Exodus 12:24














The Passover was an eminent type of Christ. It was probably to it the Baptist referred when he said, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John L 29). Paul gives a decisive utterance on the question in the words: "Christ our passover is sacrificed for us" (1 Corinthians 5:7).

I. POINTS OF ANALOGY BETWEEN THE TRUE PASSOVER AND ITS TYPE.

1. In both the death of a blameless victim. The lamb, physically blameless (ver. 5); Christ, morally faultless. A sinful world needs a sinless Saviour. It has one in Christ. The sinlessness of Christ, a moral miracle. Proofs of this sinlessness.

(1) Christ asserts his own freedom from sin (John 8:29-46; John 14:30).

(2) In no part of his conduct does he betray the least consciousness of guilt. Yet it is admitted that Jesus possessed the finest moral insight of any man who has ever lived.

(3) His apostles, one and all, believed him to be sinless (2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; 1 Peter 2:22; 1 John 3:5).

(4) His enemies could find no fault in him (Matthew 26:60; Matthew 27:23, 24).

(5) The very traitor confessed the innocence of Christ (Matthew 27:4).

(6) The delineation of his character in the gospels bears out the averment of his moral blamelessness.

(7) The captious efforts which have been made, by fixing on a few paltry points in the gospel narratives to impeach Christ's sinlessness, indirectly prove it. "As if sin could ever need to be made out against a real sinner in this small way of special pleading; or as if it were ever the way of sin to err in single particles, or homoeopathic quantities of wrong' (Bushnell).

2. In both, the design is to secure redemption from a dreadful evil. In the one case, from the wrath of God revealed against Egypt in the smiting of its first-born. In the other, from the yet more terrible wrath of God revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men (Romans 1:18). "Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come" (1 Thessalonians 1:10). "Saved from wrath through him" (Romans 5:9).

3. In both, the principle of the deliverance is that of vicarious sacrifice. The lamb was substituted for the first-born. It protected the house, on whose door-posts the blood was sprinkled, from the stroke of the avenger. The substitutionary character of the death of Christ is, in like manner, affirmed in innumerable Scriptures. Jesus "died for the ungodly" (Romans 5:6). He "suffered for sins, the just for the unjust" (1 Peter 3:18). He gave "his life a ransom for many ' (Matthew 19:28). His blood is a propitiation (Romans 3:25). There is just ground for the remark of Coleridge (we quote from memory) that a man who would deal with the language of his father's will, as Unitarians on this and other points do with the language of the New Testament, would be liable to an action at law.

4. In both, there was need for an act of personal, appropriating faith. "The people bowed the head, and worshipped. And the children of Israel went away, and did as the Lord had commanded "(vers. 27, 28). "Through faith (they) kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood," etc. (Hebrews 11:28). Their faith showed itself in sprinkling the blood on their door-posts and lintels, and in sheltering themselves under it. Nothing short of this would have availed to save them. So it is not knowledge about Christ, but faith in him; personal application to his blood, and trust in it as the means of salvation, which secures our safety. Faith is the bunch of hyssop.

5. In both, the slain lamb becomes the food of the new life. There was, on the part of the Israelites, a sacrificial feast upon the flesh of the lamb. This denoted, indeed, peace and fellowship with God, but it was also an act of nourishment. Similarly, under the Gospel, the new life is nourished by feeding upon Christ. We make him ours by inward appropriation and assimilation, and so are spiritually nourished for all holy service (cf. John 6.). Minor typical features might be insisted upon (male of the first year, roast with fire, not a bone broken, unleavened bread, bitter herbs of contrition, etc.), but the above are the broad and outstanding ones.

II. THE SURPASSING EXCELLENCE OF THE TRUE PASSOVER. It belongs to the nature of a type that it should be surpassed by the antitype. The type is taken from a lower sphere than the thing which it represents. So completely, in the case of the passover, does the reality rise above the type, that when we begin to reflect on it the sense of likeness is all but swallowed up in the sense of disproportion. How great,

1. The contrast in the redemptions. The redemption from Egypt, though spiritual elements were involved in it, was primarily a redemption from the power of Pharaoh, and from a temporal judgment about to fall on Egypt. Underlying it, there was the need for a yet greater redemption - a redemption from the curse of a broken law, and from the tyranny of sin and Satan; from death spiritual, temporal, and eternal. It is this higher redemption which Christ has achieved, altering, through his death, the whole relation of God to man, and of (believing)man to God.

2. The contrast in the victims. That, an irrational lamb; this, the Eternal Son of God in human nature, the Lord's own Christ.

