How does Luke 22:13 connect with Old Testament Passover preparations? Setting the Scene in Luke 22:13 “ So they went and found it just as Jesus had told them. And they prepared the Passover.” Snapshot of Old Testament Passover Preparations Exodus gives a clear checklist for every Israelite household: • Select an unblemished male lamb on the tenth day of the month (Exodus 12:3, 5). • Keep the lamb until twilight of the fourteenth; then kill it (Exodus 12:6). • Apply the lamb’s blood to the doorposts and lintel (Exodus 12:7). • Roast the lamb whole, eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs (Exodus 12:8-9). • Consume it in haste, dressed for departure (Exodus 12:11). • Remove all leaven from the house for seven days (Exodus 12:15). • Passover becomes a lasting ordinance, repeated annually (Exodus 12:14, 24-27; Deuteronomy 16:1-8). Parallel Actions: Then and Now • Finding things “just as Jesus had told them” mirrors Israel finding God’s instructions exactly as spoken through Moses (Exodus 12:28). • Peter and John function like heads of a household, securing a place, a lamb, and unleavened bread—echoing each Israelite father’s duty in Exodus 12:3. • Timing is the same: twilight of Nisan 14 (Luke 22:7; Exodus 12:6). • Leaven would have been cleared from the upper room, following Exodus 12:15. • The lamb purchased in Jerusalem would be inspected for blemishes, paralleling Exodus 12:5. • Roasting, not boiling, was mandated then (Exodus 12:8-9) and would still be observed in first-century practice. Deeper Theological Echoes • Jesus, the true “Lamb of God” (John 1:29; 1 Corinthians 5:7), is about to fulfill what every slain lamb symbolized. • Just as the blood on the doorposts shielded Israel’s firstborn, Christ’s blood secures ultimate deliverance from judgment (Romans 5:9; Hebrews 9:12-14). • The disciples’ obedience in preparation prefigures the obedience Christ will show on the cross—both moving under divine timetable (Acts 2:23). • Removal of leaven, a picture of cleansing from sin (1 Corinthians 5:6-8), anticipates the cleansing Christ’s sacrifice provides. Practical Takeaways for Today • God’s Word proves reliable; what He says happens “just as” He says (Joshua 21:45). • Preparation matters: intentional obedience positions us to experience God’s redemptive work. • Every Passover detail points to Jesus; studying Exodus deepens our grasp of the Gospel narratives. • The continuity between Testaments assures believers that Scripture forms one unfolding, coherent story of redemption. |
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