grain offering to the Lord. You shall bring from your habitations two wave loaves of two-tenths of an ephah. They shall be of fine flour; they shall be baked with leaven. They are the firstfruits to the Lord” (Lev. 23:15‑17).

On the fiftieth day, a Sunday, two leavened loaves had to be brought to God as a wave offering. Remember that leaven is a symbol of sin, therefore these two loaves do not point to the Messiah. They must be seen as prophetic symbols of two groups of believers – those in Israel and those in the Gentile world. Even though the believers from Israel and the nations are saved, they are not sinless and perfect, and must be consecrated to the Lord. That is the meaning of this ceremony. The festivals of Passover and Unleavened Bread relate to Jesus who is without sin, but Pentecost refers to the sanctification of Israel and the church where sin still exists.

The Jews celebrate the onset of the dispensation of the law at Pentecost (derived from the Greek word pentecostos, meaning fiftieth). They believe that the people of Israel were already at Sinai fifty days after leaving Egypt. It was there that God gave Moses the law (Ex. 19:1‑3). It was for the celebration of this feast that the Jews from different countries gathered in Jerusalem on the day when the Holy Spirit descended (Acts 2). They did not realise that the Passover, the Feast of the Unleavened Bread and the Feast of the Firstfruits had already been fulfilled through the atoning work and resurrection of Jesus. Therefore, they did not realise that the dispensation of the law had come to an end.

The new dispensation of grace, ministered by the Holy Spirit, was to replace the dispensation of the law, “for the code of the law kills, but the Holy Spirit makes alive” (2 Cor. 3:6 AB; see also Heb. 8:7-13 and Jer. 31:31).  3 000 people died at Sinai because they were punished under the law for worshipping an idol (Ex. 32:28). On the day of Pentecost, as recorded in the New Testament, 3 000 people were saved when the new dispensation was introduced by the pouring out of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:41).

The beginning of the dispensation of the church at Pentecost indicates that it replaces the dispensation of the law. It was another example of God’s perfect timing, since 40 days had passed between the resurrection and ascension of Jesus, and another ten days while the disciples were praying and waiting for the Holy Spirit to be poured out. This total of 50 days is exactly the same as the time that expired between the two wave offerings of Firstfruits and Pentecost. Christians still recognise this chronology, as we celebrate the resurrection on the Sunday after Good Friday, the ascension 40 days later on a Thursday, and Pentecost ten days later, again on a Sunday.

It is also interesting that Pentecost is not celebrated in isolation. The counting of 50 days serves as a chain that links Pentecost to the first three feasts. It therefore forms part of the cycle of spring festivals and is intimately linked to the Firstfruits festival celebrated 50 days earlier. For this reason, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit must always be seen in its close association with the whole series of events that include the death, resurrection and ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ.

At Sinai, God revealed Himself to Israel in a new and greater way than before. Extensive new guidelines and laws were given on how to honour and worship Him and also how to observe godly principles in human relations. The fact that these legalistic guidelines proved to be beyond the ability of fallen human beings, placed greater emphasis on the need for the coming of the Messiah as Saviour and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit as the One who can guide believers into all truth.

The resurrection of the Lord Jesus on a Sunday (“the day after the Sabbath”), as well as the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, again on a Sunday, are the earliest prophetic indications in the Old Testament of a future dispensation in God’s plan of salvation in which new principles would be laid down of worshipping Him through His Son under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. A relationship was to be entered into with His Son, and not with the law. The objective of believers would be following the Messiah and becoming conformed to His image of righteousness, rather than following the dictates and shadowy rituals of the law.

In the new dispensation, the seventh-day Sabbath imposed by the law would be replaced by the worship of the Messiah who rose from the grave on the first day of a new week. He fulfilled the law which no other man could do, exposed its weakness of not being able to reconcile Israel with God, superseded its demands by setting new standards for true spirituality, and introduced a new life of faith in Him through the Holy Spirit. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost enables believers everywhere with motivation and spiritual power to live lives according to the sinless example of the Lord Jesus Christ. The purpose with this experience is not only to comply with the command towards personal holiness but also to have boldness to engage in the Great Commission of world evangelism. We are all called upon to labour in the harvest fields of the world and gather a spiritual harvest for the kingdom of the Messiah.

Two spiritual marriages

The giving of the Torah to Israel on the 50th day after their exodus from Egypt was an important new phase in the unfolding of God’s calling for them to be His special people. The first salient point in formalising this relationship was the sign of circumcision which was instituted when a covenant was concluded between God, Abraham and his descendants through Isaac (Gen. 17:7-11). At Sinai, spiritual principles and demands were laid down to ensure that Israel would serve only the true God, Yahweh. He said, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me” (Ex. 20:2-3).