3. The contrast in the efficacy of the blood. The blood of the passover lamb had no inherent virtue to take away sin. Whatever virtue it possessed arose from God's appointment, or from its typical relation to the sacrifice of Christ. Its imperfection as a sacrifice was seen

(1) In the multitude of the victims.

(2) In the repetition of the service (Hebrews 10:1-3).

But what the flowing of the blood of millions of lambs, year by year slain in atonement for sin could not achieve, Christ has achieved once for all by the offering up of his holy body and soul. The dignity of his person, the greatness of his love, his holy will, the spirit of perfect self-sacrifice in which he, himself sinless, offered himself up to bear the curse of sin for the unholy, confers upon his oblation an exhaustless meritoriousness. Its worth and sufficiency are infinite (Hebrews 10:10-15; 1 Peter 1:19; 1 John 2:2).

4. The contrast in the specific blessings obtained. The difference in these springs from the contrast in the redemptions. Israel obtained

(1) Escape from judgment.

(2) Outward liberty.

(3) Guidance, care, and instruction in the desert.

(4) Ultimately, an earthly inheritance.

We receive, through Christ,

(1) Pardon of all sins.

(2) A complete justifying righteousness, carrying with it the title to eternal life.

(3) Renewal and sanctification by the Spirit.

(4) Every needed temporal and spiritual blessing in life.

(5) Heaven at the close, with triumph over death, the hope of a resurrection, and of final perfecting in glory. - J.O.

Ye shall keep this service.
I. IN THIS INCIDENT WE HAVE A CLEAR RECOGNITION OF THE PRINCIPLE OF VICARIOUS SUFFERING. It is seen in the birth of the infant, in the history of the family circle, in the events of everyday life, but supremely in the Cross of Christ. In the Cross of Christ it is seen in its highest embodiment, in its truest meaning, and in its most glorious possibility. There is the innocent dying for the guilty, the God-man suffering for the race.

II. IN THIS INCIDENT WE HAVE A CLEAR RECOGNITION OF THE NEED OF FALLING IN WITH ALL THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE GREAT SCHEME OF SALVATION. The method whereby the Israelites were to be protected from the stroke of the Destroying Angel was Divinely originated, clearly revealed, and imperative in requirement. The sinner must be saved in God's way, and not after his own. He may reason about the peculiarity of the method of salvation; be may think that other means will be more effective to the end desired; but if he at last is found out of the Divine way of safety, he will inevitably be lost. The blood of Christ sprinkled on the heart is the only sign the Destroying Angel will recognize and regard as the token of safety.

III. IN THIS INCIDENT WE HAVE A CLEAR RECOGNITION OF THE FACT THAT THE DIVINE METHOD OF SALVATION WILL AVERT THE MOST AWFUL PERIL. The trustful soul shall not be hurt by the second death.

IV. IN THIS INCIDENT WE HAVE A CLEAR RECOGNITION OF THE FACT THAT THE EFFICACY OF THE DIVINE METHOD OF SALVATION SHOULD BE ASSOCIATED WITH PUBLIC RELIGIOUS ORDINANCES (ver. 24).

V. IN THIS INCIDENT WE HAVE A CLEAR RECOGNITION OF THE FACT THAT THE GOOD SHOULD BE ABLE TO GIVE AN INTELLIGENT EXPLANATION OF THEIR MORAL SAFETY (ver. 27).

(J. S. Exell, M. A.)

I. IT IS NECESSARY IN ORDER TO THE TRUE PERFORMANCE OF RELIGIOUS SERVICE AND WORSHIP.

II. IT IS NECESSARY IN ORDER TO THE TRUE PERFORMANCE OF PARENTAL DUTY AND INSTRUCTION.

III. IT IS NECESSARY IN ORDER TO REFUTE AND SILENCE THE SCEPTICAL REASONINGS OF MEN.

(J. S. Exell, M. A.)

I. THE IMPORTANCE ATTACHED TO THE BLOOD OF SACRIFICE is here made very plain.

1. It became and remained the national mark.

2. It was also the saving token.

3. It was rendered as conspicuous as possible.

4. It was made very dear to the people themselves by the fact that they trusted in it in the most implicit manner.

5. The paschal bloodshedding was to be had in perpetual remembrance.

6. This sprinkling of the blood was to be an all-pervading memory.

II. THE INSTITUTION THAT WAS CONNECTED WITH THE REMEMBRANCE OF THE PASSOVER. Inquiry should be excited respecting spiritual things in the minds of children. The doctrine of the expiatory sacrifice is a gospel for the youngest.

( C. H. Spurgeon.)

