The Feast of Passover commemorated the Lord’s deliverance of Israel in Exodus. The Feast of Unleavened Bread, which followed it, kept alive the memory of the affliction of the Israelites and their haste in departing from the land of bondage.
The Passover (Pesaḥ) was the first of three annual pilgrimage festivals and was celebrated on the fourteenth day of the Jewish month, Nisan (postexilic name; formerly Abib [Exod. 13:14], approximately modern Western April). The celebration, commonly known as the Feast of Unleavened Bread, continued for the next week, ending on the twenty-first day of the month. Nisan marked the beginning of the religious or sacred new year (Exod. 12:2). The Hebrew term pesaḥ is derived from a root meaning “to pass (or spring) over,” and signifies the passing over (sparing) of the houses of Israel when the firstborn of Egypt were slain (Exod. 12). The Passover itself refers only to the paschal supper on the evening of 14 Nisan, whereas the following week-long period is called the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Exod. 12; 13:1–20; Lev. 23:5–8; Num. 28:16–25; Deut. 16:1–8).
Institution and Celebration
The purpose of the institution of the Feast of Passover was to commemorate the deliverance of Israel from Egyptian bondage and the sparing of Israel’s firstborn when God smote the firstborn of Egypt. A few days prior to the feast itself, the head of each family set apart a lamb without blemish. On the evening of 14 Nisan the lamb was slain and some of its blood sprinkled on the doorposts and lintel of the house in which they ate the Passover as a seal against the coming judgment on Egypt. The lamb was then roasted whole and eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. If the family was too small to consume a lamb, then a neighboring family could share it. Any portion remaining was to be burned the next morning. Each was to eat in haste with loins girded, shoes on the feet, and staff in hand.
Later Observance
After the establishment of the priesthood and tabernacle, the celebration of the Passover differed in some particulars from the Egyptian Passover: (a) the Passover lamb was to be slain at the sanctuary rather than at home (Deut. 16:5–6); (b) the blood was sprinkled on the altar instead of on the doorposts; (c) besides the family sacrifice for the Passover meal, there were public and national sacrifices offered each of the seven days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Num. 28:16–24); (d) the meaning of the Passover was recited at the feast each year (Exod. 12:24–27); (e) the singing of the Hallel (Pss. 113–118) during the meal was instituted; and (f) a second Passover on the fourteenth day of the second month was to be kept by those who were ceremonially unclean or away on a journey at the time of its regular celebration on 14 Nisan (Num. 9:9–12).
The Passover was one of the three feasts in which all males were required to come to the sanctuary. They were not to appear empty-handed, but were to bring offerings as the Lord had prospered them (Exod. 23:14–17; Deut. 16:16–17). It was unlawful to eat leavened food after midday of 14 Nisan, and all labor, with few exceptions, ceased. According to Josephus (Wars vi. 9.3), each lamb was to serve ten to twenty persons, no ceremonially unclean men or women being admitted to the feast. After appropriate blessings a first cup of wine was served, followed by the eating of a portion of the bitter herbs. Before the lamb and unleavened bread were eaten, a second cup of wine was provided at which time the son, in compliance with Exodus 12:26, asked the father the meaning and significance of the Passover Feast. An account of the Egyptian bondage and deliverance was recited in reply. The first portion of the Hallel (Pss. 113–114) was then sung and the paschal supper was eaten, followed by third and fourth cups of wine and the second part of the Hallel (Pss. 115–118).
Feast of Unleavened Bread
Both the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which immediately followed, commemorated the Exodus, the former in remembrance of God’s “passing over” the Israelites when he slew the firstborn of Egypt and the latter to keep alive the memory of their affliction and God’s bringing them out in haste from Egypt (“bread of affliction,” Deut. 16:3). The first and last days of this feast were Sabbaths in which no servile work could be done, except the necessary preparation of food. The Passover season also marked the beginning of the grain harvest in Palestine. On the second day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (15 Nisan), a sheaf of the firstfruits of the barley harvest was presented as a wave offering (Lev. 23:9–11). The ceremony came to be called “the omer ceremony” from the Hebrew word for sheaf, ‘omer.