Abraham was the first Hebrew believer who was called by God to come over from the pagan world and serve Him in a new land which God would give to him and his descendants (the term Hebrew is derived from the verb which means “to cross over” or “to make a transition”). In the typology of Abraham’s family, Abraham is a type of God. Paul describes him as “the father of us all” (Rom. 4:16) while James refers to him as “the friend of God” (Jas. 2:23). His barren wife, Sarah, depicts Israel in their predominantly barren relationship with God during Old Testament times. She only fulfilled her expected role as mother in her old age, much in the same way as Israel will only be spiritually awakened at an advanced stage of their history as God’s chosen people.

Sarah gave birth to Isaac, the son of promise. Abraham loved his son dearly, so it must have been a very traumatic experience to receive the following command from the Lord: “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you” (Gen. 22:2). Abraham obeyed, and willingly gave his only son to die. Likewise, Jesus was the only-begotten and beloved Son of the Father, who was willing to give Him over to die in order to become a ransom for our sins.

Isaac and Jesus were both prepared to do what the Lord had said. Isaac even carried the wood on his shoulders and climbed the mountain on which he was to die as a burnt offering. Many years later the temple of the Lord was to be built on that very same mountain. Thousands of animals were sacrificed there and became types of the ultimate sacrifice of the Lamb of God, who was to be offered just outside the gates of Jerusalem for the sins of the entire human race. Like Isaac, Jesus was prepared to lay down His life, and He carried the wooden cross on His shoulders on His way to the place where He was to be sacrificed.

Isaac was raised from the altar and given back to his father: “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said: In Isaac your seed shall be called, accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense” (Heb. 11:17‑19). Many centuries later the Messiah gave His life so that others could be saved, but He rose from the dead and returned to His Father in heaven. He gained victory over death.

Eliezer, the servant of Abraham, was a type of the Holy Spirit and was sent out by Abraham to find a wife for his son (Gen. 15:2; 24:2-4). After a long journey he returned to Abraham with Rebecca, who then was married to Isaac. Likewise, the Holy Spirit was sent by the Father to gather a bride for His Son from a predominantly pagan world. At the end of the church dispensation, when the bridal congregation of Christ is ready and full in number, she will be taken away to Jesus in heaven where the marriage will be consummated. John says: “Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints” (Rev. 19:7-8; for a discussion of the bride of the Son, see Malan, 2009).

In Abraham’s core family there were five members who were typical of the triune God (the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit), as well as Israel and the church. The marriage relationship between Israel and God is often alluded to in the Old Testament. God says to Israel: “Your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is His name; and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; He is called the God of all the earth” (Isa. 54:5). After a period of spiritual unfaithfulness Israel’s broken relationship with God will be restored (Isa. 54:7; Hos. 2:14-17). Wonderful promises were made by God on their end-time restoration:

“The Lord has appeared of old to me, saying: Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you. Again I will build you, and you shall be rebuilt, O virgin of Israel! You shall again be adorned with your tambourines, and shall go forth in the dances of those who rejoice. ... For thus says the Lord: Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations; proclaim, give praise, and say, O Lord, save Your people, the remnant of Israel! Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the ends of the earth. ... Hear the word of the Lord, O nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He who scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him as a shepherd does his flock ... Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more” (Jer. 31:3-4, 7-10, 31-34).

A spiritual resurrection is awaiting the people of Israel. In their blinded and agnostic state they were already a blessing to the Gentile world in that the salvation that came to them was rejected and subsequently offered to the Gentiles. The natural branches of the olive tree (Israel) were broken off from the root (the Holy One of Israel) and branches from the wild olive tree (Gentiles) were, through faith, grafted into the Messiah. The obligation now rests on us to provoke Israel to jealousy by our spiritual heritage in the Messiah (Rom. 11:11-12).

We should demonstrate to Israel the joy of deliverance, the freedom that we enjoy in Christ, and the holiness and love which He instils in us through the Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:5). In this way they should practically be able to see that “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes” (Rom. 10:4). We cannot achieve this end by compromising with the legalistic and ritualistic expressions of Judaism. Once the people of Israel make the transition from legalism to the grace of the Messiah, they will fulfil their ancient calling to be God’s special people on earth, and be a blessing to all nations. Paul says: “For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?” (Rom. 11:15).

“Life from the dead” is not only what unbelieving Israel needs, but all people on earth who are still spiritually dead are desperately in need of rebirth. Christ is the resurrection and the life! The Holy Spirit has come on Pentecost to endue believers with power from on high, thereby authorising them to follow in the footsteps of Christ and to do the work that He has commissioned them to do.