It is well to explain to children the ordinance of the Lord's Supper, for this shows forth the death of Christ in symbol. I regret that children do not oftener see this ordinance. Baptism and the Lord's Supper should both be placed in view of the rising generation, that they may then ask us, "What mean ye by this?" Now, the Lord's Supper is a perennial gospel sermon, and it turns mainly upon the sacrifice for sin. You may banish the doctrine of the Atonement from the pulpit, but it will always live in the Church through the Lord's Supper. You cannot explain that broken bread and that cup filled with the fruit of the vine, without reference to the Lord's atoning death. You cannot explain "the communion of the body of Christ" without bringing in, in some form or other, the death of Jesus in our place and stead. Let your little ones, then, see the Lord's Supper, and let them be told most clearly what it sets forth. Tell them who it was that suffered, and why. And when attention is excited upon the best of themes, let us be ready to explain the great transaction by which God is just, and yet sinners are justified. Children can well understand the doctrine of the expiatory sacrifice; it was meant to be a gospel for the youngest. The gospel of substitution is a simplicity, though it is a mystery. We ought not to be content until our little ones know and trust in their finished Sacrifice. This is essential knowledge, and the key to all other spiritual teaching. With all their gettings may they get an understanding of this, and they will have the foundation rightly laid. This will necessitate your teaching the child his need of a Saviour. You must not hold back from this needful task. Do not flatter the child with delusive rubbish about his nature being good and needing to be developed. Tell him he must be born again. Don't bolster him up with the fancy of his own innocence, but show him his sin. Mention the childish sins to which he is prone, and pray the Holy Spirit to work conviction in his heart and conscience.

(J. S. Exell, M. A.)

People
Aaron, Egyptians, Israelites, Moses, Pharaoh
Places
Egypt, Rameses, Succoth
Topics
Age, Descendants, Event, Forever, Instructions, Lasting, Observe, Observed, Order, Ordinance, Rite, Sons, Statute
Outline
1. The beginning of the year is changed
3. The Passover is instituted
11. The import of the rite of the Passover
15. Unleavened bread
29. The firstborn are slain
31. The Israelites are driven out of the land
37. They come to Succoth
41. The time of their sojourning
43. The ordinance of the Passover

Dictionary of Bible Themes
Exodus 12:24

     7404   ordinances

Exodus 12:21-25

     4470   hyssop

Exodus 12:21-28

     7719   elders, as leaders

Exodus 12:23-28

     7222   exodus, events of

Exodus 12:24-27

     5302   education
     8315   orthodoxy, in OT

Library
The Passover: an Expiation and a Feast, a Memorial and a Prophecy
'And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2. This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you. 3. Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house: 4. And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Exodus
The land of Egypt is a picture of the house of bondage into which all God's covenant people will, sooner or later, be brought on account of their sin. All those whom God means to give an inheritance in Canaan, he will first take down into Egypt. Even Jesus Christ himself went into Egypt before he appeared publicly as a teacher before the world, that in his instance, as well as in that of every Christian, the prophecy might be fulfilled--"Out of Egypt have I called my Son." Every one who enjoys the
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 2: 1856

A Question for Communicants
"What mean ye by this service?"--Exodus 12:26. IN A SPIRITUAL religion, everything must be understood. That which is not spiritual, but ritualistic, contents itself with the outward form. Under the Jewish dispensation, there was a very strong tendency in that direction; but it was kept to some extent in check. Under the Christian faith, this tendency must not be tolerated at all. We must know the meaning of what we do; otherwise we are not profited. We do not believe in the faith of the man who was
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 38: 1892

The Blood
Now, at the time of which this Book of Exodus speaks, Egypt was exposed to a terrible peril. Jehovah himself was about to march through the streets of all the cities of Egypt. It was not merely a destroying angel, but Jehovah himself; for thus it is written, "I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast." No one less than I AM, the great God, had vowed to "cut Rahab" with the sword of vengeance. Tremble, ye inhabitants
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 5: 1859

The Birthnight of Freedom
(Easter Day.) Exodus xii. 42. This is a night to be much observed unto the Lord, for bringing the children of Israel out of Egypt. To be much observed unto the Lord by the children of Israel. And by us, too, my friends; and by all nations who call themselves FREE. There are many and good ways of looking at Easter Day. Let us look at it in this way for once. It is the day on which God himself set men FREE. Consider the story. These Israelites, the children of Abraham, the brave, wild patriarch
Charles Kingsley—The Gospel of the Pentateuch

