Exodus 12 explained: The First Passover and Leaving Egypt

The lamb and the blood (vv. 1-13)

This spring month becomes the first month of Israel's year, and each household roasts a young lamb or goat and eats it with bread made without yeast and bitter herbs, dressed to leave at a moment's notice. The blood on the doorframe is a sign, so that when the LORD strikes Egypt's firstborn and judges its gods, he will pass over that house.

A festival to remember (vv. 14-28)

The night is to become a yearly festival, with seven days of bread made without yeast, recalling dough that had no time to rise (v. 39). When children ask what it means, parents are to tell the story, and children's questions are still part of the Jewish Passover meal today.

The firstborn die (vv. 29-33)

At midnight the firstborn die in every Egyptian home, from Pharaoh's own child to a prisoner's, along with firstborn animals, and Pharaoh orders Israel out and even asks for a blessing. The text does not soften this; some readers link it to Pharaoh's earlier order to drown Israel's baby boys (Exodus 1), while many find it deeply troubling.

Silver, gold and dough (vv. 34-36)

Rushed out with dough that had not risen, the Israelites ask the Egyptians for silver, gold and clothing and are given it, because the LORD made the Egyptians willing (v. 36). The text calls this plundering, like taking spoils after a victory, and many readers also see it as overdue pay for years of forced labor.

The journey begins (vv. 37-42)

About 600,000 men set out with their families, along with many other people who were not Israelites and large herds; scholars debate this number, and some think the word for 'thousand' can also mean a clan or troop. The 430 years differ between ancient texts: the standard Hebrew text counts time in Egypt alone, while the ancient Greek and Samaritan versions also include earlier years in Canaan (v. 40).

Who may share the meal (vv. 43-51)

Outsiders may not eat it, but a foreigner living in Israel, or a slave bought by an Israelite household, may join fully once the males are circumcised, and the same rule applies to native-born and foreigner alike (v. 49). The lamb's bones must not be broken (v. 46), a detail Christians later connected to Jesus, whom they call the Passover lamb (John 19:36).

Key verse: Exodus 12:13

Where Christians differ

Christians differ on what the lamb's blood mainly does: some see the lamb as dying in place of the firstborn, a substitute, while others see the blood chiefly as a protective mark on the household, and verse 13, which simply calls it a sign, can be read either way.

Something to think about

Is it possible to fully celebrate a rescue while also grieving what it cost others?