Orthodox Jews in the present time on Pentecost, only commemorating the 50th day after their exodus from Egypt when they received the law at Sinai, still keep on rejoicing in the law instead of in the new dispensation under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. That amounts to a serious error of misjudgement as they have lost track with the further unfolding of God’s divine plan for the salvation of Israel and the nations. The period under the law was a preparatory phase in their spiritual development, leading to the coming of the Messiah. He came after His people had passed through 1 500 years of failed attempts to satisfy the demands of the law, and is indeed the only One who can “save His people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21). He offers them newness of life through faith in Himself, as well as the promise of the Holy Spirit, but this offer is still turned down by the majority of Jews.

The pervasive problem of not being in step with the fulfilment of biblical feasts cannot be attributed mainly to Israel’s inability to recognise the fulfilment of the Feast of Pentecost, but goes further back to their failure to realise that Jesus of Nazareth was the promised Messiah and Lamb of God. If they had realised and accepted this all important fact, they would have found themselves among the disciples of Christ who were filled with the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost.

The necessity of atonement

The giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai was part of an elaborate set of religious rites, principles and activities aimed at preparing Israel on the coming of the Messiah. Edward Chumney (1994:93-94) says:

“The giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai involved the Aaronic priesthood, the sacrificial system, the tabernacle, the sabbath days, the festivals, the civil and ceremonial laws, and the Ten Commandments. ... These things are given by God as a shadow of the things to come (Heb. 10:1) to teach us (Gal. 3:24) about the Messiah Yeshua and the redemptive work of God (Col. 2:16-17). Shavuot (Pentecost) was the birth of the congregation (kehilat) in the wilderness (Acts 7:38). The things given at Mount Sinai were divine and from God, but shown in a physical way to enable us to understand the spiritual truths that God wanted to communicate to us” (1 Pet. 2:5-9).

The laws and the sacrificial system given to Israel were indeed holy ordinances, and yet they were only a shadow of even more wonderful things which were still to be revealed to them: “For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect ... For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Heb. 10:1, 4).

What, then, was the purpose of giving Israel laws that were impossible to obey in an acceptable and sustained manner, and then demanding them to bring sacrifices that were unable to cleanse them from sin? As stated in the Scripture above, the law and the sacrifices were shadows, or types, of a perfect plan of salvation that would be revealed in the Messiah as the true Lamb of God. They needed the law as their tutor to Christ, so He could do for them what the law could not do (Gal. 3:24).

As for the sacrifices, Israel had to appreciate their need in the indispensable role of forgiveness and atonement. Their continued transgressions of the law underscored the important function of atonement on an ongoing basis. But the animal sacrifices were ineffectual to cleanse them from sin, and were therefore only types of the Messiah’s once for all sacrifice. God did forgive the sins of Old Testament saints by virtue of the sacrifices offered to Him, pending the final sacrifice of the Messiah to validate all the preliminary sacrifices that were brought before His crucifixion.

The atoning death of Jesus was therefore also of retroactive effect in that it equally applies to the salvation of believers before the time of Christ. In the end we will all be united together in the Messiah and share in the atonement provided only by Him. In concluding his discussion on Old Testament saints, Paul says that these people, “having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise [of the Messiah], God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us” (Heb. 11:39-40).

Trumpets of the Lord

During the course of the seven festivals, three trumpets are sounded to call the people together for the announcement of a new phase in God’s plan of salvation. The first trumpet sounded at Sinai during Pentecost (The Feast of Weeks) after God’s people were called out of Egypt, and were about to receive the law. The second trumpet sounds during the Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah) after the main harvest has been gathered, and the third one on the Day of Atonement to celebrate Israel’s salvation.

Israel were on the brink of the dispensation of the law when a trumpet sounded on the mountain and Moses was summoned to go up higher and receive God’s commandments: “And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice. Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up” (Ex. 19:19-20).

Even though Israel nominally agreed to accept and observe the law, their hearts were not right with the Lord. When Moses was still on the mountain they lapsed into idolatry and worshiped a golden calf. This attitude did not augur well for the ensuing dispensation of the law. Indeed, the Israelites more often than not faltered in their spiritual lives, thereby rendering themselves unfit to serve the Lord and also to receive the Messiah when He eventually came.

Consequently, the Messiah commissioned His small group of disciples to humble themselves in anticipation of the blessing of Pentecost, and to then start preaching the gospel to all nations: “Then He said to them, Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And you are witnesses of these things. Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high” (Luke 24:46-49; cf. Acts 1:8).

This blessing on the day of Pentecost was received fifty days after the Feast of Firstfruits when Christ had risen from the dead (Acts 2:1-12).