Of the Practice of Piety in Holy Feasting.
Holy feasting is a solemn thanksgiving, appointed by authority, to be rendered to God on some special day, for some extraordinary blessings or deliverances received. Such among the Jews was the feast of the Passover (Exod. xii. 15), to remember to praise God for their deliverance out of Egypt's bondage; or the feast of Purim (Esth. ix. 19, 21), to give thanks for their deliverance from Haman's conspiracy. Such amongst us is the fifth of November, to praise God for the deliverance of the king and
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

Of Preparation.
That a Christian ought necessarily to prepare himself before he presume to be a partaker of the holy communion, may evidently appear by five reasons:-- First, Because it is God's commandment; for if he commanded, under the pain of death, that none uncircumcised should eat the paschal lamb (Exod. xii. 48), nor any circumcised under four days preparation, how much greater preparation does he require of him that comes to receive the sacrament of his body and blood? which, as it succeeds, so doth it
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

The Reaction against Egypt
THE XIth DYNASTY: HARMHABI--THE HITTITE EMPIRE IN SYRIA AND IN ASIA MINOR--SETI I. AND RAMSES II.--THE PEOPLE OF THE SEA: MINEPHTAH AND THE ISRAELITE EXODUS. The birth and antecedents of Harmhabi, his youth, his enthronement--The final triumph of Amon and his priests--Harmhabi infuses order into the government: his wars against the Ethiopians and Asiatics--The Khati, their civilization, religion; their political and military constitution; the extension of their empire towards the north--The countries
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 5

The Typical Significance of the Scriptures Declare their Divine Authorship
"In the volume of the Book it is written of Me" (Heb. 10:7). Christ is the Key to the Scriptures. Said He, "Search the Scriptures..they are they which testify of Me." (John 5:39), and the "Scriptures" to which He had reference, were not the four Gospels for they were not then written, but the writings of Moses and the prophets. The Old Testament Scriptures then are something more than a compilation of historical records, something more than a system of social and religious legislation, something
Arthur W. Pink—The Divine Inspiration of the Bible

Preparation for Passover. Disciples Contend for Precedence.
(Bethany to Jerusalem. Thursday Afternoon and, After Sunset, Beginning of Friday.) ^A Matt. XXVI. 17-20; ^B Mark XIV. 12-17; ^C Luke XXII. 7-18, 24-30. ^c 7 And the day of unleavened bread came, on which the passover must be sacrificed. [See p. 57. Leaven was to the Jew a symbol of corruption and impurity, because it causes bread to become stale. The feast of unleavened bread began properly on the fifteenth of Nisan, and lasted seven days, but this was the fourteenth Nisan, the day on which the paschal
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Bread and Wine
"And as they were eating, He took bread, and when He had blessed, He brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take ye: this is My body. And He took a cup, and when He had given thanks, He gave to them: and they all drank of it. And He said unto them, This is My blood of the covenant, which is shed for many. Verily I say unto you, I will no more drink of the fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God." MARK 14:22-25 (R.V.) HOW much does the Gospel of St. Mark tell us
G. A. Chadwick—The Gospel of St. Mark

Appendix xii. The Baptism of Proselytes
ONLY those who have made study of it can have any idea how large, and sometimes bewildering, is the literature on the subject of Jewish Proselytes and their Baptism. Our present remarks will be confined to the Baptism of Proselytes. 1. Generally, as regards proselytes (Gerim) we have to distinguish between the Ger ha-Shaar (proselyte of the gate) and Ger Toshabh (sojourner,' settled among Israel), and again the Ger hatstsedeq (proselyte of righteousness) and Ger habberith (proselyte of the covenant).
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

The Johannine Writings
BY the Johannine writings are meant the Apocalypse and the fourth gospel, as well as the three catholic epistles to which the name of John is traditionally attached. It is not possible to enter here into a review of the critical questions connected with them, and especially into the question of their authorship. The most recent criticism, while it seems to bring the traditional authorship into greater uncertainty, approaches more nearly than was once common to the position of tradition in another
James Denney—The Death of Christ

Circumcision, Temple Service, and Naming of Jesus.
(the Temple at Jerusalem, b.c. 4) ^C Luke II. 21-39. ^c 21 And when eight days [Gen. xvii. 12] were fulfilled for circumcising him [The rite was doubtless performed by Joseph. By this rite Jesus was "made like unto his brethren" (Heb. ii. 16, 17); that is, he became a member of the covenant nation, and became a debtor to the law--Gal. v. 3] , his name was called JESUS [see Luke i. 59], which was so called by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. [Luke i. 31.] 22 And when the days of their
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Opposition to Messiah in Vain
He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall have them in derision. T he extent and efficacy [effects] of the depravity of mankind cannot be fully estimated by the conduct of heathens destitute of divine revelation. We may say of the Gospel, in one sense, what the Apostle says of the Law, It entered that sin might abound (Romans 5:20) . It afforded occasion for displaying the alienation of the heart of man from the blessed God, in the strongest light. The sensuality, oppression and
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 2

Sundry Exhortations.
HEBREWS xiii. Let love of the brethren continue. Forget not to shew love unto strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; them that are evil entreated, as being yourselves also in the body. Let marriage be had in honour among all, and let the bed be undefiled: for fornicators and adulterers God will judge. Be ye free from the love of money; content with such things as ye have: for Himself hath said, I will in no wise fail thee,
Thomas Charles Edwards—The Expositor's Bible: The Epistle to the Hebrews

Peaceable Principles and True: Or, a Brief Answer to Mr. D'Anver's and Mr. Paul's Books against My Confession of Faith, and Differences in Judgment About Baptism no Bar to Communion.
WHEREIN THEIR SCRIPTURELESS NOTIONS ARE OVERTHROWN, AND MY PEACEABLE PRINCIPLES STILL MAINTAINED. 'Do ye indeed speak righteousness, O congregation? do ye judge uprightly, O ye sons of men?'--Psalm 58:1 SIR, I have received and considered your short reply to my differences in judgment about water baptism no bar to communion; and observe, that you touch not the argument at all: but rather labour what you can, and beyond what you ought, to throw odiums upon your brother for reproving you for your error,
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Solomon's Temple Spiritualized
or, Gospel Light Fetched out of the Temple at Jerusalem, to Let us More Easily into the Glory of New Testament Truths. 'Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Isreal;--shew them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the goings out hereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof.'--Ezekiel 43:10, 11 London: Printed for, and sold by George Larkin, at the Two Swans without Bishopgate,
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners:
A BRIEF AND FAITHFUL RELATION OF THE EXCEEDING MERCY OF GOD IN CHRIST TO HIS POOR SERVANT, JOHN BUNYAN; WHEREIN IS PARTICULARLY SHOWED THE MANNER OF HIS CONVERSION, HIS SIGHT AND TROUBLE FOR SIN, HIS DREADFUL TEMPTATIONS, ALSO HOW HE DESPAIRED OF GOD'S MERCY, AND HOW THE LORD AT LENGTH THROUGH CHRIST DID DELIVER HIM FROM ALL THE GUILT AND TERROR THAT LAY UPON HIM. Whereunto is added a brief relation of his call to the work of the ministry, of his temptations therein, as also what he hath met with
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Jesus Living at Nazareth and visiting Jerusalem in his Twelfth Year.
(Nazareth and Jerusalem, a.d. 7 or 8.) ^C Luke II. 40-52. ^c 40 And the child grew [This verse contains the history of thirty years. It describes the growth of our Lord as a natural, human growth (compare Luke i. 80); for, though Jesus was truly divine, he was also perfectly man. To try to distinguish between the divine and human in Jesus, is to waste time upon an impracticable mystery which is too subtle for our dull and finite minds], and waxed strong [His life expanded like other human lives.
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Prophet Amos.
GENERAL PRELIMINARY REMARKS. It will not be necessary to extend our preliminary remarks on the prophet Amos, since on the main point--viz., the circumstances under which he appeared as a prophet--the introduction to the prophecies of Hosea may be regarded as having been written for those of Amos also. For, according to the inscription, they belong to the same period at which Hosea's prophetic ministry began, viz., the latter part of the reign of Jeroboam II., and after Uzziah had ascended the
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

The Scriptures
Q-II: WHAT RULE HAS GOD GIVEN TO DIRECT US HOW WE MAY GLORIFY AND ENJOY HIM? A: The Word of God, which is contained in the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him. 2 Tim 3:16. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God,' By Scripture is understood the sacred Book of God. It is given by divine inspiration; that is, the Scripture is not the contrivance of man's brain, but is divine in its origin. The image of Diana was had in veneration
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

Jesus, My Rock.
When the storm and the tempest are raging around me, Oh! where shall I flee to be safe from their shock? There are walls which no mortal hands built to surround me, A Refuge Eternal,--'Tis JESUS MY ROCK! When my heart is all sorrow, and trials aggrieve me, To whom can I safely my secrets unlock? No bosom (save one) has the power to relieve me, The bosom which bled for me, JESUS MY ROCK! When Life's gloomy curtain, at last, shall close o'er me, And the chill hand of death unexpectedly knock, I will
John Ross Macduff—The Cities of Refuge: or, The Name of Jesus

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